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I was critical of the social networking site Twitter for a long time—how could anyone get all the information they need in just 140 characters or less? But then I signed up for an account—and now I’m addicted. It’s a fast and easy way to get news and updates from your favorite people or organizations you support. The American Humanist Association is very active on Twitter, where we post news and activities that aren’t often included on our Facebook page or even Humanist Network News.
So if you don’t have a Twitter account yet, consider signing up right now and be sure to follow the American Humanist Association (@americnhumanist), our many programs (@LGBTHumanists, @HumanistLegal, @HumanistInst), and AHA leaders (@rspeckhardt, @ahadave, @MaggieArdiente, @BrianMageeAHA) for the latest updates in the humanist movement. And we’ll try to keep posts about what we ate that day to a minimum.
Maggie Ardiente
Editor, HNN
What’s happening in this picture? (For context, this is a picture of AHA executive director Roy Speckhardt speaking to the Humanist Society of New Mexico on January 28.)
Submit your idea for a caption for this photo and receive a special prize—a random book from the American Humanist Association’s library in Washington DC! Think of it as the humanist version of Woot.com’s Random Bag of Crap. It’s random. It’s mysterious. Who knows which book it will be?
Submit your entry to hnn@americanhumanist.org or leave a comment below.
Contest ends at 12:00pm ET on Tuesday, February 7. The winner will be notified shortly after.
Don’t miss a fun-filled conference in New Orleans with your fellow humanists! Register for the AHA 71st Annual Conference, taking place June 7-10.
The American Humanist Association is pleased to sponsor its 2012 International Darwin Day premiere event, “Darwin on the Palouse,” to take place in Moscow, Idaho, and Pullman, Washington, in celebration of Darwin Day in 2012. The event, organized by the Palouse Coalition of Reason (Palouse CoR), will host leading atheists and evolutionary thinkers PZ Myers, Daniel Dennett, Jen McCreight and Fred Edwords.
Daniel Dennett and PZ Myers will speak in the Cub Senior Ballroom at Washington State University in Pullman on February 9, starting at 7:00 PM. Fred Edwords and Jennifer McCreight will speak in the Clearwater Room at the University of Idaho in Moscow on February 10, starting at 6:00 PM. Both events are free and open to the public. Additional details can be found at www.DarwinOnThePalouse.org.
These events are being promoted with a media campaign that includes billboards, radio spots and newspaper ads in outlets across the region. Members of the Palouse Coalition of Reason are also putting up posters and engaging in other efforts to increase awareness. The two billboards announcing the events are in Moscow on the west side of Highway 95 southbound, just north of Sweet Avenue, and in Pullman on the south side of Highway 270 eastbound, just west of Airport Road. Both are illuminated at night.
“We have teamed up with the new Palouse Coalition of Reason to bring four of the nation’s preeminent speakers on science and philosophy to middle America,” said Roy Speckhardt, executive director of the American Humanist Association. “We also wish to mark the 203rd birthday of Charles Darwin in a big way, celebrating his continuing contribution to humanity, science and rational thought.”
"The point of this ongoing nationwide awareness campaign is to reach out to the millions of atheists and agnostics living in the United States," explained Tyler Palmer, Humanists of the Palouse president. "Such non-theists sometimes don't realize there's a community for them because they're inundated with religious messages at every turn. We hope our effort will serve as a beacon and let them know they aren't alone."
The four speakers are as follows:
Daniel Dennett is a philosopher, author of “Darwin’s Dangerous Idea” and the 2004 Humanist of the Year of the American Humanist Association. He is among the world’s most popular atheist speakers, being one of the “Four Horsemen,” along with Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and the late Christopher Hitchens. He is co-director of the Center for Cognitive Studies at Tufts University.
