Humanist Movement
Encyclopedia
The Humanist Movement is an international volunteer organisation that promotes nonviolence
and non-discrimination. It is not an institution. It takes its inspiration from the current of thought referred to as New or Universal Humanism that has been developed since 1969 by its founder Mario Rodríguez Cobos
, pen name: Silo.
New Humanism focuses on the overcoming of pain and suffering at a personal, interpersonal and social level. It defines violence as anything that causes pain and suffering to human beings. In this way violence is seen to have many different aspects, not just the well-known physical form but also; economic, religious, psychological, sexual, ethnic, etc.
The project of the Humanist Movement is to eradicate war, hunger, poverty and economic exploitation across the planet and develop a new system based on the value of human life as the central value, higher than money, power, prestige, etc. This vision of the future is called the Universal Human Nation. The methodology used is to work in groups and undertake personal development activities as well as social projects. Once sufficiently experienced, new groups develop according to their interests.
New Humanists share the following Humanist Attitude:
occurring in the world. This group, and others like it, organized around his writings, grew and developed into what started life as The School and after many iterations later became known as the Humanist Movement.
The Humanist Movement is often said to have been started May 4, 1969, with the talk "The Healing of Suffering" by Silo at Punta de Vacas
, Argentina
. Because of the military dictatorship
in place at that time, this talk was permitted on the condition that it would be held high in the Andes Mountains
, far from the nearest town.
These initial groups faced repression and disinformation campaigns as they grew and spread throughout Latin America
. This growth was reinforced when some of the members, freely or as political exile
s, took up residence in various countries in Europe
, Asia
and the Americas
.
In 1975 one hundred members from different countries met in Corfu
, Greece
, to agree on proposals, objectives and a rudimentary organisation that would be tested over the next four years.
By 1980 the Movement was functioning in forty two countries. In 1981 The Community for Human Development organised a lecture tour around Europe and Asia. The Look Within, The Internal Landscape and the Book of the Community started being published and translated into many languages.
In 1983 the Movement was articulated into Councils (see Organisation) and a way of working was defined in a material called the Norms. In 1984 the Humanist Party was founded, followed by The Greens.
After the launch of the Humanist International
in 1989, the strategy turned once more to the development of the Humanist Movement in a more general form and its organisation structure. A stage of putting down roots in communities, with the opening of Centres of Communication and the publication of hundreds of neighbourhood newspapers around the world was started.
In 1993 the Document of the Humanist Movement was published. The first Humanist Forum was held in Moscow, Russia, and The World Center of Humanist Studies was founded.
By 1995 the direction of the Humanist Movement went towards a phase of massive growth with the opening up of 10s of new countries across Africa
, Asia
and the Caribbean
. This mostly was made possible through the launching of the Centre of Cultures. In addition, from Spain the action front called World without Wars was legalised that later went on to become an official organisation of the Humanist Movement.
By 2006, the first Parks of Study and Reflection are launched around the world.
In 2009, the organisational structure articulated in 1983 was dissolved by Silo leaving behind 5 official organisations to represent the Humanist Movement's interests in various fields of human endeavour.
On the 2nd of October 2009, until the 2nd of January 2010, the World March for Peace and Nonviolence
went around the world from New Zealand
to Argentina calling for the eradication of Nuclear Weapons, the withdrawal of invading troops from foreign territories, the signing of peace treaties between countries in dispute, progressive and proportional conventional weapons disarmament and the implementation of articles in national constitutions to renounce the use of war as a means to resolve conflicts, such as Article 9 of the Japanese constitution. The World March was the initiative of the Humanist organisation, World without Wars and without Violence and was promoted around the world by Humanist and other organisations.
The Community for Human Development, launched in 1981, is a social and cultural organisation that works for nonviolence through simultaneous social and personal transformation i.e. through the transformation of the structures of society and the way that individuals act in the world
.
The Community has the following objectives:
The Community works in society in the areas of education, health, culture
, and quality of life. In each of these areas it denounces all that which hinders the development of the human being and develops actions that favour it.
The key characteristics of the work of The Community are:
The official documents of the Community can be found in the Book of the Community.
The idea of the Humanist Party as a political party was launched on March 8, 1984, as a recommendation from the Department of Social Affairs of The Community for Human Development. Around the world many Humanist Parties started to emerge and on January 4, 1989, in Florence
, Italy
, the first congress of the Humanist International
was held.
