In-Depth Knowledge

Table of contents

Beliefs, Teachings, Wisdom, Authority

  • Basic Beliefs

    The most important humanist beliefs are that that we can live good lives without religion or a belief in God, and that we can know what is good by using reason, experience […]

  • Sources of Authority

    Humanism has no authorities or leaders in the usual senses of these words, that is, individuals, texts or organisations that command obedience or universal respect. Individual humanists seek and find knowledge, wisdom […]

  • Beliefs and Society

    The impact of humanist beliefs on people’s lives may be considerable and life-changing or relatively uncomplicated, depending on family and social background. To be a humanist in a very traditional family or […]

  • Teachings about the Way Things Are

    The truth claims of humanism are largely to do with our understanding of the world and ethics (how we relate to and treat each other and the natural world, and why). The […]

  • Individuals and Organisations

    Humanists rarely, if ever, attain positions of authority or influence in society as a direct result of their humanism, though humanist beliefs and values may well inform their choices of career and […]

  • Vision, Values and Inspiration

    In living with integrity by their humanist values, sometimes at some personal cost, the figures described above offer humanists good examples of how to live. They were characterised by a belief in […]

Ways of Living

  • Guidance for Life

    Humanist beliefs impact on humanists’ lives in the following ways: Humanists try to live good lives by the light of reason and experience, rather than by relying on tradition or authority; Humanists […]

  • Practical Values for Living

    ‘Humanism is about the world, not about humanism’, wrote one of the founders of modern humanism, Harold Blackham, in 1968, emphasising its capacity to look outwards. In many countries, humanism supports secular, […]

  • Studying and Interpreting Key Thinkers

    There are no sacred texts in humanism and, although some humanists do choose to get together, meetings do not involve worship or reading specific texts. (See also the page on “Worship”.) Although […]

  • The Journey of Life

    Humanists may see life as a metaphorical journey, from youth to maturity, from ignorance to understanding, from aspiration and hope to fulfilment, but the journey is not a central concept or metaphor […]

  • Special Days and Celebrations

    Humanists have no particular festival days. Some humanists choose to celebrate New Year or “Winterval” rather than Christmas; some celebrate International Humanist Day on 21 June, or Human Rights Day in December, […]

Ways of Expressing Meaning

  • Learning from Stories and Narratives

    There are no key stories in humanism, and no sacred stories. On the other hand, it seems to be a general characteristic of human beings to enjoy and learn from stories, both […]

  • Symbolism

    There is no great range of symbols unique to humanism and none of any great age. The best known is perhaps the “Happy Human” symbol. This was the winning design in a […]

  • The Arts

    The “Happy Human” symbol has not yet permeated into art, music, literature and architecture, and on the whole humanists share many of the symbols and symbolic language of the rest of humanity, […]

  • Meeting Places

    Humanists have very few buildings of their own in the UK. Two examples are Leicester Secular Society and Conway Hall in Holborn, London; both are large buildings with many rooms of various […]

  • Expressing Humanist Beliefs at Meetings

    Humanists today do not worship, as they do not believe in a deity to be worshipped. However, the 19th century forerunners of contemporary humanism, Ethical Churches, were run like very liberal churches, […]

  • Inspirational Places

    There are no sacred places or places of pilgrimage for humanists. Some find inspiration in places of natural beauty or in museums or art galleries or places where inspirational figures lived or […]

Identity, Diversity and Belonging

  • Humanist Identity and Belonging

    There are few overt signs or demonstrations of humanist belief. Humanists dress like most other secular people of their own societies and there are no obligatory rituals or observances. There is no […]

  • Foundations of Identity

    One of the basic principles of humanism, shared with many religions, is the “Golden Rule”: “Treat other people as you would like to be treated yourself”, and humanists would expect themselves, and […]

  • Family and Community

    The family is just as important to humanists as it is to everyone else, though humanists may have a fairly liberal and inclusive idea of what constitutes a family. The humanist idea […]