PZ Myers is an internationally popular blogger through his blog “Pharyngula” and the 2009 American Humanist Association's Humanist of the Year. As an outspoken atheist he has traveled the world speaking to packed auditoriums, often countering the arguments of creationists. He is a University of Minnesota Morris biologist. Myers was also recipient of the 2011 International Humanist Award.
Fred Edwords is an internationally known humanist leader and debater of creationists. He has served as editor of the “Humanist” magazine and president of Camp Quest and is currently national director of the United Coalition of Reason and national director of the International Darwin Day Foundation.
Jen McCreight, the author of the blog “Blag Hag,” made an international name for herself in 2010 with Boobquake, a movement that went viral when she asked women all around the world to expose as much cleavage as they dared to counter the claim of some Muslim clerics that scantily clad women caused earthquakes. She has become a public voice for science and reason.
The Palouse Coalition of Reason (PalouseCoR.org) is made up of atheist, freethought and humanist groups working together in the Pullman, Washington, and Moscow, Idaho area. The twin goals of the coalition are to foster a sense of community among the like-minded and raise public awareness that people who don't believe in a god or gods can be decent citizens who contribute to the larger society.
By Elizabeth Murad
I was born and raised in North Bergen, New Jersey, in 1939, the eldest of six children. My dad was a CPA, my mom an at-home multi-tasker. Our family was devoutly religious, but not painfully so. Mass on Sunday and mac and cheese on Friday were as natural as any weekly events. We moved to Hasbrouck Heights in 1950, and I started 7th grade in a new school. It was rather a culture shock; the kids there were a lot more mature; boy-girl relationships seemed to be the main focus of attention, and I felt in over my head.
It was during this period that I began to think about being a nun. I became very absorbed with religion; I wrote about religious topics for almost every assignment. Even my science papers were about reconciling evolution and genesis-- much to the dismay of the sisters. This continued into high school when I was forbidden to even say the word "evolution."
No one knew of my hopes to become a nun. When I finally told my parents, they were pleased with my choice of vocation but wanted me to wait till I had a college or at least a high school education. Our parish priest convinced them that if I "lost" my vocation because I waited to follow God's call, we'd all go to hell. So, off I went, at age 15, to what was called the "juniorate" to begin my religious life.
Talk about culture shock! Here we were, 30 to 40 girls, ages 14 to 18, living, dressing, working, schooling together. At that period, we should have been learning to dress, to use make-up, to carry purses, to notice boys, to become women. Our instincts had to be smothered or redirected. We wore identical uniforms, were make-up free, and we were to focus our attention on God and Jesus and how to please them. (The way to do so was to please our superiors.) Probably the most difficult adjustment for me was the absence of any signs of affection. At home, we kissed and hugged at every hello and goodbye, at every good morning and good night. Here, there was "untouchability"; one was not allowed to show any physical signs of affection. We were to be "Brides of Christ," and all our love was to be directed heavenwards.
All was not misery; we had a wonderful choir/choral group; I sang 2nd soprano. We performed at mass and other religious ceremonies, but we also gave concerts for the public. One of my classmates was a gifted musician and wrote a series of songs that were professionally recorded. (I wrote one of the songs and still have the record!)
In August of 1957, I was accepted into the convent proper. The stages of "nundom" are as follows: novitiate, which consists of one year each of postulancy (the first stage), noviceship, and first professed. Then there are five years of annual renewal of vows followed by a second novitiate of one summer, and then final or perpetual vows. The nun who trained us was called "Mother Mistress."
All through the juniorate, we were tantalized by the hint of "secrets" of convent life. Now we were going to learn some of these secrets! There was "Grand Silence" from 1pm to 2pm and after 9pm till morning. Only in extreme emergencies were we allowed to say a word. Silence was a virtue; it gave us the opportunity to think about God. Most of our meals were consumed in silence. As we progressed through the three years, we learned more and more secrets. When one made a request, one knelt in front of mother mistress, kissed the floor and said "Benedicite mother mistress, may I…”
No secret was made as to the purpose of our training; it was to break us down and rebuild us into humble, pure, and obedient nuns. And it was done with our complete and wholehearted compliance. During that first year, we began our courses to get our B.A. in elementary education.
