Winterlight Day
Greg Epstein, the humanist chaplain at Harvard University, has recently promoted HumanLight Day, a humanist replacement for Christmas. On the HumanLight website, they say:
HumanLight illuminates Humanism’s positive secular vision. In Western societies, late December is a season of good cheer and a time for gatherings of friends and families. During the winter holiday season, where the word “holiday” has taken on a more secular meaning, many events are observed. This tradition of celebrations, however, is grounded in supernatural religious beliefs that many people in modern society cannot accept. HumanLight presents an alternative reason to celebrate: a Humanist’s vision of a good future. It is a future in which all people can identify with each other, behave with the highest moral standards, and work together toward a happy, just and peaceful world.
While I strongly endorse the idea behind this, I don’t like the name very much. In part, I think that this time of year extends beyond humanity, which is also about the cycle of the seasons and all that that implies. I do like the word “Light”, which is certainly appropriate to the holiday spirit. But if I were to make a suggestion, I would call it Winterlight Day.
This topic is coming a bit late, but perhaps we can mull it over and see if the idea survives until next year.
And so, a belated Happy Winterlight to everyone! We at Sacred River hope that it was filled with warmth, joy, and togetherness.
We are UU an celebrate Yule as well as a secular Christmas and the new UU holiday of Chalica
My wife is a UU, I grew up UU, and I’m a little embarrassed that I didn’t know about Chalica. After reading up on it, I think it’s a wonderful extended ritual. In fact, that is my initial take on it, that Chalica is more of a ritual than a holiday. Not that that is a bad thing, of course…ritual is important. The nice thing about it is that I can see any group incorporating it into their tradition…there is nothing there that contradicts the major world religions, even though it is grounded in UU tenets.
Thanks for the reference! Folks can read more here…
I agree…way to anthropocentric as is humanism in general. Every humanist I have yet met or read, and my exposure is of course limited, is so small in their world view, as human centered as any fundamentalist I have met…such a chain of being is as dysfunctional and misguided as the religious anthropocentric positions. Even the name ‘humanism’ is a turn off. btw..I like ‘Winterlight’ too but isn’t that the same as ‘Solstice’ ?
I don’t dig on making a holiday that is specifically about humanism because to my mind that goes against the idea of humanism, which is to create a global ethic rather than a sectarian one. That’s why I propose “Winter”, which is more about the season than the people celebrating it. In that sense, I guess HumanLight is too self-referential for my taste.
But I didn’t intend any insult to Humanism. I’m a dedicated humanist myself and Sacred River incorporates humanist principles. I’m sorry to hear that you’ve met some bad eggs, but in my own experience, humanists tend to be thoughtful, open minded, and compassionate.
As to your last question, the holiday of Solstice has been adopted by the Neopagans, and I think they should be able to keep their own tradition. In fact, Winterlight is far closer to the secular form of Christmas.
I like Winterlight…it actually has a nice ring to it…though I don’t think Solstice is the private property of the neopagans.
In limited experience with humanists my impressions is their open mindness, compassion, and world view, as enlightened as it is does not extend beyond humans. It is by its very term exclusive. I don’t think there is a way around that. I much prefer the term naturalist, religious naturalist, or even ever more popular term sacred naturalist.
I don’t dig on making a holiday that is specifically about humanism because to my mind that goes against the idea of humanism, which is to create a global ethic rather than a sectarian one. That’s why I propose “Winter”
I don’t think you can say that “Winterlight” creates a “global ethic” when it excludes an entire hemisphere.
That’s very clever, Erwin
However, the holiday that I’m referring to is, in my opinion, a largely American secular event. The fact that it occurs in our winter is relevant, not merely an accident of the position of the Earth relative to the Sun. You will note that I did not claim that the holiday needed to reflect a global ethic (although it might, even if at different times of the year), but that Humanism does aspire to, which is where I sense a conflict. But it’s my own reaction to the name, and I don’t expect anyone else to necessarily share it.