List of irreligious organizations

Last updated

Conway Hall, home of the Conway Hall Ethical Society, is the oldest freethought community in the world (established 1793). Conway hall 2019.JPG
Conway Hall, home of the Conway Hall Ethical Society, is the oldest freethought community in the world (established 1793).

Irreligious organizations promote the view that moral standards should be based solely on naturalistic considerations, without reference to supernatural concepts (such as God or an afterlife), any desire to do good for a reward after death, or any fear of punishment for not believing in life after death.

Contents

Background

Individuals and organizations sharing these views, identify themselves by a variety of terms, including, bright, freethinker, naturalist, rationalist, or skeptic. [1] [2] Despite the use of these various terms, the organizations listed here have goals in common. Note that, while most of these organizations and their members consider themselves irreligious, there are certain exceptions (Ethical Culture, for example).

In some jurisdictions, a provincial or national humanist society may confer upon Humanist officiants the ability to conduct memorial services, child naming ceremonies or officiate marriages tasks which would be carried out by clergy in most organized religions. [3] [4] [5]

List

Australia

Belgium

Brazil

Canada

Finland

France

Germany

Greece

Iceland

India

Indonesia

Ireland

Italy

Kenya

Luxembourg

Netherlands

New Zealand

Northern Ireland

Norway

Philippines

Romania

Singapore

Sweden

Switzerland

Turkey

United Kingdom

National organisations

Local groups

There are many local humanist groups around the United Kingdom, most being affiliates of Humanists UK and the National Secular Society. Of these, Leicester Secular Society has particular claim to fame in being the world's oldest secular society, founded in 1851. [17] Others include North East Humanists.

United States

Freedom From Religion Foundation billboard Beware-of-dogma.jpg
Freedom From Religion Foundation billboard
American Atheist bench and "Ten Commandments" display (Bradford County, Florida) American Atheists and Commandments.jpg
American Atheist bench and "Ten Commandments" display (Bradford County, Florida)

See also

Notes and references

  1. Who does the Secular Coalition for America represent? Archived 2008-04-16 at the Wayback Machine
  2. Some less common labels include: apatheist, godless (in the non-pejorative, literal sense), ignostic, infidel (or unbeliever), heathen, materialist, or realist.
  3. "Humanist Canada: Humanist Weddings". Archived from the original on 2012-12-28. Retrieved 2014-11-23.
  4. "Humanists Stand Ready to Perform Same-Sex Marriage Ceremonies". American Humanist Association. March 3, 2010. Archived from the original on September 21, 2022. Retrieved September 21, 2022.
  5. "The Humanist Society Listing of Humanist Celebrants". Archived from the original on 2013-11-01. Retrieved 2014-11-23.
  6. Archived 2021-05-07 at the Wayback Machine Atheist Republic
  7. The Movement Archived 2008-03-12 at the Wayback Machine , The Brights' Network, 2008 (Accessed 9 April 2008)
  8. Presentation, European Humanist Federation website, 2006 (Accessed 10 April 2008)
  9. Laïque (French): "secular"
  10. About IHEU Archived 2008-07-05 at the Wayback Machine , IHEU website Archived 2014-01-02 at the Wayback Machine (Accessed 5 April 2008)
  11. "Internet Deconstructing State Church in Finland". eroakirkosta.fi. Archived from the original on 2022-09-21. Retrieved 2022-09-21.
  12. Atheist Union of Greece Statute
  13. "Les non-religieux veulent aussi être consultés". L'essentiel (in French). Edita SA. 18 January 2015. Archived from the original on 27 August 2017. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  14. The Norwegian Humanist Association Archived 2008-04-12 at the Wayback Machine , Human-Etisk Forbund website (English version), 2011 (Accessed 5 February 2011)
  15. Membership Archived 2007-10-30 at the Wayback Machine , Human-Etisk Forbund website (English version), 2004 (Accessed 9 April 2008)
  16. South Place Ethical Society website Archived 2008-04-20 at the Wayback Machine (Accessed 5 April 2008)
  17. Leicester Secular Society website Archived 2008-05-15 at the Wayback Machine (Accessed 5 April 2008)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Secular humanism</span> Life stance that embraces human reason, secular ethics, and philosophical naturalism

Secular humanism is a philosophy, belief system, or life stance that embraces human reason, logic, secular ethics, and philosophical naturalism, while specifically rejecting religious dogma, supernaturalism, and superstition as the basis of morality and decision-making.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Religious humanism</span> Integration of humanist ethical philosophy

