I'm Intrigued...

From Wikipedia:

Secular Humanism is a secular philosophy that espouses reason, ethics, and justice, and specifically rejects supernatural and religious dogma as the basis of morality and decision-making. Secular Humanism is a life stance that focuses on the way human beings can lead good, happy and functional lives.

Tenets:

*Need to test beliefs – A conviction that dogmas, ideologies and traditions, whether religious, political or social, must be weighed and tested by each individual and not simply accepted on faith.
*Reason, evidence, scientific method – A commitment to the use of critical reason, factual evidence and scientific methods of inquiry, rather than faith, in seeking solutions to human problems and answers to important human questions.
*Fulfillment, growth, creativity – A primary concern with fulfillment, growth and creativity for both the individual and humankind in general.
*Search for truth – A constant search for objective truth, with the understanding that new knowledge and experience constantly alter our imperfect perception of it.
*This life – A concern for this life and a commitment to making it meaningful through better understanding of ourselves, our history, our intellectual and artistic achievements, and the outlooks of those who differ from us.
*Ethics – A search for viable individual, social and political principles of ethical conduct, judging them on their ability to enhance human well-being and individual responsibility.
*Building a better world – A conviction that with reason, an open exchange of ideas, good will, and tolerance, progress can be made in building a better world for ourselves and our children.

Notable people: Richard Dawkins, Roger Ebert, Albert Einstein, Jon Stewart, Jeremy Bentham (Oh hey John Locke), Kurt Vonnegut, John Lennon

Looks like I have more ideas for summer reading...

I sense some interesting posts this quarter

Parts of my syllabus for my philosophy class - Contemporary Moral Issues:

_Euthanasia: "Is there a right to die?"

_Abortion: "The unspeakable crime of abortion"

_State punishment and the death penalty: "An eye for an eye"

_War, Terror and Torture: "The case for pacifism"

Ahh to be back at school. Be back later, lab at 8am :/

Searching for answers

I know my recent posts have been heavily centered on politics and religious arguments here and there, but with the significance of this year's election and controversial issues on the ballot, these past couple months have really influenced me in how I view the world and why - pretty much because I forced myself to really sit down and critically think about these issues. It's just been on my mind lately, and while all this introspection is very liberating for my mind, it is also very frustrating.

I guess you could say I'm in some sort of religious/spiritual limbo. More so religious I should say, because what I'm not confused about is my belief in God or my stance on "hot topics" between church and society - abortion, homosexuality, abstinence-only education, etc. - it's crystal clear. What I am confused about is what does this mean for me as someone who was raised Catholic. I just feel that I am not able to commit 100% to being what a Catholic "should be" simply because of what I believe. Even if I were to commit 500% and devoted everything to my faith, I feel like no matter what I absolutely cannot be considered Catholic simply because I believe women should have a choice when it comes to abortion. Or that same-sex marriages are not immoral. Or that sex education is very critical and would help to reduce numbers of abortions and teenage pregnancies to begin with.

Some of it has to do with how the leaders of the church have spoken out against prominent Catholics in politics for their stance on abortion. After VP-to-be Joe Biden received communion in Florida recently, one of the bishops from that area suggested that Biden not present himself for the sacrament anymore, simply due to his pro-choice stance. Biden is not the only Catholic politician in the public eye that has been asked to stop receiving communion. I wouldn't have such a hard time balancing my views if the church authority didn't publicly condemn this middle ground where I stand right now.

There's really no arguing with the Catholic church because of the importance of papal infallibility. This basically means that the pope, working through the Holy Spirit, is free of error when he declares something as right or wrong. This is essentially what makes the Catholic church different from others; it does not stress religious interpretation by the individual but by the church universally. Everyone has their own idea of what it means to be a Catholic, but if you disagree with one of the core messages that the church preaches today, can you really still identify yourself as a Catholic?

I'm not so sure.

I'm not at all trying to put down Catholicism because if that's what works for you, then all the power to you. It's difficult to really devote yourself to a particular faith and if you can do it and it makes you happy, I find that pretty admirable. As for me right now, I don't want to characterize myself as a "cafeteria Catholic", picking and choosing what I like about the teachings. What's the point if you don't give your all? For anything? As of now I feel like a huge hypocrite when I proclaim myself as a Catholic then get into an argument on how we need to fight for reproductive rights or marriage equality.

I know there is a balance somewhere. I know that thinking logically and thinking in terms of religion are not mutually exclusive but rather complementary. I just don't know if that entails fully committing to a Catholic faith for me right now. I don't want to distance myself from something I've known my whole life but I feel like there is no compromise...

They Say You Want a Revolution

Last night was another one of those "late night at 198" episodes, after a little bit of wine, Captain Morgan and accompanying snacks; common topics such as philosophy and religion were discussed as usual, but in this edition of "late night" the main subject at hand seemed to be our generation as a whole. Lots of good points were brought up during our discussion 'round the table, and I just wanted to put out some things I said/wanted to say last night before they sink into the back of my brain behind population dynamics and freshwater ecology (4 more weeks of school for us, booo). Excuse the randomness of the following points, we covered a lot of ground last night and for me to try to put it into some meaningful format would be nearly impossible:

-This has been on my mind for a while, but I honestly think that if I only had one thing to strive for in life, it would be balance. I think as we go through life, ultimately what we're trying to find is a happy medium in every aspect of our lives - balance within relationships and time/energy for yourself, balance between work and play, balance between striving for more in life and being happy with/working with what you already have, etc. A reason why I believe the search for balance is important and actually works is that it applies to everyone, yet at the same time the right "balance" for one person is completely different from the next. From now on I don't think I'm necessarily going to go after what I perceive is "happiness" or "success" because I believe as long as I have that right balance in my life, all of those things should just fall into place somehow. This means trying to view the decisions in my life not in just black or white, but rather try to see the spectrum that lies between. I'm really hoping this makes sense.

-Everyone in our discussion last night pretty much identified themselves as Catholic, but all of our views on religion could not be any more different. Somewhat going along the lines of trying to find balance in my life, I often find myself in an inner conflict between the rules and traditions I was brought up with in the church and my views on religion and the world that I've garnered mostly in my college years. Then sometimes I think no matter what, religion serves its purpose for me regardless of what I believe - in the big picture, the minor discrepancies between my beliefs and what Catholicism says I "should" believe in don't really matter. My religion has still taught me to be a forgiving person, has given me a basis for my moral ground, and maybe most surprisingly, has reiterated the most that I'm human, I make mistakes and that it's okay. That's why I don't understand how people can be so close minded and judgmental of a person just because of their religious views, or even lack of them. Whatever works for you, you know?

-As for the people in our generation, I think a large part of why we're seen as indifferent to important issues in the world or even seen as just plain stupid is that we really haven't had to experience hardships like those before us; we haven't had to endure civil rights movements, serve in world wars, suffer great depressions, etc. In one way, that's a great thing because I'm sure our grandparents and ancestors did what they had to do so that our lives wouldn't be as difficult as theirs. But at the same time, I just wish it didn't take a global crisis or something to personally affect our lives before we realize how good we really have it. If there was something our generation is lacking in, I would say compassion. Too many people are seriously invested in BS nowadays, I wouldn't have such a big problem with it as long as, at the same time, they could open their eyes and just acknowledge the hardships that people from other parts of the world go through everyday. It's so easy to complain about how your parents haven't bought you the latest gadgets when you don't think about the single mothers in war torn countries struggling to put food on the table *sigh*