Mansur Ahmed

Secular humanism is not a religion, it is a philosophy, one which I’ve come around to in recent times. I don’t know how controversial this statement may be, but I believe it’s a duty all human beings have to others and the world in which we live. To look at a narrow definition of humanism, an alarm may go off inside yourself. It could be thought of as a life stance focusing on how to lead good, happy, and functional lives. If you’re like me and have a habit of seeing most things through a filter of cynicism, at first glance you may think the idea of humanism to be a pretentious, cultlike system looking to gain your veneration. It’s not that at all, nor does it disregard any of the great religions of our world. Humanism is simply an ethical approach to life that seeks to find human solutions to human arguments without recourse to supernatural or spiritual elements that involve god, gods, sacred texts, or religious creeds. I’m not saying that religion is a bad thing. Faith is very powerful. It can motivate people to achieve noble dreams and ideals. But it can also be a kind of translucent barricade that keeps us divided, ultimately making some of us feel superior to others because we place our beliefs on a higher platform. In that sense, religion can be negative. But there is a lot of positive I think humanism percolates from all the great belief systems. It gets to the bone and reminds us the fundamental obligations we have towards one another.

It’s safe to say most of us were born into a religion. From childhood, we might be taught to accept certain beliefs without questioning them. It may be in some of our natures not to question these things which, quite frankly, would make leading a life a lot easier. The problem with this is the inherent conflict one could face with an individual of different beliefs. There’d be no inclination to try and understand somebody else’s values and traditions, instead regarding them as nothing more than an exhibit to be briefly fascinated by in a somewhat condescending manner. This is a very dangerous aspect of religion because I think its very important to test beliefs, not just religious ones, but even social and political ones. All dogmas, ideologies, and traditions must be weighed by the individual and not simply accepted on faith. We owe that to each other.

On Earth, all of us are constantly after some kind of objective truth. But with religious convictions, there isn’t always a need to search for it because everything may conveniently be outlined for us in a sacred text. This impairs our ability to allow new knowledge and experience to change our perceptions, which in turn can hamper certain kinds of fulfillment, growth, and creativity for both the individual and humankind in general. How can life be meaningful by better understanding ourselves, our history, our intellectual and artistic achievements without considering the outlooks of those who differ from us?

All the religions of our world are beautiful, but we must learn to collectively celebrate them with an open exchange of ideas. An ideal that may be impossible to accomplish without offending some of our personal sensibilities. The best way to do this is to consider a more abstract meaning of religion: love for our fellow man. A concept that with an open mind, good will, and tolerance can enhance human well-being and ultimately create a better world for us all.