In the second year, we were given the habit and a white veil and a new name. This last was symbolic of "dying to the world." My name was now Sister Mary Concordia. We were now strictly cloistered (separated) not only from the world, but from the rest of the convent. We continued our education, but took all the theology and philosophy courses. And learned more secrets!
You must understand that, in order to be as perfect as possible, it is vital to learn mortification of the senses. There were numerous ways to do this. There was "custody of the eyes”—keeping one's eyes cast down so as not to see the world, closing one’s ears so as not to hear it, fasting to control one’s appetite, folding one’s hands under the scapular so as not to touch or be touched. (Funny, there was nothing taught about our noses!)
And then there was the big one—The Discipline. Every Friday evening, we retired to our cells (cubicles) for this ceremony. We had been given small metal whips to mortify our flesh. We threw our habits over our heads and whipped ourselves. We had been told not to do it hard enough to draw blood, just enough to hurt. Another practice was called Chapter of Faults. On Thursday afternoons in the novitiate, we gathered in the community room with Mother Mistress. We'd kneel, place our ropes around our necks, and openly confess our faults. If we forgot one, Mother would remind us! Again there was floor kissing, or at least bending to the floor and kissing our crucifix.
It was during this year that I experienced one of the deepest, most painful lessons of my life. We had heard from the beginning of our juniorate that we must avoid, at all costs, "particular friendships.” It seemed to me that that meant having a best friend. But I realized during this year that it must have meant more. So, during a weekly session with Mother Mistress, I asked her what it meant. She explained that it meant loving another woman as one would love a man. I was shocked; this idea had never entered my mind. I exclaimed, "Oh Mother, I'd never want something like that!" She replied, "Don’t worry; no one could ever love you that much!"
That moment was seared into the very fabric of my being—the sights, the sounds, the scents, the tactile sensations. Time stood still for a brief eternity. At that moment, I realized that I was totally unlovable and that my only hope for happiness was to be a very, very good nun, totally dedicated to God. I actually saw her words as valuable to me, helping me to achieve holiness. There is a theological truth that the more we suffer on earth, the greater will be our reward in heaven. So this misery was a blessing in disguise.
At the end of that year, we made our first vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. We continued our education, again focusing on religious matters, but also took some basic educational courses in teaching principles. After we renewed our vows, we were sent to various parish schools to teach. We would take one or two courses at night to further our education. When we returned to the Motherhouse for the summer, we would go to Seton Hall and take three to five more courses. It took me 13 years to get my B.A. degree!
Finally, it was time to make our final vows. Although I was plagued with doubts, I was told that it was a test from God (or a temptation from the devil). It was called "the dark night of the soul.” I was told I had to "take the leap of faith." So, logic and reason be damned, I took that leap and made my final vows. I waited and waited for the burst of joy promised to me. It didn't happen.
Looking back, I realize I had been "infected" by an early form of humanism. With the advent of Vatican II, I felt that things would change for the better. There would be openness. But I had underestimated the power of entrenched beliefs. I finally realized that the god these nuns adored was a miserable construct of a puritanical mindset. I still believed in a god, but a much nicer one. Just as man had once conceived and made a god that embodied his most inhumane traits, I manufactured one that typified all the best of humanity.
In 1969, I finally had the courage to request a dispensation from my vows. The first response was to send me to a psychiatrist to see what was wrong with me. (That’s a story in itself!) Then, they sent me on a two-week retreat so I would come to my senses. I persisted in my requests. I had to write a letter to the pope, stating that I was weak and sinful and was not brave enough to continue to keep my vows, but at that point, I would have said anything.
The dispensation came through, and the Friday before Mother’s Day in 1970, I was free! I arrived home the next day, and my mother considered this a Mother’s Day gift. My family welcomed me home with great warmth and love. Lots of hugs and kisses. How I had missed all that affection!
