Humanist Society of Santa Barbara
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Secular Humanism is a philosphy of life guided by reason and science, free from religious dogma, motivated by an appreciation of life and the life of others, seeking to reach goals of human happiness, personal freedom and growth with responsibility and understanding on this earth, in this life, at this time.
We meet at 3pm on the 3rd Saturday of each month at Jefferson Hall, 1535 Santa Barbara St., Santa Barbara. If you would like a copy of this bulletin mailed to a friend or someone you believe would be interested in our Society please drop a line to us with their name and address to P.O. Box 30232, Santa Barbara, CA 93130. |
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SOCIETY OF SANTA BARBARA 2001 - 2002 OFFICERS OF YOUR SOCIETY Chairman: Roger Schlueter 962-6316 rogers@west.net Secretary & Web Meister: Colin Gordon 682-0545 colin3@juno.com Editor: Dick Cousineau 687-2371 rcous1geol@aol.com Treasurer: Russ Boggie 564-6086 rusans@mac.com Programs: Bea Duncan 964-3109 duddle4@home.com Social Director: Anne Rojas 564-6086 rusans@mac.com Membership: Mary Wilk 967-3045 wilk@electromatic.com Archivist: Hope Smith 967-5143 hsmith1923@aol.com Major Events Coordinator: James Kimberly 969-9686 drdoboy@home.com At-Large Member: Art Brody 692-8898 brodybiz@silcom.com Publicity: Mariette Risley 965-3866 Interviews: Lottie White 681-9863 lbwhite40@worldnet.att.net Thanks to Hope Smith and Mariette Risley for stepping up to help with our Society; Hope in the Archives and History records, and Mariette in the Publicity Department. It is a pleasure to have you working with us to make this a better society. |
Our speaker at our regular meeting on January 19th will be Juan E. Campo, Associate Professor of Religious Studies at UCSB, with advanced degrees from USC and University of Chicago. Professor Campo has devoted his career to the comparative study of Islam, and has lived and conducted research in Egypt, India, and other countries of the Middle East.
His classes at UCSB are concerned with religion and politics in those regions, and with Islamic traditions, Islamic mysticism, and modern Islamic movements.
He will speak to us on "Islam and Political Terror: a Reassessment". The general Western perception of Islam as promoter of holy war and terrorism and the clash of civilizations will be analyzed in the light of Islamic ethics and spirituality, and the forces of global change in the modern world.
Nothing is better than information from an expert. Come prepared to ask questions! On February 28th UCSB Arts and Lectures will be co-presenting as special public forum on "God and the Country: The Role of Religion in American Public Life" featuring Ralph Reed, former director of the Christian Coalition, and Barry Lynn, Director of Americans united for Separation of Church and State. Tickets are $10 General Admission. Tickets are on sale now at UCSB 893-3535.
Dick Cousineau will have 4 tickets on sale at the regular Society meeting on January 19th. In times of unreasoned faith or fear reasoned skepticism is the most intolerant insult.
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Hi Everyone! Our Winter Solstice Party at Sizzler was a resounding success
and apparently greatly enjoyed by 60 partygoers. You all looked terrific!
THANKS to Pat Campbell and Elayne Brill for doing the check-in chores. The
big winners in the raffle were 2 lovely ladies, Lottie White who took the
$50 Nordstrom certificate and Judy Freeman who won the $25 certificate from
Sears. Congratulations to you both!
There was no last Sunday of the month brunch due to the Holidays, but we
will resume our last Sunday brunch on January 27th at Sizzler, 10AM. No
reservations; just come. I hope to have the newly ordered HSSB shirts at
that time.
Due to our large membership and increasing participation in the Dining
Out after the regular Saturday monthly meetings, we are forced to make a
change in strategy. We have always gone to restaurants where the accuracy
of the reservation number was not terribly important. This worked when
there were 10 or 12 of us. Now that we have 25 persons fairly consistently
attending we are very limited in the number of restaurants who will accept
that substantial number without firm reservations, especially on a Saturday.
We can no longer use this activity to "try out" new dining experiences
unless you are willing to make a firm commitment and a reservation several
days ahead. For the present we will continue on at Josie's 4 Winds and Yen
Ching and Sizzler. (I am in the process of forming a subgroup of diners who
will eat at various restaurants around town--a gourmet dining group--more
later on this.) DINING OUT after the January meeting will be at Yen Ching
in the Ralph's shopping center on de la Vina.
