The Foundational Tenet of Humanistic Atheism is that rationalism, the bootstrap of this philosophy, leads to naturalism, then rationalistic naturalism, combined with the lessons learned through inquiry using empiricism and the scientific method, logically leads to both atheism and humanism. This will be discussed in greater depth in the Humanistic Atheism chapter.

If we look honestly and unflinchingly at the accumulated knowledge that has been gained through rational inquiry and the scientific method, and the growing ability of the sciences to offer us evidence-based ethics and morality, and if we consider that the world’s religions have been shown to be incomplete and even incorrect in providing this knowledge, as well as their inconsistent and unsatisfactory moral guidance and example, we cannot escape the conclusion that it is not only possible, it is incumbent upon us, in the name of intellectual honesty and moral defensibility, to outline and teach a framework of knowledge and ethics based on the principles of Humanistic Atheism to serve as a guide for understanding the universe, Earth, life, and humanity.

This book is offered as such a guide.

It is appropriate to make a brief statement on what this book is, and what it is not. It is both an attempt to bring together in one place the current understanding of the light that science and rational inquiry can shed on questions that have been of particular interest to humans for millennia and an attempt to emphasize the humanistic ideals of secularism in order to help to improve living conditions for all of humanity. Many of these questions were out of our reach for most of our time as a species, so their answers have been provided mostly through myths and magical thinking, culminating in the many religions and their associated texts. Questions such as “where did everything come from?” and “why am I here?” as well as questions regarding morality and guidelines for living, theoretical viewpoints of life and humanity in all its diversity, as well as explanations of natural phenomena including weather, climate, natural disasters, sickness and death, were thought to be best left to those who claimed to have special access to the supernatural, to the divine. Unfortunately, this system has been the cause of much misery, conflict, and erroneous assumptions that have led to and continue to lead to false conclusions and unnecessary suffering.

The main topics covered in this book series are The Universe, Cosmology, and Physics; The Solar System, Earth, and Life; Humanity; Humanistic Atheism; and Critical Thinking. The major sections of the book can be thought of as having a foundation of mainly science or humanism, though all sections will touch on both, to differing degrees.

Starting with the first two books, The Universe, Cosmology, and Physics and The Solar System, Earth, and Life, are mainly science-based, discussing the origins and nature of our universe, our world, and life from a scientific, naturalistic (atheistic) viewpoint. The Humanity section looks at our species’ origins and nature scientifically and also examines our humanism in detail. Finally, the Humanistic Atheism section brings it all together into a cohesive philosophy. In Critical Thinking, the focus is both humanistic and scientific, since critical thinking is a human exercise. We do apply this critical thinking to scientific matters because this is one of the highest accomplishments of humanity – to analyze the world methodically to arrive at reliable answers. There is significant overlap of the two overarching ideas throughout the book, as the two are inextricable from each other.

In modern times, science is strongly associated with atheism, and humanism with secularism, which many people also associate with atheism. Because of these associations, atheism itself is a point where all of the main themes converge. Many (perhaps most) humanists prefer the term Secular Humanism to represent non-religious humanistic philosophy, perhaps in part because the word secular seems gentler than atheist. While I do consider myself and this book to be a part of the humanist tradition, I think it is important to use and identify with the language and the concepts of atheism because rejection of the god hypothesis (and all magical thinking) is foundational to our understanding of ourselves and the world we inhabit. Also, because many people are considering atheism for the first time, because atheism has come to the fore of our cultural awareness, and because of the many persistent misconceptions about atheism (e.g., many theists assume that atheists are Satanists)[2] that exist and that poison what should be friendly and constructive relationships and even partnerships between the religious and non-religious communities, atheism is a part of the foundation of this book.

There have historically been two main strands of atheism: scientific and humanistic. Both are based on rational naturalism. However, Scientific Atheism is based more in scientism[3] and Humanistic Atheism is based more in science and humanism, which is why The Values and Principles of Humanistic Atheism provide the underlying theme of the book series.

There is also a distinction between atheism and anti-theism, and it is an important one. An atheist doesn’t believe in God or gods, but doesn’t necessarily oppose those beliefs in others, while an anti-theist opposes religions and religious belief. Many atheists are also anti-theists, but by no means all. It is important to distinguish Humanistic Atheists from the so-called “New Atheists” who have a reputation for being angry and confrontational toward theists. This anger is not entirely without justification, but it is misguided, as will be further explored in the Humanity section of the book.

It should also be noted that many religious people have humanistic values and that all religions also espouse many humanistic values. Further, as was aptly said by Jeff Sparrow at The Guardian:

… a faith may function as a guide to morality, or an aesthetic, or a social network, or a collection of cultural practices, or a political identity, or a historical tradition, or some combination of any or all of those things.

You don’t have to be a believer to see that religion genuinely offers something to its adherents (often when nothing else is available) and that what it provides is neither inconsequential nor silly.[4]

Humanism, Atheism, and Religiosity are not mutually exclusive, winner-take-all competitions; there are overlaps, and humanistic atheists should seek common ground with humanistic theists to cooperate with the goal of improving the lives of all people. An example of overlap includes philanthropy, though it is stated emphatically that neither religious groups nor atheist groups (nor any other groups) should ever use helping the needy as an opportunity to proselytize, because it is coercive and therefore cruel to use people’s misfortune as an opportunity to advance your personal or organizational agenda. We should be willing to work with groups that don’t share our philosophies when it will help us to do more good, while also remaining ready to fight any efforts to suppress freedom of and from religion, including any attempts to impose any religion’s doctrines into governmental or educational policy.

All humans (excluding sociopaths) have the capacity for empathy, compassion, kindness and helping others; this is a part of humanism, and it is what unites us. We can all be humanistic, regardless of faith or philosophy.

Because the above statements are true, this book is not intended to sway any religious person to this way of thinking or to bash religion. We will be honest about what a rationalistic, naturalistic view of the world tells us, and some people may find some of the things thus said to be offensive to their sensibilities. While this is not the intention, it is unavoidable. It would be intellectually dishonest (and unfair to the atheist readers) to omit content because it might offend non-atheists. That said, humanism calls for a philosophy that is inclusive and stresses our commonalities and our interdependence. There are and always have been many humanistic people of all faiths and philosophies that seek to work together to improve the world and ourselves. This book is for all of us. It is a reference for Humanistic Atheists and a resource for humanistic theists to understand us better.

My vision and goal is for humanistic atheists the world over to have a home where our truth is honored, spoken, shared and taught; to work toward a world where our philosophy is understood, respected and accepted; to provide a central resource that connects us with an organized web of knowledge about the world and ourselves according to a naturalistic, rationalistic analysis, and to organize like-minded people to work together with each other and with humanistic religious communities toward improving the world and living conditions for all of its people.

Publishing this book is the first step toward that vision.

[1] “If there is no god – and there isn’t – then we made up morality. And I’m very impressed.” Jennifer Michael Hecht, https://www.liquisearch.com/jennifer_michael_hecht/background

[2] Think about it: From the point of view of atheists, who think that God is a part of a mythology, Satan is just one of many fictional characters in that mythology. Therefore, atheists also do not believe in Satan.

[3] Scientism is the view that only knowledge gained through the empirical sciences is worthwhile or valid.

[4] https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/nov/30/we-can-save-atheism-from-the-new-atheists