I finished my last course and received my B.A. in elementary education. I then went on to Rutgers and got my degree in clinical social work. While there, the studies opened my eyes to logic and reason, and I no longer considered them to be temptations. I still believed in a deity; I checked out Judaism, Buddhism and a number of the newer forms of religion—nothing quite fit.
Neither did I find a satisfactory relationship. It appeared Mother Mistress was right; no one would love me. But I resolved to find a happy life for myself as a single person and I was well on my way to doing so. I moved to Miami Beach, where I was hired for a social work position at Goodwill Industries, and later fell in love with the psychologist who hired me after he left his post to open a private practice.
My life since then has been wonderful, even in the midst of desolation. My Jim died in 2005 after a long illness. Jim had introduced me to the ideals of humanism; it was emphasized in his Ph.D. studies at the Institute for Integral Studies in San Francisco. As he explained this to me, I realized I was already a humanist, too. Our first letterhead stationary read "Center for Humanistic Psychotherapy." We had often discussed our newly-found reasonable, logical and, for us, mind-blowing ideas. We were not aware of any local groups in our area; in retrospect, I doubt there were any. But we were content.
After his death, I longed to talk with someone about humanism and my feelings and beliefs about death, and my life again bloomed when I found two local groups: Treasure Coast Humanists and Atheists of the Treasure Coast.
So, I've come a long, long way. I now live with my best friend, Marann (also a humanist), our dogs, Jack and Azziza, and our cats, Romeo and Boots. I wear my humanist pin and chat about freethought. We started a humanist writing group. I'm a hospice volunteer and I emphasize that I am a humanist and especially interested in assisting non-theistic patients.
Life itself is my goal—to live as fully and freely and as long as possible. My mind has become a vast playground where I joyfully read, listen, ponder, speak and write. Unlike some brilliant theologian, my mind is not constricted by such bugaboos as faith and infallibility. There are no "do not trespass" signs. Every idea is grist for the mill of my mind.
Elizabeth Murad is a former Catholic nun who later liberated herself from the convent and all religious bonds. She was married to her husband, Jim, for 29 years, and now devotes herself to the study and practice of humanism in all forms.
Are you an ex-Christian Scientist, ex-Scientologist, ex-Pagan, ex-Pentecostalist, ex-Muslim, or otherwise ex-religious? Interested in writing about it for Humanist Network News? Write to us at hnn@americanhumanist.org.
By Brian Magee
Revealing details about how various segments of the U.S. population consider religion when it comes to voting, a panel put together by the Center for American Progress recently took up the topic “God and Politics: Examining Religion in the 2012 Election.”
One of the most revealing points—the steady drop in the percentage of white Protestants in America—was made by Robert Jones, CEO of the Public Religion Research Institute. Put at just over half of the population in the mid ‘70s, the number is now at 36 percent, according to Jones. In contrast, the percentage of black Protestants has remained stable during that time at around 10 percent. Proportionally the number of whites among the Catholic population has also fallen dramatically, going from a 10-to-1 ratio when compared to Latinos, to a 2-to-1 ratio in the time from 1991-2009.
These numbers are significant, Jones said, because white Catholics and white mainline Protestants make up most of the country’s swing voters. He also noted that the 16-18 percent of the electorate that identify as white mainline Protestants are drifting from mostly Republican voters to swing voters.
Sean Casey, professor of Christian ethics at Wesley Theological Seminary, told the audience that if President Obama loses the election, it may very well be because of religion. He said that among the factors that could make that a reality would be if Catholic bishops publicly come out against him and a high Republican turnout. But he also noted that neither party has been good at getting out the important swing voters.
