Humanism may be one of the most influential and widely embraced philosophies in the world today, but that doesn't mean it's well known or understood. If asked, "What is humanism?" most folks probably wouldn't know what to say. Even folks who call themselves humanists have a hard time giving a succinct answer, and it's rarely the same one. Why is that?
The first reason is that the meaning of humanism has evolved over time--which means there's no easy way to say "this is humanism" without offering a lot of qualifiers, like: philosophical tradition (e.g. Western), time period (e.g. Renaissance Humanism), branches within humanism itself (e.g. literary humanism, religious humanism, secular humanism, etc.).
Then there's the task of parsing the difference between the "humanist tradition" and the "humanist movement." The former goes back to ancient Greece and Rome, while the latter began sometime in the 19th century at the intersection of the free thought movement, ethical societies, academia, and various branches of liberal Christianity. The culmination of which was A Humanist Manifesto, published in 1933, as an attempt to articulate a shared set of secular values consistent with the insights afforded us by the humanist tradition.
Additionally, humanism has been the target of extremely effective disinformation campaigns by fundamentalist evangelicals for decades. As someone raised a conservative evangelical in the 1990s, I grew up thinking humanism was synonymous with hedonism and human worship, and as such, that it was an arrogant (even evil) worldview.
Imagine my surprise when, as an adult, I learned the real history and meaning of humanism. That it's a tradition, philosophy, and way of life that champions democracy and individual freedom, promotes the use of reason and science, recognizes the dignity of every human being, and prescribes compassion and understanding when engaging with the world.
Today I am proud to call myself a humanist. I've even become a humanist celebrant in an effort to serve my local community in a way that's consistent with my skills, values, and experience. This philosophical and cultural tradition has become important to me and I'd like to help raise awareness of its actual meaning and history, its influence on culture today, and the social movement attached to it.
I've organized my thoughts into a blog post series titled An Introduction to Humanism. This is the first post, I hope you enjoy it!
Humanism: Past and Present
The best way to gain an understanding of humanism is to learn its history and the people who have identified as humanists or embodied its ideals throughout time. I've found that in learning more about the history of humanism I've gained new perspectives on the present, while also connecting to a rich cultural tradition spanning thousands of years.
If you're interested in a deeper dive after this blog post, I highly recommend Humanly Possible by Sarah Bakewell. It's an excellent overview of the tradition of humanist thought. Below I've tried to summarize information from Bakewell's book and other sources in order to sketch a through-line that connects what we now think of as the humanist tradition, and the more intentional and explicit version of humanism we might call the humanist movement today.
The Ancient Roots of Humanism
The branch of humanism that eventually formed the foundation of western culture has its roots in ancient Greece and Rome. Philsophers such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle (among many others) all emphasized the importance of reason, logic, and the pursuit of knowledge. As a direct result of their contributions to western culture and society we have developed the art and craft of rational inquiry and critical thinking, secular ethics and moral philosophy, political theory and governance (including democracy), the idea of the individual, and so much more.
Humanism: the Western Tradition
It's important to recognize that western culture does not have a monopoly on the ideals of humanism or the only historical tradition of people, communities, and institutions using those ideals to guide their lives and society. However, as someone who was born and raised in the United States, writing for a western audience, that's the tradition I'm exploring in this guide. Starting with what happened in Europe hundreds of years after the fall of the western Roman Empire.
Humanism in Medieval Europe
Humanism in Medieval Europe had a tenuous existence. It was a flickering candle in danger of going out. A candle lit by an ancient flame; the rediscovery of Greek and Roman texts, thought lost forever after the fall of Rome. The works of Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero became particularly influential among a small minority of monks, priests, scribes, and intellectuals.
This small community, often in and out of favor with both the secular and spiritual powers of their day, nevertheless preserved and built upon the works they'd rescued from the past. In doing so, they began a revival in classical learning, liberal arts, and individualism that would prepare the way for the next (much bigger) cultural revolution to come.
Renaissance Humanism
The Renaissance, spanning from the 14th to the 17th century, was a period of remarkable cultural, intellectual, and scientific achievements. It saw a much broader resurgence of interest in the arts, literature, and philosophy than the Middle Ages enjoyed.
Humanist thinkers like Petrarch, Giovanni Boccaccio, and Pico della Mirandola sought to reconcile Christian values with classical ideals, leading to new forms of intellectual and artistic expression. They believed that literature and the arts could inspire individuals to lead lives of virtue and civic responsibility. Artists like Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo created masterpieces that showcased high levels of technical skill and a newfound appreciation for human anatomy. Scientists like Copernicus took things even further, challenging the time's basic understanding of the universe and humanity's place in it.
Enlightenment Humanism
Enlightenment humanism of the 18th century was yet another cultural revolution that further emphasized reason, individualism, and the belief in human capability. It challenged traditional authorities by advocating for freedom of thought and expression, as well as individual rights. Enlightenment thinkers--such as Voltaire, Rousseau, Locke, Diderot, Kant, and others--sought to apply reason to all aspects of life, leading to advancements in philosophy, politics, and science.
Their ideas laid the foundation for concepts such as modern democracy, constitutionalism, and the protection of individual liberties, leaving a lasting impact on modern society. Especially the American and French Revolutions.
This period represented a turning point in history, heralding the transition from traditional, faith-based societies to modern, rational ones. It also established the basis for contemporary western philosophy and political thought.
