Singapore Humanism Meetup

2011-10-29T22:38:00.000-07:00

The Pursuit of Happiness

A number of SHM folks attended the Singapore Writers Festival panel discussion on Happiness on 30th Oct, which was certainly a bright Sunday morning conducive for promoting a happy disposition! The panel comprised an economist, a psychiatrist, and a former central banker.

Interesting insights for thought thrown up by the panelists:

Happiness is not having what you want, but wanting what you have
The search for happiness is like a drunken man searching for his home: he knows its there but just can't find it
Francois Lelord likened having children to a drug addiction. It ruins one's life overall [an exaggeration] but one gets occasional peaks of happiness
Is Happiness worth it? Yes. Justifications given: Happiness leads to longevity (Study), People prefer dating happy people than grumpy people.
Naivete versus Happiness: Kari Nars postulated that certain cultures may value the appearance of the intellect or seriousness rather than happiness. He quoted Charles De Gaulle as saying, "Happy people are idiots". Citing a study comparing how well happy or unhappy self-assess their performance on standardized tests, Francois mentioned that happy people become optimistic and may risk over-estimating their capabilities. On the other hand, Dr Powdthavee jested, "Ignorance is bliss". A "learning point" from Francois' book says, "Happiness is not knowing the whole story."
Francois warned of pursuing Happiness as an ideology. He spoke of people who have become depressed because they failed to live up to the expectations they put on themselves to be happy. He saw Happiness as a by-product of other elements in life e.g. good health, and relationships.

SHM Meetup @ ArtScience Museum

2011-07-31T00:43:00.000-07:00

SHM had a delightful outing at the newly opened ArtScience Museum at Marina Bay Sand on 30-July-2011. 9 people showed up for this event, with the sole reason was to visit the Van Gogh Alive Exhibition, the bonus being the Salvador Dalí which was recently launched at the museum, as well as the Shipwrecked Tang Dynasty Treasure exhibition.

The outing started around 10:30am when most of the turnout have collected their tickets, and started to make their way into the museum. First stop, Shipwrecked exhibit. As we were the first few that entered the exhibit on that day, we got a chance to get a guided tour from Joanna Chen, a staff of the museum. She walked us through and explained the treasures found from the wrecked. Next we headed for the guided tour of the Van Gogh Exhibition conducted by Alice. Alice also explained to us the origin and reason behind the ArtScience Museum architecture. After that there was a short break for lunch, and the team broke off to explore the museum on their own. After lunch, some of them gathered again to explore the Dalí: Enter the Mind of a Genius exhibition. Some stayed behind to watched a documentary of the Dalí titled "The Dalí Dimention - A Genius' Lifelong Obsession with Science. The outing ended at 5pm, with a slow walk to Marina South MRT while absorbing the pre-National Day festive celebration along the Marina Bay area.

Before ending this entry with some words from Van Gogh, the organizer would like to thank the following people for coming to experience great art and science together: Susan, Eric and wife, Fong Lai, Steven and friend, and SW.

Ref:
Singapore ArtScience Museum
Vincent Van Gogh
Salvador Dalí
The Dalí Dimention - A Genius' Lifelong Obsession with Science

SHM Book Club #006 - The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins

2011-04-22T02:00:00.000-07:00

The month of April saw the very first jointly held book discussion by the Hungry Hundred Book Club and the Singapore Humanism Book Club. The book up for dissection was “The God Delusion” by Richard Dawkins. As the title suggests, it is a book that attempts to show why “God” cannot exist, the fallacies in the arguments for the existence of such a being, the role of religion in society and whether it can be replaced, and the dangers the author feels, religion poses to the human race as a whole.

The event was put together by Liyan who did a great job coordinating between the two bookclubs and picking a nice little cafe Egg3 for the discussion. Willis had the impossible task of moderating the discussion. Impossible as this was a discussion that was close to the hearts and minds of many in the group and everyone had much to say.

The discussion started off with everyone giving a brief introduction of themselves and what they thought of the book. It was interesting to note that a majority described themselves as “feeling more courageous to be an atheist” after they had completed the book.

Just a brief recap of the topics covered –

The roles of religion in today’s world
The relevancy of religion in today’s society and in an individual’s life
The right of a child not to have his religious views or lack thereof dictated by his parents
Religion - role in providing comfort in times of distress

Article contributed by Willis from the Hungry Hundred Book Club

Photo contributed by Monkey King

The coordinator would like to thank Willis and Liyan for co-hosting this event, and to those who attended it and making it an enjoyable afternoon:

From the Hungry Hundred: Cate, Fion and Jun Yang.
From the SHM: Fong Lai,Tawnya, Eric, JF, Mark, Monkey King, Peter

Note the next SHM Book Club will be in May reading "The Brain That Changes Itself" by Norman Doidge . Do login to Singapore Humanism Meetup Group to RSVP before all spots are taken up! Prior reading before each session is required.

SHM Book Club #005 - Why People Believe in Weird Things by Michael Shermer

2011-03-30T20:57:00.000-07:00

Month of March saw the SHM Book Club reading "Why People Believe Weird Things" by Michael Shermer, a book about all the weird things people believe in like UFO, ESP, Ghost, Witches, Pseudoscience, Pseudo-history, Superstition, and Other Confusions of Our Time.

The book club was hosted by Doug, who kept us pretty distracted with a half finish jigsaw right in the middle of his living room. But luckily, we did manage to proceed to discuss the book briefly before breaking for tea.

The chapter on "How Thinking Goes Wrong: 25 Fallacies That Lead Us To Believe Weird Thing" is well worth reading.You can read all the 25 Fallacies here.

For those of you who missed the book club, you can still benefit from it by reading the book on your own, read the 25 fallacies, or watched the youtube clips below:

Michael Shermer - Why People Believe Weird Things 1/8

Michael Shermer - Why People Believe Weird Things 2/8

Michael Shermer - Why People Believe Weird Things 3/8

Michael Shermer - Why People Believe Weird Things 4/8

Michael Shermer - Why People Believe Weird Things 5/8

Michael Shermer - Why People Believe Weird Things 6/8

Michael Shermer - Why People Believe Weird Things 7/8

Michael Shermer - Why People Believe Weird Things 8/8

Just a recap of what was discussed

Why people believe in weird things instead of resorting to other explanation
Why some people want to believe in certain things
Probability, coincidences, statistics and the error of only counting the hits and not the misses

SHM Book Club will be having a joint meetup session with the Hungry Hundred Book Club for April's reading title "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins. Do login to Singapore Humanism Meetup Group to RSVP before all spots are taken up! Note: prior reading before each session is required.

The coordinator would like to thank Doug for hosting the March's book club, and the wonderful people who helped somewhat with his jigsaw puzzle: JF, Nel (Thanks for the photo for this blog entry!), Susan, Balach, Tawnya and Sher.

Book Recommendation from this meetup:
The Trouble With Testosterone by Robert M. Sapolski
The Brain That Changes Itself by Norman Doidge

Some side topics discussed during the session:
Angler Fish Mating
Transhumanism
Cryonics
Chimera

By: Cordy, SHM Book Club Coordinator

Singapore Humanism Meetup Book Club #004 - On The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin

2011-03-12T07:15:00.000-08:00

In conjunction with Darwin's Day falling on February 12, Singapore Humanism Meetup book club meetup #004 selected The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin as our reading. But for the first time, members were not restricted to just one book. An alternative title Darwin: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) was also recommended for a more layman approach to understanding Darwin and his theory of evolution. The end result? A wide array of books made an appearance at the book club! (refer picture above)

Different variety of books on Darwin and evolution were read by a total of 7 members who turned up for the meetup: from different edition of The Origin of Species, to Why Evolution is True by Jerry A. Corney, to a manga version of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species: A Graphic Adaptation, The Decent of Man, and someone (we shall not disclose who) even dragged along his/her Biological Science text book! Talk about an enthusiastic turnout!

The session started out with the arrival of the members around 2pm, followed by an informal introduction. By 2:30pm, everyone has settled themselves down at the host's living room and the discussion started out with the host Eric giving a brief summary of The Origin of Species. Before you know it, everyone was jumping in on the discussion.

Just a recap of what was discussed

How natural selection is an individual process, and not a group or species process
The evolution of animals and what drives them to do so, from sea to land, and land to sea
Laws of variation and how every single one of us is different for a purpose
Why did it took so long for a book on evolution to be written
Does our genetic determine how we turn out in life

A brief tea break of cakes, cookies and tea were held around 4pm, and members continued on a more informal discussion till 6pm! That's a 4 hour meetup!

If you would like to join in the fun of the book club, do not hesitate to RSVP for our next meetup on 20-Mar-2011 Sunday, 2pm-4pm @ Westcoast where we would be reading Why People Believe Weird Things: Pseudoscience, Superstition, and Other Confusions of Our Time by Michael Shermer.This is a session with lots of ghost, witches, UFO, alien abduction etc! Do login to Singapore Humanist Meetup Group to RSVP before all spots are taken up! Note: prior reading before each session is required.

