Society for Humanistic Mormonism

The 13 Articles of Reason of Humanistic Mormonism



Published by

 

The Society for Humanistic Mormonism

2013



1.      We believe in Science, Reason, Philosophy, Compassion, and Love in guiding our lives.  We believe in honoring the Covenant of Reason which is we commit to following the Dictates of Reason and Science in our daily actions with others and ourselves.

 

2.      We believe that human beings are only responsible for things within their power to control and not for things outside their power to control and that human beings should not concern themselves with things that are outside their power to control but only with things within their power to control.  We believe in reasoned non-attachment and cheerful acceptance of things that happen to us whether they are good or bad in life.  

 

We believe that happiness consists of only insisting on what life gives us and nothing more.  We believe that desires are inexhaustible, and that we should seek to end them by being happy with what we currently have in this present moment.  We believe we ought to let go cheerfully of everything we fear to lose and appreciate everything we currently have and learn to let go of things outside our control that we will lose or have lost.  We seek to rejoice in whatever conditions we find ourselves in.  

 

We believe we can find meaning in times of suffering in life and that we can transcend and overcome our suffering through meditation and learning to have compassion and love with ourselves and others.  We also believe that non-attachment does not mean we cannot take time to appreciate being in nature, being with friends or loved ones, and enjoying the fruits of science and technology which can increase our overall well-being and happiness.  

 

We believe that non-attachment means the ability to cease making demands from life outside our control and the ability to resist the urge or desire to cling to people, or things, or ideas, so strongly that we lose our ability to have compassion, love, tranquility, emotional balance, peace, or rationality.  We understand that all things including ourselves and the universe are in constant flux and we accept that flux---rather than demanding that certain things be not so----when they are so. Rather we strive to remain rational, non-attached, and calm.    

             

3.      We believe that through our own human efforts and technology, all of humanity may be saved, by adherence to the natural laws and discoveries of Science and that we have a special calling and ethical duty to care for the poor, the sick, and those left behind in general in society; and proclaim this ethical duty as the very foundation of true humanism.  We believe in following the latest advances in medical science in following healthy lifestyles in getting regular physical exercise, having a well-balanced diet, getting enough sleep, and practicing daily meditation practices.  We believe that as social animals that relationships with friends, family members, and other human beings, are valuable for emotional and physical well-being.  We believe that human relationships work best when guided by compassion, love, and reason in our daily lives.     

 

4. We believe that the first principles of the Gospel of Reason include: First, to identify to the best of our ability objective truth and reality through reason and science; Second, to base our beliefs on the evidence and data we gather; Third, to follow and act according to the evidence we gather, and Fourth, to constantly dispute our current beliefs to see if they are true or rational or not.  We believe in accordance with reason and the current evidence it may be necessary to change what we believe from time to time. 

 

5. We believe that governments that allow the people to democratically elect their representatives through proper democratic channels such as voting---without regard to one’s sexual orientation, gender, race, or economic background, or other characteristics, helps a society to flourish and enhances the freedom of all people to choose their own destiny.



6. We believe that all general officers and members of the Society have an obligation to learn as much philosophy and science as they can attain in this life; and to put into practice what is learned that can both benefit themselves and all of humanity.



7. We believe that the Science of the future will be able to: conquer death; the aging process, bring back alive those who have already died; cure all diseases; end physical and emotional suffering; and enhance our empathy, compassion, love, intelligence, rationality, physical well-being, morality, and ethics.  We believe and wish to bring about the day when Science and technology will advance human beings into beings capable of experiencing and doing much more than what human beings can do at present.  We work towards the day when all humans will have a chance to continue to be perfected with the traits of empathy, compassion, love, wisdom, rationality, and intelligence.    

 

We believe in Arthur C. Clarke's Third Law that: "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic [in our minds at present]."  We claim that what human beings currently view as impossible or science fiction now is likely to occur through advances in Science and technology in the future.  

