Archives for October 2013

The God Argument: The Case Against Religion and for Humanism

The God Argument Cover 390x600Written by TLC

If the subtitle of this book sets out Grayling’s objective, the gravamen of the book is found in this passage at page 14: ‘Whereas there are other sources of individual comfort and inspiration that are far better than religion – they include love and friendship, family life, art, the pursuit of knowledge and, as noted, the outlook and principles of humanism – there are very few sources of conflict and mental enslavement as bad as ideology which demands self-abnegation by submission to its dogma and to the self-appointed interpreters of its dogmas. Religion is the paradigm of this.’ Discussions about religion often creates offence because it touches on emotive and deeply felt beliefs on one side and the denial of those beliefs by the other. Grayling may appear blunt (some theists may think him rude and arrogant), but he is merely stating his arguments and politeness and euphemism will sacrifice accuracy and clarity for ambiguity and vagueness. Other atheist writers such as Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens are often labelled ‘militant atheists’. In their defence, Grayling argues that there is no such thing as a militant atheist. A theist believes in the existence of God. The atheist does not. We either collect stamps or we don’t – ‘There’s no such thing as a militant non-stamp collector’.

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A fruitful three years

hss overseas

The HSS is a young organisation but it is growing steadily. As we celebrated our third anniversary, we reflected on what we have done and what we can do better. Luckily, our new website has provided some statistics for our reference. [Read more…]

World Humanist Congress 2014

oxford

Registration for the World Humanist Congress 2014, to be held in Oxford, is already open:

https://humanism.org.uk/whc2014/tickets/

If you are living in the United Kingdom, or planning to travel there, let the HSS know! We have several members who are considering a trip there, and we could consider the possibility of meeting up, or pooling resources for transport and accommodation.

Representatives from the HSS had attended the Global Atheist Convention in 2012. Photos of our trip can be found here.

Book Review: Humanism by Peter Cave

oneworld-publications.comWritten by TLC

Humanism is an inherently attractive word. It immediately connects to us because its root is ‘human’. However, it is often not understood at all. Some religious people view it as a pagan cult and some with disdain simply because it stands opposed to religion. Even freethinkers may only have some fuzzy ideas about what humanism is about. Humanism, at its core, is a simple approach to life (without gods). It is about learning about humanity and being human. That is all there is. In practice, we have often to pause and wonder how best to deal with situations and problems especially those in which we know that there is a right way and a wrong way of dealing with them. Many of these rights and wrongs do not merely concern correct or incorrect action and reaction – they involve morality and immorality. In this book, Peter Cave explains what to be human means from the point of view of a humanist. [Read more…]