  • Humanist Diversity

    Humanists are fairly diverse, as humanist ideas have arisen independently in many places at many different times. There are humanist groups and organisations all over the world. As with religions, shared ideas, […]

  • Other Religions & Beliefs

    There is some diversity within humanism about the merits of religion and of interfaith dialogue. Humanists are sometimes excluded from interfaith dialogue and networks on the grounds that humanism is not a […]

Meaning, Purpose and Truth

  • Feelings & Experiences

    Humanists feel awe and wonder – at the natural world, for example – and concern, joy and sadness just like other human beings. When it comes to praise and thanks, humanists would […]

  • Answers to Ultimate Questions

    The ‘ultimate questions’ for humanists are probably similar to those for religious believers. They are questions about purpose and existence: Why are we here? What happens to us when we die? Why […]

  • The End of Life

    Humanists do not believe in any kind of supernaturally inspired end to human existence, or in the possibility of surviving death. But many, along with many religious believers, are becoming concerned about […]

  • Religion and Science

    Humanists think that the only reliable evidence for truth claims is empirical, and that scientific method is the only way of finding out how the world works. They accept that the findings […]

Values and Commitments

  • Rules and Ethical Guidelines

    Like many of the world’s religions, humanism values human happiness and flourishing and the morality of the ‘golden rule’: “Treat other people as you would like to be treated yourself”. The 20th […]

  • Moral Exemplars

    Many have been influenced by a humanist worldview to use their talents to try to make the world a better place. Some have been famous for their contributions to society, science, medicine […]

  • Individual and Social Responsibility

    Humanists respond to contemporary ethical issues using the tools of reason and empathy. These do not, however, always lead to the same conclusions; for example, some humanists are pacifists while others would […]

  • The Environment

    Humanists strongly believe that humankind must take responsibility for improving the world, and increasingly today for protecting the environment that sustains us all. For humanists, human rights, fairness and social justice are […]

  • Ethical Decision Making

    Discussions amongst humanists are completely free and impossible to monitor or control. There is no central authority to decide on global or other issues, but a shared humanist perspective often emerges from […]

Humanism and Anti-racism – some examples

  • Humanism and Anti-racism – some examples

    Here is a list of humanists who have been actively involved in anti-racism and some suggested works (some recent some more historical) James Baldwin, American novelist and activist See The Fire Next Time and […]

Websites & Bibliography

  • Websites

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moncure_Conway http://newhumanist.org.uk/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/atheism/types/humanism.shtml https://heritage.humanists.uk/ http://www.humanism.org.uk https://humanists.international/ http://www.positiveatheism.org/hist/athval0.htm https://understandinghumanism.org.uk/ https://understandinghumanism.org.uk/conway-hall-virtual-tour/ https://understandinghumanism.org.uk/res_films/one-life-live-it-well/ https://understandinghumanism.org.uk/school-speakers/ https://humanists.international/get-involved/resources/humanist-prism/ https://heritage.humanists.uk/

  • Bibliography

    Aesop’s Fables, ancient secular stories with strong moral (and practical) messages Baggini, J., 2003. Atheism: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford Very Short Introductions). Oxford: OUP. Blackburn, S., 2002. Being Good: A Short […]

Humanism is not a religion. It is a non-religious, ethical worldview, concerned with some of the same concepts as religions, but generally derived from secular ideas and considerations that have affected and influenced the lives of people, particularly since the Enlightenment. Humanism is a worldwide phenomenon although it is most often associated with the post-Christian trends of the 20th century in Europe and the developed nations. It has arguably somewhere in the region of 150 million active adherents which is about 2% of the world’s population.

The resources contained in the list of subjects below are a basic introduction to the facts and traditions of humanism. They are a portal or window into the world of humanism and by following the websites and bibliographies, an enquirer may discover more and more about this worldview.

The six units are based on the QCA non-statutory framework for Religious Education and the Areas of Enquiry. They provide not only a comprehensive guide to the facts and traditions of humanism, but also address the issues that humanism encounters as it engages with the 21st century.