 

We manifest Reasoned Optimism as our guide for the future of humanity and reject the pessimistic view of the inevitability of the death of the universe or the death of all living things on the planet including ourselves.  We also accept if a pessimistic fate awaits humanity and this universe that we will continue to strive until the end of our lives and fight on in glory for our survival and progress as human beings regardless of the final outcome of the game.  We believe that this reasoned optimism in the end will help to determine the final outcome of the game for humanity.  

 

We claim and believe that ultimately the future advances in Science and technology will prevent the future destruction of the universe, the planet, and the end of all human life.  Further we encourage space exploration as a means for our continued survival as a species and support all efforts for the colorization of the universe.    

 

8. We support and advance green and sustainable living practices for the environment such as tiny house living, using solar energy and/or other sustainable energy sources, organic farming, and other forms of sustainable living.  We believe that eating local and seasonable foods, organic gardening, food preservation and storage, reducing meat consumption, drinking clean water, keeping our environment clean, and following other green sustainable living practices, helps humans and all life on the planet to flourish.  Thus as Humanitic Mormons we feel a moral and religious responsibility and duty to do our part to help achieve these green living goals.  We aim to create Humanistic Mormon religious communities across the globe that achieve these various green living goals, and invite those who are not part of our religious community to join us in living out a more green and sustainable lifestyle based on compassion, reason, and love for all living things.  We honor and respect the interdepednent web of all existence of which we are a part.  



9. We believe all that Science has revealed, all that Science does now reveal, and we believe that Science will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to humanity; and all things that have existed, do exist, and will exist in the future.  We further believe that Science is the best tool we have to understand the world and that by using Science and Reason we can discover all things.  We also believe that all religious traditions have truths that we should collect and universalize in addition to the truths we find in humanism through Reason and Science.  

 

If there is anything taught in any religion or philosophy that is either good, noble, helps society, or is scientifically valid we seek after these things and try to follow them.  We claim that no one people or group have a monopoly on the truth and so we accept truth no matter what source it may come from and add it to our beliefs. We also believe that to be Enlightened means to dare to think for ourselves without being told what to believe or think.  

 

We believe that our beliefs should be formed on the basis of logic, love, reason, compassion, good will, empiricism and not on authority, tradition, pre-conceived biases or pre-conceived emotions, or other dogmas.  We believe that we must personally verify for ourselves and weigh the evidence for every belief we have, whether in religion, science, or philosophy.  We believe to doubt and to remain uncertain until all the evidence is in to be noble, brave, and rational.  We believe in the words of William Kingdon Clifford who taught that, "It is wrong always, everywhere, and for anyone, to believe anything upon insufficient evidence."  



10. We hope for and work towards a democratic world state and believe that the world will in time move forward in this direction.  We work for a peaceful and democratic world with international laws and universal human rights of all people protected.  We believe rights should also be extended to any future artificial intelligences and the current care and protection of animals and their enhancement should be provided for.  We believe the earth, the environment, and the universe itself must be provided for, protected, and enhanced.

 

11. We claim the privilege of disbelief or belief in supernatural deities according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all humans the same privilege, let humans worship or not, how, where, or what they choose; as long as they harm no one else.  We may be ignostic, agnostic, atheist, pandeist, deist, theist, etc., with regard to the existence of deities but whatever we may choose to believe in requires proof and evidence; so that all our beliefs can be labeled as "working hypotheses" subject to change based on the available evidence we encounter or discover through Reason and Science.  

 

We do not demand belief or disbelief in gods, we ask people to think for themselves and come to their own reasoned conclusions.  We claim that---no dogma---secular or religious or political, etc., should stop one from the constant search for the objective truth and the discovery or rediscovery of personal meaning in one's life.  We believe that the greatest wisdom that we can know as human beings is to realize with Socrates the great truth:  "I know one thing: that I know nothing."  

 

We have no creeds or dogmas other than a commitment to reason, science, compassion, love, freedom of inquiry, freedom of thought, and following the evidence wherever it may lead.  We are also supportive of those who may think or believe differently than ourselves.  We desire diversity of thought so that we can constantly reflect on our own beliefs and change them if and when we feel it appropriate with due respect to others who may believe differently than we do.  We are all on this human journey together with reason, compassion, and love as our guides we mean to include rather than exclude others that may be different than we are.  