Religious humanism or ethical humanism is an integration of nontheistic humanist philosophy with congregational rites and community activity that center on human needs, interests, and abilities. Religious humanists set themselves apart from secular humanists by characterizing the nontheistic humanist life stance as a non-supernatural "religion" and structuring their organization around a congregational model.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Freethought</span> Position that beliefs should be formed only on the basis of logic, reason, and empiricism

Freethought is an unorthodox attitude or belief.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Secular Society</span> British campaigning organisation founded in 1866

The National Secular Society (NSS) is a British campaigning organisation that promotes secularism and the separation of church and state. It holds that no one should gain advantage or disadvantage because of their religion or lack of it. It was founded by Charles Bradlaugh in 1866.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norwegian Humanist Association</span> Organization

The Norwegian Humanist Association is one of the largest secular humanist associations in the world, with over 130,000 members. Those members constitute 2.3% of the national population of 5.47 million, making HEF by far the largest such association in the world in proportion to population. The association publishes the magazine Fri tanke.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barbara Smoker</span> British humanist (1923–2020)

Barbara Smoker was a British humanist activist and freethought advocate. She was also President of the National Secular Society (1972–1996), Chair of the British Voluntary Euthanasia Society (1981–1985) and an Honorary Vice President of the Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association in the United Kingdom.

Jim Herrick was a British humanist and secularist. He studied history and English literature at Trinity College, Cambridge University, and then worked as a school teacher for seven years. He wrote or edited several books on humanism and the history of freethought.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Secular Coalition for America</span> American advocacy group

The Secular Coalition for America is an advocacy group located in Washington D.C. It describes itself as "protecting the equal rights of nonreligious Americans."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edwin Kagin</span> American lawyer (1940-2014)

Edwin Frederick Kagin was an attorney at law in Union, Kentucky, and a founder of Camp Quest, the first secular summer camp in the United States for the children of secularists, atheists, agnostics, brights, skeptics, naturalists and freethinkers. He served as the National Legal Director of American Atheists from 2006 until his death in 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amsterdam Declaration</span> 2002 statement of the fundamental principles of modern humanism

The Amsterdam Declaration 2002 is a statement of the fundamental principles of modern Humanism passed unanimously by the General Assembly of Humanists International (HI) at the 50th anniversary World Humanist Congress in 2002. According to HI, the declaration "is the official statement of World Humanism."

The Rationalist Society of Australia (RSA) promotes the interests of rationalists nationally in Australia. Originally formed as the Victorian Rationalist Association, the society originated in a meeting of freethinkers in the University of Melbourne in 1906. It is the operational arm of the rationalist movement in Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of humanism</span> Overview of and topical guide to humanism

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to humanism:

Clark Davis Adams was a prominent American freethought leader and activist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Flynn (author)</span> American writer (1955–2021)

Thomas W. Flynn was an American author, journalist, novelist, executive director of the Council for Secular Humanism, and editor of its journal Free Inquiry. He was also director of the Robert Green Ingersoll Birthplace Museum and the Freethought Trail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apostacon</span> Annual freethought conference

Apostacon, before 2013 known as Midwest Humanist Conference, Midwest Humanist and Freethought Conference and Midwest Freethought Conference, is an annual event about atheism, freethought, humanism, secularism and skepticism in the (Midwestern) United States. The conference, which embraces the parody religion of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, is aimed at "atheists, humanists, agnostics, skeptics, apostates, freethinkers, rationalists and pastafarians."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Organized secularism</span> Belgian irreligious union

In Belgium, organized secularism is the local associations and organizations which provide moral support for naturalist, atheist, agnostic, secular humanist, freethinking, Bright, or irreligious and non-confessional citizens. A person who subscribes to such entities or ideologies, or at least espouses an interest in "free inquiry" apart from religious traditions is described as a "secular" or "free-thinker".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Watts (secularist)</span> English secularist

Charles Watts was an English writer, lecturer and publisher, who was prominent in the secularist and freethought movements in both Britain and Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rationalist Association</span> Irreligious organization in the United Kingdom

The Rationalist Association, originally the Rationalist Press Association, is an organization in the United Kingdom, founded in 1885 by a group of freethinkers who were unhappy with the increasingly political and decreasingly intellectual tenor of the British secularist movement. The purpose of the Rationalist Press Association was to publish literature that was too anti-religious to be handled by mainstream publishers and booksellers. The Rationalist Press Association changed its name to "The Rationalist Association" in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union of Freethinkers of Finland</span>

The Union of Freethinkers of Finland is the largest secularist and freethought organisation in Finland. The organisation supports the rights of those Finns who hold no religious affiliation, and promotes a science-based, rational and critical world view and humanistic ethics.