At the Baltimore Ethical Society (BES), whenever the topic of Ethical Culture’s unique place in the secular-religious spectrum comes up, people express a wide diversity of opinions. Some members embrace Ethical Culture fully as their religion. Others say that for them it is not a religion at all, but more of a philosophy or a way of living. While noting that Ethical Culture is legally designated as a religion, I always emphasize that both perspectives are totally consistent with an organization that prides itself on ethics, freethought, and “deed before creed.”

What is more important, I always emphasize, is how you live your life. Do you behave in a way that respects and celebrates the inherent worth of people, including yourself? Or is that, more honestly, you aspire to life full of such respect and celebration? Obviously we don’t always bring out our best, and we shouldn’t beat ourselves up for having feet of clay. We are way past the asceticism of guilt-ridden, hell-fearing, self-flagellating martyrs. But we can be honest with ourselves and about how to live more ethically.

Some people find they can live more ethically through thoughtful contemplation. They may seek some activity that enhances clearer and more serene states of mind such as meditation, the arts, or yoga. (I wonder if anyone who attended our yoga summer program discovered a new path for self-exploration?) These more experiential left-brained activities sometimes work well for those who self-identify as “spiritual but not religious.” They can be rich sources of inspiration for non-theists.

But for the many of us who are more rationally right-sided, I recommend to you a book I read over the summer: Spirituality for the Skeptic: The Thoughtful Love of Life by Robert Solomon. I met Bob about ten years ago when I was producing a cable access show called No Dogs or Philosophers Allowed. For a relatively well-known academic philosopher, he struck me unpretentious and down-to-earth. That is one reason why – despite being a card-carrying skeptic – I picked up his book without worrying about finding new age mysticism. In this column I offer you some tidbits from his short but dense treatise in the hope that some of you might pick up a copy for yourself. (Or at least check one out from the library and read the first chapter, which I find is the best anyway!)

In making his case for what he terms a “naturalized spirituality,” Solomon does a good job of balancing the left and right hemispheres of our brain though he stresses that in Western philosophy thoughts and feelings are portrayed as completely distinct and often opposed. I am attracted to this more holistic approach he lays out because it fits my lived experience as well as a number of contemporary psychological perspectives. In the introduction, Solomon puts it simply “…just as thoughts without feelings do not constitute spirituality, dumb feelings no matter how exhilarating without adequate thought do not either.” (p. 6)

I also appreciate how Solomon dissolves the rigid distinction between self and other. Being an existentialist myself, I appreciate that part of my identity is individual and solitary. But I am committed to an identity that is also defined by those relationships I value deeply – with my wife and family, my friends, and my fellow travelers in Ethical Culture. Embrace of both the autonomous and the relational parts of my personality has opened up to me, in Solomon’s words, “that passionate sense of self-awareness in which the very distinction between selfishness and selflessness disappears.” (p. 12)

Of course no exploration of spirituality would sit right with me if it did not include the dark side of life, so those of you who want to ignore tragedy and death, skip to the last paragraph! Solomon states the obvious – a skeptic cannot explain away tragedy by blaming god. How are we to process bad things happening to good people? There’s no magic wand here Solomon admits. Sometimes one must simply bear the pain that comes with loving that which can be fragile such as the people close to us.

Never forget, however, that it is precisely because we have a thoughtful love of life that things hurt. It is also that thoughtfulness that allows us to create meaning. Such meaning doesn’t make the pain go away, but it helps maintain the “majesty of our existence” by celebrating our relationships. In nurturing a naturalized spirituality, Solomon urges us to have a good sense of humor, gratitude, and a “passionate engagement with the details and the people in our lives.”

Last month I had the honor of presiding at the memorial service for BES member Shirley Dale Patterson. There, friends and family shared memories that reflected Dale’s passionate engagement with them. Such comments were moving, particularly those of the children – nieces, nephews, and grandchildren. Afterwards I went back to Spirituality for the Skeptic searching for a line I remembered and found it on page 124: “Death is simply a part of life, and life goes on, for a short time anyway, in the hearts and minds of those who have loved or been affected by us. This is enough.”

It is enough for me. Is it for you? How do you seek to build meaning in life? What for you creates deeper connection? Whether you use the term “spiritual” or not to describe these sources or activities, are these a part of your connection to Ethical Culture? Share with me how you try to nurture a “thoughtful love of life” by emailing me at leader@bmorethical.org.

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Dimensions of Community

Humanists across the United States and the United Kingdom are coming to realize that building local communities enriches the lives of their members and helps to grow the broader Humanist movement. Many have come to believe that forming more local communities is vital for Humanism to gain widespread popular support. Ethical societies have offered nontheistic communities for close to 140 years. However, we have not communicated our message as quickly to a broad audience as two younger efforts: the Sunday Assembly and the Harvard Humanist Community Project. Both efforts describe a vision of community that fits ethical societies very well. Their independent rediscoveries of the value of community validate our approach and create opportunities to work together for our mutual benefit.

The Sunday Assembly began in London this year (sundayassembly.com) and has spread to several cities throughout the UK. Their guidelines call for a Sunday program of talks, singing, a reading, and a moment of silent reflection. The leaders of this effort are two British comedians, Pippa Evans and Sanderson Jones, who are featured on the cover of the September/October issue of “The Humanist” magazine. They describe the Sunday Assembly as follows: “The Sunday Assembly is a godless congregation that meets to hear great talks, sing songs and generally celebrate the wonder of life. It’s a service for anyone who wants to live better, help often and wonder more.” The Sunday Assembly does not identify itself as an atheist organization. These characteristics describe ethical society meetings, in what might be a kind of convergent evolution of humanist communities. The London Sunday Assembly has chosen to meet at the Conway Hall Ethical Society, creating a nexus with the Ethical Culture Movement. The New York City Sunday Assembly has started discussions with the New York Society for Ethical Culture to inquire about the use of their space, so perhaps that nexus will grow.

