Humanism (Leviticus, cremation, translation, pray, Christianity)

[Green Gaia]

Humanism, in philosophy, attitude that emphasizes the dignity and worth of the individual. A basic premise of humanism is that people are rational beings who possess within themselves the capacity for truth and goodness. The term humanism is most often used to describe a literary and cultural movement that spread through western Europe in the 14th and 15th centuries. This Renaissance revival of Greek and Roman studies emphasized the value of the classics for their own sake, rather than for their relevance to Christianity.

The humanist movement started in Italy, where the late medieval Italian writers Dante, Giovanni Boccaccio, and Francesco Petrarch contributed greatly to the discovery and preservation of classical works. Humanist ideals were forcefully expressed by another Italian scholar, Pico della Mirandola, in his Oration on the dignity of man. The movement was further stimulated by the influx of Byzantine scholars who came to Italy after the fall of Constantinople (present-day İstanbul) to the Ottomans in 1453 and also by the establishment of the Platonic Academy in Florence. The academy, whose leading thinker was Marsilio Ficino, was founded by the 15th-century Florentine statesman and patron of the arts Cosimo de' Medici. The institution sought to revive Platonism and had particular influence on the literature, painting, and architecture of the times.

The collection and translation of classical manuscripts became widespread, especially among the higher clergy and nobility. The invention of printing with movable type, around the mid-15th century, gave a further impetus to humanism through the dissemination of editions of the classics. Although in Italy humanism developed principally in the fields of literature and art, in central Europe, where it was introduced chiefly by the German scholars Johann Reuchlin and Melanchthon, the movement extended into the fields of theology and education, and was a major underlying cause of the Reformation.

One of the most influential scholars in the development of humanism in France was the Dutch cleric Desiderius Erasmus, who also played an important part in introducing the movement into England. There humanism was definitely established at the University of Oxford by the English classical scholars William Grocyn and Thomas Linacre, and at the University of Cambridge by Erasmus and the English prelate John Fisher. From the universities it spread throughout English society and paved the way for the great flourishing of Elizabethan literature and culture.


What is your take on Humanists?

[Mr Spinkles]

Humanism is a good thing, that's my take. 8)

[Master Vigil]

I remember doing a presentation on humanists in psychology. When you look at the pictures of humanists, and then you look at neo-freudians and other kinds of psychologists. The humanists are the only ones that look happy. They are always smiling in their pictures. The others are not. So that is my take, they are a happy bunch.

[Jayhawker Soule]

Originally Posted by Maize

What is your take on Humanists?

Hebrew, so I'm told, is a perversely primitive language highly conducive to wordplay, puns, and multiple interpretations. This is particularly true of the early written text lacking vowel points and cantillation marks.

Apparently one consequence of this permits a deeply humanistic interpretation of Leviticus 19:18, where

thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself

can be legitimately read as

thou shalt love thy neighbour - he is like you

Just food for thought.

[may]

Hi not sure if this is the right thread to but this on , but i will go ahead any way.
i would just like to say that last month my mother died ,she was 85, she was never really into any religion as such, so we decided to have a humanist service at her cremation ,must say i was very inpressed with the service, the lady who took the service told a story of moms life she called it a celebration of her life, there was no prayers or hymns just music that was my moms favourite many people were very impressed

[Prima]

I'm a Humanist - it's a concept seen often in Wicca. I think it's very healthy to see the individual as basically good and full of worth...if you don't feel good about humans in general -> you can't feel good about yourself -> you can't be proud of yourself -> you can't be proud of your work -> you aren't motivated to continue your work -> you don't work on anything -> you're not an asset to society or humanity -> you feel you have no purpose and that there's no point to life

[AlefBet]

Originally Posted by Jay

thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself
can be legitimately read as
thou shalt love thy neighbour - he is like you

Like it.
Thanks.

[angellous_evangellous]

Originally Posted by Jay

Hebrew, so I'm told, is a perversely primitive language highly conducive to wordplay, puns, and multiple interpretations. This is particularly true of the early written text lacking vowel points and cantillation marks.


Apparently one consequence of this permits a deeply humanistic interpretation of Leviticus 19:18, where

thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself

can be legitimately read as

thou shalt love thy neighbour - he is like you

Just food for thought.

Yes... that's true, and other ancients were quite humanist as well. Modern humanism may have began in Italy, but it's been with us in religious expression as well as philosophy since humanity has turned its eyes upward.