Jim Herrick – författare

Humanism is a philosophy that emphasizes the value of human life in all its creative potential within a secular context. Humanism is skeptical of religious beliefs and relies on science as the basis for understanding the universe. Although humanism has become most fully developed in the West, its origins lie throughout the world, and this perspective is shared by people from many different cultural, ethnic and racial backgrounds.In this succinct, informative, and enlightening introduction to humanism, Jim Herrick, a leading humanist advocate in Great Britain, provides a very readable account of the guiding principles, history, and practice of humanism in today's world. Herrick surveys the tradition of humanism as it developed over many centuries, its skepticism toward belief in God and an afterlife, humanist values and arguments for morality outside of a religious framework, its attitude of tolerance toward different lifestyles and belief systems, its endorsement of democratic political principles, its strong ties to science, its evaluation of the arts as an exploration of human potential, and its concern for environmental preservation and the long-term sustainability of the earth.In conclusion, Herrick briefly describes the various humanist organizations throughout the world; particular causes championed by humanists (women's rights, racial and sexual equality, freedom of speech and information, and education, among others); and the future of humanism.

This remarkable anthology of poems and prose on the human condition brings together a wide range of romantic and humanist thought from around the world. The greatest of philosophers and poets have contemplated the seasons of life in their own time: nature, birth, childhood, love, marriage, parenthood, reflection, the end of life, and all those days in between that give us rich and surprising experiences.Compiled by accomplished writer and noted humanist Jim Herrick, this volume draws together some of the most powerful poems and meditations from Maya Angelou, W.H. Auden, Samuel Butler, e.e. cummings, Albert Camus, Robert Creeley, Emily Dickinson, John Donne, George Eliot, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Epicurus, Robert Frost, Kahlil Gibran, Thomas Hardy, Robert Herrick, Langston Hughes, Robert Ingersoll, John Keats, Rudyard Kipling, John Lennon, Lucretius, Ogden Nash, Thomas Paine, Sylvia Plath, Bertrand Russell, George Santayana, Sappho, Seneca, Shakespeare, George Bernard Shaw, Dylan Thomas, W.B. Yeats, Walt Whitman, and many other notables.These enlightening and stimulating words from many of the world's best-known authors are both realistic and powerful, offering readers the opportunity to feel the intensity of human experience and, perhaps, reconsider their own thoughts about life's passing seasons. Divided into nineteen sections that encompass the major watershed periods in human existence, this volume is designed to be enjoyed independently or as a useful complement to various ceremonies, such as births, graduations, weddings, celebrations, funerals, and much more.