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"Goodness Without Godness", with Professor Phil Zuckerman

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THE SECULAR CIRCULAR Newsletter of the Humanist Society of Santa Barbara www.SBHumanists.org JUNE 2011 SUMMER SOLSTICE PICNIC !! Saturday June 18, 2011, 1:00 PM, Stow Grove Park, Goleta $15 per person (Free to members joining in 2011) Provided: BBQ Chicken, Tri-tip dinners Soft drinks, wine You may bring, if desired: favorite appetizer, dessert, beer Books for the book sale Reserve by 10 June: 687-2371 or email: [email protected] Send checks to: HSSB, PO Box 30232, Santa Barbara, 93130 2 The HSSB Secular Circular -- June 2011 Welcome, New Members! Thank You Andrew Hankin! Andrew Hankin is J. P. Herrada, Goleta leaving the HSSB Nan Cisney, Santa Barbara Board after serving for five years. As head of publicity during Book Sale !! most of that time, he's been in charge Again this year, we will have a table of used books of presenting our for sale at the Solstice Picnic. And again, Pat and organization to the John Coppejans will watch over the table and Santa Barbara cause it all to run smoothly. community; not an easy job, with so If you have books you think might be of interest to many new media our crowd, simply bring them to the picnic, or if outlets to consider. you cannot attend the picnic or prefer not to bring Andrew Hankin them that day, call Pat beforehand to arrange for You've seen Andrew them to be picked up. Her phone number is 967- in charge of our 0929. sound system at meetings. And you know him as holding many positions at the Secular Circular. He keeps up with Humanism-related issues and Election Results activities around the world and submits a steady stream of reports from his various posts at home Nearly 40 percent of HSSB membership voted in and abroad. One reader suggested renaming the the recent election. Here is the 2011-2012 Board: Secular Circular "Poor Andrew's Almanac". Wayne Beckman Thanks, Andrew, for all your work for the HSSB! Dick Cousineau Patricia Hiles HSSB Book Club Diane Krohn Ron Kronenberg by Marty Shapiro Roger Schlueter Claudia Solé My apologies to any of you who were confused by Nancy Wahl the Book Club's modified meeting date in May - the Mary Wilk fourth Wednesday instead of the usual third Wednesday. Since several of us were out of town Write-in votes were received for: (or country) on the 18th, we all agreed to make it the 25th. And so it was, as announced in our April Laurence Brockway Emailing. Carol Weingartner John Martinez But for June we're back on track: June 15th, the third Wednesday, 1:30 p.m. At the home of the The Club's officers will be chosen by the Board at ever-popular Dick and Judy Cousineau, 505 their first meeting. Alegria Road (off Las Positas). 687-2371. Thanks again, Dick. The HSSB Secular Circular -- June 2011 3 And the book for June? It's "Tear Down This Myth", years living as a homeless person, including several by Will Bunch, a highly respected, Pulitzer Prize- months under a bridge in Long Beach. She now winning journalist. Bunch's book is an attempt to lives in a group home on SSI. The father found a shed some light on the political Right's new girl friend and continued to support himself "beatification" of Ronald Reagan as the President doing odd jobs in rural Iowa. Sally bounced around who could do no wrong, and did everything Right. various homes because her dad’s girlfriend and (Like the Iran/Contra contretemps?) Happy Sally couldn’t live under the same roof. Reading. After high school Sally started college, working as a From the President barmaid and gradually was able to complete her by Ron Kronenberg first year. We had promised earlier, as an incentive, to fly her out to Santa Barbara to spend some time Once in a while a family story is so compelling that together and see the sights. When Wilma told her it is worth retelling, to emphasize the Humanist how much was put into the college savings values we strive to achieve in our everyday lives. account, Sally realized that her dad had dipped into Such an event took place in our family recently, her account. Nonetheless, five years later, with an when our grandniece graduated from university, infant son, Sally graduated from Wilma’s alma against all odds and with a little extended family mater with a Bachelor of Science degree and support. landed a job at a lab. This marked a first step toward her intended career in criminal forensics. Many stories begin at birth but I’ll relate the short Later this month, we will see Sally and celebrate her version and begin when Sally (not her real name) graduation