Humanist World View

 

Lots of people today are not religious, and many of them they have beliefs and values that are based not on faith or religious authorities but on reason, evidence. They believe that reason, experience and evidence – not faith – are the best ways of finding out about the universe and the world around us. They base their morality on what will best contribute to human welfare and human fulfillment. Because there is no evidence for it, they don’t believe in god or the supernatural. Instead of these concepts, they believe we only have one life and that we can make it meaningful and fulfilling by being happy, making others happy and by adopting worthwhile goals to give our lives meaning and purpose.

 

People who believe these things are called humanists and the name Humanism is given to this package of beliefs and values. ‘Humanism’ is not a religion – it is just a word to describe what humanists believe and many people who have humanist beliefs may not have heard of the word or call themselves humanists. I first learned the word when I was a teenager and I realized that it described all the things I believed in.