What Inspires You?

Hope

I love inspiration: I think it’s one of the most important and underrated aspects of human experience. That sense you get when something wonderful, something amazing takes your breath away, drops your jaw and makes you go “Wow!” I find inspiration in many things: art, theatre, music, the natural world, the fantastic discoveries of science, [...]

Shining Eyes, Clear Heads – Self-Help Without the Bullshit

Hope

I have a confession to make: when I was a teenager I was enthralled by motivational speakers. I was visited with this affliction after Ben Zander (a Boston-based orchestra conductor and musician) descended upon my high school and brought me to tears with his inspiring exhortation always to “radiate possibility” rather than “spiral downward”. I [...]

Remembering Paul Kurtz – Three Perspectives

Humanism - Reason, Compassion, Hope

I never met Paul Kurtz – never even spoke with him – yet he has had a profound impact on my life. Through the institutions he founded and/or led – the  Center for Inquiry,  Free Inquiry Magazine, The Humanist, and many more – he became the single most important figure in creating the Humanist movement of which I am [...]

AHA! – Amping-up the American Humanist Association Annual Conference

Ten (plus one) ways to improve the American Humanist Association Annual Conference.

Relaunching the Temple of the Future – From Ingersoll’s Voice to Adler’s Vision

I believe the time has come to revive Felix Adler’s vision – his idea that a more Ethical Culture can be built only through communities dedicated to moral betterment. From now on, this idea will be the primary focus of this blog. As a more personal adjunct to my writing at the Humanist Community Project, I will use this space to explore the idea of Humanist community building, including discussions of community practices, organizational structure, cultural resources, ritual and other aspects of communal experience. And I will use it a s a forum to host my work as I speak, talk and teach on this subject around the world. Ingersoll’s voice will still be heard – he is not banished from this blog! – but Adler’s vision will predominate.