and new job with her. There were, of turned nine. She was asked by her grandfather if course, other struggles and other interventions that she was going to save some of her birthday money arose before and during Sally's pregnancy. But for for college. Sally replied “Grandpa, don’t be silly, me the picture is clear. Humanist values are my parents can’t pay the electric bill, how will they something we can each live and express in our day- ever pay for college? I will save my money and buy to-day lives, and the difference this makes can be a pretty wedding dress so I can marry a rich man.” profound. Wilma has shown me, and Sally, the A much distressed grandpa relayed this message to degree to which we can make a profound his sister Wilma, my wife. Wilma immediately difference in one another’s lives. opened a savings account for Sally’s college and convinced the father and grandfather to contribute If you too have a story that demonstrates how to the account. As soon as Sally learned that a Humanists live their values, please send them in to college fund was started in her name, she called to the Secular Circular and let’s gather a collection to tell Wilma that she was going to attend college one inspire one another. The other guys pretend that day and become a lawyer. they have a monopoly on the values issue. We can set the record straight. The following year, on a visit to Iowa, Wilma spent a lovely day showing Sally around the campus of Augustine, Bishop of Hippo her alma mater. None of Sally’s other immediate (355 to 430CE) family members had considered visiting the nearby by Richard Cousineau college campus since none had ever attended college and visiting one made them uncomfortable. [This is the third article about the participants of the "Meeting of Minds" session to be presented at During that visit Sally’s mom attempted suicide and our July 16th meeting. Earlier articles recounted was found unconscious by Sally. It was a very close the lives of Lord Bertrand Russell and Thomas call, but the mother survived and soon after, Sally’s parents’ marriage dissolved. The mom spent many 4 The HSSB Secular Circular -- June 2011 Jefferson. Our July issue will introduce you to Infant Baptism, Anti-Abortion and numerous other Empress Theodora of Constantinople. Ed.] theological positions still followed by many Christians today. As the Roman world was imploding and disintegrating in the Late 300s there came out of Few men in history have had such influence for so the seacoast town of Hippo (now Annaba) in long. Luther, Huss, Wycliffe all felt kinship with him, northeast Algeria, not too far and Calvin based his ruthless creed upon from Carthage, one of the most Augustine’s theories about the elect and famous and erudite Christian the damned. His subjective and anti- theologians and philosophers of intellectual stance regarding faith sought all time. A person still studied happiness not here and now but beyond and honored by Catholics, the grave through Christ’s mercy and Lutherans and Calvinists, today, goodness. He died at age 76 in 430 and 1600 years after his death, his today he is still considered the most titles of Saint and Doctor of the authentic, eloquent and powerful voice Church attest to the admiration during the Age of Faith in Western and reverence in which he is Christianity. Needless to say his doctrines held by many. are the very antithesis of everything that we Humanists hold dear. However Father Although his mother, Monica, Augustine will be welcomed politely by the was a devout Christian, St. Augustine of Hippo Humanist Society of Santa Barbara when Augustine and his father were he visits us in July. wealthy and educated Pagans. At 17 he was considered a near genius when he began his formal The War Prayer education at Carthage studying Latin, rhetoric, by Mark Twain music, mathematics, and philosophy, and at that time he formed a lifetime bond with the writings of "O Lord our Father, our young patriots, idols of our Plato and remained a Platonist after becoming a hearts, go forth to battle – be Thou near them! Christian. His youth was considered, by his mother, With them – in spirit – we also go forth from the as totally misspent because of his lustful ways and sweet peace of our beloved firesides to smite the the taking of concubines as long term companions, foe. O Lord our God, help us to tear their soldiers one of whom delivered a son to him in 382. His to bloody shreds with our shells; help us to cover prayer at this time was “God, give me chastity, but their smiling fields with the pale forms of their not just yet”.
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