Sandi Toksvaig on humanism

Sorry, Sandi, I spelt your surname wrongly.

A good start - a quiz "How humanist are you?"

Thank you.

How dare they label me as a Humanist. I eschew all labels. I do not see myself as an atheist, agnostic or whatever and certainly not as a Humanist which has all the trappings of an organised religion - 'high heid yins' a prescribed moral code that adherants are expected to conform to, rules and regulations e.g. not being able to have a favorite old hymn during ceremonies, intolerance of those with a different belief. and so on.

Humanists, in common with most religions, make the assumption that we are all thick and unable to work things out for ourselves without training and guidance.

Hmm ..... Quiz says I'm 90% Humanist.

For many years I've felt the Humanist ethos without really knowing what it was. First put a name to it about a year ago when reading about a Humanist Funeral, I'd already told my family (just in general conversation - as you do) that I didn't want a religious minister spouting a lot of insincere words. Get me the cheapest coffin, the quality is of no consequence.

We pay into the church every month by DDebit but we don't attend. And churches nowadays don't seem to have a yearly visitor whereby they would have got to know their members who don't actually attend, as was the case with my parents. However, my parents were visited every year by the Rector - My father always gave the C of I Rector a wee whisky.

I grew up with regular church attendance, my first marriage was in church, my ds was baptised in church, but I no longer feel the need. I definitely do not believe that 'eating the altar rails' makes you the better person.

Humanist appeals to me.

Surely you can only be labelled a humanist if you do the quiz?

Quiz says I am 100% humanist, although I call myself a realist.

I am reserving judgment until I have heard/read/seen all the contributors to the course. So far (just the first page, I don't want to get in too deep until I have finished the Antiques Trafficking and Art Crime course), I haven't met any of the trappings of organised religion which have so annoyed Granny23. I don't think you actually have to join and promise to stay, like the promises at confirmation services. It is more a different perspective on how to examine ethics and morality.

I am 49% humanist,

So it is not either/or. The principles of Christianity and humanism are really both connected to humanity loving thy neighbour and considering others.

I think that I will decide what I am and whether or not I want a label, agnostic, humanist or whatever.
The quiz labels me as 100% humanist too shysal but I think I am a sceptical pragmatist.

Just so true Elegran

Well I came out 100% humanist . So nothing surprising at all for me.
Very interesting Elegran thank you for the links .

Without actually reading any of the definitions, I would guess that it goes something like this - when we are very young we are nice to other children because the adults in our lives tell us that is how we should treat them, but after we grow up we can recognise that other people are just like us, so we can treat them fairly without needing an authority figure to lay down rules. Extending that awareness, with a bit of thought we can work out for ourselves how best to live.

I don't feel it is necessary to automatically consign religion to the wheelie-bin, though, just to realise that there are other routes to making good decisions.

I have always accepted and respected this Elegran, but find Christianity is not accepted and respected by many humanitarians , Atheists .

I suspect that some people want to be free themselves from anything that restricts them to one specific rulebook when they are making decisions, but are quite happy to condemn someone else's source of guidelines.

Humanists don't believe in any god that intervenes in nature.

Why does this cause some to criticise though? I attend a Pagan Spring celebration, they tie ribbons to trees, I think a tree is beautiful and ribbons not needed but accept and understand it is important to those who tie the ribbons .

No idea how my God is suppose to intervene in nature,

Seems so Elegran,

I have signed up for it. Thanks for flagging it up. Like others I came out as 100% (not a surprise) and also don't like being labelled (politically or in any other way) because by definition it means you have to sign up to the whole package. Interestingly the Christian package has many guises, so people sign up to different ones - I wonder if it is the same for humanism. I am about to find out!

You often see or hear things like "Why does God allow . . ." this ot that, where the thing that people don't want allowed is something that occurs naturally, as a result of natural processes - children getting ill, for instance, or people dying in earthquakes or tsunamis caused by geological disturbances.

The quiz didn't seem to have the answers I'd have ticked. I gave up on it. I don't think I'm anything in particular but am interested to consider possibilities.

I decided to answer a bit recklessly the next time and am only 62% a humanist now

However, it is always worth finding out more about an interesting subject - or philosophy - so the course is worth thinking about.

I am not sure why it has to have a label though, perhaps some people just are and how wide are the margins of humanism?