The coordinator would like to thank Eric, our host and his wife for making us cookies! Our co-host Aloysius, and the wonderful people who made this an enjoyable afternoon: Doug, Liyan (Thanks for the delicious Cranberry Orange Cake!), Momin and Koi Hin.

References and resources:

All Darwin's writing are also available at http://darwin-online.org.uk with more specifically the Origin at http://darwin-online.org.uk/contents.html#origin.
The Origin of Species is also available as an ebook on Gutenberg. Stanza and other iPhone and Android eBook apps would have it for free.http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2009
The last chapter of the Origin explained/commented by Richard Dawkins

Upcoming events in February 2011

2011-01-31T06:58:00.000-08:00

1) Introduction to Humanism workshop - Feb 19

Humanism is commonly understood as an ethical way of life based on reason and experience, rather than by religious doctrine. But a person's experience and reality can be very different from another's. What does Humanism mean to you?

This casual and interactive workshop aims to explore the following questions:
- What is Humanism and what is it not?
- Why are we Humanists?
- What does it mean to be a Humanist?
- In what ways do Humanism touch our lives?
- What do Humanists as a community ought to do?

2) Singapore Humanism Meetup Book Club #004 - Feb 26

In conjunction with Darwin day falling on February, we'll be reading books related to Darwin's evolution theory.

Sign up for our events at our meetup website!

Singapore Humanism Meetup Book Club!

2011-01-24T07:51:00.000-08:00

Did you know that there is a Singapore Humanism Meetup Book Club in the Singapore Humanism Meetup circle? It was started by Ryan in Sep 2010.

Singapore Humanism Meetup Book Club event is an informal gathering of Singapore Humanism Meetup members who are interested to discussing about a book suggested by the Singapore Humanism Meetup book club coordinators. Book genre can range from Humanist Literature, Philosophy, Science, Logical Thinking, humanist related fiction and many more. Each session is about 1.5 to 2 hours, and participants are usually limited to not more then 15 people to ease discussion.

The most recent one was held on 22-Jan-2011 and saw 8 participant from all walks of life, background and age group gathered together in a member's home to discuss and debate about the book: The End of Faith by Sam Harris. Although initially scheduled for a 2 hour session, members talked long beyond 3 hours! There was not a single moment of boredom though out as the topic discussed where highly entertaining, highly amusing, and addictively engaging. But more importantly, it helps them think about the questions that most humanist encounter in their life, and to exchange and learn new perspective of how other humanist see the world.

Just a recap of what was discussed

Pacifism, whether it works in resolving conflicts in this world
Whether religious moderate is as harmful as how Sam Harris describe them to be
Whether collateral damage was a necessary evil
Whether humanist has a responsibility to share their view point with other people
Explanation on why the world's fetility rate is falling (which would be an interested topic in the Darwin book club coming up!)

To date, the Singapore Humanism Meetup Book Club has successfully conducted 3 reading meetup:

14-Sep-2010 - Good Without God by Grey Epstein
30-Oct-2010 - The Importance of Living by Lin Yutang
22-Jan-2011 - The End of Faith by Sam Harris

In conjunction with Darwin's Day falling on February 12, Singapore Humanism Meetup book club meetup #004 will be held on 26-Feb-2011 (Saturday) from 3pm - 5pm reading The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin, or Darwin: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions)

The Origin of Species is also available as an ebook on Gutenberg. Stanza and other iPhone and Android eBook apps would have it for free.http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2009

Do login to Singapore Humanist Meetup Group to RSVP before all spots are taken up!

Note: prior reading before each session is required.

The coordinator would like to thank Doug, Gim Sheng, Tawnya, Daniel, Fong Lai, Gesan and Nel for making the previous book club a totally unforgettable session!

Ref:Darwin Day

Singapore's Humanists bid farewell to 2010 with triple treat

2011-01-03T08:55:00.001-08:00

Humanists in Singapore ended a fruitful year with 3 gatherings: a Humanist Hour on 21st December, and the Winter Solstice celebration on 23 December, and a visit to elderly residents at Lentor on 25 December, Christmas Day.

The Winter Solstice was jointly organised by 3 groups: Singapore Humanism Meetup, Humanist Society (Singapore) and Drinking Skeptically. In addition to showing our appreciation of the natural universe and commemorate the shortest day of the year, we also took the opportunity to celebrate HumanLight, a holiday created by the New Jersey Humanist Network in 2000 as a day to celebrate the ideals of reason, hope, compassion and humanity.

The celebration attracted about 45 people. We had a buffet at Settlers’ Cafe at Singapore Management University (SMU). Humanists were divided into teams and took part in our Holiday Traditions Quiz hosted by experienced quizmaster, Caleb. During the celebration, we also collected $455 for Pertapis Children's Home. An SHM organiser, Koi Hin, will be organising an event there this coming February.

After the celebration was over, Drinking Skeptically SG invited humanists for post-dinner drinks at Public House, Boay Quay. Discussions continued late into the night as humanists enjoyed the company of one another after a long and hectic working year.

Other photos of the Winter Solstice gathering:

On the 25th, the SHM members also visited elderly residents at Lentor on 25th, December, Christmas Day. It was jointly organised with the Vegetarian Meetup group. Humanists played games and sang with the residents there. Some photos of the visit:

The Singapore Humanism Meetup thanks all who had supported the network over the years. We wish you a successful year ahead. =)

Right Brain Awareness

2010-12-04T06:40:00.000-08:00

The Singapore Humanist Group held a Right-Brain Awareness Art Workshop hosted by Mr JF Koh on the 16-October-2010. Mr Koh started the workshop with an introduction to the difference in left and right brain usage of most people.

Left brain being more towards linguistic, logical, analytical, intellectual, convergent, rational, linear and objective. Right brain being more towards visual, spatial, intuitive, relational, holistic, analogical, divergent, non-linear and subjective.

The objective of the workshop was to help participant make a shift from using their left brain, to the right brain. The workshop started out relatively simple, with a drawing of a face outline facing right, and a face outline facing left to form the picture as shown above, while all the time telling yourself consciously which part of the face you are currently drawing. It actually is harder then it sounds, cause when you're drawing it using your right brain (which has been neglected all these while), conflict tends to emerges, and you have to debate within yourself on how to navigate your thoughts, perspective, and motor skills.

Next some contour drawing of hands (or any object) were conducted, but participant had to draw it by tracing it's contour, and by not looking at the paper they were drawing on. Frustration surfaces cause one loses their sense of relation, sense of direction, sense of sight of what you're doing. But what the presenter wanted the participant to focus on, was the contour, and the small detail of the object we were drawing, instead of the drawing itself.

Lastly, an upside down face of Einstein was show, and participant were asked to draw it, but this time, they were allowed to look at the paper. Here are some of the result of the participant's drawing at the end of the session.

Photos and test by: Cordy

Buddha meets Science

2010-07-20T12:01:00.000-07:00

SHM member, KH, talks about his experience at a gathering where two paths of understanding reality meet.

The Buddhism and Science Symposium (II) was held last Wed 15th of

July. I was intrigued by the premise that there was common ground
between Science and Buddhism and so went with JF and a fellow
Humanist. The topic was Emotional Awareness

More than a thousand people turned up for the Symposium. It started
off with a speech by guest of honour Minister George Yeo, a Catholic
who talked about evolution, how humans came to be and how complex the human mind is. It was a affable and reasonably well informed talk and an good start to the main meat of the Symposium.

There were three speakers; Dr Alan Wallace, Dr Paul Ekman
(incidentally a Humanist) and Venerable (Dr.) Jing Yin. Unfortunately
Dr Paul Ekman couldn't make it in person due to health reasons but he
did a video recording which was shown. His daughter was also present
and she helped demonstrate some of the things he talked about during
his talk.

All three speakers were excellent I was especially impressed with the
eloquence of Dr Wallace and the humour of Ven. Jing Yin both in their
own ways showed their depth of knowledge on the subject matter and
showed how people could potentially benefit from self-cultivation and
meditation. They handled the Q&A later with equal aplomb and respect
for the questions asked while giving an ever clearer picture of what
they are trying to convey.

I left with the satisfied feeling of having heard and attended a good
talk and I look forward to exploring more on the topics raised.

A second dance with humanity

2010-07-19T00:02:00.000-07:00

Inspired by the success of the body movement workshop last year, SHM brought it back to its members again on 23 June

The dance, the skip, the swing, twist and dip is back!

Last June, SHM organised the second body movement workshop. It wasn't a typical humanist workshop and it was an attempt to move away from a lecture/classroom type of environment, an excuse to leave our minds and brains at the door and be spontaneous, careless and use our bodies in a different way.

