Six lessons we learnt from Peter Singer over skype

9 June 2016 by

(For videos of the entire workshop, click here)

By Poh De Sheng

World-renowned professor of bioethics and philosopher Peter Singer was speaking over Skype at our workshop, Introduction to Effective Altruism, co-organised by  Effective Altruism Singapore and Humanist Society (Singapore) at Jurong Regional Library on May 15, 2016. The topic of discussion was effective altruism, an international movement in response to inefficiencies in charity, especially due to emotional decision making. Dr Singer is part of the movement himself.

During the skype (full video above), workshop participants were given a rare opportunity to chat with Singer. Here are six lessons we took away from the philosopher that evening. [Read more…]

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Singaporeans at the Reason Rally 2016

8 June 2016 by

alvin phua reason rally 3

One humanist from Singapore, Alvin Phua (left), attended the Reason Rally in Washington D.C last Saturday (June 4). The Reason Rally, described as the largest gathering of freethinkers in the US, was started in 2012 by major atheistic and secular organisations. It aims to “unify, energize, and embolden secular people nationwide, while dispelling the negative opinions held by so much of American society.” At the rally, Alvin also met another Singaporean, Melissa Chen (right), who manages the Global Secular Humanist Movement Facebook page.

The Humanist Society (Singapore) speaks to Alvin about his experience: [Read more…]

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Videos: Religion and Atheism: A Conversation (Round 2)

21 May 2016 by

The second tranche (of three) of videos where our president had a conversation with Mohamed Imran Mohamed Taib from LeftWrite Center.

Round 2 starts with short responses from the speakers to audience’s questions and comments. Watch it here:

Round 2 : Answers to Round 1 Questions & Comments
Speaker : Tan Tatt Si (HSS President), Mohamed Imran Mohamed Taib (Co-Founder, Leftwrite Center)

What should atheists do to help create common space in Singapore ?
Speaker : Tan Tatt Si (HSS President)

What should religions do to help create common space in Singapore ?
Speaker : Mohamed Imran Mohamed Taib (Co-Founder, Leftwrite Center)

This was followed by the Round 2 QnA :

Note: More speeches will be released in the following weeks. Stay tuned!

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Videos: Religion and Atheism: A Conversation (Round 1)

19 April 2016 by

On March 18, 2016, our President Tatt Si had a cordial discussion with Mohamed Imran Mohamed Taib from Leftwrite Center about what religious people and atheists think of each other, and how religion-atheism relations can be managed in the public sphere. The event was moderated by interfaith facilitator Farid Hamid with Dr Hoon Chang Yau from SMU giving the keynote speech.

This was followed by the two speeches between Tatt Si and Imran. Watch it here:

What do those with religion think of atheism ?
Speaker : Mohamed Imran Mohamed Taib (Co-Founder, Leftwrite Center)

In his speech, Imran called on atheist friends to be “generous with religion and to avoid generalisation”. Speaking in his own capacity as a person of faith and not a representative of all muslims, Imran said spent the first 10 minutes defining religion and the atheism. He also felt that religion exists as a separate category from science. While science provides explanation, religion provides meaning in life.

What does an atheist think of religion ?
Speaker : Tan Tatt Si (President, Humanist Society Singapore)

Tatt si acknowledged that religious people are moral and is grateful that religions have contributed greatly to cultural development. For example, Muslims have helped to take mankind out of the dark ages. However, he felt that religion have caused conflicts along tribal lines. He also found that stories of creation and calamity are copies of each other, and that religions provide answers that cannot be questioned.

This was followed by the QnA:

Note: More speeches will be released in the following weeks. Stay tuned!

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On creationism: MOE’s reply to a concerned parent

8 April 2016 by

A concerned member of the public, Mr Martin Piper, has written to the Ministry of Education (MOE) after a church pastor, Mr Lawrence Khong from Faith Community Baptist Church, said in a recent video that evolution is an example of a “deception from the devil.” Here’s an excerpt of what Mr Khong said about evolution in the 2.5-minute video:

“Every day we are subjected to a worldview that is a real deception from the devil. For example, I mean the world is telling us that evolution is a fact, undisputable. It is taught in schools. But the fact of the matter is I will be exploring with you that you could hardly find any evidence of true evolution. And in fact, evolution is based on faith and not facts.  In fact, if we study the different theories, we find that creation has the most evidence to show us that indeed there is a God who created us.”

MOE has since replied to Mr Piper and he has shared the correspondence with us.

* * *

Mr Piper wrote to MOE:

In this video the pastor Lawrence Khong says evolution taught in school is the work of the devil, that it isn’t based on facts and that his creation myth has the most evidence. I think these kinds of anti-science messages are against proper fact based education and work against the economic interests of Singapore. What in the ministry doing to combat these dangerous anti-science messages and to instead promote real scientific progress?

MOE’s reply:

Dear Mr Piper,

The science topics taught in our schools are selected carefully to ensure that current thinking and developments in science are covered adequately and accurately in age-appropriate ways. The teaching of science in Singapore schools aims to enable students to evaluate evidences and claims critically, and appreciate the impact of science and technology on society. This holistic development of scientific knowledge, skills and attitudes in our students will strengthen their scientific literacy, so that they are able to make informed decisions about scientific claims they may encounter in their daily life. It is with this consideration that the concept of adaptation and evolution is taught across various levels in our science curriculum.

Thank you for your interest on this issue.

Mr Piper’s reply:

Thank you for your reply. If someone demanded that “creation science” or other similar creation myths must be taught in schools, would you be able to confirm that their request would be denied?

