Heritage of Humanism
ca. 600 BC
Ionian Awakening. Birth of natural science. Greeks recognize that what is natural is quite distinct from anything supernatural. Anaximander,Thales of Miletus
ca. 450 BC
Rational discourse recognized as a way to learning. Logic, ethics and natural science systematized. Socrates, Aristotle
ca. 400 AD
Pelagius disturbs Christianity. Teaches that we humans are responsible for what we are and for what we shall be. Life is a do it yourself job. Expelled from orthodoxy by Augustine. Pelagianism remains a heresy today
ca. 1500
Humanist Thomas More. His novel Utopia proposes that we can make the world better than it is
ca. 1548
Humanist Roger Ascham educates the children of Henry VIII. Elizabeth, absorbing Humanist thought, will become monarch, reigns over age of creativity in which freethinking takes root
1594
Richard Hooker shows Martin Luther is wrong. Reason is helpful, not to be despised. Fundamentalism and Puritanism exposed as unhelpful, destructive, should be repudiated
1610
Galileo. Evidence, not revelation, is the foundation of reliable knowledge
1859
Charles Darwin. "Origin of Species." Human beings are both in the world and of it, contradicting Paul's assertion in the New Testament. We humans are a part of nature, not alien to it
1876
Felix Adler. Moral values derive from human experience. Cultivate ethical living without reference to supernaturalism
1933
Humanist Manifesto 1 establishes public Humanist voice
1941
American Humanist Association organized in Chicago. World's original Humanist organization, born in America's heartland
1982
Humanist Fellowship of San Diego founded
2003
Humanist Manifesto 3, the latest official statement of what Humanism is
2007
Humanist Fellowship of San Diego celebrates 25 years of presenting a Humanist voice in the community, successfully reaching many people in the San Diego area and beyond
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