Western Cultural Humanism
The impact of humanism runs so deeply throughout western culture today that it can be hard to recognize it for what it is. When we benefit from a free and open society, literature and the arts, democratic government, individual and human rights, and scientific progress we're reaping the rewards of humanistic endeavors undertaken in the past.
The Humanist Tradition Today
Since humanism saturates our culture, most people who might identify as humanists, don't really think about it; they just live their lives. The cultural norms and values of humanism have influenced our society to such a degree, we only notice it when those norms are violated. When we witness the decline of education, democracy, and social justice. However, there are a few notable self-identifying strains of humanism (all of which widely overlap) that encompass what most people mean today when they say, "I'm a humanist."
Literary Humanism
Literary humanism is the exploration of universal themes such as love, loss, identity, and the human condition through literature as a means of personal enrichment. It recognizes the power of storytelling to foster empathy, understanding, and connection among people from different backgrounds.
In contemporary literature, we see literary humanism manifest in works that challenge societal norms, depict the intricacies of human relationships, and delve into the depths of the human psyche, expanding our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
Most people whose views fit this description likely do not self-identify as humanists. However, anyone familiar with the history of literature (especially those who teach or get degrees in it) seem to be more likely to identify as literary humanists. At least in my anecdotal experience.
Philosophical Humanism
Philosophical humanism encourages critical thinking, ethical decision-making, and a commitment to social justice and human rights. It acknowledges the inherent dignity and worth of every individual and seeks to provide a framework for individuals to live fulfilling and meaningful lives in a complex and interconnected world.
Secular Humanism
Secular humanism and philosophical humanism are often used interchangeably. And that's mostly correct. However, they do have some subtle differences. If we're splitting hairs, philosophical humanism represents a broader range of perspectives that may include the supernatural or metaphysical. Secular humanism on the other hand is explicit in its rejection of the supernatural.
Religious Humanism
Religious humanism combines humanistic philosophy and values with religious beliefs and/or practices. It emphasizes the worth and dignity of human beings while also embracing the role of spirituality in shaping individual and collective meaning in life. Unitarian Universalism is a good example. There are also members of many liberal or progressive religious traditions today who identify as religious humanists too. There are even atheist churches where congregants reject the existence of gods and the supernatural, but recognize the benefits of values-based living and community.
On Lesser Known Branches of Modern Humanism
There are several other "branches" of humanism today that place an emphasis on specific issues that intersect with humanistic philosophy. Some of these include posthumanism, ecological humanism, and existential humanism. It's important to note that some of these philosophies drift far away from the values we'll explore below and are likely not what people mean when they identify as a humanist.
Defining the Humanist Movement (Humanist Philosophy in Practice)
The humanist movement today consists of individuals, communities, and institutions who identify as humanists (of one kind or another) and live, organize, and take action in the world based on humanistic values. Put another way, the humanist movement is where humanistic values meet the real world in intentional ways. Of course, before that's possible, you need to define "humanism" and "humanistic values" in clear, concise language. That was precisely what a small set of ministers, rabbis, and academics attempted to do in 1933 with A Humanist Manifesto.
A Humanist Manifesto (1933)
The goal of the authors and signatories was, in the fashion of their time, to boldly throw down the intellectual gauntlet of their philosophical and theological conclusions. They felt that in light of current scientific explanations of life and the material world (like evolution) and uniquely modern economic and political challenges (like WWI and The Great Depression) that it was time for society to re-think its whole approach to religion. They called themselves religious humanists and they saw themselves as articulating and affirming the core ideas of a new secular religion for a secular age.
The time has come for widespread recognition of the radical changes in religious beliefs throughout the modern world. The time is past for mere revision of traditional attitudes. Science and economic change have disrupted the old beliefs. Religions the world over are under the necessity of coming to terms with new conditions created by vastly increased knowledge and experience. In every field of human activity, the vital movement is now in the direction of a candid and explicit humanism. In order that religious humanism may be better understood we, the undersigned, desire to make certain affirmations which we believe the facts of our contemporary life demonstrate.
There is great danger of a final, and we believe fatal, identification of the word religion with doctrines and methods which have lost their significance and which are powerless to solve the problems of human living in the Twentieth Century. Religions have always been means for realizing the highest values of life. Their end has been accomplished through the interpretation of the total environing situation (theology or world view), the sense of values resulting therefrom (goal or ideal), and the technique (cult), established for realizing the satsifactory life. A change in any of these factors results in alteration of the outward forms of religion. This fact explains the changefulness of religions throughout the centuries. But through all changes religion itself remains constant in its quest for abiding values, an inseparable feature of human life.
Today man's larger understanding of the universe, his scientific achievements, and his deeper appreciation of brotherhood have created a situation which requires a new statement of the means and purposes of religion. Such a vital, fearless, and frank religion capable of furnishing adequate social goals and personal satisfactions may appear to many people as a complete break with the past. While this age does owe a vast debt to the tradtional religions, it is nonetheless obvious that any religion that can hope to be a synthesizing and dynamic force for today must be shaped for the needs of this age. To establish such a religion is a major necessity of the present. It is a responsibility which rests upon this generation. We therefore affirm the following:
First: Religious humanists regard the universe as self-existing and not created.
Second: Humanism believes that man is part of nature and that he has emerged as the result of a continuous process.
Third: Holding an organic view of life, humanists find that the traditional dualism of mind and body must be rejected.
