Secular humanism is a philosophy, belief system or life stance that embraces human reason, secular ethics, and philosophical naturalism while specifically rejecting religious dogma, supernaturalism, and superstition as the basis of morality and decision making.
Religious humanism or ethical humanism is an integration of nontheistic humanist ethical philosophy with congregational rites and community activity which center on human needs, interests, and abilities. Self-described religious humanists differ from secular humanists mainly in that they regard the nontheistic humanist life stance as a non-supernatural "religion" and organising using a congregational model.
The American Humanist Association (AHA) is a non-profit organization in the United States that advances secular humanism.
Humanists UK, known from 1967 until May 2017 as the British Humanist Association (BHA), is a charitable organisation which promotes secular humanism and aims to represent "people who seek to live good lives without religious or superstitious beliefs" in the United Kingdom by campaigning on issues relating to humanism, secularism, and human rights. It seeks to act as a representative body for non-religious people in the UK.
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.
The Ethical movement is an ethical, educational, and religious movement established in 1877, by the academic Felix Adler (1851–1933). In effort to develop humanist codes of behavior, the Ethical movement emerged from the moral traditions of the secular societies of Europe and the secular society of the United States of the 19th century. In practice, the Ethical movement organized themselves as two types of organization: (i) a secular humanist movement and (ii) a moral movement, with a religious approach.
The Happy Human is an icon that has been adopted as an international symbol of secular humanism. Created by Dennis Barrington, the figure was the winning design in a competition arranged by Humanists UK in 1965. Various forms of it are now used across the world by humanist organisations of all sizes including Humanists UK, Humanists International and The American Humanist Association (AHA).
Humanists International is an international non-governmental organisation championing secularism and human rights, motivated by secular humanist values. Founded in Amsterdam in 1952, it is an umbrella organisation made up of more than 160 secular humanist, atheist, rationalist, agnostic, skeptic, freethought and Ethical Culture organisations from over 80 countries.
A person's life stance, or lifestance, is their relation with what they accept as being of ultimate importance. It involves the presuppositions and theories upon which such a stance could be made, a belief system, and a commitment to potentials working it out in one's life.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to humanism:
A humanist celebrant or humanist officiant is a person who performs humanist celebrancy services, such as non-religious weddings, funerals, child namings, coming of age ceremonies and other rituals. Some humanist celebrants are accredited by humanist organisations, such as Humanists UK, Humanist Society Scotland (HSS), The Humanist Society (US), and the Humanist Association of Canada (HAC).
Humanist Students is the national umbrella organisation for free-thinking, atheist, humanist and secular student societies in the United Kingdom. Its aim is to provide a national voice for non-religious student societies in the UK and help coordinate national activities.
Andrew James William Copson, FRSA, FCMI, MCIPR is a humanist leader and writer. He is the Chief Executive of Humanists UK and the President of Humanists International.
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".
Harry Verdon Stopes-Roe was a British philosopher known mainly for his active role in the humanist movement in Britain and around the world. He was a Vice-President of the British Humanist Association until his death in May 2014, having served as its Chair previously.
Jane Wynne Willson is a British teacher, writer, campaigner and humanist. She was a vice-president and is now a patron of Humanists UK.
Non-Prophet Week is an annual charity week for the irreligious in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and is coordinated by the Humanist Students. During the week, AHS societies and similar organisations in Ireland and the UK are encouraged to run charity events. The week has had different themes. Sometimes a charity has been chosen, other times groups have been encouraged to volunteer their time, donate blood and raise money for any cause or issue that they feel is important. So far over 200 Non-Prophet Week events have taken place in around 30 different cities. Over £12,000 has been raised and donated to charity.
David Pollock was a British humanist who served as President of the European Humanist Federation (EHF). He was also treasurer of the Education and Health Trust Uganda.
Jason Torpy is president of the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers (MAAF), an advocacy group focused on non-religious service members and veterans. He is a veteran of the U.S. Army and a Humanist Celebrant who works to increase the visibility of "atheists in foxholes".