A SPECIAL MEETING is planned for those of you who wish to air your opinions, interests and suggestions on social activities for our group. Meeting is at my house on Sunday, January 13th at 4:30 pm. Everyone who is interested is most welcome. Refreshments served. Please let me know if you are planning to attend. Tel: 564-6086. Anne H. Rojas, Social Chairperson REFRESHMENTS AT MEETINGS - Cookie Sign-ups for the upcoming meetings. Anne will call you one week prior to the meeting to remind you of your date. Please bring 4 to 5 dozen small but nice cookies (half each if two are bringing). If for some reason you have to miss your date please arrange with someone who has another month. Thank you for your cooperation:
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by ROGER SCHLUETER Mr. Joe Cole, Publisher I am writing regarding a new column which debuted with your December 15, 2001 issue of the Santa Barbara News-Press. It was announced in the lefthand sidebar column on page A1 under the headline "Religion" and said, "A new column debuts today, offering area clergy a forum to share their thoughts. D4." But page D4 is NOT entitled "Religion." It is entitled "Faith and Values." While "Faith" and "Religion" are normally intertwined with each other, "Values" are emphatically not necessarily inexorably linked with either. The purpose of this letter is to raise my objection to the obfuscation of "Faith", "Religion" and "Values" by the News-Press and to request a modified editorial policy to rectify this confusion. The page in question, which appears every Saturday, should have a headline which reflects its actual content. It should be entitled, "Faith and Religion" not "Faith and Values" because it contains the "Religious Calendar," has a column coauthored by Denny Wayman, pastor of the Free Methodist Church, and features a headline article about some aspect of religion. Previously it contained a short-lived, valuable and nonsectarian column on ethics which has been replaced with the new sectarian column. In short, this page is devoted exclusively to religion. If the page was, in fact, entitled "Faith and Religion" I would have no objection. More to the point, I would have no objection to giving area clergy a forum to speak to "Faith and Religion" issues. There is much to be said about such issues and I would more than happy to hear various viewpoints. However, if this is to be a "Faith and Values" page, then you must allow for the expression of all values, some of which may not be rooted in "Faith." In fact, there is a reasonable argument that values do not arise out of Faith or Religion but rather emerge out of evolutionary social processes that can be traced to roots quite distinct from religion. Among them are the rights claimed in the Declaration of Independence, which owe more to the French Enlightenment than to the religions it found wanting. Consequently, to completely exclude non-religious perspectives on such an important issue as "values" (however defined) is unreasonable, unsupportable, and a disservice to your readers. So I request that you implement one of two strategies. If the Saturday page is to feature "Faith and Religion" then label it so. Then all readers will clearly know and understand the page's content. Conversely, if it is to be a "Faith and Values" page, then I believe you must allow for the expression of viewpoints which do not arise out of "Religion." Respectfully,Roger S. Schlueter, Chairman -a profile of Elaine Brody in her own words. (Lottie White is away, visiting her out-of- town daughters.) I was born in Chicago, the only child of Dorothy and Jack Johnson. My father was a super salesman with a charismatic personality and great gift of gab. My mother was an immaculate homemaker and excellent cook who gave legendary dinner parties. They were also rigid, self-righteous and anti-intellectual. I inherited none of their talents and none of their biases. We moved to Los Angeles when I was ten. I was a dedicated student. My first love was Algebra, which I have always considered one of life's great experiences. I graduated from UCLA, School of Business Administration, with a major in accounting and minor in economics. I was offered a position in statistics at Stanford University, but that was the path not taken. I passed the CP A exam at age 21, worked for a local CPA firm for the next four years and developed an interest in systems analysis. I met my husband, Arthur Brody, who was in the navy, stationed aboard the flagship of the Seventh Fleet. It was a wartime romance, the Korean War. After his naval service, we spent five years in San Francisco and New York where he completed post graduate training in surgery and orthopaedics. In 1961 we settled in Los Angeles, raised three daughters, and became very involved in education. We were among the founding parents of Montessori education in Southern California. We also took classes in psychology and philosophy and investigated psychic phenomena. Through this exploration of ideas, we uhimately found our way to secular humani~m. I had a home based business, did financial planning and prepared tax returns. I developed a great relationship with the IRS based on mutual respect and co-operation, and good preparation and documentation. We moved to Santa Barbara four years ago when my husband was reluctantly forced to retire after knee surgery .I love it here, and he is a good sport. |
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Sarah Ovenall (Reprinted from Reasonings #146, November 2001. jamesdew@tds.net) This quiz is intended to test your ability to
distinguish the rhetoric of Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson,
and Osama bin Laden. Below are 20 statements
made by these individuals. See if you can
identify who made each statement. Answers are on
page 7.
1. "In today's wars, there are no morals, and
it is clear that mankind has descended to the lowest
degrees of decadence and oppression."
2. " America is polluting the whole world."
3. "The government is committed to supporting
God's religion, the country remains a strong
bulwark for religion, and the people are among the
most protective of God's religion, and the keenest to
fulfill His laws."
4. "One-world opinion is taking the side of the
Palestinians, not the side of Israel."
5. "There will never be world peace until
God's house and God's people are given their rightful
place of leadership at the top of the world."
6. "The government does not cease to cry over
matters affecting religion, without making any
serious effort to serve the interests of the religious
community."
7. "We are on the brink of our destruction,
and if we do not awaken now, it will be too late. We
have been victimized by traitorous behavior on the
part of our leaders."
8. "The media strive to keep the people occupied
with minor matters, and to stir their emotions
and desires until corruption becomes widespread
among believers." Brent Meeker (meekerdb@rain.org) "Man is a religious animal. He is the only religious animal. He is the
only animal that has the True Religion - several of them. He is the only
animal that loves his neighbor as himself and cuts his throat if his
theology isn't straight." - Mark Twain
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9. "There is no way that a United Nations,
treaties, or any other human instrument can bring
about peace. Such things mean nothing when one nation
desires the land and resources of another."