It was a fun, relaxed gathering of eight humanists exploring body movement, creativity and human expression. Workshop instructor, Veronica, led us through warm-up exercises and simple games for us to break the ice. Before that, we introduced ourselves and shared our expectations and fears about the workshop. Within 15 mins, participants were chatting easily and having fun. We later split into two groups and explored the themes of unity, love, peace, joy and freedom.

We discovered that we all had different talents. One participant was previously a gymnast and wowed us with his graceful leaps and turns. Another humanist came up with several interesting moves despite sharing her fears at the beginning of free and spontaneous movement.

After the workshop, the participants gathered for drinks at a nearby hawker centre and had a good discussion on a wide range of topics.

Pictures and text by Michele Thompson

World Humanist Day Dinner

2010-06-21T10:24:00.001-07:00

The Singapore Humanism Meetup celebrated the World Humanist Day with a dinner at Kichn in Little India on June 21st. The World Humanist Day originated in the US during the 1980s and became popular over the years. Like the Humanist Hour gatherings earlier this year, it was a free-flowing discussion for about 30 members who gathered together to chat on this day.

Photo,text and graphic by Singapore Humanism Meetup

Mid-Year Report

2010-06-21T10:23:00.002-07:00

SHM have organised workshops with specific topics, such as on death (above) in April 2010.

Dear All,

Breakthrough
The first half of 2010 represents a breakthrough for the Singapore Humanism Meetup (SHM), the largest social network of Humanists and freethinkers in the country. It has gone some way in raising public awareness of Humanist values. In February 2010, The Straits Times Life! featured an article introducing the SHM and its humanist beliefs. Through the article, public awareness of humanist values was raised and we reached out to freethinking individuals at large, signaling that there were others like themselves who believed in leading a morally good life without religion.

Demography
SHM has grown. To date, there are 387 members on Meetup.com and 258 members on Facebook. As the Meetup site is more vibrant, I'd encourage all FB users to sign up on Meetup.com too. Focusing on the members of the Meetup.com site, we see that the SHM community is diverse. Of the 387 members, based on voluntary declaration, 43% are non-religious while 7% are Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims or Christians. 70% are men and 27% are women. Not forgetting also is the fact that our members come from all walks of life, ages and nationalities.

Activities
The community is vibrant. Members took part in monthly workshops to investigate life's big questions e.g. Origins of the Universe, Death, Meaning of Humanism. They also met during the informal Humanist Hours to socialize and exchange ideas. Average attendance of our events is between 20 and 30. Opinions on a wide variety of issues were also exchanged and debated on the SHM Forum. Since its founding, members made more than 2500 posts to over 134 topics of discussion. Members also got together on their own for activities, e.g. donating blood, paying tribute on Darwin Day, visiting Body Worlds (Science Center), and affirming family values at Pink Dot.

Acknowledgment
The organizer would like to express his heartfelt appreciation and gratitude to Ben van der Merwe, Chinmaya Joshi, Eric Gibert, Irene Tirtajana, Kay Chew Lin, Riyas Katayan, Wong Koi Hin, Xue Jianyue, and Zheng Huifen for stepping forward to help organize events in the past half a year. Their contributions are very important in developing SHM. And thank all others for attending our meetups and sharing conversations on what Humanism means to us.

How you can help
Many SHM folks want the freedom to investigate life's big questions independently, free from the pressures of dogma. Many are, according to one member, "hungry for knowledge". If you are interested in helping to grow SHM into a vibrant, sustainable and valued network that serves the learning and social needs of Humanists and freethinkers, and making Singapore a better home for all through the pursuit of Humanist ideals, please drop the organizer an email to discuss potential projects. If you are read in various disciplines (e.g. philosophy, psychology, arts & culture, sciences) or have interesting personal life experiences, and are willing to share with the SHM community at workshops, please drop the organizer an email too.

Yours sincerely

Ryan
Organizer for SHM
3 June, 2010

4th Humanist Workshop

2010-06-21T10:23:00.001-07:00

The fourth run of the Introduction to Humanism workshop continues to be a hit among SHM members with more than 20 participants who heard a presentation by Mr. Wong Koi Hin and also participated in small groups discussions from topics ranging from "how humanists should interact with religious others", "humanist and supernatural beliefs", and "secularism in Singapore".

The difference in the small group discussion from the past is that the organizers experimented with inviting participants to suggest topics that they want to discuss. Members were enthusiastic as suggestions were forthcoming. Furthermore, the originators of the chosen topics were invited to take ownership by facilitating the discussion of their own topic.

On the whole participants were felt positive about the event. One participant said, "Many of us are hungry for knowledge, to know who our 'prophets' are, " One participant who also volunteered as a facilitator for small group discussion said, "I really enjoyed this meetup, because i took away many great ideas and practical suggestions that would really help me with my problem. It also gave me encouragement and support knowing that there are several among you who had similar issues yet able to manage in the end."

Photos and text by Ryan

Our friends at Pink Dot rally

2010-06-21T10:22:00.002-07:00

Dan Tang, a regular at the Singapore Humanism Meetup, shares his reflection about his participation in Pink Dot 2010.

Hi all,

Although the SHM did not officially participate in the Pinkdot event, I took it upon myself and was honoured to be flying the humanism flag there.

Even though I do not think I speak on behalf of the majority of the humanists in SHM. I do hope I speak for some in the humanist community for those who support for a more a open and inclusive Singapore.

By attending the event and carrying the crudely made 'placard', I hope to raise awareness for our fellow citizens and all foreigners alike, that it is really possible to be good just for goodness sake without believing in the supernatural and fairy tales as well as to try 'recruit' a few good 'souls' into the Humanist fellowship.

With that, I hope that more people would come to support the same event next year and someone from the humanist meetup group will be as enthusiastic as me to make an interesting banner and attract more progressive secularists to join the humanist group for the betterment of our society.

Regards
Dan Tang

Other humanists at Pink Dot:

Photos contributed by Dan Tang, who took part in last year's Pink Dot too.

2nd Humanist Hour

2010-06-21T10:22:00.001-07:00

The second Humanist Hour occurred on 18 May 2010 at Han's cafe at the Central Library. Following from the first HH, it was an informal meetup for people interested in humanism to gather for dinner and conversation.

The session started well, with 8 eager participants arriving by 7.30pm and swelling to about 25 people over the course of the evening.

Many issues were animatedly debated - politics, stock markets, the state of the global economy, proselytism in local schools. During the evening people randomly drifted in and out of each discussion group depending on their interest in the topic at hand.

Participants were of all ages and professions - there were retirees, JC and university students, working adults (young and not so young).

It was more than a gathering of humanists - it was a group of friendly and intellectually curious people with different interests, united by a taste for robust intellectual stimulation and an eagerness to explore new ideas. New friends were made, new thoughts to mull over.

When we finally left Han's at closing time (9.30pm) there were still 12 people lingering on, reluctant to end the camadarie for the night so soon. The conversation adjourned to MacDonald's at Bras Basah Centre down the road.

Back in time to the Humanist Hour

2010-03-24T01:33:00.001-07:00

A short recap into the SHM latest gathering @ Han's on 17th March...

"When you are courting a nice girl an hour seems like a second. When you sit on a red-hot cinder a second seems like an hour. That's relativity." - Albert Einstein

How long does a Humanist Hour last then? Indeed, it seems like a second when you are in the midst of lively debate and social interaction, leaving you wanting for more.

The first Humanist Hour, a free-flowing discussion session held at the Han's Bakery under the National Library on 17th March evening, attracted 30 over individuals. We had initial booking for 3 tables, but we ended occupying 3+3+5 (round tables).

Unlike our previous meetups, the Humanist Hour, a new monthly initiative, has no topic, workshop, or organised debate. Only two moderators were present, and members are to free to come and leave as they wish.

According to Riyas, one of the two moderators for the evening, there are about 60% new faces.

"There were couple of very old and couple of very young members," he said. "I met a guy from a Malay reading group and he seem quite open to share and discuss things."

Riyas observed that some of the topics discussed that evening included the value of finding and reaching out to like-minded people, different worldviews like atheism and various religions, etc.

In addition, some talked about the stress they faced when many of their friends converted to other religions. A teacher highlighted the importance of teaching children certain values when they are young.

Han's Cafe as a location worked out but there were was some overcrowding, and it would have been more suitable if there were only 10-15 people. However, most people did not seem to mind and gave positive reviews about the interactions.

"Many seemed wanting to vent out their suppressed feeling and share their view point with their fellow humanist." Riyas said, adding that the Humanist Hour could be a fantastic outlet in addition to the regular sessions at the center of the city with specific topics.

Other moments at the meetup:

Many thanks to Riyas and Ben for helping out as moderators.
Pictures taken by Riyas.

Humanist Workshop runs the third time

2010-03-08T22:59:00.000-08:00

New and old members meet to discuss Humanism in town, giving SHM its best turnout ever.

