Humanism is an active ethical and philosophical approach to life, focusing on human solutions to human issues through rational ("reasonable") thought, without recourse to supernatural entities, such as a God or gods, or to sacred texts, traditions or religious creeds. While it happens that many humanists are atheists, humanism does not itself explicity deny the existence of God but instead rejects the importance of the supernatural in human affairs, in general, and the role of religion in public affairs, in specific.
Humanism, born in European Renaissance universities, originally referred to a student or teacher of Greco-Roman literature. The first "humanists" were orators, or poets of Biblical, or philosophical ideas. Many early doctrines calling themselves "humanist", were based on Protagoras's famous claim that "man is the measure of all things." This asserted that people are the ultimate determiners of value and morality— not objective or absolutist codices. Modern humanism, in contrast, generally accepts morality as being rooted in our interests, not arbitrary personal or social constructs, while denying any primary role for the supernatural.
The evolution of the meaning of the word 'humanism' is fully explored in Walter, Nicolas Humanism - What's in the Word. 1
Renaissance
Renaissance humanism was a cultural movement in Europe, beginning in central Italy (particularly Florence) in the last decades of the 14th century. It revived, and refined the study of ancient language (first Latin, and then the Greek language by mid-century); and caused the resultant "revival" of the studies of science, philosophy, art and poetry of classical antiquity. The "revival", or "re-birth" was based upon interpretations of Roman and Greek texts. Their emphasis upon art, and the senses marked a great change from the contemplation upon the Biblical, medieval values of humility, introspection, and passivity, or "meekness". Beauty was held to represent a deep inner virtue, and value, and "an essential element in the path towards God". As a result, the production of art in this period is particularly rampant. The crisis of "Renaissance humanism" came with the trial of Galileo; for it (the trial) forced the choice between basing the authority of one's beliefs on one's observations, or upon religious teaching. The trial made the contradictions between humanism and religion visibly apparent to all, and humanism became a "dangerous doctrine".
Renaissance humanists believed that the liberal arts (art, grammar, rhetoric, oratory, history, poetry, using classical texts, and the studies of all of the above) should be practiced by all levels of "rich-ness". They also approved of self, "human worth" and "individual dignity".
As noted in Theodore K. Rabb's book, Renaissance Lives, the poet Petrarch, through his friend Boccaccio and by other connections, became the inspiration for this new intellectual and artistic movement, known today as humanism, that was to set Florentine culture apart, and make it into a model for all of Europe.
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Modern humanist philosophies
Many people call themselves humanists, of one form or another, with the two main branches being secular and religious humanism. There is some disagreement about the definitions of these terms....
Religious humanism
Religious humanism endorses humanistic goals while embracing some form of theism, deism, supernaturalism or religiosity, though not necessarily organized religion, as such. It contains many artists, mainstream Christians, and scholars in the liberal arts. Other types of people that may be considered religious humanists are those who, despite believing in a religion, don't consider it necessary to derive all their moral values from it. Some feel that, because their religious beliefs are moral, and therefore humane, they are humanists.
Some religious humanists feel that secular humanism is too coldly logical and rejects the full emotional experience that makes us human. From this comes the notion that secular humanism is inadequate in fulfilling the general human need for a philosophy of life. Disagreements over things of this nature have resulted in some amount of friction between secular and religious humanists.
Guess that's how I reconcile evolution and 'IDesigner' 'or Prime Mover'?
Hey Saint Thomas More, Petrarch, and Plato make the list of Humanists!