When discussing the current Republican presidential primary, Mitt Romney’s Mormonism was revealed as a major issue by Jones, with 49 percent of white evangelical Protestants saying it is not a Christian religion and 47 percent of them saying they would be uncomfortable with a Mormon as president. “If you are a Muslim, Mormon or unaffiliated, you are in deep trouble when it comes to running for office [in America],” Casey said. When it comes to Muslims, Jones indicated that polls show about half say they can fit into American life, but 30 percent believe Muslims want to implement Sharia Law.
When it comes to President Obama, 18 percent of Americans still think he’s a Muslim (up from 12 percent when elected), 38 percent a Christian, and 40 percent don’t know. Jones also revealed that 58 percent of Americans think that “God gave America a special role in history,” 78 percent of those being Republicans.
Joanna Brooks, a columnist for Religion Dispatches, said that evangelicals are “all over the map” when it comes to voting preferences and that more analysis is needed. She also indicated that the country is becoming less Protestant in its overall makeup and Romney’s campaign for president is now plausible because of a long history of religious change in America. “What Romney is going through is more than a century in the making,” Brooks said. While most Mormons are happy Romney is a serious candidate, he and the Mormon church are in an odd configuration, Brooks told the audience, leaving a gap some people find troublesome in evaluating Romney as a candidate. “The church doesn’t want to talk about politics and Romney doesn’t want to talk about religion,” she claims.
There are two identically sized groups who see the Occupy Movement and the Tea Party has having similar values to their own, Jones indicated. A majority of all religious groups also said that things would be better if the distribution of wealth were more equal. Two-thirds of Americans say that separation of church and state is important, but two-thirds also say they want candidates with strong religious views.
One of the most fundamental changes is a shift away from behind-the-scenes candidate selection. Traditionally, party leaders have been the ones making the decisions that determine who ends up running for office, Jones said, adding that young evangelicals are not looking for that. “The days of the king maker are just gone,” he said.
Casey talked about the negative reaction some have to even asking the presidential candidates about religious issues. He suggested that if the candidate makes religion as part of their campaign, it is proper to ask religious questions. But he said it was wrong to assume that even evangelicals want religious questions asked without being invited by a candidate, saying evangelicals are diverse.
It was also noted by Casey that Obama has struggled reaching out to progressive Protestants, with Brooks adding that to many Obama “feels like one of the Nones,” a reference to those who chose ‘none’ when asked about their religious affiliation.
Jones said that Nones have tripled since the early ‘90s, but Casey said polling on them has not been very sophisticated, meaning that people may simply be more open to declaring no religious affiliation.
Brian Magee is the communications associate for the American Humanist Association.
Review by David Chivers
For those of us who love Kurt Vonnegut’s books, and the humanist persona that surrounds many of them, Charles Shields new biography "Kurt Vonnegut: A Life" is a bit of a jolt. The man Shields portrays does not necessarily live up to the philosophy of kindness and good feeling that permeates Vonnegut’s writing. However, it is nonetheless a solidly researched and written biography that gives due deference both to Mr. Vonnegut's life and his place in literature.
Born into an upper-middle-class Indianapolis family, Vonnegut had a somewhat privileged upbringing but significantly not as privileged as his older siblings, as the family fortunes began to slide as Kurt entered his teenage years. Still he has taste of popularity and success in high school and goes off to Cornell to pursue a career in science, although one he is not especially enthusiastic about. At college he finds his true calling seems in newspapers and writing which he pursues more enthusiastically than his academic studies. In fact, rather than fail chemistry courses he drops out of Cornell, and rather than wait to be drafted he enlists in the U.S. Army.
This, of course, leads to the defining event of his life, being taken as a prisoner of war and being held in a German prison camp at the time of the horrific bombing of Dresden, Germany in 1945. His actual experience of the direct bombing was shielded by being held prisoner in an underground (and therefore relatively safe) animal processing warehouse—“Slaughterhouse Five" as it was known. His real experience of the bombing was with its aftermath, being brought up from the slaughterhouse to see the destruction, and being assigned to work over the next days and weeks to teams that sifted through that destruction and pulled out the thousands of bodies, including men women and children, that were under it.
