farnham HUMANISTS

contact 01252 794021: Little Craigy Barns, 37 Frensham Vale, Farnham GU10 3HS David.savage44@btinternet.com

Since our last newsletter we have held a very successful, well attended debate on "There can be no just war" with famous speakers (more below), enjoyed a talk by Hanne Stinson the Chief Executive of The British Humanist Association, a talk on Buddhism by a practising Buddhist, a talk about the 'Persecution of the religious and non religious in today’s world’ by a speaker from Amnesty International and a talk on"Facing the Moral Implications of Climate Change" by Dr Mayer Hillman Senior Fellow Emeritus of the Policy Studies Institute. We have discussed ‘What Humanism means to me’, visited the Hellfire Club, provided a stall in the Lion and Lamb in June, rambled around Farnham ending up in a local pub and dined out for our annual dinner.

Other current and recent activities are updated as follows:

• SACRE - Jennie Johnson and Barbara Burfoot attended between them the various meetings of the Surrey SACRE and Surrey Agreed Syllabus conference - one of which was held in the North West Surrey Synagogue. The new Surrey Syllabus has been published which makes more references to non-religious ethical world views than the previous one although, unlike the 2004 Non-Statutory RE National Curriculum, does not explicitly mention Humanism. The Surrey SACRE supported an interfaith residential weekend for young people which included agnostics and atheists as well as different faith members. It is hoped that a DVD recording the weekend can be circulated to all Surrey schools. Jennie also met with other Humanist SACRE representatives at the BHA annual SACRE meeting on November 17th.

• Hospital Humanist Chaplaincy support - Following a request, a Farnham Humanist member has provided support to a patient at the Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice. Leaflets have also been provided to the Hospice describing what Humanist support could be provided as an additional option to religious chaplaincy.

• Ceremonies - Alec Legatt and Barbara Burfoot continue to provide officiant support for Funerals, Weddings and Baby Namings.

• BHA local groups - Alec Legatt and Jim Herrick presented the Farnham Group's activities at the annual BHA local groups meeting on November 8^th.

• Letters in the press - In response to a letter in the local press asserting that many of society's troubles and "moral meltdown" are due to a lack of religious/Christian belief, David Savage's letter in the Farnham Herald provided a more positive and constructive approach by suggesting that we should all try to build on our common humanity morality, a consistent view of which has existed for millennia and predates Christianity e.g. "Do not do to others what you would not like for yourself" Confucianism ~500BCE. Mike Adams' letter published in the Surrey Advertiser highlighted that many people including Humanists agree there is no need for religion in order to live a good and moral life and indeed religion continues to be a source of much conflict and social division.

• Remembrance day - Several members attended the service at the Farnham Memorial and laid a wreath.

• "Facing the Moral Implications of Climate Change" was an impassioned talk on September 23^rd provided by Dr Mayer Hillman Senior Fellow Emeritus of the Policy Studies Institute and author of "The Suicidal Planet: How to Prevent Global Climate Catastrophe" and "How we can save the planet". Dr Mayer believes that as individuals we need to put pressure on political parties to adopt carbon rationing combined with the Global Commons Institute’s proposal of Contraction and Convergence. Otherwise, there can only be one outcome: Governments around the world with our implicit approval, presiding over the accelerating devastation of life on earth.

• Annual debate - This year's annual debate held on November 20^th was on the motion 'There can be no just war' The speakers for the motion were Bruce Kent (anti-war activist) and Albert Beale (Spokesperson for the Peace Pledge Union and who describes himself as a militant pacifist). Speakers against were Field Marshall The Lord Bramall KG, GCB, OBE, MC (Former Chief of Defence Staff) and Professor Richard Norman (Emeritus Professor of Moral Philosophy). South Farnham School hall was packed and there were many contributions from the floor. The motion was narrowly passed by a majority of four with a large number, twenty-one, abstaining. Alec Legatt's account of the evening was published in the Farnham Herald as was a letter from David Savage thanking attendees for their generous contributions to the collection of £613.34 raised for the DEC Darfur and Chad appeal.

Meetings are free and normally on a Sunday, starting at 7.30pm.

At the kind invitation of the Society of Friends we meet at the Quakers Meeting House, 36, Tilford Road, Farnham GU9 8DL

(It is a few minutes walk from Farnham Station. Travelling up the hill from the station it is on the right, a little higher up than the Catholic Church on the left. If anyone would like a lift, please could they contact David Savage on 01252 794021.)

• Our next meeting is on December Sunday 16^th for a group discussion on ‘Is prostitution moral?’

• January Sunday 27^th: Annual dinner, The Lobster Pot, Upper Hale, Farnham. 7.30 for 8.00pm

• AGM - The Farnham Humanists' AGM will be on Sunday 24^th February and Norman Bacrac from the South Place Ethical Society and editor of the Ethical Record is coming to give a talk.