The Humanist Community at Harvard is proud to announce a brand new monthly speaker series called An Ethic of Love. This series will take place over the course of the 2012-13 academic year, at a bigger hall in the Science Center; these events will include childcare and videos will be posted on our website. 

 

Greg Epstein, the Humanist Chaplain at Harvard and author of New York Times best selling Good Without God: What a Billion Nonreligious People Do Believe invites you to participate in this unfolding research project for a book he has begun to work on about love, humanism, and community. The series will feature conversations with some of the leading minds on the topic of love: scientists, authors, activists, -- and you, whether you live in Boston or far beyond.  

 

Together, we will explore different facets of love and Humanism, such as: 

• What are the origins of love? How can we understand the history of love and sexuality in the world's major religious traditions, in light of modern neuroscience and evolutionary biology?
• What is love now? What does it mean to love one another in our 21st-century society, given unprecedented reproductive and romantic possibilities, constantly-evolving technologies that both connect and isolate us, and growing research that calls into question even our capacity for free will and rational choice?
• Is love political? How can embracing a progressive "ethic of love" transform key political struggles of our time, including gay rights, women's equality, environmentalism and movements for peace and justice?

So tell your friends about this year-long exploration of humanism as a secular ethic of love and compassion, grounded in scientific thinking and an awareness of humanity as a creative force within the greater natural world.

 

The series fall dates are Sunday, September 9, Sunday, October 14, Sunday November 4, and Sunday, December 2 (see details below).

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• Sept. 9: Love Series Expert Panel
• Oct. 14: The Politics of Love
• Nov. 4: Harvard Humanist of the Year, OkCupid!
• Dec. 2: TBA 

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Our year-long series kicks off with this introductory panel exploring how Humanism compares to religion as an ethical approach to meeting our greatest human need: the need for love. Panelists include Boston Globe writer Meredith Goldstein, author of the extremely popular "Love Letters" column, and novel The Singles; Tom Matlack, founder of the Good Men Project; Michael DeDora, Director of Public Policy for the Center for Inquiry; Mary Johnson, former nun under Mother Theresa and now Humanist author of An Unquenchable Thirst. Moderated by Greg Epstein, Humanist Chaplain at Harvard University and author of Good Without God: What a Billion Nonreligious People Do Believe. Sunday, September 9, 1:30pm at the Harvard Science Center (One Oxford Street) Hall E. The Humanist Mindfulness Group will host meditation at 12 Eliot Street at 3:00pm. 

 

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"We're here, we're queer, get used to it" only took the gay rights movement so far -- but the struggle for equal rights in love and marriage has generated a tidal wave of positive political and social change. Might Humanists experience a similar revival with increased focus on our belief in secular love and compassion? In this exclusive event, Herb Silverman, President of the Secular Coalition for America and David Niose, the President of the American Humanist Association, (two of the biggest organizations representing nonreligious Americans) join forces to tackle this question, while each debuting their new books exploring secularism and US politics. Sunday, October 14, 1:30pm at the Harvard Science Center (One Oxford Street) Hall E. The Humanist Mindfulness Group will host meditation at 12 Eliot Street at 3:00pm.  

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OkCupid Staff Robot

Imagine a place with a population of 100 million, where being an atheist was not only welcome or encouraged -- it was actually considered one of the strongest signs of honesty, integrity, and social desirability. The recipients of the 2012 Harvard Humanist of the Year Award, the founders of the online dating forum OkCupid, have made such a place a reality. OkCupid has hosted nearly 100 million users since its 2004 launch, and site founders Christian Rudder and Maxwell Krohn will join us for a first-ever public discussion of how they created arguably the most welcoming and positive environment ever for atheists, Humanists, and agnostics -- online or anywhere else. Sunday, November 4, 1:30pm at the Harvard Science Center (One Oxford Street) Hall E. The Humanist Mindfulness Group will host meditation at 12 Eliot Street at 3:00pm.   

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If you like our events, if you learn and participate at our lectures and panels, if you join us in service, we ask you to remember that everything we do in the Harvard community and beyond is made possible by Humanists like you who support our vision.

Want to help us move to a larger space? Have childcare more often? Host more events with expert speakers? Do more service? Support us here!

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We're thrilled to announce the release of Assistant Chaplain Chris Stedman's new memoir Faitheist: How an Atheist Found Common Ground with the Religious on November 6. Stay tuned for more information about the book release party on November 2 and pre-order your copy today!

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