We at the Flathead Area Secular Humanist Association are concerned and somewhat defensive about a recent opinion letter (March 31) titled “Violence a natural result of nation without God” by Mr. Young.

Mr. Young appears to be subscribing to the myth of “moral chaos” without belief in a god, possibly unintentionally, thus helping to perpetuate the unjustified claim that secularists live amoral or immoral and meaningless lives. This has the effect of marginalizing millions of non-believers and non-Christians in our society and it completely disregards the reality that millions of people lead good lives as good citizens and display commendable moral and ethical conduct without any religion or belief in supernaturalism.

While it is tempting to look for a single “cure” to societal ills, such as violence, secularists believe that the situation calls for a multi-faceted approach based on education, critical thinking, reason and compassion.

Mr. Young claims, “Our violence comes from a “heart problem”, and only god can change that.” To the first part, secularists believe that violence can have its roots in many interrelated areas — genetics, upbringing, learned behavior, mental illnesses, stress, lack of awareness of alternatives, societal inequality, etc. As a result, and to the second part, secularists are committed to and believe in the use of critical reasoning, factual evidence and scientific methods of inquiry, rather than faith and mysticism, in seeking solutions to human problems, including reducing the violence in society.

Further in the article, Mr. Young quotes scripture whose writer claims that without belief in a god, we will fall victim to all sorts of depravity (such as being envious and arrogant), encouraging others to do the same and are “worthy of death.” Secularists have made their share of mistakes in their lives, but this hardly seems to be an accurate description of FASHA members or the secular community in general. (Mr. Young did not specifically address local secularists but, through quoting scriptures, he indirectly makes some pretty harsh claims about what he believes, or should believe, that secularists are like on a personal level).

Nor is Mr.Young’s description supported by numerous population studies that indicate that increasing secularization of a country is correlated with increases in overall societal health, standard of living, racial and ethnic tolerance, health care, women’s equality and rights, life expectancy, educational attainment, economic equality and competitiveness, child well-being, overall life satisfaction, etc. Secularization is also correlated with reductions in infant mortality, corporal punishment, corruption, and violent crime including homicide rates, etc.

These countries include Denmark, Austria, Norway, Canada, etc. Search for “Atheism, Secularity, and Well-Being” by Phil Zuckemann, which concludes, “… states and nations with a higher proportion of secular people fare markedly better than those with a higher proportion of religious people.” Yes, these correlations also stand up when comparing more secular states with more religious states within the U.S.

Addressing violence more specifically, on the Global Peace Index the U.S. ranks at No. 85 out of 145 countries. Viewing envy and arrogance as being “worthy of death” would likely not improve this statistical standing. Mr. Young’s advocacy for the increased religious indoctrination of the next generation through the educational system is inconsistent with the positive societal outcomes that these peer-reviewed studies suggest are associated with secularization.

Mr. Young’s description of the tenets of secular humanism is reworded, apparently for effect, and is incomplete. We encourage everyone to read the Principles of Humanism for themselves at flatheadsecular.com in order to fully appreciate the complete message.

Mr. Young also states, secular humanism “can breed hopelessness in some and pride and arrogance in others.” This seems pretty black and white to us. Most secularists find hope (and sure, at times pain and disappointment) in others and in themselves as well as develop a reality-based understanding of their strengths and weaknesses. Secular humanists’ concern is with this life and a commitment to making it meaningful through better understanding of ourselves, our history, our intellectual and artistic achievements, and the outlook of those who differ from us. We are committed to searching for viable individual, social, and political principles of ethical conducts, judging them on their ability to enhance both individual responsibility and the overall well being of humanity.

Finally, Mr. Young asserts that secular humanism “has the strong tendency to produce godless, corrupt, violent and immoral people unless these people are strongly influenced from outside” and “A proper view of God leads to accountability and responsibility.” Mr. Young provides no evidence to back up these claims.

While we understand many believe these ideas to be true (often because they were never taught any alternatives), secular humanists, often with the help of others, tend to try to develop an internal moral code in conjunction with accepted cultural norms (some of which need to be challenged on occasion — e.g., racism, misogyny, etc.). For us, this approach seems to encourage, rather than diminish, individual accountability, responsibility, and empowerment.

In closing, while we all seek to find effective solutions to societal ills, like violence, we challenge those who would claim that secular humanism is a root cause as the claim is simply not supported by the evidence. We believe the reduction of violence and other societal ills will not be found in identifying supernatural causes or solutions but, being “human” and “natural” problems, are instead best solved by compassionate humans working together to find progressively enlightened science-based “human” solutions — a position that is supported by evidence.

We hope you agree and encourage you to learn more about FASHA and secular humanism as an alternative ethical/moral system to religion at www.flatheadsecular.com.

Ian Cameron, of Whitefish, is administrator of the Flathead Area Secular Humanist Association.