H
HagiaSophia
Guest
Humanist and atheist groups around the world are looking to boost their profile in 2005 to counter religious fundamentalism and efforts by some western leaders to relaunch faith as a keystone of national life. Under pressure from the rise of militant Islam, Vatican activism in the European Union and the re-election of a “born-again” Christian to the White House, they feel they must resist to ensure the ideas of secularism survive and spread.
"In the face of the religious onslaught on Humanist values, we have to speak out and get our message over," says Roy Brown, Swiss-based president of the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) which links groups totalling millions of members. “We must work hard to combat the encroachment of religion on public policy and on the rights of non-believers everywhere,” said IHEU executive director Babu Gogineni.
Limited to private sphere
Atheists, who see no evidence for the existence of a deity, and Humanists, who are mainly atheists but include some believers, share that core concern: to keep religion out of politics and limit it to the private sphere.
They draw their inspiration from freethinkers down the ages, from ancient Greek and Indian philosophers through the 18th century Enlighten- ment that shaped much of modern political thinking in Europe and North America.
But they see key Humanist principles under assault, and not just in Muslim countries. The re-election in November of George W. Bush, U.S. Humanists fear, strengthened the influence of Christian fundamentalists.
Undermining secular traditions: promotion of faith
In Britain, many Humanists feel that Prime Minister Tony Blair - a strong religious believer - and members of his government are undermining secular traditions. They point to his promotion of faith schools run by various religious communities, in- cluding two financed by a fundamentalist businessman where creationism is taught as science…"
"…Even at the United Nations, there was good news from for Humanists. Bangladeshi writer and medical doctor Taslima Nasrin, living in exile after criticising Islam and an active campaigner for the rights of women and the non-religious, was awarded a UNESCO prize for promoting cultural tolerance. But at the same time, a Vatican campaign led to the world body adding “Christiano- phobia” to “Islamophobia” and anti-Semitism as issues its human rights bodies report on.
wienerzeitung.at/frameless/eng_news.htm?ID=Eng&Menu=7760
"In the face of the religious onslaught on Humanist values, we have to speak out and get our message over," says Roy Brown, Swiss-based president of the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU) which links groups totalling millions of members. “We must work hard to combat the encroachment of religion on public policy and on the rights of non-believers everywhere,” said IHEU executive director Babu Gogineni.
Limited to private sphere
Atheists, who see no evidence for the existence of a deity, and Humanists, who are mainly atheists but include some believers, share that core concern: to keep religion out of politics and limit it to the private sphere.
They draw their inspiration from freethinkers down the ages, from ancient Greek and Indian philosophers through the 18th century Enlighten- ment that shaped much of modern political thinking in Europe and North America.
But they see key Humanist principles under assault, and not just in Muslim countries. The re-election in November of George W. Bush, U.S. Humanists fear, strengthened the influence of Christian fundamentalists.
Undermining secular traditions: promotion of faith
In Britain, many Humanists feel that Prime Minister Tony Blair - a strong religious believer - and members of his government are undermining secular traditions. They point to his promotion of faith schools run by various religious communities, in- cluding two financed by a fundamentalist businessman where creationism is taught as science…"
"…Even at the United Nations, there was good news from for Humanists. Bangladeshi writer and medical doctor Taslima Nasrin, living in exile after criticising Islam and an active campaigner for the rights of women and the non-religious, was awarded a UNESCO prize for promoting cultural tolerance. But at the same time, a Vatican campaign led to the world body adding “Christiano- phobia” to “Islamophobia” and anti-Semitism as issues its human rights bodies report on.
wienerzeitung.at/frameless/eng_news.htm?ID=Eng&Menu=7760