Fourth: Humanism recognizes that man's religious culture and civilization, as clearly depicted by anthropology and history, are the product of a gradual development due to his interaction with his natural environment and with his social heritage. The individual born into a particular culture is largely molded by that culture.
Fifth: Humanism asserts that the nature of the universe depicted by modern science makes unnacceptable any supernatural or cosmic guarantees of human values. Obviously humanism does not deny the possibility of realities as yet undiscovered, but it does not insist that the way to determine the existence and value of any and all realities is by means of intelligent inquiry and by the assessment of their relation to human needs. Religion must formulate its hopes and plans in the light of the scientific spirit and method.
Sixth: We are convinced that the time has passed for theism, deism, modernism, and the several varieties of "new thought."
Seventh: Religion consists of those actions, purposes, and experiences which are humanly significant. Nothing human is alien to the religious. It includes labor, art, science, philosophy, love, friendship, recreation--all that is in its degree expressive of intelligently satisfying human living. The distinction between the sacred and the secular can no longer be maintained.
Eighth: Religious humanism considers the complete realization of human personality to be the end of man's life and seeks its development and fulfillment in the here and now. This is the explanation of the humanist's social passion.
Ninth: In place of the old attitudes involved in worship and prayer the humanist finds his religious emotions expressed in a heightened sense of personal life and in coopertive effort to promote social well-being.
Tenth: It follows that there will be no uniquely religious emotions and attitudes of the kind hitherto associated with belief in the supernatural.
Eleventh: Man will learn to face the crises of life in terms of his knowledge of their naturalness and probability. Reasonable and manly attitudes will be fostered by education and supported by custom. We assume that humanism will take the path of social and mental hygiene and discourage sentimental and unreal hopes and wishful thinking.
Twelfth: Believing that religion must work increasingly for joy in living, religious humanists aim to foster the creative in man and to encourage achievements that add to the satisfactions of life.
Thirteenth: Religious humanism maintains that all associations and institutions exist for the fulfillment of human life. The intelligent evaluation, transformation, control, and direction of such associations and institutions with a view to the enhancement of human life is the purpose and program of humanism. Certainly religious institutions, their ritualistic forms, ecclesiastical methods, and communal activities must be reconstituted as rapidly as experience allows, in order to function effectively in the modern world.
Fourteenth: The humanists are firmly convinced that existing acquisitive and profit-motivated society has shown itself to be inadequate and that a radical change in methods, controls, and motives must be instituted. A socialized and cooperative economic order must be established to the end that the equitable distribution of the means of life be possible. The goal of humanisms is a free and universal society in which people voluntarily and intelligently cooperate for the common good. Humanists demand a shared life in a shared world.
Fifteenth and last: We assert that humanism will: (a) affirm life rather than deny it; (b) seek to elicit the possibilities of life, not flee from it; and (c) endeavor to establish the conditions of a satisfactory life for all, not merely for the few. By this positive morale and intention humanism will be guided, and from this perspective and alignment the techniques and efforts of humanism will flow.
So stand the theses of religious humanism. Though we consider the religious forms and ideas of our fathers no longer adequate, the quest for the good life is still the central task for mankind. Man is at last becoming aware that he alone is responsible for the realization of the world of his dreams, that he has within himself the power for its achievement. He must set intelligence and will to the task.
For a history of the development of this document, I recommend The Genesis of a Humanist Manifesto by Edwin H. Wilson, who helped draft and edit A Humanist Manifesto in 1933 and its successor, Humanist Manifesto II in 1973.
Humanist Manifesto II (1973)
According to Wilson, within six years there were calls to update the original manifesto. It wasn't until 1973, however, that an official update was published.
Preface
It is forty years since Humanist Manifesto I (1933) appeared. Events since then make that earlier statement seem far too optimistic. Nazism has shown the depths of brutality of which humanity is capable. Other totalitarian regimes have suppressed human rights without ending poverty. Science has sometimes brought evil as well as good. Recent decades have shown that inhuman wars can be made in the name of peace. The beginnings of police states, even in democratic societies, widespread government espionage, and other abuses of power by military, political, and industrial elites, and the continuance of unyielding racism, all present a different and difficult social outlook. In various societies, the demands of women and minority groups for equal rights effectively challenge our generation.
As we approach the twenty-first century, however, an affirmative and hopeful vision is needed. Faith, commensurate with advancing knowledge, is also necessary. In the choice between despair and hope, humanists respond in this Humanist Manifesto II with a positive declaration for times of uncertainty.
As in 1933, humanists still believe that traditional theism, especially faith in the prayer-hearing God, assumed to live and care for persons, to hear and understand their prayers, and to be able to do something about them, is an unproved and outmoded faith. Salvationism, based on mere affirmation, still appears as harmful, diverting people with false hopes of heaven hereafter. Reasonable minds look to other means for survival.
Those who sign Humanist Manifesto II disclaim that they are setting forth a binding credo; their individual views would be stated in widely varying ways. This statement is, however, reaching for vision in a time that needs direction. It is social analysis in an effort at consensus. New statements should be developed to supersede this, but for today it is our conviction that humanism offers an alternative that can serve present-day needs and guide humankind toward the future.
– Paul Kurtz and Edwin H. Wilson (1973)
The next century can be and should be the humanistic century. Dramatic scientific, technological, and ever-accelerating social and political changes crowd our awareness. We have virtually conquered the planet, explored the moon, overcome the natural limits of travel and communication; we stand at the dawn of a new age, ready to move farther into space and perhaps inhabit other planets. Using technology wisely, we can control our environment, conquer poverty, markedly reduce disease, extend our life-span, significantly modify our behavior, alter the course of human evolution and cultural development, unlock vast new powers, and provide humankind with unparalleled opportunity for achieving an abundant and meaningful life.
