The Humanist Affirmations Explored - Affirmation #3

Welcome back! Hopefully, you have enjoyed as much as I have learning and thinking about these Humanist Affirmations. (If you’ve missed the previous entries you can start here). As a reminder, these are not “immutable truths” decreed by an omniscient deity. No. They are the thoughts of finite, imperfect beings (for now…) trying to make sense of an often-times senseless world. I know that can be unsettling at times. What if they are not perfect guides for living the good life? Well, join humanity. We are making this up the best we can as we go! Lol

Ok, now let’s tackle the third affirmation of affirmation as stated below from American Humanist Association website:

Ethical values are derived from human need and interest as tested by experience. Humanists ground values in human welfare shaped by human circumstances, interests, and concerns and extended to the global ecosystem and beyond. We are committed to treating each person as having inherent worth and dignity, and to making informed choices in a context of freedom consonant with responsibility.

Now, up until this very point (8:31 CT, April 30th, 2023) in my life, I would have sat for hours thinking through what best to say about this. Lucky for us, we are slowly outsourcing our lives to AI (as featured in a previous blog post by Tyler Owen). And as the saying goes, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. So for this post, for better or for worse, I am deferring to a response from Chat GPT. This is what it provided when asked, “Write an essay about the third affirmation of Secular Humanism.” I hope you enjoy it’s (?) thoughts. I have inserted my pathetic, human comments in bold…

Chat GPT: The third affirmation of secular humanism states that humans can derive their morality and ethics from their own inherent nature and from human experience, rather than from religious or supernatural authority. This affirmation is a cornerstone of secular humanism and represents a departure from the traditional religious and supernatural sources of morality and ethics.

Alan: I agree, Chat(?). Can I call you that? Your insight here is spot-on and reminds me of the famous Euthyphro dilemma from a couple thousand or so years ago: Is something good because God wills it to be good or does God will it because it is already good? If the former, how can we know it is good? If it is the latter, then goodness stands apart from god making God unnecessary to determine the “good”. Humanists agree that goodness is a product of human experience, thought, and conversation. Nothing more. It is refined continually and is tied closely to human flourishing. 

The idea that humans can derive their morality and ethics from their own inherent nature and from human experience is not a new one. Throughout history, philosophers and thinkers have argued that human beings possess an inherent sense of morality that is independent of religious or supernatural authority. For example, Aristotle argued that humans have a natural sense of right and wrong that is rooted in our ability to reason and think abstractly. Similarly, the Enlightenment philosopher Immanuel Kant argued that humans possess an innate sense of morality that is grounded in reason.

Chat, you really are something! Again, well done. It is true that humans are the creators of morality and ethics and yes we have been arguing about the best way to think about these difficult concepts since we invented them. Like living things, ideas adapt to their ever-changing environments but cannot survive without their host (namely Humans). We bare the sobering responsibility of caring for our ideas, understanding their implications and consequences. We must continue to value good ideas that promote a better sentient (including humans) experience. 

However, the affirmation of secular humanism goes beyond these earlier philosophical ideas by explicitly rejecting the notion that morality and ethics must be derived from religious or supernatural authority. This rejection is based on the idea that religious and supernatural sources of morality and ethics are arbitrary and often contradictory. For example, different religions and supernatural belief systems often prescribe different moral and ethical codes, leading to confusion and conflict. In addition, these sources of morality and ethics are often based on ancient texts or traditions that may be outdated or irrelevant to modern society.

Ummm…Chat, you are getting a little feisty. I do agree however that basing our morals and/or ethics on a particular interpretation of an ancient or modern text is just not sustainable and has led to conflict. That said, Humanists are still stuck with the very difficult task of deciding “right from wrong”. Science helps us as it can bring clarity to the consequences of our actions, but alas our knowledge is not perfect. We rely on dialogue, thinking deeply, finding consensus, and, most importantly, asking our AIs. 😊

Instead, secular humanism argues that humans can derive their morality and ethics from their own experiences and from the collective wisdom of human society. This approach recognizes that human beings are social creatures and that our moral and ethical values are shaped by our interactions with others. By studying the history of human society and the experiences of different cultures and communities, we can develop a more nuanced understanding of what is right and wrong.

Yup! Humans are stronger together in nearly every way! Consensus is usually always superior to a lone opinion but not always.

Moreover, the affirmation of secular humanism recognizes that our understanding of morality and ethics is not static but evolves over time. As human society changes and evolves, our moral and ethical values must also change and evolve. This means that our moral and ethical codes must be open to criticism and revision considering new information and changing social norms.

At this point, I feel very redundant. Ugh. Yes, Chat, you are so cool! Chat’s point is juxtaposed against religious dogmatism that prides itself on never changing. This is a bug not a feature. As a reminder, humans are not perfect and things we consider “good” today will be considered “evil” in 50 years. And sometimes visa versa. I know this is a hard pill to swallow but it is the result of morality and ethics being a bottom-up phenomenon and not a top-down one. Look no further than Orthodox Christianity’s orientation to slavery, divorce, inter-racial marriage, same-sex marriage, etc.

In conclusion, the third affirmation of secular humanism represents a fundamental shift in our understanding of morality and ethics. By rejecting religious and supernatural sources of morality and ethics, secular humanism emphasizes the importance of human experience and social interaction in shaping our moral and ethical values. This approach recognizes that our understanding of morality and ethics is not fixed but is constantly evolving, and that we must be open to criticism and revision considering new information and changing social norms.

Thank you, Chat. I need to sleep now. It’s a thing humans do.