From 21-27 June 2020, the Humanist Society (Singapore) will hold World Humanist Week, combining our World Humanist Day with our Pink Dot activities and a third event that will hold discussions on humanism. With the continued Covid-19 pandemic, we will also be distributing ear savers to our members who need it.
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Recently, Mubarak Bala (above), the President of the Humanist Association of Nigeria, was arrested for “blasphemy” after he allegedly posted criticism of Islam on his Facebook page.
[Read more…]The year 2019 is the 200th anniversary of Sir Stamford Raffles’ founding of modern Singapore. On Darwin Day 2019, the Humanist Society (Singapore) invited Dr John van Wyhe to deliver a lecture on Raffles’ lesser known side – a naturalist in Southeast Asia. Dr John is a British historian of science, with a focus on Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace, at the National University of Singapore. We have published a transcript of his lecture below:
As part of our #HumanismAtHome initiative, we held a Skype group chat (‘Skype Party’) on 25 April (Sat) to discuss the Covid-19 outbreak in foreign workers dormitories in Singapore, as well as their living conditions.
Today, Christians worldwide celebrate Easter, one of the most important festivals in the Christian calendar, commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Although the Humanist Society (HSS) was founded as an organisation for the non-religious, small numbers of Christians have been regularly attending our events for years. They are independent-minded, well-read, and supportive of many Humanist causes. Their perspectives are valuable because they have spent considerable time in both Christian and Humanist environments.
Three years ago, we conducted an interview with John Hui on his experience as a Christian and a regular participant of HSS events. This Easter, we had a chat with our good friend Dr Mathia Lee (left), another Christian who had attended many HSS events over the years.
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As part of our #HumanismAtHome initiative, we encourage you to show your moral support to frontline staff, especially medical staff, who are risking their lives to keep us safe. You may do one of the following:
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We held our first Skype Party on 11 April 2020 during the Circuit Breaker in Singapore. After 10 straight years of monthly events, this is our first event completely held online. Due to the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak, all physical events were cancelled and the Humanist Society adapted by launching our Humanism At Home initiative, consisting of Skype discussions (‘Skype Party’) and Watch Parties on Facebook.
The topic of the discussion:
How did various societies, religions and cultures handle the plagues of the past, and what lessons can we draw from the Black Death and the Spanish Flu?
[Read more…]In March 2020, the Singapore Police began investigating a Facebook post linking holy texts to toilet paper. Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam deemed the post offensive to Muslims and Christians.
The Facebook page named NUS Atheist Society had posted an image of the Bible and Quran, which are holy texts in Christianity and Islam respectively. An accompanying caption read: “For use during toilet paper shortages.”
Read the news article here:
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/police-probe-facebook-post-linking-holy-texts-toilet-paper
The Straits Times quoted the Humanist Society (Singapore) statement:
In a statement on its website, the Humanist Society (Singapore) said the post was “neither reasoned nor compassionate” and unhelpful given Covid-19, which affects all regardless of race or religion.
“We would like to encourage productive and rational dialogue during this crisis. We should focus on disseminating facts, providing comfort, and promoting public unity amidst the pandemic.”
Our full statement can be read here.
Our President Tatt Si wrote a letter to ST Forum, wading into the debate over what is the true national anthem of Singapore.
https://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/law-governing-national-anthem-allows-other-dignified-versions
Tatt Si argued that there must be many versions of the anthem, with people being free to express their feelings for our country in our personal way.
Mothership.SG published an article about the difficult closeted life of an ex-Muslim (Rahim) in Singapore.
https://mothership.sg/2019/09/singapore-atheist-ex-muslim/
The article noted that while there are more Singaporeans with no religion than there are Hindus (five per cent), Taoists (10 per cent) and Muslims (14 per cent), some atheists, including Rahim, remain closeted.
Mothership.SG mentioned that there are more non-religious communities in Singapore now, including the Humanist Society Singapore and the Council of Ex-Muslims Singapore (CEMS), that exist to raise awareness and serve as a support system for such people.
We wrote this note in appreciation to Mothership:
https://humanist.org.sg/reply-to-mothership-religious-refugees/