10. "We have allowed rampant secularism. ...
We have insulted God at the highest levels of government."
11."One particular report described the gaps
and the shortcoming in the philosophy of the government,
the situation of the law within the country
and the arbitrary declaration of what is lawful and
unlawful regardless of divine law instituted by God."
12. "Priorities of spiritual work are lost
while blasphemy and polytheism continue their grip
and control. We should be alert to these atrocious
plans carried out by the government."
13. "America is in imminent peril... rotting
from within."
14. "The American people have put themselves
at the mercy of a disloyal government, and this is
most evident in Clinton's administration. The American
government is leading the country towards
hell."
15. "The termites are in charge now, and that
is not the way it ought to be, and the time has arrived
for a godly fumigation."
16. "If America is not suffering the irrevocable
judgment of God, she is dangerously close."
17. " Americans have committed unprecedented
stupidity. We anticipate a black future for America."
18. "If the judges appointed by man will not
deal with those who take innocent human life, then
God is going to enter in and bring justice. And when
that happens many of the innocent will suffer along
with the guilty."
19. "All these crimes and sins committed by
Americans are a clear declaration of war on God."
20. "A condition like this will bring about the
destruction of your nation. It'll bring about terrorist
bombs; it'll bring earthquakes, tornadoes, and
possibly a meteor." ANSWERS "What shall we do with ... the Jews? ... Set fire to their synagogues or schools and bury and cover with dirt whatever will not burn, so that no man will ever again see a stone or cinder of them." - Martin Luther |
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Who Should God Bless? God Bless America. This slogan we hear and see printed everywhere. But what does it mean! To a non-religious person it doesn't mean anything.
But what does it mean to someone who is religious?
When saying this are they imploring their Deity to
favor the citizens within the boundaries of this country
over anyone else? This is not very humane.
This is the same as when, during armed confrontations
between two countries, the clergy blesses the
weapons of one side, or when before a football game
the players say a prayer and ask their Lord to help them
win the game.
Now that would put their God in a quandary. What
is next, making a sacrifice to appease the Gods?
What nonsense.
John L. Coppejans Member HSSBThe Washington Post recently published a contest for readers in which they were asked to supply alternative meanings for various words. The following were some of the winning entries. Abdicate (v.), to give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach. Carcinoma (n.), a valley in California, notable for its heavy smog. Esplanade (v.), to attempt an explanation while drunk. Willy-nilly (adj.), impotent. Flabbergasted (adj.), appalled over how much weight you have gained. Negligent (adj.), describes a condition in which you absentmindedly answer the door in your nightie. Lymph (v.), to walk with a lisp. Coffee (n.), a person who is coughed upon. Balderdash (n.), a rapidly receding hairline. Testicle (n.), a humorous question on an exam Rectitude (n.), the formal, dignified demeanor assumed by a proctologist immediately before he examines you. Oyster (n.), a person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddish expressions. Circumvent (n.), the opening in the front of boxer shorts. Frisbatarianism (n.), The belief that, when you die, your soul goes up on the roof and gets stuck there. |
"It seems to me that direct arguments
against religion and theism hardly have
any effect on the general public; and that
freedom of thought will best be promoted
by the gradual enlightenment of human
understanding which follows (albeit quite
slowly) the progress of science. I have
therefore always avoided writing about
religion and have confined myself to
science". Charles Darwin "Humanity has in the course of time had to endure from the hands of science two great outrages upon its native self love: 1st, when it realized it was not the center of the Universe but barely a speck in a barely imaginable cosmos, and 2nd, when biological science denied it special creation and relegated it to descent from the animal world." Sigmund Freud "Childhood's bright vision of 'Spendor in the grass and Glory in the flowers' can never be recaptured, but grieve not, rather fmd stenght in what remains, reality" William Wadsworth Educated people now accept the evolutionary continuity between humans and the apes. What has been lost in this acceptance? The antiquated vision of the soul; and what has been gained ? The exalted vision of our own oneness with all of nature. There are three religious truths: 1. Jews do not recognize Jesus as the Messiah. 2. Protestants do not recognize the Pope as the leader of the Christian faith. 3. Baptists do not recognize each other in the liquor store or at Hooters |
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by COLIN GORDON How about a book burning? Last Sunday Jack Brock, pastor of Christ Community Church in the south central town of Alamogordo, delivered a sermon entitled "The Baby Jesus or Harry Potter?" And Brock is following up on that with a "holy bonfire" in which the church will publicly burn Potter books. The evangelical pastor says it is all an effort to encourage Christians to remove everything from their homes that prevents them from communicating with God. To find out more about this exciting event go to the website of the Christian Coalition, "America's Leading Grassroots Organization Defending Our Godly Heritage", at While you are there learn about the movement to make "God Bless America" our national anthem and many other noble endeavors sponsored by the CC. Sometimes it is a good idea to remind ourselves of why we are Humanists. Colin Gordon |
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