In this event, the foundational documents were adopted, including the Declaration of Principles, The Thesis, Foundations for political action and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
.
In December 1990, in Chile
, Laura Rodríguez
became the first elected representative of any Humanist Party in the world after winning a seat as part of the Concertación
coalition, after Augusto Pinochet
handed over power.
In October 1993, the second congress of the Humanist International
was held in Moscow
, Russia
, whereupon the Document of the Humanist Movement was also incorporated as a foundational document. This document had previously been circulating as chapter six of the Book Letters to my friends.
In 1999, regional coordination bodies of Humanist Parties were formed in South America
and Europe
. The regional bodies of Africa
and Asia
are expected to be formed in 2006.
In addition to the Humanist Party, the Community for Human Development later recommended also the formation of a party based on a New Humanist approach to Ecology
. The subsequent formation of a party called The Greens, caused much confusion in Europe where both The Greens and The Green Party were sometimes fighting elections against one another. This led to a great deal of bad feeling from the Green Party (see the section below on conflict with other organisations). Eventually, the Environmental policies of the Greens were incorporated within the Humanist Party which resulted in their merger.
The official documents of the Humanist Party can be found in the Book of the Humanist International.
In 2009, the word "International" was appended to the beginning of the Party's name.
, Barcelona
and Marseille
as a response to the increasingly difficult situation faced by newly arrived immigrants to Europe.
The objectives of the Centre of Cultures are:
By the year 2000 this organisation was recognised as the third official organism of the Humanist Movement and had opened new centres in New York
, Madrid
, Bombay, Zurich
, Paris
, Brussels
, Berlin
, São Paulo
, Buenos Aires
and Santiago de Chile.
The work of the Centre of Cultures brought the Humanist Movement into contact with people from countries in Africa and Asia where it had previously had little presence and this led to a massive explosion in its membership in those areas starting in the late 90s.
In 2009 the organisation underwent a rebranding exercise and changed its name to Convergence of Cultures.
The first part details the authors search and subsequent discovery of meaning in life. It describes meditation exercises called the experience of peace and the experience of force and describes a strategy in life for avoiding pain and suffering called the principles of valid action.
The second part deals more with psychological
issues and the interpersonal issues that an individual faces during their life. Themes such as; faith
, provisional meanings, giving and receiving, contradiction and unity are dealt with. In addition the theme of the Internal Guide, an inspirational image that an individual can configure and use, is introduced.
The final part deals more with the external conditions in society, covering such aspects as; law
, the state
, religion
, education etc.
". It contains a number of different techniques that can be done in groups and in pairs. The different sections deal with; Relaxation and working with mental images, the scheme of the different centres of response (the intellectual, emotional, motor, vegetative and sexual centres) and exercises for the first three centres called "psycho-physical gymnastics" and two further sections called "Catharsis" and "Transference" which are together known as "operative".
The work of Catharsis and Transference takes the participants deep into an area of what can be referred to as Siloist Psychology and a concept known as the "Space of Representation", what has been referred to by others as the "mind's eye
", or what one is able to intentionally imagine when one closes one's eyes, when one daydream
s or when one dream
s during sleep
.
The exercises are designed to help the participants: reconcile with their past experiences, find strength in their current situation and develop a positive and joyful image of the future. According to the explanations one carries one's bad experiences around in the consciousness and from there they act in the present and affect the future. By seeking out the bad experiences and painful memories and working on them using the techniques of catharsis and transference, mental energy can be released and one can live one's life more intentionally and less restricted by one's past experiences. The whole body of the work is meant to be done in such a way that there are no roles of "therapist
" or "patient", all parties take all the roles to establish an equitable relationship that can engender trust
and a deep entering into the themes.
, real vs formal Democracy
, the emergence of a Humanist sensibility
in the world, anti-humanist characteristics and Humanist Action Fronts.
Some of the other chapters deal with such themes as; personal coherence and solidarity; the nature
of human beings; social revolution; the armed forces
and Human Rights
.
The book starts with the first public explanation of New Humanism in a speech called The Healing of Suffering. It continues with a section that contains many explanations about themes such as: meaning in life, perception, voluntarism, the nature of human existence and religiosity.