The future is, however, filled with dangers. In learning to apply the scientific method to nature and human life, we have opened the door to ecological damage, over-population, dehumanizing institutions, totalitarian repression, and nuclear and bio-chemical disaster. Faced with apocalyptic prophesies and doomsday scenarios, many flee in despair from reason and embrace irrational cults and theologies of withdrawal and retreat.
Traditional moral codes and newer irrational cults both fail to meet the pressing needs of today and tomorrow. False “theologies of hope” and messianic ideologies, substituting new dogmas for old, cannot cope with existing world realities. They separate rather than unite peoples.
Humanity, to survive, requires bold and daring measures. We need to extend the uses of scientific method, not renounce them, to fuse reason with compassion in order to build constructive social and moral values. Confronted by many possible futures, we must decide which to pursue. The ultimate goal should be the fulfillment of the potential for growth in each human personality – not for the favored few, but for all of humankind. Only a shared world and global measures will suffice.
A humanist outlook will tap the creativity of each human being and provide the vision and courage for us to work together. This outlook emphasizes the role human beings can play in their own spheres of action. The decades ahead call for dedicated, clear-minded men and women able to marshal the will, intelligence, and cooperative skills for shaping a desirable future. Humanism can provide the purpose and inspiration that so many seek; it can give personal meaning and significance to human life.
Many kinds of humanism exist in the contemporary world. The varieties and emphases of naturalistic humanism include “scientific,” “ethical,” “democratic,” “religious,” and “Marxist” humanism. Free thought, atheism, agnosticism, skepticism, deism, rationalism, ethical culture, and liberal religion all claim to be heir to the humanist tradition. Humanism traces its roots from ancient China, classical Greece and Rome, through the Renaissance and the Enlightenment, to the scientific revolution of the modern world. But views that merely reject theism are not equivalent to humanism. They lack commitment to the positive belief in the possibilities of human progress and to the values central to it. Many within religious groups, believing in the future of humanism, now claim humanist credentials. Humanism is an ethical process through which we all can move, above and beyond the divisive particulars, heroic personalities, dogmatic creeds, and ritual customs of past religions or their mere negation.
We affirm a set of common principles that can serve as a basis for united action – positive principles relevant to the present human condition. They are a design for a secular society on a planetary scale.
For these reasons, we submit this new Humanist Manifesto for the future of humankind; for us, it is a vision of hope, a direction for satisfying survival.
Religion
FIRST: In the best sense, religion may inspire dedication to the highest ethical ideals. The cultivation of moral devotion and creative imagination is an expression of genuine “spiritual” experience and aspiration. We believe, however, that traditional dogmatic or authoritarian religions that place revelation, God, ritual, or creed above human needs and experience do a disservice to the human species. Any account of nature should pass the tests of scientific evidence; in our judgment, the dogmas and myths of traditional religions do not do so. Even at this late date in human history, certain elementary facts based upon the critical use of scientific reason have to be restated. We find insufficient evidence for belief in the existence of a supernatural; it is either meaningless or irrelevant to the question of survival and fulfillment of the human race. As nontheists, we begin with humans not God, nature not deity. Nature may indeed be broader and deeper than we now know; any new discoveries, however, will but enlarge our knowledge of the natural.
Some humanists believe we should reinterpret traditional religions and reinvest them with meanings appropriate to the current situation. Such redefinitions, however, often perpetuate old dependencies and escapisms; they easily become obscurantist, impeding the free use of the intellect. We need, instead, radically new human purposes and goals.
We appreciate the need to preserve the best ethical teachings in the religious traditions of humankind, many of which we share in common. But we reject those features of traditional religious morality that deny humans a full appreciation of their own potentialities and responsibilities. Traditional religions often offer solace to humans, but, as often, they inhibit humans from helping themselves or experiencing their full potentialities. Such institutions, creeds, and rituals often impede the will to serve others. Too often traditional faiths encourage dependence rather than independence, obedience rather than affirmation, fear rather than courage. More recently they have generated concerned social action, with many signs of relevance appearing in the wake of the “God Is Dead” theologies. But we can discover no divine purpose or providence for the human species. While there is much that we do not know, humans are responsible for what we are or will become. No deity will save us; we must save ourselves.
SECOND: Promises of immortal salvation or fear of eternal damnation are both illusory and harmful. They distract humans from present concerns, from self-actualization, and from rectifying social injustices. Modern science discredits such historic concepts as the “ghost in the machine” and the “separable soul.” Rather, science affirms that the human species is an emergence from natural evolutionary forces. As far as we know, the total personality is a function of the biological organism transacting in a social and cultural context. There is no credible evidence that life survives the death of the body. We continue to exist in our progeny and in the way that our lives have influenced others in our culture.
Traditional religions are surely not the only obstacles to human progress. Other ideologies also impede human advance. Some forms of political doctrine, for instance, function religiously, reflecting the worst features of orthodoxy and authoritarianism, especially when they sacrifice individuals on the altar of Utopian promises. Purely economic and political viewpoints, whether capitalist or communist, often function as religious and ideological dogma. Although humans undoubtedly need economic and political goals, they also need creative values by which to live.
