Irreligious organizations promote the view that moral standards should be based solely on naturalistic considerations, without reference to supernatural concepts (such as God or an afterlife), any desire to do good for a reward after death, or any fear of punishment for not believing in life after death.
Background
editIndividuals and organizations sharing these views, identify themselves by a variety of terms, including, bright, freethinker, naturalist, rationalist, or skeptic.[1][2] Despite the use of these various terms, the organizations listed here have goals in common. Note that, while most of these organizations and their members consider themselves irreligious, there are certain exceptions (Ethical Culture, for example).
In some jurisdictions, a provincial or national humanist society may confer upon Humanist officiants the ability to conduct memorial services, child naming ceremonies or officiate marriages – tasks which would be carried out by clergy in most organized religions.[3][4][5]
List
edit- Atheist Republic[6] is the world's largest atheist organization with local chapters called consulates all over the world. Their facebook page has over 2.4 million followers.
- The Brights' Net is a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to "building a constituency" and "constructively address[ing] the marginalized situation of persons who have a naturalistic worldview."[7]
- The Clergy Project provides support, community, and hope to religious professionals who no longer hold supernatural beliefs.
- European Humanist Federation is a union of "numerous humanist organisations from most European countries" whose purpose is to promote humanism and secularism in Europe.[8]
- Humanists International is "the sole world umbrella organisation embracing Humanist, atheist, rationalist, secularist, skeptic, laique, [sic][9] ethical cultural, freethought and similar organisations world-wide." Humanists International is a union of over 100 Humanist or secularist organizations in more than 40 countries. It is an international NGO (non-governmental organization) with special consultative status with the United Nations.[10]
- Young Humanists International, Humanists International's youth wing
- International League of Humanists
- Rationalist International
- Sunday Assembly
Australia
edit- Council of Australian Humanist Societies
- Fusion Party
- National Secular Lobby
- Rationalist Society of Australia
- The Secular Party of Australia
Belgium
editBrazil
editCanada
edit- Centre for Inquiry Canada
- Freethought Association of Canada
- Humanist Canada, formerly Humanist Association of Canada
- Mouvement laïque québécois
- Toronto Secular Alliance
Finland
edit- Union of Freethinkers of Finland, founded the Eroakirkosta.fi web service[11]
France
editGermany
edit- Atheist Refugee Relief
- Central Council of Ex-Muslims
- German Freethinkers League
- Giordano Bruno Foundation (Giordano-Bruno-Stiftung, gbs)
- International League of Non-Religious and Atheists (IBKA)
- Humanistischer Verband Deutschlands (HVD)
- Party of Humanists (Partei der Humanisten)
Greece
editIceland
edit- Sidmennt – Icelandic Ethical Humanist Association
India
edit- esSENSE Global
- Indian Rationalist Association
- Atheist Center
- Dakshina Kannada Rationalist Association
- Federation of Indian Rationalist Associations
- Indian Humanist Union
- Kerala Yukthivadi Sangham
- Dravidar Kazhagam
- We The Sapiens
- Yukthivada Padanakendram Kerala
Indonesia
editIreland
editItaly
editKenya
editLuxembourg
editNetherlands
edit- De Vrije Gedachte (DVG, "The Free Thought")
- Humanistisch Verbond (HV, "Humanist Association")
New Zealand
editNorthern Ireland
editNorway
edit- Human-Etisk Forbund HEF has over 78,000 members,[14] making it "the largest group [in Norway] outside the State Church"[15]
- Norwegian Heathen Society
Philippines
editRomania
editSingapore
editSweden
editSwitzerland
editTurkey
editUnited Kingdom
editNational organisations
edit- Humanists UK, founded 1896, is the largest such group.
- Conway Hall Ethical Society, founded in 1793, identifies itself as "the oldest freethought community in the world"[16]
- Humanist Society Scotland
- Scottish Secular Society, founded in 2012, identifies itself as Scotland's largest secular group.
- National Secular Society
- Rationalist Association, which publishes New Humanist
- Camp Quest UK
Local groups
editThere are many local humanist groups around the United Kingdom, most being affiliates of Humanists UK and the National Secular Society. Of these, Leicester Secular Society has particular claim to fame in being the world's oldest secular society, founded in 1851.[17] Others include North East Humanists.