The second part is a series of book presentations given during the publication of some of his previous works.
The third part is a series of talks given on such themes as: Humanism and the New World, Humanism and the Crisis of Civilization, What do we understand by Universal Humanism and the Theme of God.
, also known as Silo, was born in 1938 and lives in Mendoza
, Argentina
. As the author of many books, he received an honorary doctorate from the National Academy of Sciences
of Russia
in October 1993.
In 2001, in the Annual Ordinary Meeting of the Assembly of General Coordinators, the highest level of interchange for those involved in the organisational structure, in Madrid
, Spain
, Silo announced his retirement
from the affairs of the Humanist Movement, leaving all further development in the hands of this collegiate body that he himself had created.
Since that time, Silo has started a new project, known as Silo's Message. This project is a spiritual development based on some of the earliest forms of meditation exercises developed by Silo in the 1960s called the work with the force.
During the 1960s in Argentina, as the initial groups were forming with the name "Young Power", there was conflict with the Catholic Church. Humanist organisations, clearly opposed to the military regime in Argentina, came under attack from the government. People were arrested and jailed, two were killed and an attempt was made to shoot Silo.
A research by Professor Barr-Melej from the University of Ohio http://www.active-nonviolence.org/HAHR_11_2006_Patrick.pdf contains some information about the early conflicts.
Later on, with the advent of the Humanist variant of the Green Party, humanists were exposed to a lot of opposition in Italy, Spain, the USA, the UK and Germany. Some people in the Green movement
interpreted the Humanist Movement as being opposed to environmentalism
, considering that humanity, not nature, should be the focus of attention. The response from the Humanist Movement was that environmental exploitation happens because society is following values (such as money, economic growth, etc.) that are contrary to the human being. The argument continued by pointing out that if we were to truly act on human values, there would be no need for a conflict with any living things.
In the UK and USA there has been confusion between the Humanist Movement and organisations such as the British Humanist Association
and the American Humanist Association
who promote secular humanism
.
Some disaffected former members have also complained that the Humanist Movement is a cult
, though some ex-members object http://www.corliss-lamont.org/hsmny/siloists.htm to this label, considering this merely an attempt to discredit the organization.
Nonviolence
Nonviolence has two meanings. It can refer, first, to a general philosophy of abstention from violence because of moral or religious principle It can refer to the behaviour of people using nonviolent action Nonviolence has two (closely related) meanings. (1) It can refer, first, to a general...
and non-discrimination. It is not an institution. It takes its inspiration from the current of thought referred to as New or Universal Humanism that has been developed since 1969 by its founder Mario Rodríguez Cobos
Mario Rodríguez Cobos
Silo —pseudonym of Mario Luis Rodríguez Cobos — was an Argentine writer and founder of the Humanist Movement....
, pen name: Silo.
New Humanism focuses on the overcoming of pain and suffering at a personal, interpersonal and social level. It defines violence as anything that causes pain and suffering to human beings. In this way violence is seen to have many different aspects, not just the well-known physical form but also; economic, religious, psychological, sexual, ethnic, etc.
Introduction and basic philosophy
New Humanism is based on two basic points:- Solidarity – defined as treating other people the way one would like to be treated and,
- Coherence – defined as thinking, feeling and acting in the same way.
The project of the Humanist Movement is to eradicate war, hunger, poverty and economic exploitation across the planet and develop a new system based on the value of human life as the central value, higher than money, power, prestige, etc. This vision of the future is called the Universal Human Nation. The methodology used is to work in groups and undertake personal development activities as well as social projects. Once sufficiently experienced, new groups develop according to their interests.
New Humanists share the following Humanist Attitude:
- Placing the human being as the central value and concern, in such a way that nothing is above the human being and no human being is above another.
- Affirming the equality of all human beings.
- Recognizing personal and cultural diversity, affirming the characteristics proper to each human group and condemning discrimination, whether motivated by economic, racial, ethnic, or cultural differences.
- Developing knowledge beyond the limitations imposed by prejudices accepted as absolute and immutable truths.
- Affirming the freedom of ideas and beliefs.
- Repudiating violence in all its forms.
