Thursday, April 9, 2020

EUPRAXOPHIA # 1:

WHAT IS SECULAR HUMANISM?

October 1998

Abstracts

WHAT IS HUMANISM?:

Frederick Edwords, American Humanist Association
Firstly author give us a classification of humanism. Then he describes modern humanism -religious and secular- in a positive way.

A SECULAR HUMANIST DECLARATION:
Paul Kurtz, Center for Inquiry
Secular humanism is a vital force in the contemporary world. It is now under unwarranted and intemperate attack from varios quarters. This declaration defends only that form of secular humanism which is explicitly committed to democracy. It is opossed to all varieties of belief that seek supernatural sanction for their values or espouse rule by dictatorship.

THE HUMANIST WAY:
John Mc Kinnon, Ex Minister of the Universalist Unitarian Church, USA
Humanism is a materialist philosophy and thus a naturalistic one. but the word ‘materialism’ has gained a certain bad reputation in society. For that the author proposes the new terms ‘matter-ism’ and ‘idea-ism’ in order to make the difference. 

ON HUMANISM:
J.P. van Praag, Former Co-President, Internacional Ethic and Humanist Union
It tryes to define and characterize to humanism (mental attitude, humanist asuntions, view of humankind and world, naturality, etc.)

SECULAR HUMANISM: It is the Adjetive that counts:
Joseph Fletcher, former Professor of Ethics, University of Virginia
Author enfatizes the fundamental and negative distinction between secular humanism and other kinds of humanism: its unbelief in God and religions.

BETWEEN RELATIVISM AND/OR FUNDAMENTALISM, an Humanist Answer:
Alberto Hidalgo Tuñón, Philosopher of Universidad de Oviedo
In this enlightening paper the author approches all diferent types of humanism and expresses his discrepancies between those ones and rationalist humanism which is a valid option in those possible scenaries in which it can build its future if it manages to shake off all relativism and fundamentalistic views.

WHO IS AFRAID OF HUMANISM?:
Edd Doerr, American Humanist Association
It is about mainly on Secular humanism in North America where is under unjust attack from the American conservative religious right. Author defends and explains the main Humanist points and also recognizes some of its fails.

WHAT IS NEW IN OUR HUMANISM?:
Claudio Gutiérrez, Ex-Rector, Universidad de Costa Rica and present Minister of Culture in that country.
It is about firstly on several contemporary discoveries in Biology, Genetics, Mathematics, Cybernetics, etc. and also on the end of the Socialist utopia. Humanism should be realsitic, based in Nature and in what we can find by ourselves that is we need.

REVIEWS AND NOTES



No comments:

Post a Comment