What is Humanism?
Humanism is a way of leading a good life based on understanding ourselves as part of nature and a product of natural processes. It is an ethical worldview of recent origins that has developed alongside the great advances in human knowledge especially over the past 500 years.
The ethics of Humanism are grounded in natural human values like, care, compassion, altruism and fairness. It is a flexible life philosophy of open-mindedness, freedom and democracy which draws people to be deeply conscious of their common humanity. It leads people to acknowledge the moral worth of all human beings, and be guided in action by the realisation that all humans have common needs and share similar aspirations.
Humanism advocates free inquiry which is the basis of a scientific approach and it rejects absolute authorities and revealed wisdom. It leads people to defend intellectual integrity, and supports conscience over social customs. Responsible freedom of thought and action and civilised law are of paramount importance to Humanists.
To be a Humanist is to desire the well-being of all humans, to celebrate the triumphs and to agonise over the tragedies of humanity. It is to live purposefully and peacefully in companionship with others in the knowledge that this is the only life we will know and that certainty is an illusion.
(Taken from the Council of Australian Humanist Societies website – February 2013)
Australia-wide
The Council of Australian Humanist Societies website
New South Wales
Humanist Society of NSW website
Humanist Society of NSW Facebook Page
Queensland
Humanist Society of Queensland website
Humanist Society of Queensland Facebook Group
South Australia
Humanist Society of South Australia Inc. website
Victoria
Humanist Society of Victoria website
Humanist Society of Victoria Facebook Page
Humanist Society of Victoria (fan group) Facebook Group
Western Australia
Humanist Society of WA on MeetUp
Humanist Society of WA on Facebook