History
Near the end of the 60s, Silo organized a group to study the personal and social crisisCrisis
A crisis is any event that is, or expected to lead to, an unstable and dangerous situation affecting an individual, group, community or whole society...
occurring in the world. This group, and others like it, organized around his writings, grew and developed into what started life as The School and after many iterations later became known as the Humanist Movement.
The Humanist Movement is often said to have been started May 4, 1969, with the talk "The Healing of Suffering" by Silo at Punta de Vacas
Punta de Vacas
Punta De Vacas, meaning "cows point", is a hamlet in Mendoza Province, Argentina between Mendoza and Puente del Inca, not far from the border with Chile. The city was once served by the now disused Transandine Railway which ran from Mendoza in Argentina to Los Andes in Chile.From there, the...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. Because of the military dictatorship
Military dictatorship
A military dictatorship is a form of government where in the political power resides with the military. It is similar but not identical to a stratocracy, a state ruled directly by the military....
in place at that time, this talk was permitted on the condition that it would be held high in the Andes Mountains
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
, far from the nearest town.
These initial groups faced repression and disinformation campaigns as they grew and spread throughout Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
. This growth was reinforced when some of the members, freely or as political exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
s, took up residence in various countries in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
.
In 1975 one hundred members from different countries met in Corfu
Corfu
Corfu is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the edge of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The island is part of the Corfu regional unit, and is administered as a single municipality. The...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, to agree on proposals, objectives and a rudimentary organisation that would be tested over the next four years.
By 1980 the Movement was functioning in forty two countries. In 1981 The Community for Human Development organised a lecture tour around Europe and Asia. The Look Within, The Internal Landscape and the Book of the Community started being published and translated into many languages.
In 1983 the Movement was articulated into Councils (see Organisation) and a way of working was defined in a material called the Norms. In 1984 the Humanist Party was founded, followed by The Greens.
After the launch of the Humanist International
Humanist International
The Humanist International is a consortium of Humanist political parties, founded in Florence, Italy, on January 4, 1989, by the approval of foundational documents and statutes by over 40 Humanist Parties from around the world...
in 1989, the strategy turned once more to the development of the Humanist Movement in a more general form and its organisation structure. A stage of putting down roots in communities, with the opening of Centres of Communication and the publication of hundreds of neighbourhood newspapers around the world was started.
In 1993 the Document of the Humanist Movement was published. The first Humanist Forum was held in Moscow, Russia, and The World Center of Humanist Studies was founded.
By 1995 the direction of the Humanist Movement went towards a phase of massive growth with the opening up of 10s of new countries across Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
. This mostly was made possible through the launching of the Centre of Cultures. In addition, from Spain the action front called World without Wars was legalised that later went on to become an official organisation of the Humanist Movement.
By 2006, the first Parks of Study and Reflection are launched around the world.
In 2009, the organisational structure articulated in 1983 was dissolved by Silo leaving behind 5 official organisations to represent the Humanist Movement's interests in various fields of human endeavour.
On the 2nd of October 2009, until the 2nd of January 2010, the World March for Peace and Nonviolence
World March for Peace and Nonviolence
The World March for Peace and Nonviolence is an initiative of World without Wars, an international organization which has worked for peace and nonviolence since 1995 and was created by the Humanist Movement....
went around the world from New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
to Argentina calling for the eradication of Nuclear Weapons, the withdrawal of invading troops from foreign territories, the signing of peace treaties between countries in dispute, progressive and proportional conventional weapons disarmament and the implementation of articles in national constitutions to renounce the use of war as a means to resolve conflicts, such as Article 9 of the Japanese constitution. The World March was the initiative of the Humanist organisation, World without Wars and without Violence and was promoted around the world by Humanist and other organisations.
Organisation
The organizational form of the Humanist Movement is constantly changing. Currently the movement is in a process of transformation of its organizational form and the form that was applied until now, is no longer valid. At the moment the Humanist Movement consists simply of all those who adhere to the Document of the Humanist Movement (1993) and there are no formal positions in the organization - rather all participants are simply colleagues.Organisms
The Humanist Movement has launched official organisations, internally referred to as organisms, in political, social and cultural fields, according to the legal requirements in the country where the Humanist Movement is being developed. The strategy of the Humanist Movement is to launch the following five organisms in every country in the world where it is possible to do so.- The Community for Human Development
- The International Humanist PartyHumanist PartyThe Humanist Party was launched on 8 March 1984 by the Department of Social Affairs of the Community for Human Development. Around the world many Humanist Parties started to emerge and on January 4, 1989, in Florence, Italy, the first congress of the Humanist International was held.In this event,...