Following from the Straits Times article on humanism just the week before, the turnout for the 3rd session of the Introduction to Humanism workshop on 28 February was fantastic. We had over 30 participants eager to learn about and discuss humanism.

The workshop was held at a familiar place - Hackerspace Singapore in Bussorah Street. Eric Gibert, Wong Koi Hin and Huifen were facilitators there while Kay Chew Lin helped as a roving facilitator :)

After a short presentation, participants were divided into four groups for discussion and to ponder on dilemmas presented by the facilitators. As always, talk flowed quickly and easily and Hackerspace was abuzz with intellectual debate. The facilitators share their experience:

* * *

Huifen:

The conversation in my group was stilted at first, but after people warmed up the ideas came quickly. It was clear that most people had been thinking about the same concerns, i.e. the importance to secularists of ‘being good’, the source of morality, and how to reconcile selfish behaviour (which is the easier option) with altruism.

There was also some discussion on how the notion of ‘goodness’ is arbitrary and differs between societies and cultures, and how it may be a matter of luck whether a person's chosen conduct is considered 'good'. This highlighted the importance of finding an overarching source of morality and ethics in a thoughtful manner.

Eric:

In the library, discussions were friendly and animated.Participants were debating on how to react when confronted to events with religious connotation, while, as a Humanist, you would rather support a rational and non-theistic life stance.

The example which we used was that of a dinner of some friends, and guests were all of different religions/ faith positions. Participants were given the following scenarios to discuss:

(a) grace said at the beginning of a meal: the consesus was not to make a fuss about this small ritual. Either participate or keep a neutral position (favored by majority). In agreement of others, we could, as Humanists, take advantage of that moment to "thank X for taking the time to organize such a nice event" hence making a point on directing thanks to the person which actually did the job.

(b) one guest challenges you saying "without religion, you cannot lead a ethical/good life". In that situation, either we assess that our interlocutor is genuinely open to discussion or not. In the former case, a couple of sound arguments to counter argue his declaration is a good approach. In the later case, no point in engaging him in a heated and pointless debate, either ignore or run away. As Humanists, it is important that we have thought of this kind of important topic as if, given the opportunity, it is important to share with other what Humanism as a life stance means.

Koi Hin:

My group was diverse with folks from different walks of life, age group and beliefs. Some of them shared their views on why they left certain religions while others talked about their interest in Humanism. We explored some ethical dilemmas where everyone had good inputs.

* * *

The SHM organising team would like to thank all our guests who attended the workshop and hope that they had enjoyed and benefited our effort. We hope to see you again at the upcoming Humanist Hour!

- Article by Huifen, Eric and Koi Hin

SHM reported under 'hot' section

2010-02-21T19:19:00.000-08:00

This article appeared on the Straits Times, under Lifestyle-Hot section. It is the second time the SHM is covered in the national media, since Darwin Day in 2009. Enjoy reading it:

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Photo by: Singapore Humanism Meetup

Humanists do good without God

John Lui

21 February 2010

Straits Times, Lifestyle - Hot

Living a morally good life without religion is the belief that a small group of people in Singapore hold and some of them have been meeting regularly to discuss social issues of the day.

The group, Singapore Humanism Meetup, uses a website to arrange social gatherings. They describe themselves as secular humanists, atheists or agnostics.

Mr Ryan Song, the network's organiser, says: 'Secular humanists can find themselves in a lonely place.' These 'natural sceptics' hold views that differ from those that religious people hold, says the 30-year-old IT executive.

They are also fond of debating ideas and the meet-ups give them a chance to do so. They range in age from 18 to 76 and include entrepreneurs and those working in the civil service and banks, he says.

Atheists and non-believers are more active and organised in other countries.

The British Humanist Association, working with scientist Richard Dawkins, who wrote a book on atheism, supported a controversial bus advertising campaign in Britain which said: 'There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.' The buses ran throughout the United Kingdom last year and inspired similar bus campaigns in the United States.

The British campaign was prompted by bus advertising by an evangelical Christian group which said that non-believers would be condemned to eternal suffering.

But in Singapore, humanists whom LifeStyle spoke to say that proselytising is not as strident, thanks largely to strict laws promoting religious harmony. So for now, humanist activities are limited to blogging and meet-ups at cafes around town.

So far, 14 meet-ups have been organised, with the first held in January 2008. About 20 people show up for the monthly discussions, which deal with topics such as courtship and ethics.

The meetup.com site was set up in late 2007, with a Facebook page created around the same time. Since then, the sites have garnered about 200 followers each, with some signing up for both.

Sociologist Paulin Straughan calls the trend 'a very interesting development' and sees the growth of the network as the attempt by some to 'find meaning in life' and 'to exchange ideals and reinforce their beliefs'.

'The Internet serves to connect and therefore, certainly plays a significant role in gathering like-minded individuals in cyberspace,' she adds.

Singapore Census 2000 (above),
Graphic Source

The Singapore Population Census 2000 showed that those who stated they had no religion made up 14.8 per cent, slightly outnumbering Christians at 14.6 per cent. A majority of 51 per cent of the resident population aged 15 years and above were either Buddhist or Taoist, while Muslims and Hindus made up 15 per cent and 4 per cent respectively. Those of other religions made up the rest, at 0.6 per cent.

Mr Wong Koi Hin, 34, who runs an IT consultancy and has attended one humanism meet-up, says he wants to be identified as a secular humanist because 'it gives us an opportunity to present ourselves as people who believe in living an ethical life and helping our fellow men while subscribing to a rational world view'.

Miss Chen En Jiao, 21, a student, has attended four meet-ups and is attracted to the idea that during these meetings, people can discuss topics such as sexuality without appealing to religion, but instead rely on research and desired outcomes, such as the reduction of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.

Not all humanists hold the same views and she enjoys learning about the wide range of opinions they hold, she says. 'It's hard to bring up topics such as sexuality education in schools in normal, everyday conversation without opening a can of worms,' she says, laughing.

The self-described humanist and atheist knows that some right-wing Christians characterise humanist views as anti-religious and anti-God, and that such views seek to impose a liberal, 'anything goes' approach to sexuality. It is wrong to say that humanists have no values, she says. In fact, the views of liberal Christians can be very similar to those held by some humanists, she says.

Mr Song says: 'We do have positive values but we base them on reason, science and the observation of the world. We also believe in compassion.'

For now, the loose network is not a registered society and has no official ties to any humanist group, local or foreign. But Mr Song says it is possible that a more formal grouping may form in the future if there is support from the network.

Links with overseas humanists groups will also depend on whether their views are in sync with Singapore values, he says.

He also thinks that in Singapore, it is more constructive to promote harmony between believers and non-believers by education than by promoting the humanist cause through advertising.

So a confrontational approach, such as that seen in the British bus campaign, will probably not work here. Even if one religious group is advertising itself, a 'tit-for-tat' approach taken by humanists 'is not healthy in the Singapore context', he says.

Above: Astronomy Meetup on September 2009

Major beliefs

The range of beliefs among those who call themselves humanists is broad. Here is a list of the major ideas, drawn from websites such as the British Humanist Association and the Humanist Association of Hong Kong.

They do not believe in a God or gods, or in an afterlife. Many of them say the claim that one is either for or against religion is a false choice. Belief in a deity is not necessary to live a morally good life. Not believing in a deity does not lead to a life empty of meaning orsolace in dark times.

They believe they alone bear responsibility for their actions and cannot blame or give credit to fate or a deity.

They prefer to rely on observation, experience and rational methods to explain and understand the world.

They hold moral principles, such as the Golden Rule ('Do unto others as you would have them do unto you'), and accept that compassion and human welfare should guide their lives. Therefore, helping causes such as world peace and famine relief follows.

They believe that because there is only one life to live, they should live it to the fullest.

Want to join us? Sign up at our website: http://www.meetup.com/Singapore-Humanism/

Darwin Day 2010

2010-02-12T08:24:00.000-08:00

Charles Darwin (12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882)

The Singapore Humanism Meetup wishes everyone a happy Darwin Day. Last year, the SHM joined thousands of others across the world to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin, the English naturalist who became famous for his theories of evolution and natural selection.

This year, to remember Darwin's contribution to our understanding of the world, 12 of our members give their take on Darwin and his ideas.

* * * * *

Einstein, Newton, Galileo... great scientists all, but the greatest has to be Charles Darwin. Darwin gave us the answers to our origins. If one subscribes to the belief of an almighty creator, Darwin's work

has unlocked the creator's master blue-print and revealed it for all

to see. - Kok Meng Woon

You can't spell Darwin without win. - Darsh Daimontal

I know you're racist and sexist. But thank god your theory's true – Chinmaya Joshi

Darwin's work has opened a window of understanding into the mystery of life. Let's not forget all the brave scientists and teachers who worked so hard over the decades to get evolution accepted in mainstream society. Their efforts count. - Xue Jianyue

Lets remember Darwin today for his fundamental contribution to the mighty pillars of modern science.