 

We follow the wisdom of Aristotle in allowing diversity, compassion, and love, within and outside ourselves:  "It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it [and] educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all."  We believe in following the principle of freedom of thought as stated by the philosopher John Stuart Mill: “We can never be sure that the opinion we are endeavoring to stifle is a false opinion; and if we were sure, stifling it would be an evil still.”   

 

12. We believe in being subject to laws and governments that uphold the fundamental human rights contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; and believe these universal rights will in time be added to as humanity progresses morally, emotionally, intellectually, and politically.



13. We believe in the power of Manifestation through various forms of Meditation and various forms of Prayer (from a variety of religious and secular sources) using Science as the language to explain the universal and objective truth of our reality.  We believe that through our Focused Thought, our Clear Intention, and combined with a focus on our Elevated Postive Emotions such as: gratitude, joy, love, trust, inspiration, peace, selflessness, wholeness, knowingness, presence, and empowerment, etc., we can change the world both on the individual level but also on the collective level for the good.  We believe that as Humanstic Mormons we must affirm the postive energy of Love Consciousness, found in the universe, and we must try to connect emotionally and intellectually with that Source in our various individual and collective meditations, prayers, affirmations, visualizations, and mental imagery, etc.  Science, has shown as pointed out by Dr. Joe Dispenza, and others, that the energy in an area of many humans who meditate together can increase the postive energy of everyone individually and collectively in the group. 

 

As Humanistic Mormons, who wish to follow the Science of Wholeness, and the Science of Meditation, we therefore believe: we must meet with each other and focus on that postive energy found in the quantum field that can produce feelings of wholeness and trancendence, which can enhance and create mystical experiences.  We believe that in addition to creating various meditative and trance states of mind we will also be able to use the placebo effect at will to better support our various visualizations, meditations, affirmations, prayers, intentions, thoughts, and manifestations.  We believe that these practices can produce mystical experiences, blissful feelings of transcendence, which can enhance and potentially develop our innate psychic and extrasensory abilities and produce a variety of interdimensional experiences.  We believe that science is the search for truth and therefore all claims made within the field of parapsychology or paranormal research or any other field of human knowledge should be tested using the best scientific data available and we ought to be open to all possibilities of what we find.  We believe we must be open to all scientific discoveries even if those discoveries do not fit our current paradigm or current understanding of reality. 

 

We believe it is up to the individual Humanistic Mormon to decide for themselves what they believe regarding these matters and this religion will support them in their beliefs based on the evidence they believe to be true and will not dictate what individual Humanistic Mormons must believe or disbelief on these matters. 

 

We believe and declare Humanistic Mormonism to be not merely a rational system of religious belief and philosophy (it surely is that) but also a mystical spiritual path that helps its members and those who practice its teachings to realize self-realization in the form of an authentic Humanistic Mormon Mystical Tradition that unites Reason with Mysticism.

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As Humanistic Mormons we support both secular and religious ways of knowing using the Universal Language of Science as our guide so that we can better communicate to each other about our experiences.  We believe in being open to the entire realm of Quantum Possibilities on the individual and collective level and we use and are open to all Consciousness paradigms found in the latest scienific research to enhance our meditations and create new and inspiring transcendent states of being.  

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We believe the virtues and the way of life that lead to a good life include: reason, wisdom, courage, meditation, mindfulness, love, compassion, humility, justice, peace, forgiveness, moderation, joy, pleasure, happiness, tranquility, and non-attachment over things outside our control and acceptance of things that are and will be.  We seek the alleviation of all suffering for both humans and animals.  We seek to protect the earth’s environment from destruction which we are dependent on for our own survival.  If there is anything leading to our transcendence and human enhancement or happiness we seek after these things. These articles are subject to improvement and change as we learn more light and knowledge from Reason and Science.

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Finally we believe there is enough evidence to suggest that an afterlife is not only possible but likely given the latest research on near death experiences as well as shared death experiences.  We therefore proclaim that the highest value in life is to learn how to LOVE others and by doing so we will follow the Being of Pure Light and Unconditional Love that people of all religions and none often say they see in the afterlife in their near death experience along with past family members.

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