From this experience forward, Shields documents a life where Vonnegut tries to come to terms with this horrific experience both in his writing and in his personal life. It takes a long time for him to come to terms with in his writing. It was not until almost 25 years later that he was able to produce his masterpiece "Slaughterhouse Five, or The Children’s Crusade" that deals with the Dresden bombing. Shields does an excellent job of tracing Vonnegut’s attempts to deal with that piece of personal history, while also outlining his progression as a writer leading up to that publication.
As to his personal life, the biography leaves the reader with the question of whether Vonnegut ever successfully came to terms with what he saw at Dresden. While he was able in his writing to develop and present a humanistic, personal philosophy on how to live his life, the facts presented by Shields show he had a hard time applying this philosophy to his own life, although there is evidence that he increasingly tried.
Shields treatment of Vonnegut's humanistic religious views is somewhat cursory, and is often explained only in terms of loose references to his freethinking ancestors. The book would have benefited from a more concentrated chapter on this topic, not just for those of us in the humanistic community, but as a way of more fully exploring Vonnegut's own life journey and how he came to the views he expressed so well in many of his writings.
This is the first full-blown biography of Kurt Vonnegut, and Shields does a solid job of marshaling stories and resources and putting them all together in a readable fashion. But it leaves the reader wanting a little bit more in the way of context, a way to better understand Vonnegut and how his life played into his writing, more fully. But it is an excellent start at studying the life of this icon of literature and humanism.
David Chivers is former administrative judge and now practices law in Springfield, Massachusetts. He is a member of the Greater Worcester Humanists.
This week’s featured poem is by Houston. Houston is a wordsmith and a performer; a spoken word artist whose work covers comedy, drama, tragedy, storytelling, and political commentary. Houston was introduced to poetry slam in 2006, and by 2010 had made finals stage at the Individual World Poetry Slam, placing him among the top 12 performance poets in the world. In the time in between, he won individual recognition at the 2008 College Union Poetry Slam Invitational tournament, lead the Hendrix College team to win the Region 12 championship in 2009, and has been part of the Ozark Poetry Slam team for 2 years. He has toured across the country and has opened for a variety nationally known acts such as Saul Williams and Otep. He currently resides in Fayetteville, Arkansas. To see more of Houston’s poetry, visit www.reverbnation.com/PoetryByHouston.
If you’d like to contribute original poetry to Humanist Voices in Verse, write to hnn@americanhumanist.org with “Poetry” in the subject line. Please send no more than three poems for consideration per week.
I am not sure why I kissed you that night…
But I think it’s because I’d run out of options.
My mind was too busy running for its life
And my stomach was preoccupied with turning itself into balloon animals
So all I could pay attention to was my flesh,
Cold, pale skin glowing in the night
As the moon shone through those low trees,
Casting inconsistent shadows that made us look like
We’d cut ourselves into pieces small enough to eat as sacraments;
Your cheeks were soft, and warm, and innocent,
Like a sheep just before it is slaughtered.
I watched you grow,
Watched your brown twiggy arm
Gnarl themselves into limbs;
Watched the shade of your face change
As the first stages of manliness
Began to plant its dark seeds in your cheeks;
Watched as your hair
Became long and winding vines,
Stretching itself into impossibly beautiful yarns
Like the ones you would tell us
When we and the boys would sneak off in secret,
Get just far enough outside the city
That we could howl like the wolves we were,
Drunk on more wine than any of us could remember bringing,
And then we’d collapse around the bonfire in fits of laughter,
Our bodies creating sand storms as they writhed;
But once we dust devils had settled,
We would all look to you for a story.
You spoke of your imaginary worlds with such eloquence
We couldn’t help but wish
One day we’d end up there.