The Humanist Community at Harvard under the leadership of Greg Epstein and James Croft has emerged as a powerful messenger of Humanism at a national level. They launched the Humanist Community Project, which seeks to promote the formation of local Humanist communities. Croft presented his vision of flourishing communities in his talk at BES this past March titled “Fulfilling the Promise of Humanism” (vimeo.com/65700489). Croft and Epstein recently announced a book deal with Simon and Schuster to publish The Godless Congregation, which will study successful Humanist communities and the attributes that contribute to their success. They plan to evaluate organizations based on five dimensions of community: gatherings, education (both youth and adults), service, political action, and ceremonies. BES scores positively for each dimension. We gather every Sunday morning. We offer Sunday School for children and classes for adults, such as Hugh’s Moral Philosophy series starting this month. Our service activities include work for Moveable Feast, Blue Water Baltimore, and more. Our ethical action should score high on the dimension of political action, with Marriage Equality as a prime example. BES offers weddings and memorial services. BES also offers community along another dimension: pastoral care offered by Hugh and other members of the Caring Committee. James Croft was impressed with BES when he visited us and has expressed interest in including BES as one of the organizations to profile in their book. I think all members of BES can take pride in the fact that our society is a good example of a Humanist community, worthy of academic attention, and take this as encouragement to continue to build and develop our ethical society.

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OCTOBER 6

Ms. Ferebee will present facts about the State of Maryland’s decision to build a new jail for youth charged as adults. These facts support redirection of the funds toward alternatives that will produce better outcomes for less public expense while maintaining public safety. The facts reveal what Ms. Ferebee calls “the glaring insanity of the state’s decision to build another jail despite what is known and counter to the common good.” The talk will focus on the persistence of the status quo that harms African Americans, destroys whole communities and is, in theory but not action, decried by advocates, universities and elected officials.

Hathaway Ferebee has served as Executive Director of the Safe and Sound Campaign since its inception in 1996. The Campaign builds sustainable funding for opportunities for Baltimore’s children, youth and families. Through community organizing and public private financial contracts, the Campaign has enabled the reallocation of millions of state dollars from programs that don’t work to those that do. She holds an MA in Community Planning from the University of Maryland and a BA in sociology from Mary Baldwin College. Prior to her work with the Safe and Sound Campaign, Ms. Ferebee served for eight years as the Executive Director of the Citizens Planning and Housing Association, Baltimore’s oldest citizen action organization, where she lent her leadership to Baltimore’s landmark success to restrict outdoor advertising of alcohol and tobacco products and the founding of Baltimore’s New Schools movement.

OCTOBER 13

At the heart of Ethical Humanism is a commitment to honor the inherent worth of every person. Of course we are flawed and frail creatures – and won’t always live up to this commitment. But declaring that everyone has worth is important in a world that devalues people left and right: from the one million helpless infants each year that die the day they are born, to prisoners in solitary confinement for years, to many elderly we warehouse in substandard nursing homes, to those without money or power we mistreat. When will we create a society where the worth of every person is protected as precious? Hugh Taft-Morales explores this challenge and calls on Ethical Humanists, including himself, to do better.

Hugh Taft-Morales joined the Baltimore Ethical Society as its professional leader in 2010, the same year he was certified by the American Ethical Union as an Ethical Culture Leader. He also serves as Leader of the Ethical Humanist Society of Philadelphia.

OCTOBER 20

Elizabeth Collier will speak about her experience being raised in Ethical Culture and how it has shaped the person she is today. She will also offer her thoughts on how we can all do our part for the future growth of Ethical Societies.

Elizabeth “Liz” Collier, a young adult raised with Ethical Culture as her religion, was a founding member of the Future of Ethical Societies (FES), a group dedicated to assisting young adults to stay connected to the Ethical Culture that many grew up in. Collier is currently a Fellow of the American Ethical Union, researching what will attract young adults and future generations to Ethical Culture. As a Certified Holistic Health Counselor, she runs her own private health coaching practice. In her spare time, Collier loves to broaden her knowledge of food and cooking and play her flute.

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Moral Philosophy
Discussions Begin!

Sundays 10/13, 10/27, 11/10, 11/24, 4:00-6:00 p.m.

Free and open to the public 
Join Hugh Taft-Morales for a fun exploration of four different ethical paradigms from the Western tradition. There is no required reading, but those attending are encouraged to explore some of the discussion topics prior to each meeting. While you can attend single classes, it is recommended that you commit to the entire series since references will be made to earlier classes and discussions. OCTOBER 13
Being Good – The virtue of character
This first session will focus mainly on Aristotle and his concept of “the golden mean,” that mid-point one learns to reach between excess and deficiency of certain human characteristics. We will explore the concept of “goals” or “purposes” in life that come from our nature as human beings. Fulfilling that nature is, according to Aristotle, a well-lived life, one that will achieve happiness and flourishing, otherwise known as “eudaimonia.” We will also touch on a modern representative of virtue ethics, philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre.

OCTOBER 28
Doing What We Know is Right –
It’s the principle, stupid!
For our second session we will rely on Immanuel Kant, in particular his reliance on reason in determining right and wrong. We will examine different types of “deontology”– those moral theories of right and wrong that rest on “moral absolutes” that matter regardless of specific circumstance in addition to the more sterile version of Kant’s categorical imperative. Contemporary perspectives, we will discover, might not be as narrowly focused on reason, preferring to emphasize obligation and duty.

Our November explorations will be “Doing What Feels Right – The pleasure principle” and “Caring and Doing – Relational ethics and pragmatism.”