- Convergence of Cultures
- The World Centre of Humanist Studies
- World without Wars and without Violence
The Community for Human Development
World
World is a common name for the whole of human civilization, specifically human experience, history, or the human condition in general, worldwide, i.e. anywhere on Earth....
.
The Community has the following objectives:
- To create the conditions for human beings to be freeFree will"To make my own decisions whether I am successful or not due to uncontrollable forces" -Troy MorrisonA pragmatic definition of free willFree will is the ability of agents to make choices free from certain kinds of constraints. The existence of free will and its exact nature and definition have long...
, nonviolent and to live in solidaritySolidarity (sociology)Solidarity is the integration, and degree and type of integration, shown by a society or group with people and their neighbors. It refers to the ties in a society - social relations - that bind people to one another. The term is generally employed in sociology and the other social sciences.What...
with others, to give direction and meaning to their lives; for individuals to work for their own destiny and for the social struggle for conditions in educationEducationEducation in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, healthHealthHealth is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
and quality of lifeQuality of lifeThe term quality of life is used to evaluate the general well-being of individuals and societies. The term is used in a wide range of contexts, including the fields of international development, healthcare, and politics. Quality of life should not be confused with the concept of standard of...
that allow every person to evolve without obstacles. - To build a new moral force that serves as a social and personal reference.
The Community works in society in the areas of education, health, culture
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
, and quality of life. In each of these areas it denounces all that which hinders the development of the human being and develops actions that favour it.
The key characteristics of the work of The Community are:
- VoluntarismVoluntarismVoluntarism is a descriptive term for a school of thought that regards the will as superior to the intellect and to emotion. This description has been applied to various points of view, from different cultural eras, in the areas of metaphysics, psychology, sociology, and theology.The term...
- disinterested giving allows the truly human dimension to appear. - Direct communicationCommunicationCommunication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
- allows isolationSolitudeSolitude is a state of seclusion or isolation, i.e., lack of contact with people. It may stem from bad relationships, deliberate choice, infectious disease, mental disorders, neurological disorders or circumstances of employment or situation .Short-term solitude is often valued as a time when one...
to be overcome and a daily personal engagement in the name of ones values and aspirations. - Active nonviolence, as a methodologyMethodologyMethodology is generally a guideline for solving a problem, with specificcomponents such as phases, tasks, methods, techniques and tools . It can be defined also as follows:...
and as an internal and external attitude that favours lifeLifeLife is a characteristic that distinguishes objects that have signaling and self-sustaining processes from those that do not, either because such functions have ceased , or else because they lack such functions and are classified as inanimate...
The official documents of the Community can be found in the Book of the Community.
The International Humanist Party
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, the first congress of the Humanist International
Humanist International
The Humanist International is a consortium of Humanist political parties, founded in Florence, Italy, on January 4, 1989, by the approval of foundational documents and statutes by over 40 Humanist Parties from around the world...
was held.
In this event, the foundational documents were adopted, including the Declaration of Principles, The Thesis, Foundations for political action and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a declaration adopted by the United Nations General Assembly . The Declaration arose directly from the experience of the Second World War and represents the first global expression of rights to which all human beings are inherently entitled...
.
In December 1990, in Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, Laura Rodríguez
Laura Rodríguez
Laura Fiora Rodríguez Riccomini was a Chilean political activist from the Humanist Party. In 1989 she became the world's first Humanist to win a seat in parliament, after claiming victory as part of the Concertación coalition....
became the first elected representative of any Humanist Party in the world after winning a seat as part of the Concertación
Coalition of Parties for Democracy
The Concert of Parties for Democracy , more often known as the Concertación, is a coalition of center-left political parties in Chile, founded in 1988...
coalition, after Augusto Pinochet
Augusto Pinochet
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte, more commonly known as Augusto Pinochet , was a Chilean army general and dictator who assumed power in a coup d'état on 11 September 1973...
handed over power.