MOE’s reply:

Dear Mr Piper,

Such concepts are not in the syllabus.

* * *

Mr Piper is probably not the first person to express such concerns. There is active movement to promote creationism in Singapore, leading to fears that creationists could push for the teaching of creationism or intelligent design in local science classes.

For example, local creationists have written letters to the press attacking evolution and promoting creationism. Talks on creationism were also held on school campuses through religious CCAs. One recent example is a creationist talk in NTU. A prominent historic church, St Andrew Cathedral, is also active in promoting creationism. The Australian-based Creation Ministries International has also been conducting regular talks on creationism in Singapore.

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A short introduction to humanism

4 April 2016 by

We are in the midst of producing videos to explain humanism to the Singapore public, as well as introduce some of the work done by the Humanist Society. Last year, we formed a five-person film crew to draft scripts, pool camera equipment and provide post-production editing. This video is produced in December with the help of That Moment photography studio and released on March 2016. 

In this video, our founder Paul Tobin explains what is humanism. It is a democratic and ethical life stance, which affirms that human beings have the right and responsibility to give meaning and shape to their own lives. It stands for the building of a more humane society through an ethic based on human and other natural values in the spirit of reason and free inquiry through human capabilities. It is not theistic, and it does not accept supernatural views of reality.

Find out even more about the society in this video!

Announcements, Blog

Open letter to Lawrence Khong

1 April 2016 by

Dear Mr Khong,

We at the Humanist Society (Singapore) are writing to express our interest in and amusement with your April series of sermons.  Following your support for the Catholic Church in condemning Madonna’s concert as “immoral values promoted by the secular world”, we in the “secular world” find ourselves again at your ire.  We are pleased that we have joined the illustrious ranks of American pop singer Madonna in attracting your ire.

We recognise that as Singapore is a firmly secular society, and promotes freedom of religious expression and multi-cultural harmony, you and your church are completely free to express your views. In this spirit of free expression and interfaith exchange, our Society would be very pleased if you would include our speakers at your talks : “The Deception of Darwinism” & “No God, No Good or Bad”.

As you may be aware, the Humanist Society (Singapore) is a society which promotes, among other things, living a rational life and embracing scientific enquiry. Among our members are several science researchers, science educators and other persons with a passion for science and nature. We believe our members would have much to contribute to a discussion about Darwinism and evolution.

“The Deception of Darwinism” – we have at least four representatives, a biologist, an anthropologist (likely from NUS Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum), a medical doctor and a general scientist who would be greatly interested in deliberating with your speakers. We have celebrated Darwin Day for the past six years to highlight the importance and wonder of the science and nature, and we are well familiar with the internationally accepted work of Darwin in explaining science. Imagine, modern medicine and antibiotics developed based on Darwin’s theory of evolution and has saved countless lives – that is a real feat for Charles Darwin’s work!

“No God, No Good or Bad” – our founding President Paul Tobin is well qualified to speak on this, as the author of the celebrated book “The Rejection of Pascal’s Wager: A Skeptic’s Guide to Christianity“. Paul is well versed with the Bible; his thoughtful analysis of the Bible’s many contradictions will surely add a different flavour to your sessions.

We were also contemplating to attend “The Stars reveal the Truth”, but prefer to be earthbound, as all good humanists know that there is only one life on this Earth and we should make the very best of it.

As a token of our appreciation, and to facilitate Interfaith dialogue, our Society will reserve five places for the Faith Community Baptist Church congregation in our upcoming World Humanist Day (a paying event) conference in June.

At World Humanist Day, we celebrate the values of humanism: of upholding the dignity and value of each human being, of respecting the choices of the individual. We celebrate that we have but one brief life on this planet Earth, which we live to the fullest and the best, backed with reason and science, and compassion for ourselves and our fellow beings. We are sure these are values which resonate strongly with you and your congregation, and we do hope to see you there.

Executive Committee
Humanist Society (Singapore)

Announcements, Blog

A Glimpse into the Life of an MSF Field Worker

3 March 2016 by
Dr. Marlene Lee from MSF

Dr. Marlene Lee from MSF

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) (English: Doctors Without Borders), is an international humanitarian-aid non-governmental organization (NGO) and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. MSF provides much needed medical care and humanitarian assistance in war-torn areas and developing countries.

In the past few years, MSF has been one of HSS’ charities of choice. We donated the proceeds of book sales to MSF’s offices in Hong Kong. HSS would like to share more about MSF and their fantastic work in the following article, featuring MSF field worker Dr Marlene Lee.

 

[Read more…]

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Statement: On the secular world and immorality

2 March 2016 by

STATEMENT FROM THE HUMANIST SOCIETY (SINGAPORE)

The Humanist Society (Singapore) refers to the concerns expressed by various church leaders regarding the American pop singer Madonna and her upcoming Singapore concert.

Church leaders were quoted as equating “the secular world”  with immoral values. Archbishop William Goh stated that Catholics have a “moral obligation not to support those who denigrate and insult religions, including anti-Christian and immoral values promoted by the secular world”. These comments were supported by some other Church leaders, including Pastor Lawrence Khong of the Faith Community Baptist Church. [Read more…]

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Darwin Day 2016

1 March 2016 by

DSCF7366

By Cheng Chee Hoew

On the morning of 20 February 2016, Humanist Society (Singapore) celebrated the anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth with a trip to the Singapore Zoological Gardens. [Read more…]

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