Ethics
THIRD: We affirm that moral values derive their source from human experience. Ethics is autonomous and situational needing no theological or ideological sanction. Ethics stems from human need and interest. To deny this distorts the whole basis of life. Human life has meaning because we create and develop our futures. Happiness and the creative realization of human needs and desires, individually and in shared enjoyment, are continuous themes of humanism. We strive for the good life, here and now. The goal is to pursue life’s enrichment despite debasing forces of vulgarization, commercialization, and dehumanization.
FOURTH: Reason and intelligence are the most effective instruments that humankind possesses. There is no substitute: neither faith nor passion suffices in itself. The controlled use of scientific methods, which have transformed the natural and social sciences since the Renaissance, must be extended further in the solution of human problems. But reason must be tempered by humility, since no group has a monopoly of wisdom or virtue. Nor is there any guarantee that all problems can be solved or all questions answered. Yet critical intelligence, infused by a sense of human caring, is the best method that humanity has for resolving problems. Reason should be balanced with compassion and empathy and the whole person fulfilled. Thus, we are not advocating the use of scientific intelligence independent of or in opposition to emotion, for we believe in the cultivation of feeling and love. As science pushes back the boundary of the known, humankind’s sense of wonder is continually renewed, and art, poetry, and music find their places, along with religion and ethics.
The Individual
FIFTH: The preciousness and dignity of the individual person is a central humanist value. Individuals should be encouraged to realize their own creative talents and desires. We reject all religious, ideological, or moral codes that denigrate the individual, suppress freedom, dull intellect, dehumanize personality. We believe in maximum individual autonomy consonant with social responsibility. Although science can account for the causes of behavior, the possibilities of individual freedom of choice exist in human life and should be increased.
SIXTH: In the area of sexuality, we believe that intolerant attitudes, often cultivated by orthodox religions and puritanical cultures, unduly repress sexual conduct. The right to birth control, abortion, and divorce should be recognized. While we do not approve of exploitive, denigrating forms of sexual expression, neither do we wish to prohibit, by law or social sanction, sexual behavior between consenting adults. The many varieties of sexual exploration should not in themselves be considered “evil.” Without countenancing mindless permissiveness or unbridled promiscuity, a civilized society should be a tolerant one. Short of harming others or compelling them to do likewise, individuals should be permitted to express their sexual proclivities and pursue their lifestyles as they desire. We wish to cultivate the development of a responsible attitude toward sexuality, in which humans are not exploited as sexual objects, and in which intimacy, sensitivity, respect, and honesty in interpersonal relations are encouraged. Moral education for children and adults is an important way of developing awareness and sexual maturity.
Democratic Society
SEVENTH: To enhance freedom and dignity the individual must experience a full range of civil liberties in all societies. This includes freedom of speech and the press, political democracy, the legal right of opposition to governmental policies, fair judicial process, religious liberty, freedom of association, and artistic, scientific, and cultural freedom. It also includes a recognition of an individual’s right to die with dignity, euthanasia, and the right to suicide. We oppose the increasing invasion of privacy, by whatever means, in both totalitarian and democratic societies. We would safeguard, extend, and implement the principles of human freedom evolved from the Magna Carta to the Bill of Rights, the Rights of Man, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
EIGHTH: We are committed to an open and democratic society. We must extend participatory democracy in its true sense to the economy, the school, the family, the workplace, and voluntary associations. Decision-making must be decentralized to include widespread involvement of people at all levels – social, political, and economic. All persons should have a voice in developing the values and goals that determine their lives. Institutions should be responsive to expressed desires and needs. The conditions of work, education, devotion, and play should be humanized. Alienating forces should be modified or eradicated and bureaucratic structures should be held to a minimum. People are more important than decalogues, rules, proscriptions, or regulations.
NINTH: The separation of church and state and the separation of ideology and state are imperatives. The state should encourage maximum freedom for different moral, political, religious, and social values in society. It should not favor any particular religious bodies through the use of public monies, nor espouse a single ideology and function thereby as an instrument of propaganda or oppression, particularly against dissenters.
TENTH: Humane societies should evaluate economic systems not by rhetoric or ideology, but by whether or not they increase economic well-being for all individuals and groups, minimize poverty and hardship, increase the sum of human satisfaction, and enhance the quality of life. Hence the door is open to alternative economic systems. We need to democratize the economy and judge it by its responsiveness to human needs, testing results in terms of the common good.
ELEVENTH: The principle of moral equality must be furthered through elimination of all discrimination based upon race, religion, sex, age, or national origin. This means equality of opportunity and recognition of talent and merit. Individuals should be encouraged to contribute to their own betterment. If unable, then society should provide means to satisfy their basic economic, health, and cultural needs, including, wherever resources make possible, a minimum guaranteed annual income. We are concerned for the welfare of the aged, the infirm, the disadvantaged, and also for the outcasts – the mentally retarded, abandoned, or abused children, the handicapped, prisoners, and addicts – for all who are neglected or ignored by society. Practicing humanists should make it their vocation to humanize personal relations.
We believe in the right to universal education. Everyone has a right to the cultural opportunity to fulfill his or her unique capacities and talents. The schools should foster satisfying and productive living. They should be open at all levels to any and all; the achievement of excellence should be encouraged. Innovative and experimental forms of education are to be welcomed. The energy and idealism of the young deserve to be appreciated and channeled to constructive purposes.