In October 1993, the second congress of the Humanist International
Humanist International
The Humanist International is a consortium of Humanist political parties, founded in Florence, Italy, on January 4, 1989, by the approval of foundational documents and statutes by over 40 Humanist Parties from around the world...
was held in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, whereupon the Document of the Humanist Movement was also incorporated as a foundational document. This document had previously been circulating as chapter six of the Book Letters to my friends.
In 1999, regional coordination bodies of Humanist Parties were formed in South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. The regional bodies of Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
are expected to be formed in 2006.
In addition to the Humanist Party, the Community for Human Development later recommended also the formation of a party based on a New Humanist approach to Ecology
Ecology
Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...
. The subsequent formation of a party called The Greens, caused much confusion in Europe where both The Greens and The Green Party were sometimes fighting elections against one another. This led to a great deal of bad feeling from the Green Party (see the section below on conflict with other organisations). Eventually, the Environmental policies of the Greens were incorporated within the Humanist Party which resulted in their merger.
The official documents of the Humanist Party can be found in the Book of the Humanist International.
In 2009, the word "International" was appended to the beginning of the Party's name.
Convergence of Cultures
The Centre of Cultures was started in 1995 from MilanMilan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
and Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
as a response to the increasingly difficult situation faced by newly arrived immigrants to Europe.
The objectives of the Centre of Cultures are:
- To rescue the humanist ideas, beliefs and attitudes in every culture.
- To promote dialogue so that cultures may recognize their own value and through this can recognize the value of the others.
- To promote the deepening in comprehension of people’s own cultures for a better understanding of their roots and an intentional strengthening of their best aspects.
- To promote the questioning of abuses of power as well as the values upon which the present system sustains itself. Helping to appropriately address cultural conflicts.
- To disseminate the ideas of universal humanism as the basis for the construction of a new universal human culture.
- To deepen the concept of active nonviolence as a methodology of action
By the year 2000 this organisation was recognised as the third official organism of the Humanist Movement and had opened new centres in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Bombay, Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
, Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
and Santiago de Chile.
The work of the Centre of Cultures brought the Humanist Movement into contact with people from countries in Africa and Asia where it had previously had little presence and this led to a massive explosion in its membership in those areas starting in the late 90s.
In 2009 the organisation underwent a rebranding exercise and changed its name to Convergence of Cultures.
Action fronts
Action fronts of many themes are developed by humanists around the world. They do not necessarily fall under the umbrella of any of the specific organisms. For more information consult the list of websites referred to at the bottom of this page.- Humanists for Health
- International Federation of Human Support (FIAH)
- International network for Humanist Education
- Education for nonviolence
Humanise the earth (Humanizar la tierra) by Silo
A three-part work comprising The inner look, The internal landscape and The external landscape. Each part deals with a different aspect of human existence.The first part details the authors search and subsequent discovery of meaning in life. It describes meditation exercises called the experience of peace and the experience of force and describes a strategy in life for avoiding pain and suffering called the principles of valid action.
The second part deals more with psychological
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
issues and the interpersonal issues that an individual faces during their life. Themes such as; faith
Faith
Faith is confidence or trust in a person or thing, or a belief that is not based on proof. In religion, faith is a belief in a transcendent reality, a religious teacher, a set of teachings or a Supreme Being. Generally speaking, it is offered as a means by which the truth of the proposition,...
, provisional meanings, giving and receiving, contradiction and unity are dealt with. In addition the theme of the Internal Guide, an inspirational image that an individual can configure and use, is introduced.
The final part deals more with the external conditions in society, covering such aspects as; law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
, the state
State (polity)
A state is an organized political community, living under a government. States may be sovereign and may enjoy a monopoly on the legal initiation of force and are not dependent on, or subject to any other power or state. Many states are federated states which participate in a federal union...
, religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, education etc.
Self-liberation (Auto-liberación) by Luís Ammann
Self-liberation is a book that can best be categorised as "Personal developmentPersonal development
Personal development includes activities that improve awareness and identity, develop talents and potential, build human capital and facilitates employability, enhance quality of life and contribute to the realization of dreams and aspirations...
". It contains a number of different techniques that can be done in groups and in pairs. The different sections deal with; Relaxation and working with mental images, the scheme of the different centres of response (the intellectual, emotional, motor, vegetative and sexual centres) and exercises for the first three centres called "psycho-physical gymnastics" and two further sections called "Catharsis" and "Transference" which are together known as "operative".