It was on one of those nights
That we managed to fall into each other;
We both heard the call of gravity
But found the answer in each other’s arms instead.
Long after your eyelids had thrown in the towel,
My fingertips were still listening
To the Braille whispers of your whiskers.
But you were the center of everyone’s focus in those days;
And the way you were able to make something mystical out of the mundane
Gave a whole new meaning to turning tricks,
But still I stuck with you,
Even when you decided to take your show on the road.
You were a superstar, and the throngs became so large
That you asked me if I could start handling your finances.
… It was the only romantic thing you ever said.
But as the years went by, you grew more distant
And any alone time I could get with you was nothing short of a miracle,
And I didn’t understand,
Because what you seemed to be saying
Was “make love, not war!”
And all I wanted was a chance to let you practice what you preached,
Because those crowds were only with you conditionally,
And you were never too good at distinguishing
The difference between cries for an encore
And your own head.
I came to you one night,
Asked you if this was your ideal life,
Told you I’d been skimming some off the top for a while
And you could retire off the amount that I’d saved…
You told me you felt betrayed,
And to never speak to you again.
So, Jesus
I turned you over
But only because I hope that you’ll see the light,
That when they ask you if the accusations are true
You’ll deny it,
And you’ll be released with nothing more lost
Then a few pints of blood and some pride
And then we’ll run,
Buy two strong black horses and ride off into the sunset
Never to never be seen again
And if not,
If I find out I’ve condemned you to death,
I swear to… You,
I’m going to find the tallest tree I can,
And maybe, if I just take a leap of faith,
I can find a noose that will hold me as tightly
As I wish you had.
Yours forever,
Judas.
By Bob Bhaerman
The Humanist Teacher Spotlight is a new feature of Humanist Network News recognizing the accomplishments of leaders and activists in humanist education.
Frederic March, past president of the Humanist Society of New Mexico, is a prolific writer and teacher who volunteers extensive support to the Kochhar Humanist Education Center (KHEC) in curriculum development, innovative educational strategies, and in accepting various writing assignments.
Fred’s credentials include many years as a humanist activist. He is a member of the Humanist Teachers Corps and has made many presentations to community groups. His articles have been published in The Humanist. His book The Bible Through the Eyes of Its Authors: A Political History of Ancient Israel and Judah (iUniverse 2006) explores the Hebrew Bible as a human creation by ancient temple priests who advocated and documented their political, social, military, moral and religious agendas for their respective nations throughout their history. Fred graduated from the City University of New York and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with degrees in engineering systems analysis and regional planning. His professional practice has focused on environmental policy and planning in many countries.
Fred has pioneered a new and innovative course for the KHEC webpage that explores the various dimensions of humanist experience. He submitted it as a pilot to help us gain experience with the Power Point voice-over format and to obtain viewer responses. This format enables any instructor to record lecture comments on each slide with good to excellent sound quality. We hope that its simplicity and near-zero cost will attract other AHA instructors to help us build a library of courses for individual and group viewing.
Fred adapted “The Many Faces of Humanism” for web presentation from the course he teaches at the University of New Mexico’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. The course is now accessible from the KHEC webpage for downloading and viewing here.
The five-part course explores humanism as a dynamic philosophy committed to the quality of human life and grounded on a scientific understanding of human nature. Fred views humanism as a set of attitudes about how we seek to fulfill our lives as individuals, communities, and as a global civilization. Hence, humanism has many “faces” for expressing itself through ethics, science, religion, philosophy, psychology, politics, economics, governance and art, as well as in everyday social interactions.
Fred also is developing a second course he teaches at the UNM-Osher Institute for the KHEC website: “Case Studies in Global Environmental Policy: Realities and Controversies – A Humanist Perspective.”
Bob Bhaerman, Ed.D., is the director of the Kochhar Humanist Education Center of the American Humanist Association.
New comics by Jesus and Mo, Ape Not Monkey, and The Bad Chemicals!
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