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Defending Secular Humanism

How does one respond to such nonsence from the Prolifers.

The secular humanist view is that each human being is sovereign, answerable only to themselves. Human autonomy and personal freedom are at the peak of the hierarchy of values and are what give humans dignity. Secular humanists think so highly of our species that they believe there is a group of elites capable of deciding whose life is worth living — who should be allowed to live or die. These elites are so smart, if they create the right environment, humans will naturally do the right thing.

The Judeo-Christian world view states that God is sovereign. We are answerable to him, and our life and rights come from him. Every human life is sacred and of utmost value because God made it so. Human dignity has its basis in the sanctity God has given it, irrespective of intelligence, level of education, physical abilities, etc. While humans have this intrinsic dignity, they are also depraved, in need of a redeemer and the rule of law.

Our country’s founding documents and the writings of our founding fathers reveal the Judeo-Christian world view is the one on which this country was built. Our Founding Fathers knew from history and their own personal experience the reality of human depravity and our tendencies that require rule of law. No matter the lofty claims of the large variety of ideologies promoted throughout history, humans have managed to make a mess of them.

Suicide has been illegal in this country from its beginning. Laws against suicide are based on our nation’s founding principle that life comes from God, as the Declaration of Independence asserts. Life and the right to life do not come from government and not from us, but from God. Autonomy and freedom do not include the right to do harm to other humans, including to ourselves

Through the vehicle of government-run media and schools, this culture has shifted to the secular humanist ideology. It is imposed on our population. We need to shift back to our foundational principles. Laws help advance and protect what a society values. Since we need laws and laws inevitably impose morality, it seems prudent to promote laws that are based on uncompromised reverence for the dignity and worth of each human person no matter what their physical state. Laws and judicial opinions that support physician-assisted suicide devalue human life and need to be emphatically opposed.

Annie Bukacek is a physician in Kalispell and president of Montana ProLife Coalition

Tags: Assisted, Suicide

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Permalink Reply by Pirate Bard on March 8, 2010 at 6:10pm

To add to that, I have spoken to a few people of the Jewish faith who actually say that according to Orthodox Judaism, abortion is NOT murder. They, in fact, believe that a child does not have a soul at all until "god breathes their first breath of life into their nostrils." This is taken as literally meaning their first breath outside the womb. So it really is a case of mis/uninformed "christians using Jews to add quasi-universality, [etc.] ...to their ignorant and bigoted narrative."

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Permalink Reply by eric stone on March 8, 2010 at 4:43pm

It's good to remember when we hear about the lofty ideals of judeo-christian religion that these religions were originally enforced by killing those who believed otherwise. And if you don't think that they are still brutal at heart try leaving one of them. I did.

Eric Stone

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Permalink Reply by eric stone on March 9, 2010 at 2:31am

The old testament is full of yahweh sanctioned genocide and this is still celebrated widely throughout judaism.

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Permalink Reply by eric stone on March 9, 2010 at 6:47pm

I have to disagree with you Paul. I was born and raised a Jew so I think I know what I am talking about. I see my former people as so totally obsessed with defending Judaism against even the slightest criticism that they no longer have a rational view of it and are unable to see its faults such as the celebration of past genocides and vengeful murder. Most Jews throughout the world whether or not they call themselves secular still celebrate the slaughter of innocent Eqyptian babies. How can that be justified? Why is there no protest? Where is the morality and ethics? It's almost as though the religion is infallible to them. And if you leave it as I did you are widely hated just as if you left any other cult.

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Permalink Reply by Charlotte on March 8, 2010 at 5:47pm

I think I threw up a little.

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Permalink Reply by Фелч Гроган on March 8, 2010 at 6:35pm

For a start, you can point out that they support a system of euthenasia (that is not painless) for the poor and unwanted with a health system that is so corrupt and extortionately priced that simple medical treatment is out of their reach and they often die of treatable conditions. The medical system as is can rightly be compared to a protection racket that only the privileged can afford. It's those feelthy secularists that seem to think this is a problem and want to fix it.

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Permalink Reply by Lori Gilliland on March 9, 2010 at 8:49pm

What does Secular Humanism mean to you all? I would like to respond to the Montana ProLife leader in a postivie manner.

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Permalink Reply by Cheryl Wolfe on March 10, 2010 at 12:11am

It means taking full responsibility for our actions and related consequences, because there are no dispensations, there is no magic forgiveness, and blood sacrifice is just sick and wrong.

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Permalink Reply by Lori Gilliland on March 10, 2010 at 3:37pm

Being a card carrying "Humanist" myself, I have learned over the last ten years that most Humanists are progressive liberals who act like Christians but without being Christian. Secular Humanists are a group of people who want to differentiate themselves from the American Humanist Association.
The Christian fundamentalist like to use the term secular humanism to freak out their flock. That they (and the Jews) are destroying America. That they have taken over the public school systems and are teaching humanism to their children. To them humanists support Evolution, think sex education and birth control is important, accept homosexuality and want to remove God from the public square.
Guilty as charged, and proud of it.