We deplore racial, religious, ethnic, or class antagonisms. Although we believe in cultural diversity and encourage racial and ethnic pride, we reject separations which promote alienation and set people and groups against each other; we envision an integrated community where people have a maximum opportunity for free and voluntary association.
We are critical of sexism or sexual chauvinism – male or female. We believe in equal rights for both women and men to fulfill their unique careers and potentialities as they see fit, free of invidious discrimination.
World Community
TWELFTH: We deplore the division of humankind on nationalistic grounds. We have reached a turning point in human history where the best option is to transcend the limits of national sovereignty and to move toward the building of a world community in which all sectors of the human family can participate. Thus we look to the development of a system of world law and a world order based upon transnational federal government. This would appreciate cultural pluralism and diversity. It would not exclude pride in national origins and accomplishments nor the handling of regional problems on a regional basis. Human progress, however, can no longer be achieved by focusing on one section of the world, Western or Eastern, developed or underdeveloped. For the first time in human history, no part of humankind can be isolated from any other. Each person’s future is in some way linked to all. We thus reaffirm a commitment to the building of world community, at the same time recognizing that this commits us to some hard choices.
THIRTEENTH: This world community must renounce the resort to violence and force as a method of solving international disputes. We believe in the peaceful adjudication of differences by international courts and by the development of the arts of negotiation and compromise. War is obsolete. So is the use of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons. It is a planetary imperative to reduce the level of military expenditures and turn these savings to peaceful and people-oriented uses.
FOURTEENTH: The world community must engage in cooperative planning concerning the use of rapidly depleting resources. The planet earth must be considered a single ecosystem. Ecological damage, resource depletion, and excessive population growth must be checked by international concord. The cultivation and conservation of nature is a moral value; we should perceive ourselves as integral to the sources of our being in nature. We must free our world from needless pollution and waste, responsibly guarding and creating wealth, both natural and human. Exploitation of natural resources, uncurbed by social conscience, must end.
FIFTEENTH: The problems of economic growth and development can no longer be resolved by one nation alone; they are worldwide in scope. It is the moral obligation of the developed nations to provide – through an international authority that safeguards human rights – massive technical, agricultural, medical, and economic assistance, including birth control techniques, to the developing portions of the globe. World poverty must cease. Hence extreme disproportions in wealth, income, and economic growth should be reduced on a worldwide basis.
SIXTEENTH: Technology is a vital key to human progress and development. We deplore any neo-romantic efforts to condemn indiscriminately all technology and science or to counsel retreat from its further extension and use for the good of humankind. We would resist any moves to censor basic scientific research on moral, political, or social grounds. Technology must, however, be carefully judged by the consequences of its use; harmful and destructive changes should be avoided. We are particularly disturbed when technology and bureaucracy control, manipulate, or modify human beings without their consent. Technological feasibility does not imply social or cultural desirability.
SEVENTEENTH: We must expand communication and transportation across frontiers. Travel restrictions must cease. The world must be open to diverse political, ideological, and moral viewpoints and evolve a worldwide system of television and radio for information and education. We thus call for full international cooperation in culture, science, the arts, and technology across ideological borders. We must learn to live openly together or we shall perish together.
Humanity As a Whole
IN CLOSING: The world cannot wait for a reconciliation of competing political or economic systems to solve its problems. These are the times for men and women of goodwill to further the building of a peaceful and prosperous world. We urge that parochial loyalties and inflexible moral and religious ideologies be transcended. We urge recognition of the common humanity of all people. We further urge the use of reason and compassion to produce the kind of world we want – a world in which peace, prosperity, freedom, and happiness are widely shared. Let us not abandon that vision in despair or cowardice. We are responsible for what we are or will be. Let us work together for a humane world by means commensurate with humane ends. Destructive ideological differences among communism, capitalism, socialism, conservatism, liberalism, and radicalism should be overcome. Let us call for an end to terror and hatred. We will survive and prosper only in a world of shared humane values. We can initiate new directions for humankind; ancient rivalries can be superseded by broad-based cooperative efforts. The commitment to tolerance, understanding, and peaceful negotiation does not necessitate acquiescence to the status quo nor the damming up of dynamic and revolutionary forces. The true revolution is occurring and can continue in countless nonviolent adjustments. But this entails the willingness to step forward onto new and expanding plateaus. At the present juncture of history, commitment to all humankind is the highest commitment of which we are capable; it transcends the narrow allegiances of church, state, party, class, or race in moving toward a wider vision of human potentiality. What more daring a goal for humankind than for each person to become, in ideal as well as practice, a citizen of a world community. It is a classical vision; we can now give it new vitality. Humanism thus interpreted is a moral force that has time on its side. We believe that humankind has the potential, intelligence, goodwill, and cooperative skill to implement this commitment in the decades ahead.
We, the undersigned, while not necessarily endorsing every detail of the above, pledge our general support to Humanist Manifesto II for the future of humankind. These affirmations are not a final credo or dogma but an expression of a living and growing faith. We invite others in all lands to join us in further developing and working for these goals.
As you can see, the updated manifesto is much longer, more specific in its claims, more prescriptive in its conclusions, and emphasizes the need for global community over the establishment of a secular religion (though that is still there). To me, even though it denies it, this iteration begins to read like a growing collection of highly specific doctrine, rather than a brief statement of broad philosophical consensus.
