Implications of a humanist perspective for the study of religion The more excited I get the more possibilities I see in terms of topics and resources the more worried I get How does Humanism fit ID: 619199
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Slide1
Humanism and Religion
Implications of a humanist perspective for the study of religionSlide2
The more excited I get, the more possibilities I see in terms of topics and
resources, …the
more worried I get. How does Humanism fit into the crowded RE space?
The dilemmaSlide3
It
still sometimes feels as if humanism is a late arrival at the RE party and we are not quite sure how to welcome and embrace the new guest.
The challengeSlide4
We keep hearing:
‘doing fewer
things in greater depth’ in terms of fewer religions (with the predictable privileging of Christianity!)
The debateSlide5
How does the presence
of humanism
challenge and enrich the discussion about the concepts we use to organise learning in RE?
1. Language of RE Slide6
How does the presence
of humanism
encourage the use of a wider range of perspectives when studying religion? 2. Interpretation of religionSlide7
Does RE do enough to explore:
the social reality of religion?
questions about the nature, origin, meaning, persistence, decline, transmission, function etc of religion? theories about the place of religion in human life?
Making sense of religionSlide8
The place religion has in our lives is a permanent one. There is no point in condemning it, because it’s part of the human mind to ask who made us, why are we here, what is the purpose of life, when happens when I die.
Philip Pullman…. What I’ve learntSlide9Slide10Slide11
There
has been a significant growth in the number of people who declare themselves to be ‘spiritual, but not religious’, having left, or never been involved in, institutional religion.
The notion of there being two coherent and unified categories of the ‘religious’ and ‘non-religious’, separated by a deep ditch, is difficult to sustain in such complex
terrain.
From Religion and Atheism Beyond the Divide.
Edited by Carroll and Norman
Brian Pearce on ‘being religious’Slide12
How does the presence of humanism challenge
and
stimulate discussion about the relationship between RE, spirituality and the wider curriculum?
3. RE and the wider curriculumSlide13
I Asked Atheists How They Find Meaning In A Purposeless
Universe:
https://www.buzzfeed.com/tomchivers/when-i-was-a-child-i-spake-as-a-child?utm_term=.wsmv4dDp7l#.foEMBD1KZLCarl Sagan: Pale Blue Dot:
http
://
www.planetary.org/explore/space-topics/earth/pale-blue-dot.html
Secular SpiritualitySlide14
“The way I find meaning is the way that most people find meaning, even religious ones, which is to get pleasure and significance from your job, from your loved ones, from your
vocation
, art, literature, music. People like me don’t worry about what it’s all about in a cosmic sense, because we know it isn’t about anything. It’s what we make of this transitory existence that matters
.”
Jerry
Coyne, evolutionary biologist Slide15
“The
Earth is the only world known so far to
harbour life. There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which our species could migrate. It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we've ever known.”
Carl
S
agan.