Humanism As the Next Step.

Humanism As the Next Step by Lloyd and Mary Morain (Amherst, NY: Humanist Press, 1998); 145 pp.; $10 paper.

This book fills a significant gap in recent humanist literature. It has three main merits. It is written in simple, straightforward language for the reader who is without philosophical expertise. It is fair-minded and inclusive in its treatment of the various tendencies and viewpoints within the humanist movement. And it conveys the moral and inner adequacy of a humanist philosophy as experienced in the lives of its two veteran humanist authors. In short, it is a book that one can confidently give to any friend who asks, "Is humanism right for me?"

Between them, Lloyd and Mary Morain have shared more than a century of organized humanism. Nearly fifty years ago, Lloyd occupied the presidency of the American Humanist Association, while Mary served as an original director of the International Humanist and Ethical Union, an organization that both helped to found.

The first edition of Humanism As the Next Step was released in 1954 and has since occupied a secure place as one of the basic texts on the humanist bookshelf. The new edition follows the general plan of the first but is thoroughly rewritten to reflect the experience of the intervening forty-four years.

In this reviewer's opinion, the Morains have rendered our movement a major benefit by reminding us that humanism is an open, inclusive philosophy--the foundation for a rational faith in the human future. It is often said that there are many "varieties" of humanism, but perhaps it would be truer to say that there is but one basic humanist world view which, as a comprehensive philosophy, has various secular, religious, ethical, and educational applications.

Too many descriptions of humanism portray our position as a negative, alienated protest, more attuned to attacking the beliefs of others than in demonstrating the sufficiency and reasonableness of a positive world view. Alas, not all of these self-defeating images have come from our enemies.

In contrast, the Morains have shown in simple, direct terms what is positive; what is intellectually honest, generous, and good; and, finally, what is joyous and serene in the humanist way of thinking and living. They have done so, in large measure, because they have lived by these principles; and, as their newly revised book testifies, they care deeply about the humanist movement and its message for the world.

Edward L. Ericson is a former Ethical Culture leader living in Florida.