– Eugene Tay

Evolution is an elegant way for me to understand how human life comes about. It gives me an interesting perspective to look at the meaning of life. Thank you for the gift, Charles! - Ryan Jer

"(Really Slow Evolutionary ) change we can believe in." – Hee En Hua

"Dedicated Adventurer, Researcher With Ideas Newsworthy

D-A-R-W-I-N"

– Alvin Phua

"Darwin's theory of evolution helps greatly to answer the fundamental question of humans everywhere - where did we come from, and where do we go here from now? But science cannot give the complete answer to that question - it is still a question that each and every one of us must struggle with and answer for ourselves. - Zheng Huifen

"The best proof of the failure of evolution is the existence of creationists"

– Liang Xianghong

"Thank God for Darwin, for giving God a break from plausible explanations for the origins of the universe and all that is in it?" - Enjiao Chen

"A bastion of creative thought and scientific enterprise, serving as an emotional bedrock and a beacon of inspiration for generations of thinkers old and new. A fine exemplar of one who has attained immortality without sacrificing his humanity to the mummery of an omnipotent nonentity." - Alwyn Ng

* * * * *

One interesting note. The International Darwin Day Foundation is petitioning US President Obama to recognize Darwin Day on February 12. The petition reads:

Dear President Obama,
As an American who values scientific inquiry and integrity, I urge you to issue a presidential proclamation recognizing Darwin Day on February 12. Darwin Day is celebrated every year on the anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birthday in 1809, and is a day in which people gather together to commemorate his life and work. Charles Darwin was the first to propose the groundbreaking scientific theory of evolution by natural selection—a theory that has done more to unify and bring understanding to the life sciences than any other—and Darwin Day is a celebration of this discovery and of scientific progress.
I believe that issuing this proclamation will send a powerful message that scientific discovery and integrity in our society are top priorities—priorities that are needed now more than ever as extremists with narrow ideological agendas are attempting to undermine science in our schools.
Please stand with me and countless others who value science and discovery by issuing the following or a similar proclamation on Darwin Day.

Do you think Darwin Day should be recognized in Singapore? Give us your views!

Singapore Humanism Meetup

Whose Mainstream Is It Anyway?

2010-02-08T22:02:00.000-08:00

Mainstream values, mainstream culture, mainstream population. In the past few years, the word "mainstream" has been bandied about in our mass media, on a wide range of issues such as family values, global warming and death penalty. But what are they referring to, exactly?

Do they refer to the values or opinions held by the majority of our population? Or portrayed to be so by a vocal minority trying to penetrate the public sphere? How do we know if these values are right or rational? Whose mainstream is it, anyway?

The SHM met up on January 23 to discuss it.

Whose Mainstream Is It Anyway?
By Irene

January Meetup session started with a promise to discuss a “range of issues” and discussed them we did. For those who didn’t make it there, this is a short description of what transpired. For those who braved the sweltering heat and the Sunday afternoon crowd, this is the rather belated recap of some of the results of our marathon wrangling session, plus comments.

It begins with the question: How do you define what is mainstream?

If it were the media we’re talking about, it’s simple. No one will argue your claim that the Straits Times or Channel 8 are mainstream media in this country. No one will bat an eyelid either if you announce that Kabul is not exactly your idea of a mainstream travel destination.

It is when people start appending “mainstream” to “family values”, or “culture”, or “population” that our WW(*) radar should start pinging. One prominent religious leader, as a case in point, stated that there was hardly any consensus on mainstream values, yet able to delineate exactly what kind of things would erode this nebulous mainstream. One worries that ultimately Mainstream will be outlined by the fences of Not Mainstream, and the field populated by a flock of woolly creatures bleating “Mainstream good…”

The attendees (n = 17 ± 4) were divided into 3 groups. Each group carried one of the following labels: Humanist, Religious and Mainstream. During the presentation, there was a brief description of each group, although the mainstream were encouraged to come up with their own definition, a memorable one being “whatever everybody else is doing”.

Selected questions and the discussion that followed:

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Q: Ideal number of children produced?

Humanist: Individual choice, practical issues e.g. cost, time, energy, environmental impact

Religious: Procreation is important. As many as you possibly can.

Mainstream: 2-3 kids. Why? Popular choice. Everybody says so.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Q: How do you answer if your child asks what happens after people die?

Humanist: Unanswerable. Recognise people have different personal beliefs.

Religious: Depends on the religion, but each has own specific answer, and a concept of consequences of decisions made in this life.

Mainstream: Use it as an opportunity to teach them to toe the line! You’d better be good or else… (insert your favourite afterlife punishment)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Q: Views on contraception and abortion?

Humanist: Wholly approve of contraception. Recognise sex is not only for procreation. Practical solution to family planning, STD prevention. Abortion not morally proscribed but beware of consequences and please act responsibly.

Religious: Disapprove of contraception and abortion. Procreation important. Contraception may increase promiscuity. Abortion is murder.

Mainstream: Contraception widely accepted. Abortion – uh, we publicly disapprove of it but if we really have to, better than having your life ruined by unplanned pregnancy.

It was fun, trying to decipher how different groups think. However, one caveat is that the Religious group might be somewhat stereotyped in parts of this exercise, partly owing to severe underrepresentation. Though as common sense and observation dictate, the religious comes in all shapes and sizes, too, as this example acutely illustrates:

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Q: Views on premarital relationship and minimum age?

Humanist: Whatever floats your boat, baby. Minimum age depends on local laws and parental judgement. Also preferably maturity and ability to understand consequences.
Mainstream: We’re confused. No mainstream consensus reached. Better follow law, at the very least. Minimum age 16, but prefers 21 and above to be safe.

Religious: Yes, premarital relationship is allowed, as long as it does not reach full sexual intercourse. It all depends on your personal conscience (Comment: what if your personal conscience allows full intercourse also?)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

What happened there? Well, maybe some people took a bit too much cocktail mix during the break… But it is worth mentioning that the group donning the Religious hat was a different one from the one answering the first three questions.

As the activity was meant to be experiential, feel free to make your own conclusions, but hope you will share your thoughts here. If I learn nothing else, it is that humanists do love to debate. Just to add a bit of spice, this is the last bit that we didn’t have time to complete on that day –a couple of tough scenarios where participants are asked to choose one out of two options. Do try the survey and see what you come up with?
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=xHyS5Bb0RZ4i74Z49zRqDA_3d_3d

The views represented above do not by any means represent the general view of any of the groups mentioned. Any correlation may be purely coincidental. No persons of the humanist, mainstream or religious persuasion was harmed in the process of discussion.

SHM 2009

2009-12-22T08:03:00.000-08:00

To celebrate the Singapore Humanism Meetup's first anniversary, I created a special photo slideshow containing pictures of our activities over the past year:

Cheers,
Jianyue

Mars and Venus without Zeus

2009-12-22T00:29:00.000-08:00

19th December 2009

It is the festive season and Singapore Humanists join in the cheer by celebrating our first anniversary with a special theme - exploring the ethics of dating and sexuality without religious dogma.

Dating and sexuality is a central issue to humanity and almost all life on Earth, for evolutionary outcomes depends almost entirely on it. Thus, as civilizations and cultures evolved over millennia, it is not surprising that people had set various moral guidelines to regulate sexual and dating behavior.

Ranging from diverse tribal practices to elaborate religious dogma, these moral codes had evolved under different socioeconomic backgrounds, and survived well into the modern era today. However, as scientific research started to shed light into the origin, purpose and nature of our sexual impulses, more people began to challenge the traditional perceptions of dating and sexual behavior.

Different opinions over the nature of sexuality, and how to regulate it, make dating and sexuality universal hot topic. For Singapore, homosexuality and marital rape has made it to the news and or even parliamentary debates in recent years. Countries like the US are currently engulfed in culture wars and lawsuits over gay rights. To the north in Malaysia, religious tension arose after inter-faith marriages ends in divorce. Would Singapore be potentially vulnerable to these issues?

The Singapore government believes that religion provides a moral compass for many Singaporeans. However, what about the non-religious segment of the population in Singapore, such as atheists, agnostics and humanists etc? They have no holy men to guide them in the finer points of dating and sex. Does this imply a no holds barred approach? How should they navigate the minefields of love and lust? How should they manage relationships with people of faith? This was to be discussed of the Dec 19 SHM gathering.

The meetup, attended by about 30 people at Hackerspace in Bugis, started with a screening of a several clips from American drama serials dealing with bisexuality, gay relationships and other dating/sexuality issues. After the clip, the results of an online, anonymous survey conducted by organizers earlier were revealed by co-hosts Benjamin and Mathia. Of the 28 respondents, only two are women and three are gay men, while straight men made up for the rest.