The work of Catharsis and Transference takes the participants deep into an area of what can be referred to as Siloist Psychology and a concept known as the "Space of Representation", what has been referred to by others as the "mind's eye
Mind's eye
The phrase "mind's eye" refers to the human ability for visualization, i.e., for the experiencing of visual mental imagery; in other words, one's ability to "see" things with the mind.- Physical basis :...
", or what one is able to intentionally imagine when one closes one's eyes, when one daydream
Daydream
A daydream is a visionary fantasy, especially one of happy, pleasant thoughts, hopes or ambitions, imagined as coming to pass, and experienced while awake. There are many types of daydreams, and there is no consistent definition amongst psychologists. The general public also uses the term for a...
s or when one dream
Dream
Dreams are successions of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, philosophical intrigue and religious...
s during sleep
Sleep
Sleep is a naturally recurring state characterized by reduced or absent consciousness, relatively suspended sensory activity, and inactivity of nearly all voluntary muscles. It is distinguished from quiet wakefulness by a decreased ability to react to stimuli, and is more easily reversible than...
.
The exercises are designed to help the participants: reconcile with their past experiences, find strength in their current situation and develop a positive and joyful image of the future. According to the explanations one carries one's bad experiences around in the consciousness and from there they act in the present and affect the future. By seeking out the bad experiences and painful memories and working on them using the techniques of catharsis and transference, mental energy can be released and one can live one's life more intentionally and less restricted by one's past experiences. The whole body of the work is meant to be done in such a way that there are no roles of "therapist
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...
" or "patient", all parties take all the roles to establish an equitable relationship that can engender trust
Trust (sociology)
In a social context, trust has several connotations. Definitions of trust typically refer to a situation characterised by the following aspects: One party is willing to rely on the actions of another party ; the situation is directed to the future. In addition, the trustor abandons control over...
and a deep entering into the themes.
Letters to my friends (Cartas a mis amigos) by Silo
Letters to my Friends: On Social and Personal Crisis in Today's World is a book that outlines the scope of the crisis in which societies and individuals are immersed according to the point of view of the author. It is put together as a series of ten letters that were written between 1990 and 1994. The sixth letter, which is better known as either the Statement or Document of the Humanist Movement and has been taken as one of the Foundational documents of the Humanist International, contains a general point of view about; Global CapitalCapital (economics)
In economics, capital, capital goods, or real capital refers to already-produced durable goods used in production of goods or services. The capital goods are not significantly consumed, though they may depreciate in the production process...
, real vs formal Democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
, the emergence of a Humanist sensibility
Sensibility
Sensibility refers to an acute perception of or responsiveness toward something, such as the emotions of another. This concept emerged in eighteenth-century Britain, and was closely associated with studies of sense perception as the means through which knowledge is gathered...
in the world, anti-humanist characteristics and Humanist Action Fronts.
Some of the other chapters deal with such themes as; personal coherence and solidarity; the nature
Nature
Nature, in the broadest sense, is equivalent to the natural world, physical world, or material world. "Nature" refers to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general...
of human beings; social revolution; the armed forces
Armed forces
The armed forces of a country are its government-sponsored defense, fighting forces, and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and domestic policies of their governing body, and to defend that body and the nation it represents from external aggressors. In some countries paramilitary...
and Human Rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
.
Silo Speaks (Habla Silo) by Silo
Silo Speaks is an anthology of opinions, commentaries and speeches given by Silo between 1969 and 1995.The book starts with the first public explanation of New Humanism in a speech called The Healing of Suffering. It continues with a section that contains many explanations about themes such as: meaning in life, perception, voluntarism, the nature of human existence and religiosity.
The second part is a series of book presentations given during the publication of some of his previous works.
The third part is a series of talks given on such themes as: Humanism and the New World, Humanism and the Crisis of Civilization, What do we understand by Universal Humanism and the Theme of God.
Others
- Morphology (Morfologia) by Jose Caballero
- Guided Experiencias (Experiencias Guiadas) by Silo
- Contributions to Thought (Contribuciones al pensamiento) by Silo
- Universal Root Myths (Mitos raices universales) by Silo
- The Day of the Winged Lion (El dia del leon alado) by Silo
- On Being Human by Salvatore Puledda
- Complete Works Volume 1 by Silo
- Complete Works Volume 2 by Silo
- A Contemporary Humanist by Salvatore Puledda, his collected works compiled together upon his death
- The End of Pre-history by Tomas Hirsch
Founder
Mario Rodríguez CobosMario Rodríguez Cobos
Silo —pseudonym of Mario Luis Rodríguez Cobos — was an Argentine writer and founder of the Humanist Movement....