United States
edit- American Atheists – dedicated to separation of church and state issues
- American Ethical Union – federation of about 25 Ethical Societies representing the Ethical Culture movement founded in 1876 by Felix Adler
- American Humanist Association – organization promoting secular humanism in the US
- American Secular Union
- Americans United for Separation of Church and State is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to preserving church-state separation to ensure religious freedom for all Americans
- The Atheist Agenda
- Atheist Alliance International
- Atheist Community of Austin
- Atheists of Florida – founded in 1992 to ensure the separation of state and church
- Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, represents multiple Baptist groups (but not the Southern Baptist Convention) in supporting religious liberty and the separation of church and state
- Camp Inquiry – summer camp run by the Center for Inquiry
- Camp Quest – "The Secular Summer Camp", a residential summer camp in the United States for the children of those who hold a naturalistic world view
- Center for Inquiry
- Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science – former independent project created by Richard Dawkins, now a subdivision of CFI
- City Congregation for Humanistic Judaism
- Committee for Skeptical Inquiry
- Ex-Muslims of North America – non-profit based in the US, according to its website, stands "for the rights and dignities of those who leave Islam"
- Fellowship of Humanity
- First Humanist Society of New York
- Foundation Beyond Belief
- Freedom From Religion Foundation – according to its website, the "largest group of atheists and agnostics in North America"
- The Humanist Institute
- Institute for Humanist Studies
- Internet Infidels – "a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to defending and promoting a naturalistic worldview on the Internet"
- Military Association of Atheists & Freethinkers
- Military Religious Freedom Foundation
- North Texas Church of Freethought
- Practice What You Preach Foundation – a "non-profit organization that builds bridges between faith communities and secular organizations in the Greater Los Angeles Area"
- Rational Response Squad
- Secular Coalition for America
- Secular Student Alliance
- Secular Therapy Project
- Society for Humanistic Judaism – offers cultural and secular Jews a non-theistic alternative in contemporary Jewish life
- United Coalition of Reason
See also
editNotes and references
edit- ^ Who does the Secular Coalition for America represent? Archived 2008-04-16 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Some less common labels include: apatheist, godless (in the non-pejorative, literal sense), ignostic, infidel (or unbeliever), heathen, materialist, or realist.
- ^ "Humanist Canada: Humanist Weddings". Archived from the original on 2012-12-28. Retrieved 2014-11-23.
- ^ "Humanists Stand Ready to Perform Same-Sex Marriage Ceremonies". American Humanist Association. March 3, 2010. Archived from the original on September 21, 2022. Retrieved September 21, 2022.
- ^ "The Humanist Society Listing of Humanist Celebrants". Archived from the original on 2013-11-01. Retrieved 2014-11-23.
- ^ [1] Archived 2021-05-07 at the Wayback Machine Atheist Republic
- ^ The Movement Archived 2008-03-12 at the Wayback Machine, The Brights' Network, 2008 (Accessed 9 April 2008)
- ^ Presentation, European Humanist Federation website, 2006 (Accessed 10 April 2008)
- ^ Laïque (French): "secular"
- ^ About IHEU Archived 2008-07-05 at the Wayback Machine, IHEU website Archived 2014-01-02 at the Wayback Machine (Accessed 5 April 2008)
- ^ "Internet Deconstructing State Church in Finland". eroakirkosta.fi. Archived from the original on 2022-09-21. Retrieved 2022-09-21.
- ^ Atheist Union of Greece Statute
- ^ "Les non-religieux veulent aussi être consultés". L'essentiel (in French). Edita SA. 18 January 2015. Archived from the original on 27 August 2017. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
- ^ The Norwegian Humanist Association Archived 2008-04-12 at the Wayback Machine, Human-Etisk Forbund website (English version), 2011 (Accessed 5 February 2011)
- ^ Membership Archived 2007-10-30 at the Wayback Machine, Human-Etisk Forbund website (English version), 2004 (Accessed 9 April 2008)
- ^ South Place Ethical Society website Archived 2008-04-20 at the Wayback Machine (Accessed 5 April 2008)
- ^ Leicester Secular Society website Archived 2008-05-15 at the Wayback Machine (Accessed 5 April 2008)
External links
edit- Atheists Helping the Homeless, DC
- Organizations lists at the Secular Web.