Acknowledging humanity

 Posted for Trevor:

At the beginning of the semester, as with many courses I have taken, I did not know quite what to expect. I certainly did not know what to expect from my fellow class members who would be joining me for this amazing semester. Would they be hostile to religion? Would there be any highly religious members of the class? Would new perspectives could they offer on the issues of life and religion? These questions and many others were (and I hope this does not come off as though I feel I have gained some type of certainty) answered during the time shared with my fellow class member this semester.

Before taking this class, as I believe was stated in my last presentation, my view of religion was more hostile than it is currently. This was a view largely adopted from the personal experiences with religion I had until that point, and personal experience is indeed the chief crafter of one's personal views. A central aspect of this course has been to show that it is life denying to simply dismiss religion outright in the face of one's atheism, especially when one's religion brings virtually no harm to others, is a product of their lived experience, and which serves to increase their general level of happiness. The ideas of James and Rorty, as well as the perspective gained from my fellow classmates has shown me that the general hostility between atheists the religious is both unwarranted and unnecessary. My view has changed based on new experience, experience that has shown me the importance of understanding what James referred to as "refined religion." It is important to understand in order to move past a monolithic notion of what constitutes religion and to understand the importance religion plays in increasing human happiness. Religion does not cause a drain on society or hold it back; it is possible to be both pragmatic and religious. Indeed, my fellow classmates showed me this in the best possible way with their consideration, respect, and insightful discourse on religion, even with religious matters on which we disagree. That brings me to my next point.

Before this semester, I generally considered myself somewhat of a pragmatist, in that I felt some degree of pragmatism is necessary to combat the problems of dogmatism. Again to bring notice to Rorty's insight, a pragmatic outlook that does not rely on nonhuman sources of authority is indeed one of the best defenses against authoritarianism. There was a time when I myself was, to some degree, a holder of the authoritarian mindset (that time passed very shortly after my first semester). This course has strengthened my dedication to antiauthoritarianism and to the idea of freedom of conscience as one of the most important parts of any humanistic outlook. The attempt to force others to adopt a particular view based on some type of external authority and not through persuasion or the acknowledgement of personal experience has brought about some of the darkest chapters of human history.

To sum up and bid my farewell for this semester, I will close with a synopsis of how this course has changed my view of the world and my place within it. Personally, this course has helped me to struggle with some of the issues I have long struggled with in finding meaning and purpose in my life, which is to some degree why I spoke in the class about the dangers of nihilism. This course has truly been like a breath of fresh air, and I now truly look forward to understanding the experiences of others and how those experiences have shaped their outlook. This acknowledgement of humanity, in all its messiness and uncertainty, is, in my view, necessary for the advancement of human society. My only hope is that I may be able to play a role in that; that for me is what has given me purpose in life.