Bizarrely, it reads more secular and more dogmatic than the original. But it also engages its moment with conviction, rooted in articulable secular values, while providing solutions to relevant problems. From what I understand, "practicing" humanists of the time found it inspiring and galvanizing. The first humanist group I ever participated in, The Humanist Community of Central Ohio, formed in the mid-1970s and then became an official affiliate of the American Humanist Association in 1979, when this manifesto was their idealogical touchstone. I encountered them in the 2010s, and some of the members and leaders had been active since those early days. Clearly, the movement has had staying power for those folks.
Just as the original document was a representation of humanist thought and perceived cultural need in 1933, this is where humanist thought and conviction landed the Humanist Manifesto II authors and signatories in 1973. To me, its facinating to see how people with more or less the same values and concerns as I have today, thoughtfully engaged with the world at two distinct moments in the last hundred years.
Humanist Manifesto III (2003)
The current Humanist Manifesto reverts to the brevity of the original. Its drafting committee, for the first time, included two women (out of five total members). It's signatories include humanist organizational leaders, philosophers, poets, novelists, liberal religious leaders, and 22 nobel laureates across the fields of physics, chemistry, and medicine.
Humanism is a progressive philosophy of life that, without supernaturalism, affirms our ability and responsibility to lead ethical lives of personal fulfillment that aspire to the greater good of humanity.
The lifestance of Humanism—guided by reason, inspired by compassion, and informed by experience—encourages us to live life well and fully. It evolved through the ages and continues to develop through the efforts of thoughtful people who recognize that values and ideals, however carefully wrought, are subject to change as our knowledge and understandings advance.
This document is part of an ongoing effort to manifest in clear and positive terms the conceptual boundaries of Humanism, not what we must believe but a consensus of what we do believe. It is in this sense that we affirm the following:
Knowledge of the world is derived by observation, experimentation, and rational analysis. Humanists find that science is the best method for determining this knowledge as well as for solving problems and developing beneficial technologies. We also recognize the value of new departures in thought, the arts, and inner experience—each subject to analysis by critical intelligence.
Humans are an integral part of nature, the result of unguided evolutionary change. Humanists recognize nature as self-existing. We accept our life as all and enough, distinguishing things as they are from things as we might wish or imagine them to be. We welcome the challenges of the future, and are drawn to and undaunted by the yet to be known.
Ethical values are derived from human need and interest as tested by experience. Humanists ground values in human welfare shaped by human circumstances, interests, and concerns and extended to the global ecosystem and beyond. We are committed to treating each person as having inherent worth and dignity, and to making informed choices in a context of freedom consonant with responsibility.
Life’s fulfillment emerges from individual participation in the service of humane ideals. We aim for our fullest possible development and animate our lives with a deep sense of purpose, finding wonder and awe in the joys and beauties of human existence, its challenges and tragedies, and even in the inevitability and finality of death. Humanists rely on the rich heritage of human culture and the lifestance of Humanism to provide comfort in times of want and encouragement in times of plenty.
Humans are social by nature and find meaning in relationships. Humanists long for and strive toward a world of mutual care and concern, free of cruelty and its consequences, where differences are resolved cooperatively without resorting to violence. The joining of individuality with interdependence enriches our lives, encourages us to enrich the lives of others, and inspires hope of attaining peace, justice, and opportunity for all.
Working to benefit society maximizes individual happiness. Progressive cultures have worked to free humanity from the brutalities of mere survival and to reduce suffering, improve society, and develop global community. We seek to minimize the inequities of circumstance and ability, and we support a just distribution of nature’s resources and the fruits of human effort so that as many as possible can enjoy a good life.
Humanists are concerned for the well being of all, are committed to diversity, and respect those of differing yet humane views. We work to uphold the equal enjoyment of human rights and civil liberties in an open, secular society and maintain it is a civic duty to participate in the democratic process and a planetary duty to protect nature’s integrity, diversity, and beauty in a secure, sustainable manner.
Thus engaged in the flow of life, we aspire to this vision with the informed conviction that humanity has the ability to progress toward its highest ideals. The responsibility for our lives and the kind of world in which we live is ours and ours alone.
-Humanist Manifesto is a trademark of the American Humanist Association
© 2003 American Humanist Association
For the first quarter of the twenty-first century, the Humanist Manifest III has been the idealogical touchstone of humanism in the United States. But as you'll see below, the international movement is closely aligned, too.
Minimal Statements of Humanism
Personally, I find the current Humanist Manifesto easy to understand, but it's not exactly something you can rattle off every time someone asks you, "What is humanism?" That's why many of today's most prominent humanist organizations have done their best to provide their own "minimal statement of humanism." I've curated some of them below.
American Humanist Association
Humanism is a progressive philosophy of life that, without theism or other supernatural beliefs, affirms our ability and responsibility to lead ethical lives of personal fulfillment that aspire to the greater good.
-American Humanist Association
Humanists International
Humanism 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.
-Humanists International
Norwegian Humanist Association
The humanistic view of life is based on reason and experience, critical thinking, humanity and ethical values. Roughly speaking, humanism can be said to be based on three cornerstones: Confidence in science and human experience. The belief that man has a potential for freedom and must take responsibility for his own life. The belief that people together can develop the ability for ethical reflection and moral action.
-Norwegian Humanist Association
Distinguishing Humanism from other Philosophies
There are a lot of misconceptions about humanism. Many of these misunderstandings are a result of conflating humanism with another philosophy or worldview, or not understanding how humanism interacts with other ways of thinking. Below I've tried to cover the ones I see come up most often in my own experience.