The hosts then started discussing with the audience about the reason behind the skewed response. For example, could the lack of female and gay respondents reflect the societal pressure these two groups face? In addition, the survey revealed that only half of the respondents think that being a straight person is better than being a homosexual, and the hosts discussed if this could be due to the liberal nature of SHM participants.

Throughout the dialogue session after the video clip, there were lively exchanges between certain members of the audience as they debated briefly over the increased acceptance of gays by the Singapore government due to the benefits of the pink dollar, monogamous vs polygamous marriage, negative reporting of homosexuals in the local media etc.

Another hot topic would be inter-faith marriages. Humanists discussed the potential problems of inter-faith marriages, and how would a freethinker go about dating/marrying a person of another religion.

A member suggested that inter-faith marriages would be easier if the two different religions are not so far apart, (eg. Hinduism, Buddhism), while another member suggested that as even Catholics and Protestants have difficulty with inter-faith marriages, the strength of the belief could be more important than the type of belief.

Several members also suggested that informed consensus, by capable consenting adults, could be one guideline for humanists in dating/sexual relationships. The debate then moved on to, at what age, could one could considered a capable, consenting adult, as social and emotional maturity is very subjective. Besides, even between two consenting adults, would the non-religious person always have to give way to the religious person?

After 10pm, the meetup participants began to break up into groups to socialize and discuss. A BBC clip was played, participants enjoyed special drinks from a small bar within the room. In addition, an SHM anniversary video showing the photo slideshows of previous meetups was shown, giving thanks to various people who helped out in the meetups over the past year.

The SHM concludes a successful year with 14 meetups and over 200 members on the mailing list. The organizers hope that more people would come forward to assist in its gatherings, so that it could take further steps to build a genuine, freethought community in Singapore, a socially safe environment where important issues relating to the non-religious could be shared candidly.

Singapore Humanism Meetup wishes everybody a happy new year!

Photographs by: Sven Berg Ryen
Article by: Xue Jianyue

Humanists are overly rational? We can be EMO too...

2009-12-09T19:15:00.000-08:00

Where else in Singapore do you get to look at an utter stranger intently for 1 minute, without getting stared back? This is only one of the few disorientating experiences that 29 participants were put under when they turned out for the latest Singapore Humanism Meetup workshop on Emotional Intelligence..

In a refreshing break from the usual debates and intellectual discourses, this workshop, held on 19th November, aims to truly connect with ourselves and others, as Humanists, by addressing that most irrational and airy-fairy thing of all – Emotions.

The session was conducted by Hugh Mason (Right): Son, Father, Husband, Citizen, Workmate, former floating office owner and bridge dweller, ex-physicist turned film-maker turned investor/entrepreneur.

Nestled in the cosy, casualpoet cafe at the heart of Chinatown, workshop participants were able to connect with and reflect on their feelings in a laid-back atmosphere as Hugh shared his personal experiences and took the participants through various interesting activities.

The evening started with the story of a death, as Hugh shared about an image that he saw just moments before his mother passed away in the hospital – It was like a Christmas card image, as two angels – two Christian angels – lifted her up into heaven. This and his becoming a Father himself, prompted him to search for ways and tools to cope with what he was feeling in his heart. Humanism, it seemed, was a set of theories and arguments with a lot of rational thinking, but of little practical value when it comes to dealing with things such as these. At least that was the case, when Hugh did his online searches on the subject 10 years back.

Which is harder, to talk about our feelings or to debate theories?

As a little piece of paper with some questions on it gets passed around, the look on everyone’s faces sure made the answer seem like the former.

The list of questions was as follows:

I am _______________________________

I am not ______________________

Humanists are ____________________________

Theists are _______________________________

Religion is ______________________________

I am a humanist because ____________________________

I feel that humanists should _________________________

I feel that theists should _______________________

I am here today because __________________________

I feel _________________________

There is an urgent need to change the nature of our conversations when we talk about feelings and emotions. By the year 2020, depression will be the 2nd most common health problem in the world. In Singapore, the largest mental health survey to date was announced on November 25, in hopes of better understanding the increasing prevalence of mental disorders and treatment methods. In essence, Mason offered two propositions:

1) If we want to be happy being a Humanist, we need to take into account our feelings.

2) Some of the mumbo jumbo stuff that we dismiss from traditional religions may be very basic to what we need as humans – Such as meditation.

Mason proceeded to share the insights that he had gleaned from three very distinct teachers. Eric Berne formulated a psychological model called Transactional Analysis – that provided a tool for understanding the way we communicate within ourselves and with each other. The second person, Eckhart Tolle integrated the core of a lot of thinking to answer the practical question of how to lead a meaningful life. Some of the practical tips that was offered included relaxation exercises and trying to feel your inner body.

To do that, participants were told to close their eyes and to become aware of the life inside their hands. By shutting off the mind, and going to their hands directly – Participants are made aware of the subtle feeling of aliveness inside them. It starts from a slight tingling sensation, then progress to a feeling of energy. Ultimately, it’s possible to incorporate other parts of the body – legs, arms, abdomen, chest, and so on – into that feeling of “inner hands” until one becomes aware of the inner body as a global sense of aliveness.

The last insight useful for a meaningful life emerged serendipitously from a stand-up comedian who was trying to help people overcome their stage frights. Lee Glickstein’s Relational Presence is a profound way of being present outwards and with other human beings, it is described by Glickstein as “a state of receptivity to another without agenda or effort.”

To invite the participants to experience that curious state of connection, Mason asked participants to each select a stranger, then to sit down next to them. What follows next is a most peculiar instruction – Each of us was to look at the stranger seated opposite, for 10 seconds, in silence.

When we were finally told to close our eyes, and to look away, laugher erupted about the room as if to relieve the tension hanging in the air previously. While some felt like they stopped breathing for that brief moment which seemed forever, others felt the urgent need to break the stillness.

Definitively, though, it was something that everyone was not very comfortable doing. The curious thing is, as babies, when we were really interested in someone – We “stared”, we were just present with that someone. Somehow or another, as we grew up, we were told that it’s an impolite thing to do – Which ironically makes us all that much more distanced and further apart.

The exercise was repeated, and subsequently, participants felt more comfortable, reported feeling an “intimacy and privileged” about having the opportunity of looking at another face without overt attempts to communicate in any form.

Mason stressed that as humans, we are both emotional and rational beings, that perhaps as humanists we spend too much time thinking and not enough time feeling. We may do better than trapping ourselves in trying to justify our position from the standpoint of theists who are unable to do anything else than look for a rescuer because they believe we are all screwed and sinful and need a saviour.

Rather, if we humbly celebrated what we simply are with each other by being with one another, we might be able to add a “human” feeling dimension to the humanist way of life.

Other pictures at the meetup:

Special thanks to:
Chen Enjiao, for writing the article.
Ravi Shankar, for the nice photos!

I see Jupiter!

2009-10-17T11:20:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 17 October, 2009
8:00PM – 10:30PM
East Coast Park, CP1 Jetty

In 1609, Galileo Galilei first pointed the newly invented telescope into the cosmos. His discoveries began a new chapter in our understanding of the universe.

Exactly 400 years later, scientists are unravelling new wonders in the universe. Their quest for truth, from the origins of the universe, to their search for extra-terrestrial life, have captured the imagination of millions of ordinary people, changing their religious and philosophical outlook.

The SHM invites people to join us in a session of astronomy for the October meetup.

The latest SHM gathering on astronomy, In the Footsteps of Galieo, ended in success. We attracted about 30 people, most of them newcomers. Despite the darkness and obscure location of the jetty at East Coast Park, most of the participants found their way there eventually.

Our meetup founder, Ryan, is on an overseas trip so Riyas, Jianyue and Dan Dan took charge of managing this meetup tonight. In addition, it was a challange for the organisers this time round as we had to transport heavy, bulky telescopes to the location. Luckily, Adrian Chia helped us out with his mini-van. Thank you so much Adrian!

Upon reaching the site, the organisers started to set up the telescopes.

Luckily for us, the sky was clear tonight, and we avoided the fate of many cancelled sky observations, when Singapore's humidity, tropical climate and light pollution scuttle plans.

After the participants arrived, Dan Dan gave a short introduction on astronomy and used his laser pointer to point out Sagitarius and Scorpius in the night sky. He also explained the history behind some of the zodiac signs like Aquarius and Virgo.

After the talk, the SHM broke up into 4 groups where they discussed hot topics in astronomy like alien life and the origin of the universe. In addition, they also discussed other topics in humanism and atheism.

In the meantime, each group took turns to view the telescope. Dan Dan helped to adjust the telescope in order to viewers to take a peak a Jupiter, the brightest object in the night sky. (The moon was absent)

Other moments of the meetup:

At 10pm plus, the SHM ended the meetup officially. The organisers hope that the meetup participants had enjoyed the gathering, made new friends and had a meaningful dialogue.