, also known as Silo, was born in 1938 and lives in Mendoza
Mendoza, Argentina
Mendoza is the capital city of Mendoza Province, in Argentina. It is located in the northern-central part of the province, in a region of foothills and high plains, on the eastern side of the Andes. As of the , Mendoza's population was 110,993...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. As the author of many books, he received an honorary doctorate from the National Academy of Sciences
Russian Academy of Sciences
The Russian Academy of Sciences consists of the national academy of Russia and a network of scientific research institutes from across the Russian Federation as well as auxiliary scientific and social units like libraries, publishers and hospitals....
of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
in October 1993.
In 2001, in the Annual Ordinary Meeting of the Assembly of General Coordinators, the highest level of interchange for those involved in the organisational structure, in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Silo announced his retirement
Retirement
Retirement is the point where a person stops employment completely. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours.Many people choose to retire when they are eligible for private or public pension benefits, although some are forced to retire when physical conditions don't allow the person to...
from the affairs of the Humanist Movement, leaving all further development in the hands of this collegiate body that he himself had created.
Since that time, Silo has started a new project, known as Silo's Message. This project is a spiritual development based on some of the earliest forms of meditation exercises developed by Silo in the 1960s called the work with the force.
Conflict with other organisations
The history of the Humanist Movement has not been without its conflict with other organisations and individuals.During the 1960s in Argentina, as the initial groups were forming with the name "Young Power", there was conflict with the Catholic Church. Humanist organisations, clearly opposed to the military regime in Argentina, came under attack from the government. People were arrested and jailed, two were killed and an attempt was made to shoot Silo.
A research by Professor Barr-Melej from the University of Ohio http://www.active-nonviolence.org/HAHR_11_2006_Patrick.pdf contains some information about the early conflicts.
Later on, with the advent of the Humanist variant of the Green Party, humanists were exposed to a lot of opposition in Italy, Spain, the USA, the UK and Germany. Some people in the Green movement
Green Movement
The Green Movement refers to a series of actions after the 2009 Iranian presidential election, in which protesters demanded the removal of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from office...
interpreted the Humanist Movement as being opposed to environmentalism
Environmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
, considering that humanity, not nature, should be the focus of attention. The response from the Humanist Movement was that environmental exploitation happens because society is following values (such as money, economic growth, etc.) that are contrary to the human being. The argument continued by pointing out that if we were to truly act on human values, there would be no need for a conflict with any living things.
In the UK and USA there has been confusion between the Humanist Movement and organisations such as the British Humanist Association
British Humanist Association
The British Humanist Association is an organisation of the United Kingdom which promotes Humanism and represents "people who seek to live good lives without religious or superstitious beliefs." The BHA is committed to secularism, human rights, democracy, egalitarianism and mutual respect...
and the American Humanist Association
American Humanist Association
The American Humanist Association is an educational organization in the United States that advances Humanism. "Humanism is a progressive philosophy of life that, without theism and other supernatural beliefs, affirms our ability and responsibility to lead ethical lives of personal fulfillment that...
who promote secular humanism
Secular humanism
Secular Humanism, alternatively known as Humanism , is a secular philosophy that embraces human reason, ethics, justice, and the search for human fulfillment...
.
Some disaffected former members have also complained that the Humanist Movement is a cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
, though some ex-members object http://www.corliss-lamont.org/hsmny/siloists.htm to this label, considering this merely an attempt to discredit the organization.
Sites about Humanist themes by humanist activists
- Humanistmovement.net
- The International Humanist Party
- The Community for Human Development
- The World Centre for Humanist Studies
- Convergence of Cultures (Spanish page)
- World without Wars and without Violence
- silo.net
Sites by those opposed to the Humanist Movement and its actions
- "The other humanists" - a secular humanist article critical of the Humanist Movement
- Humanoidex
- Secta-Humanista
- NoSilo! -- "dedicated to exposing and denouncing Silo's 'Humanist Movement' cult"