Nihilism
Nihilism posits that life lacks inherent meaning, purpose, or objective value. It rejects the existence of any ultimate truths or moral absolutes, often leading to a sense of existential despair and the belief that life is ultimately futile. But not necessarily. Humanism is a great example of how someone can accept the conclusions of nihilism, without wallowing in disillusionment. Humanism recognizes that we, not a devine being, are the source of meaning, purpose, and ethics. It promotes the idea that individuals can find meaning and fulfillment through their relationships, experiences, and contributions to society. You can be a Nihilist and a Humanist, but humanism is not nihilism.
Hedonism
Hedonism asserts that the pursuit of pleasure and the avoidance of pain are the ultimate goals in life. It prioritizes immediate gratification and personal desires above other considerations. In contrast, humanism emphasizes reason, ethics, community, and personal growth as pathways to fulfillment. While hedonism seeks pleasure as the only aim, humanism's concerns are much broader. It is doubtful that someone could be a Hedonist and a Humanist since hedonism would not consider community or the "other" over the pursuit of personal pleasures, and those are both central to humanism.
Relativism
Relativism is a philosophical viewpoint that holds that truth, morality, and knowledge are not absolute or universal but rather dependent on individual or cultural perspectives. It acknowledges the diversity and subjectivity of human experiences and emphasizes the importance of tolerance, open-mindedness, and understanding of different viewpoints. Many humanists are likely relativists too, at least insofar as they do not hold to absolute morality and seek to understand others' perspectives and culture. However, an important aim of humanism is to establish a broad consensus around basic human values, ethics, and truth (like international human rights) and to enforce them. If someone's committment to relativism means that they cannot in good conscience take a firm moral or ethical stance on any issue, that would be where the overlap between relativism and humanism ends.
Scientism
Scientism asserts the superiority of science over all other forms of human knowledge or understanding. It promotes the idea that only scientific claims are meaningful, dismissing other domains like philosophy, religion, or the arts as less valid or less accurate ways of understanding the world. Humanism, while recognizing the importance of science in the acquisition of knowledge, actively balances the findings of science with the humanities. Humanists use the information science discovers to inform their philosophy, art, and other mediums of human experience--not to replace them.
Totalitarianism
It's hard to imagine two ideas more at odds with each other than totalitarianism and humanism. Totalitarianism is a political system where the state holds total authority over society and seeks to control all aspects of public and private life. Humanism, on the other hand, places immense value on personal freedom, education, free speech, democracy, and other ideas that are consistently surpressed by totalitarian regimes.
Utopianism
Utopianism is the belief that we are capable of creating a perfect society. This society would possess a perfect balance between individual liberty and collective responsibility. Its social, political, and legal systems would be so harmonious, just, and effective that all of its citizens would be satisfied and content. The height of most humanistic dreams of progress stop well short of perfection, seeing as we're still talking about a society comprised of imperfect people. But the humanist perspective is one of optimism that sees great potential in human beings to improve themselves and society, even if perfection is out of reach.
Utilitarianism
Utilitarianism is a philosophical perspective that suggests the most ethical decision in any situation is the one that results in the maximum happiness and minimal suffering of the greatest number of people. Humanism tends to take a more nuanced approach. Humanism recognizes the value of the utilitarian perspective when making moral or ethical decisions, but also recognizes that life and human beings are incredibly complex. There's not always a clear-cut answer to ethical questions and sometimes its impossible to determine what will benefit the largest number of people or if they would consent to a well-reasoned ethical decision made on their behalf.
Human Worship
Humanism and human worship may sound like they refer to the same thing but they represent two starkly different perspectives. Human worship, whether in reference to specific people, groups, or humanity in general, elevates humans to the status of divinity. It may even refer to a practice of worship that requires or encourages subservience towards specific individuals or groups. In contrast, humanism is concerned with humans as humans and does not consider anyone divine or worthy of religious worship. It values equality and acknowledges the limitations of being human in addition to its great potential.
Speciesism
Speciesism refers to discrimination based on species membership, such as the exploitation of animals or the environment, due to a sense of human superiority. While humanism places great value on human life and wellbeing, it also recognizes that we are not separate from nature. As such, we are not inherently better than any other life on our planet and we should be mindful of our impact. What exaclty that means in terms of our responsibility towards the rest of life on Earth is a hotly debated topic in ethics today, with perspectives ranging from "none at all, except as it pertains to our survival" to "we should extend human rights to all life." Humanism falls firmly on the side of responsible and compassionate stewardship of the planet and all life on it.
Up Next: What Does it Mean to Be a Humanist?
I hope you'll join me for the next installment of this blog post series where I'll be exploring what it means to be a humanist. In this post I've covered what humanism is, what it's not, and a bit of its history. But what does it mean to be a humanist? Is there something you have to do first? Is there an official member card or secret handshake? What's expected of someone who calls themselves a humanist? I'll get into all of that and more in my next post in the series. If you'd like to follow along, please subscribe to my humanism newsletter.
A thorough write up that I see myself referring back to in the future! I appreciate the approach of clarifying Humanism by defining what it is not. It’s a clever in-depth way of carving out an all encompassing definition. Thanks!
I’ve been looking for something akin to a “bible” of secular humanism. Thanks
While it’s not a “bible” there is a great book that came out a couple years ago that provides a nice picture of humanism thoughout history up to today called Humanly Possible. I highly recommend it.