Harvard Secular Society 1st Meeting Sept. 17

The Harvard Secular Society is Harvard’s only undergraduate atheist, Humanist, and secular community. We come together for a number of social events each year, which have included winter “holiday” parties, happy hours, and discussion groups over dinner. In addition to providing a lively and friendly social environment for our members, we host many high-profile speakers and debates. Recent events have included talks by Congressman Pete Stark; the first avowed nontheist in Congress; debates between Christian and atheist intellectuals Dinesh D’Souza and Dan Barker; and the annual Outstanding Lifetime Achievement in Cultural Humanism Award. All these events are planned and put together by members, so please join if you are interested in entering the national debate on Humanism with one of the most active and fun communities at Harvard!

HSS First Meeting Fall 2008: Sept. 17, 9pm, Kirkland G-31

Cultural Humanism Lifetime Achievement Award:

One of the Secular Society’s major responsibilities is selecting the awardee and arranging the Chaplaincy’s annual Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award in Cultural Humanism, which celebrates writers, musicians, filmmakers, actors, and other cultural figures who have contributed through their lives and their art to the cause of Humanism. At a major event each year, the awardee comes to Harvard to speak, perform, and answer questions. Two years ago, in its first year, we gave the award to author Salman Rushdie. Last year, we chose punk rock star Greg Graffin of the band Bad Religion, also a science professor at UCLA. Other nominees we have considered have included Ian McKellen, Ani DiFranco, Joss Whedon, Matt Groening, and Woody Allen, among many others. Who we give it to this year is up to the students, so join the Secular Society and get involved if you want to meet your favorite cultural Humanist!

National Secular Service Day:

National Secular Service Day is a new project for HSS, one which we hope will grow into an annual tradition across the nation. The premise is simple: We want to create an opportunity for nonreligious people of all kinds – or even religious people, if they’re interested – to give back to their community, as a group. We nontheists take pride in living ethical lives without religious influence, and yet, it often seems as though church groups and similar organizations have a monopoly on community outreach programs. Admittedly, it is sometimes hard to get involved without the impressive support network of a religious group – and that’s where the HSS and similar groups come in. Our job is to be the church, synagogue, or temple that the nonreligious community lacks, and to step up and organize public service programs. It’s time for us secular citizens to back up our claims with action by volunteering our time for the causes we believe in.