2008 Meetings

January:
Topic: A Round Table Discussion of “Divine Evil,” an essay from the book, Philosophers Without Gods, published August 2007, Oxford University Press. Authors David Lewis and Phillip Kircher contend God perpetrates evil by prescribing eternal torment as punishment for a mere human lifetime of insubordination. Exerpts from the essay and analysis appeared in Harper’s Magazine, December 2007.

February:
Topic: Challenges for Atheism

Speaker: Sam Harris, on a DVD from the Atheist Alliance International Convention, September, 2007. Well-known author Sam Harris comments on the changes he sees in the community of non-theists and his hopes for the future. He challenges atheists and secular humanists to re-think some commonly-held assumptions. He asserts that use of the term Atheism is a philosophical and strategic error.

Discussion: How are we perceived as individuals and as a group in Fredericksburg? What are our goals as a Secular Humanist group in Fredericksburg?

March:
Peer Review of the Ten Commandments. Attendees play the part of various gods and goddesses who will critique the set of rules devised by Jehovah for his chosen people and all mankind. Fred McCoy will play the part of Jehovah and will moderate the discussion. Attendees will be given scripts to follow & may also ad-lib as they imagine their character’s viewpoint to be.

April:
“Uses and Abuses of History”, presented by WASH Board member & Secretary, Don Evans. Is it possible for historians to be objective? Does an objective view of events exist? Don Evans is a WASH board member and serves as board secretary, leads the philosophy SIG for the Baltimore Secular Humanists, holds an MA in Philosophy from Yale, and edited each of the two volumes of essays published by WASH.

May:
“Darwin, Sexual Selection, and the Origin of Ethics.” Based on Darwin’s book, The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex, this talk will be presented by the president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Maryland, John Nugent, who was a healthcare administrator for many years, and co-chaired the Planned Parenthood of America Bioethics Taskforce. He holds an MA in ethics and a BA in philosophy.

June:
“ Infidel.” Ayaan Hirsi Ali, on DVD, traces her life’s journey from her Muslim upbringing in Somalia to her life in the Netherlands and subsequent rejection of religion. FSH Chapter Coordinator, Pat Chen, will present a very brief review of the book, Infidel, by Hirsi Ali, which explores the relationship between Islam and the West, as well as her personal story.

July:
“The Root of All Evil, Episode 1: The God Delusion.” Presented on DVD by the world famous and highly acclaimed science educator, evolutionary biologist, Oxford professor, and best selling author, Richard Dawkins. Released nine months before the book, The God Delusion, this television documentary highlights the dangers of faith and religion in the 21^st century, and asks people of reason to say, “Enough is Enough.” The program examines how religious faith is gaining ground in the face of rational, scientific truth, and takes you to some of the world’s religious hot-spots, both in America and the Middle East.

“Enough is Enough.” The program examines how religious faith is gaining ground in the face of rational, scientific truth, and takes you to some of the world’s religious hot-spots, both in America and the Middle East.

August:
“A Place At The Table: How the Nation’s First Congressional Lobbyist for Non-theists is Enjoying the Feast.” Presented by Lori Lipman Brown, director of The Secular Coalition for America since 2005. In this position, she lobbies Congress on behalf of nontheistic Americans in an effort to protect the secular Character of our government as the best guarantee of freedom for all. Brown is an Attorney, an educator, and a former Nevada State Senator.

September:
“The Root of All Evil, Episode 2: The Virus of Faith.” This DVD is the second half of Richard Dawkins’ television documentary, in which he cautions us, “Our modern world is the product of a long march from ignorance and fear to the Enlightenment and beyond, always guided by the power of science and reason. To now abandon our endeavour toward progress and knowledge for faith and superstition puts humanity in peril.”

October:
“Good Reasons for Believing in God,” presented on DVD by Daniel Dennett. Well-known author Dr. Daniel C. Dennett is a professor of philosophy at Tufts University. His most recent book is Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon (2006).

November:
Humanist Weddings, Funerals, Holidays. and Celebrations.” Presented by Jennifer Kalmanson, WASH Board member, co-editor of the WASHline newsletter, and Humanist Celebrant.

December :
“Fredericksburg Secular Humanists: Past, Present, and Future.” FSH has been a chapter of Washington Secular Humanists for 2 1⁄2 years, since July, 2006. Our group formed in late 2002, so that makes us six years old. (Going back even further, some of us were meeting as Unitarian Universalist Infidels in 2001, so perhaps we could be said to be seven years old.) It’s time to reflect on who we are and what we want to be; to consider our needs, our goals, and our limits. How are we perceived in Fredericksburg, both as individuals and as a group? What are our goals as a Secular Humanist group in Fredericksburg? Come and voice your opinion on how things are going now, and share your ideas on possibilities for the future.

The Fredericksburg Secular Humanists, (FSH) were pleased to be accepted as the eighth chapter of WASH at the WASH Board meeting on Saturday, July 22, 2006. (The FSH petition to join WASH contained fourteen signatures and was presented to the Board by the chapter coordinator.)

FSH can trace it’s beginnings to the Unitarian Universalist Infidels (UUI). Timothy Travis, a member of the Unitarian Universalist (UU) Fellowship of Fredericksburg (UUFF), formed the UUI in 2001. The Infidels were a group of UU’s who had grown dissatisfied with the UUFF’s shift away from its Humanist beginnings. The UUI met in the UUFF building. In the fall of 2002, a group within the Infidels formed FSH. The group began meeting in the local library. We were determined to form an independent group which would be separate from any religious organization. In our new group of Secular Humanists, being an atheist or agnostic was the norm. Our Coordinator was Landon Elswick who also provided almost all of the programs. Once we were established as a secular group, we began to attract an occasional new member. The new member might not have chosen to attend our meetings if we had been meeting in a church building. At a more fundamental level, our roots stretch back to the Secular Humanists who formed the UUFF in the 1950’s. Several members of this hardy group regularly attend our FSH meetings. We cordially invite all people who are interested in Secular Humanism to join in the discussions at our meetings.

Pat Chen, FSH Chapter Coordinator