A Secular Humanist Chaplain?
Is non-belief in God also a form of faith?
Oct 27th, 2009 | By Skye Jethani | Category: Faith, FeaturesYesterday I shared about my participation with the Interfaith Youth Core’s conference on interfaith leadership. I sat on a panel with some wonderful people representing different faiths: Maha ElGenaidi from the Islamic networks Group; Rabbi Or Rose from Hebrew College, and Greg Epstein who serves as the Humanist Chaplain at Harvard. Yes, you heard that right…Harvard has a secular humanist chaplain, and they’ve had the position for over 30 years.
Last week I wrote a post about atheism having its own form of fundamentalism. It was based on a report by NPR. Well, for the sake of fairness and balance, I think it’s only right to report that there are non-fundamentalist atheists as well. Greg Epstein is a good example. During our panel discussion he advocated passionately for his humanist position–he does not believe in God, he sees humanism as a more rational and intellectually honest worldview, and he firmly believes people can be “good without God”…which is also the title of his new book.
But an interesting question was asked by a member of the audience. She asked Greg whether he considered himself a person of faith. He answers, “yes.” While Greg is pro-humanism, he is not anti-religion. Here’s a brief excerpt from his website:
The New Humanism does not spend all its energy blasting belief in God in all its forms and certainly avoids ad hominem attacks on those who identify themselves as religious. In other words, we know that not everyone who disagrees with us is an idiot. We don’t kid ourselves about the deleterious effects of some religion, and we don’t have to agree with any form of theism, but we don’t consider religion to be child abuse.
Visit the New Humanism website to read more about what Greg Epstein thinks about atheism, religion, and his advocacy for humanism.
Obviously I disagree with Greg on many, perhaps even most, issues. But I was strangely encouraged to find an atheist who didn’t simply denounce all religion, and a humanist who recognizes the “religious” qualities of his belief system. He places his faith/trust in humanity rather than a god, and his mission is to pursue the “common good” while allowing many of lifes most fundamental questions to remain unanswered.
What is the future of New Humanism? I’m not sure. But by placing secular humanism within the community of faiths, it certainly changes the rules of engagement. Perhaps atheism can no longer be held to a different standard, but instead be judged by the same quailites of other belief systems.
I flinched when I got to the phrase, “He places his faith/trust in humanity rather than a god…” I knew the definition of Humanism before I read that sentence, but I hadn’t thought about it that way before. And then immediately what flashed through my mind were the headlines we see every day — today it was about the kids in Richmond, CA who stood by and watched (or participated) while a fifteen year old girl was gang raped for two hours. Sometimes the headlines are about child abuse, sometimes it’s murder…you know. We all see them.
I just can’t imagine, for the life of me, putting faith in something as fallible and as prone to making bad decisions (or in our terms, as prone to sin) as the human race.
Dear Skye Jethani . . . some enlightenment for you . . . An extract from the Faith/Belief guide for Scottish health workers . . . enjoy !
Secularon
HUMANISM
Introduction
Humanism is a belief system, based on empirical evidence, which offers a moral framework for a life free from superstition and the supernatural, whilst rejecting any notions of a life after death. Believing that a person has only one life, humanists try to make it as worthwhile and happy as possible for everyone. Humanists are free thinkers, rationalists, atheists, agnostics or sceptics who either reject or at least robustly question the idea of any god or other power beyond the physical world. However, humanism is more than just a simple denial of religious belief. Humanists base their moral principles on a rational approach to life, under-pinned by shared human values and respect for others, with the aim of improving the quality of life, making it more equitable for all.
Humanism focuses on human beings and offers an ethical approach to life, a belief in people’s ability to solve problems, recognising that much of what happens in our world is what people cause to happen. To this end, humanists try to co-operate with people of all faiths to achieve the shared aims of a caring free society, although they condemn religious adherence that harms or disadvantages others. Humanists assert that morality comes from our ability to see that there is general benefit when we behave well towards each other; an ability that is enhanced by personal responsibility, a caring and principled upbringing and education that always insists that we treat others with consideration and unselfishness. Human rights law is important to all humanist organisations throughout the world and they endorse the principles of humanitarian ideals that are enshrined in all such declarations, covenants and conventions as well as the universal initiatives promoted by the United Nations for the peaceful co-habitation of all the world’s populations.