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Humanism and Divinity
- Thread starter Fool
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PoetPhilosopher
Veteran Member
I don't know.
PureX
Veteran Member
Certainly. To love God, ourselves, and each other was proclaimed as being the same imperative act.
If according to Jesus the logos enters the fellowship, giving us the power to be called sons of God but that power is contingent upon our commitment to become so then yes.
AlexanderG
Active Member
Isn't humanism focused on the well-being of humans during our lives as humans? Doesn't the bible refer to this life as "dirty rags," a doormat to wipe our feet before we enter the eternal afterlife?
I'm not a Christian, and I've only read parts of the bible, but it seems like biblical morality and its rules for human behavior are all directed toward pleasing, glorifying, and obeying god. God is the focus of any considerations of well-being, not humans. Our suffering is a necessary tool to allow free will, which in turn allows us to choose to worship god, which pleases him.
I really don't see much humanism in the bible. Even the "love your neighbor" passage was presumably asking Jews to love fellow Jews. As was the norm back then, and exemplified in the bible in other passages, entirely different rules and considerations applied to people outside one's own tribe. People outside the tribe were seen as objects to exploit or lesser beings, not worthy of equal moral consideration. (We certainly see this sentiment among many modern conservative Christians, but must less among the progressive Christians who take the least literal view of the bible's teachings.)
I guess you could apply humanistic considerations for weighing the well-being of an afterlife, but I see humanism as incorporating good evidence about reality in its approach. So far, there is no evidence for any afterlife apart from imagination and wishful thinking.
I'm not a Christian, and I've only read parts of the bible, but it seems like biblical morality and its rules for human behavior are all directed toward pleasing, glorifying, and obeying god. God is the focus of any considerations of well-being, not humans. Our suffering is a necessary tool to allow free will, which in turn allows us to choose to worship god, which pleases him.
I really don't see much humanism in the bible. Even the "love your neighbor" passage was presumably asking Jews to love fellow Jews. As was the norm back then, and exemplified in the bible in other passages, entirely different rules and considerations applied to people outside one's own tribe. People outside the tribe were seen as objects to exploit or lesser beings, not worthy of equal moral consideration. (We certainly see this sentiment among many modern conservative Christians, but must less among the progressive Christians who take the least literal view of the bible's teachings.)
I guess you could apply humanistic considerations for weighing the well-being of an afterlife, but I see humanism as incorporating good evidence about reality in its approach. So far, there is no evidence for any afterlife apart from imagination and wishful thinking.
epronovost
Well-Known Member
I don't think so. Humanism places the wellbeing of humans and human reason as the most central values. Jesus placed God as the most central value and love for humanity as a command of God. It's humanism-ish, but not quite humanism.
god is love. it isn't something separate from self. it isn't some anthropomorphic thing. its a force, a spirit, a purpose.