We also hope that more people could step forward to provide new ideas and help out at the meetups. Hopefully, we would be able to organise meetups twice a month instead of the current rate of once a month. It would bring more vibrancy to the network!

SHM Workshop: Ethics and Humanism

2009-09-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 26 September, 2009
2:00PM – 5.30PM
OnePeople.sgThe SHM organised a workshop on ethics in for the September meetup. The workshop, designed to be generally light and casual, is lead by w.t.

w.t. stressed that this isn’t a workshop to present what he thinks is ethical, but to highlight ethical issues common to the human condition, and invite people to resolve these from the humanist point of view. It hopes to explore whether there ethical ramifications to the humanist philosophy beyond rejecting the supernatural.

Therefore, the workshop is not meant to provide any universal prescription, but to get people to ponder and discuss on certain ethical issues, and hopefully find common ground.

The short powerpoint presentation given before discussion begins covered definitions of humanism, meta-ethics, normative ethics, and evaluating ethical standards descriptively along several broad axes such as:

1) Means vs ends
2) Individual vs group
3) Rights vs duties
4) Objective vs subjective
5) Casuistry vs principle

After the presentation, workshop participants broke up into 4 discussion groups of 3-4 people, and each group are given 2 case studies to discuss.

The imaginary scenarios touch upon dilemmas a person would encounter in life, such as sacrificing lives for the greater good, speaking up on uninformed choices, and whether to respect the rights the individual have.

Throughout the workshop, there were certain trends during the discussion that indicate some common ground, and generally most participants agree that humanism should be about benefiting humanity. They also agree that there are no simple solutions to complex problems, and no universal prescriptions exist.

There were also perceptions that the SHM is anti-religious, but w.t. hopes that this workshop provides people some food for thought as to what humanists are positively for as human beings, as well as why they are for it.

Huifen stated that the SHM mailing list was not representative of the views of the meetup generally. In addition, the workshops do not take an anti-religious direction, as many perceive humanism to be, especially through the internet.

At the end of the workshop, w.t. hopes that members enjoyed themselves in their discussions, hopefully, despite their differences, focus on their common grounds so that collective action can be taken, rather than merely discussions.

8th International Humanist Youth Conference

2009-09-07T23:53:00.000-07:00

Organised by the IHEYO

Hi all Humanists!

The IHEYO is holding the 8th International Humanist Youth Conference at Nepal, and we hope that the SHM as a whole could sponsor a representative to the conference so that he or she could return and share the experience with us. Please email sg.humanism.meetup@gmail.com or ryan.jer@gmail.com if you are interested. Details are below:

Humanist youth exchanging ideas at a previous conference in India.(Photo: IHEYO)
8TH INTERNATIONAL HUMANIST YOUTH CONFERENCE
Source

Date: 20th - 25th October 2009.
Venue of program: SAAP Falcha, Babarmahal,
Kathmandu, Nepal.
Program will be ready by 20th September.
SAAP Falcha has provided the accommodation too.

About the conference:
The topic of the 2009 Youth Conference will be ”Secularism – the open door for human rights defense“, discussing human rights questions on a course and focusing on youth humanism globally as also how we as individuals and as organizations can work to enhance our common goals.

The conference will address the need of a workable network inside IHEYO and mostly in the working groups to motivate more groups worldwide to join. Humanist organizers and human rights activists will gain further knowledge on how to get their messages across through in an appealing, effective way and learn about multiplier tasks. IHEYO aims to support youth humanist leaders from developing countries to attend this event.

The Conference organizers are working keen on the program and will give soon an update on IHEYOs website.

The plans for the Conference so far:

On 20th October we will welcome the participants and will hold the first part of the General Assembly (GA) in the evening. The actual conference will take place from 21st-24th October to the announced theme including a planned field visit and work show in co-operation with SOCH. On 25th October we will hold the second part of the GA including new elections and membership applications.

Participant fee (includes accommodation and food from 20th - 25th October):
150€ for Western Europeans and Americans
50€ for other countries (103 SGD)

IHEYO
The International Humanist and Ethical Youth Organization (IHEYO) is devoted to promoting the spread of humanism among young people. IHEYO is working together with many groups and individuals around the world. With humanism in practice IHEYO means all humanist, freethinker, laique, skeptic, rationalist, atheist, agnostics, etc. groups.

Call for volunteers!

2009-09-07T23:47:00.000-07:00

Letter from the SHM organiser, Ryan

Dear fellow Humanists!

It has been 8 months since this Singapore Humanism Meetup was founded. And look at how far we've come!

The group is now 300 strong on Meetup.com and Facebook. 9 meetups have been organised, with themes ranging from politics, ethics, religion, to arts and science, and formats ranging from workshops, debates to conversation circles and movie screenings.( See: http://www.meetup.com/Singapore-Humanism/pages/Features/)

Now we make a clarion call for all to step forward and contribute to the continuing vibrancy of this group.

If you've enjoyed the events, made great friends along the way, and was wondering how you can contribute, develop new skills, and experience personal growth in the process - we're looking for people who may be interested in the following:

- Leading/planning: lead in conceiving and implementing meetups of various scale or complexity
- Sponsors: subsidize or sponsor costs of meetups (e.ghttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif. venue, equipment rentals)
- Business partner: offering relevant services to fellow Humanists
- Host, emcee, facilitator: at events and discussion groups
- Writing: write meetup reports to update those who missed out on meetups
- Official photographer for meetups.

If you're interested to come forward or have questions, please do email me at ryan.jer@gmail.com

"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others." - Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)

Sincerely,

Ryan Jer
Meetup Organizer

2nd Humanism Workshop

2009-09-07T23:27:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 29 August, 2009
12:00PM – 4.00PM
OnePeople.sg

The SHM organised our second Humanism workshop on late August, improving on the previous one we had at May. It was heartening to see many new faces at the meetup, and members, new and old alike, took a moment to introduce themselves upon arrival.

Besides discussing humanism, participants shared their life experiences. It was an interesting discussion as the meetup member demographic is very cosmopolitan, some of whom come from places as far as Pakistan and the US.

After a brief summary about humanism, members broke up into smaller discussion groups. At the end of the discussion, each group selected someone to present key points in their discussions.

After the meetup officially ended, many workshop participants walked over to continue their discussions at Botak Jones near SPH, pondering over topics such as a environmentalism.

Debate: Are Singaporeans Better Off Without Religion?

2009-09-07T08:54:00.000-07:00

Thursday, 30 July 2009
7:30PM – 10:30PM
Activity room 1, OnePeople.sg, Braddell

Fellow Humanists explored the following: What is the role of religion in Singaporean society? Are there any advantages to having a religious affiliation? What benefits does freethought confer on the average Singaporean?

This is the side that defends the views that Singaporeans are better off with religion.

While the other side argues that Singaporeans are better off without religion.

This is our debate moderator Chew Lin.

Other pictures of debate:

Storytelling under the Stars

2009-09-07T08:27:00.000-07:00

Friday, 26 June, 2009
7:30PM – 10:30PM
Singapore Botanical Gardens

For June, SHM organised a special meetup at Botanical Gardens, focusing the theme of storytelling.

At this meetup we heard stories from fellow Humanists, met new people, and picnic, all under the stars. As an added bonus, we enjoyed an unplugged performance by special guest musician.

Stories are cultural and social tools to shape people's ideas and perceptions about everyday or spectacular events.

When told, they give meaning to situations and instances that might otherwise go undocumented. Through storytelling, we partake in a larger shared experience with those in our lives, our communities -- local and global.

It can spark off a greater spirit of understanding and perhaps, erode the markers of difference or ignorance that sometimes exist as high walls that demarcate us from them.

Hosts : Fellow meetup members Nurul Huda, Shao Han and Dan Tang. Nurul Huda is a postgraduate student at NUS, a freelance writer and a curator @ the NUS Museum and is passionate about photography. Shao is a wandering storyteller who cares a lot about spirits, people, and other living things, and he would like to share some tales with you. Dan is an aspiring hairdresser.

http://sites.google.com/site/singaporehumanism/Home/meetup

1st SHM Workshop: The Meaning of Humanism

2009-09-07T08:26:00.001-07:00

Saturday, 16 May 2009
12:00PM – 4:00PM

The first SHM meetup attracted about 30 individuals from all walks of life. We had a short powerpoint presentation about the common definitions of humanism, a brief history of it and some of its key ideas. Participants then broke up into groups of 5-6, lead by a facilitator each, to discuss what humanism means to them. People also enjoyed a pizza feast and snacks for afterwards.

Humanism is commonly understood as an ethical way of life based on reason and experience, rather than by religious doctrine. But a person's experience and reality can be very different from another's.

This casual and interactive workshop aims to explore the following questions: What is Humanism and what is it not? Why are we Humanists? What does it mean to be a Humanist? In what ways do Humanism touch our lives? What do Humanists as a community ought to do?

Pictures of the workshop in action:

SHM members at Pink Dot rally

2009-09-07T08:25:00.000-07:00

Friends who met each other at the SHM also took part in the Pink Dot rally shortly after our first humanism workshop.

The rally also took place shortly after the Aware saga where a group of conservative Christian women hijacked the feminist organisation Aware as they felt that Aware was promoting homosexuality through their activities, something which the veteran activists at Aware strongly denied.

It reignited the debate over homosexuality in Singapore, and how much the Singaporeans are willing to accept homosexuality as natural and normal, in contrast to some strongly held religious beliefs on it. It also generated a fierce debate on what role religion should play in the public sphere.

It was the first public LGBT gathering in Singapore, and it attracted over a thousand individuals, as well as the international media such as BBC.

ST: Society of Humanists gather to discuss Darwin

2009-09-07T08:23:00.000-07:00

One of the participants of SHM function Darwin, Dawkins and Religion on Feb 26 was Straits Times journalist Yen Feng. As a reporter in the religion beat, he wrote an article about the gathering:

Society of Humanists gather to discuss Darwin
Yen Feng
March 3, 2009

PACKED into a small cafe exchanging ideas on religion, philosophy and identity, they looked just like a bunch of eager liberal arts students out on a school night.

'I once dated someone who was rabidly atheist,' said public servant Kay Chew Lin, 27. 'So no, I wouldn't call myself an atheist. How about 'waffly agnostic'?'

'I'm just confused,' belted Mr Nicholas Tay, 28, a magazine editor.

Labels, especially religious ones, don't sit well with this group of 35 or so well-educated students and professionals who met last Thursday at the Global Sounds Cafe in South Bridge Road - many of whom were strangers and had met through the social networking sites Facebook and Meetup.com.

They are part of a new society of non-religious Singaporeans who call themselves 'Humanists' - natural sceptics who believe that knowledge is derived by 'observation, experimentation, and rational analysis'. The meeting was the group's second since it was set up in January this year.

The man of the hour? Charles Darwin, the natural scientist whose 200th birthday last month prompted them to organise an evening of evolutionary theorising.

For nearly four hours, the group debated if Darwin's theory of natural selection should be taught in schools, its relevance to modern society and other topics.

Writer and philosopher Stefan Pernar, 33, was more keen to expand Darwin's ideas in terms of a 'cultural evolution'.

He said: 'Humans are still adapting to their environment. Putting on a watch, wearing glasses, or clothes - that is evolutionary behaviour too.'

One member even asked: 'Why should the Government teach evolution in schools? What's its use?'

Mr Xue Jianyue, 21, a Nanyang Technological University student, replied: 'Of course it matters...This is biological history that explains our place in nature.'

Prior to the discussion, organiser Ryan Jer, played an hour-long clip of the documentary, The Genius Of Darwin, before presenting a lecture on evolutionary theory.

The 29-year-old civil servant, who graduated from a liberal arts college in the United States, said: 'I was exposed to a lot of different ideas then. That's what I want to achieve with these meetings, for people to evolve new ideas.'

Yawning Bread on Humanism

2009-09-07T08:17:00.000-07:00

Very few realise how much humanism has contributed to what we now consider right in the world. Take, for example, the idea of equality -– between races, sexes, regardless of religion. This springs from humanism.

Alex Au, in his article What a secular state should mean.

Read more here.

The Eloquent Body: Movement and Dance Appreciation Workshop

2009-09-07T07:47:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, 28 April, 2009
8PM – 10.15PM
Dance On Us (The Blue Studio)

A walk. A skip. A swing, twist and dip. The body moves; the body speaks. It speaks of reason; it speaks of emotions. In the First Singapore Humanism Workshop, members explore and appreciate this visual language of their body, of others and of humanity. Members learn basic body movements, moving with tempo and in a group, and dance improvisation.

Instructor: Ms Veronica Tan

Veronica is the president of her newly formed non-profit dance group “Awakening Room” in 2007. Her foundation was in Chinese dance but had studied at The Ailey School (New York). As a performer, Veronica has danced with Michael Mao Dance, Kristen Dexnis Dance and Bridge for Dance companies for 3 years. She has also performed with Teresa Fellion’s T. Lion Dance/Body Stories at the New York City 2nd Annual Dance Parade 2008. Currently, she also teaches contemporary dance at Dance on Us studios.

The Hand of Compassion: A Life's Inspiration

2009-09-07T07:39:00.000-07:00

Thursday, 26 March, 2009
7:30 PM – 10:30PM
Global Sounds Cafe

What is compassion? Why are or why arent' people compassionate? In a land of limited resources, in the race for survival, is there a case founded upon reason to be compassionate? If there is, how do we become more compassionate? SHM explores these questions in a talk show format with our invited guests.

Darwin, Dawkins and Religion -- A Story of Life on Earth

2009-09-07T07:03:00.001-07:00

Thursday, 26 February, 2009
7:30 PM – 10:30 PM
Global Sounds Cafe

Darwin's theories explained that human beings evolved gradually over millions of years from tiny single cell organisms to apes and to finally us. This is backed by centuries of verifiable evidence discovered under the painstaking toil of generations of scientists. This is the also the bedrock of the Humanist worldview.

The SHM explores Evolution as the central "story" of life on Earth, its implications on who we are and our place in this world. This is in commemoration of Charles Darwin and his ideas in conjunction with his 200th birth anniversary.

It was only the second gathering the SHM but it generated quite an interest with over 30 people turning up. They range from working professionals such as lawyers, civil servants, bankers and journalists, to students in their late teens and early 20s.

Participants watched a documentary made by evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins titled "The Genius of Charles Darwin". This screening is also part of the SHM celebration of the 150th anniversary of The Origin of Species and the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin, author of the groundbreaking work. In addition, there was a superb violin performance by local musicians, who the SHM organisers invited to play.

First Humanism Meetup

2009-09-07T07:01:00.000-07:00

Thursday, 22 January 2009.
730-930pm

The very first meetup of SHM is a casual social gathering over complimentary drinks and light snacks. We introduced ourselves to other meetup group members, shared our views about religion and our personal experiences. To top it off, members also enjoyed a short exclusive unplugged musical performance by a local music group.

About the Singapore Humanism Meetup

2009-09-07T05:43:00.000-07:00

For first time readers, this is a summary of our meetup, our objectives and the types of activities we hold.

We welcome you warmly to the Singapore Humanism Meetup (SHM) blog!

SHM is a network of atheists, agnostics, freethinkers and other people who believe in rational, scientific inquiry and the universal goodness of the human spirit. We provide a platform to meet, in a socially safe environment, to discuss current affairs and latest trends in research relating to psychology, ethics, biology, and religion, and more.

The meetup is led by a core team of facilitators who organizes monthly gatherings, called meetups, which involves talks, debates, small group discussions, and movie screenings. Topics range from the evolution, religion, to lighter gatherings with storytelling and dance.

Objectives of the Meetup include:
1) To learn and improve oneself,
2) To promote public understanding of humanists' aspirations,
3) To develop humanist fellowship and support.

(Above)Participants the Singapore Humanism Workshop in May 2009.

Since the first meetup on December 2008, the SHM has helped the non-religious in Singapore network through facebook, meetup.com, and mailing lists. 300 people have signed up for the network online, and the facilitators have organised a total of 14 meetups so far.

Our other websites are:
Meetup.com website
Facebook group

A Short introduction into humanism and its aspirations:
1) Knowledge of the world is derived by observation, experimentation, and rational analysis.
2) Humans are an integral part of nature, the result of unguided evolutionary change. Humanists recognize nature as self-existing.
3)Ethical values are derived from human need and interest as tested by experience.
4) Life's fulfillment emerges from individual participation in the service of humane ideals.
5) Humans are social by nature and find meaning in relationships.
6) Working to benefit society maximizes individual happiness.

Humanists' meetup etiquette
All freedoms comes with a measure of responsbility. At our meetups, we strive to provide the a free and safe environment for people to discuss religion, philosophy, politics and science without fear of censorship and blasphemy charges. To enable such freedom, we also have a meetup etiquette where personal attacks and religious preaching are not allowed.

During discussion, we:

- Speak pleasantly and politely,
- Have honesty and courage in expressing our beliefs and viewpoints,
- Listen attentively,
- Respect and acknowledge the contribution of every speaker and even if one disagrees,
- Wait for a speaker to finish what they are saying before we speak,
- Share personal experiences rather than make general statements about groups of people (stereotyping),
- Are careful in not misrepresenting or disparaging other’s beliefs and viewpoints, no matter how difficult we might find in accepting them,
- Correct misunderstandings or misrepresentations not only of our own beliefs but also of other beliefs whenever we come across them.