Yesterday on NPR, I heard and interview with the humanist chaplain of Harvard University.  I didn’t catch his name, but their website lists Greg Epstein as the chaplain, so I assume this was he.

Before I start, I want to point out that this is not a tirade against secular humanism as such.  The idea of the evil secular humanists who are out to destroy religion is a favorite bogeyman of the religious right.  Such a creature rarely exists outside of the imagination of some evangelicals.  I personally have no problem with most of the tenants of humanism, and I would probably call myself a Christian humanist.

But Epstein said a couple of things yesterday with which I disagreed and one with which I have serious issues.

To begin with what he said that caused me serious consternation, he said that there is nothing wrong with humanists taking parts of religious festivals and using them for humanist purposes.  Now, while I have no problem with humanists having rituals to celebrate whatever they choose, I do have a problem with those who feel free to steal from the culture of others for their own benefit.

What he is advocating would be something akin to me holding a Seder, even though I am not Jewish.  I will happily attend a Seder when invited by Jewish friends, but for me to hold my own would be improper.  I am not Jewish.  My faith is part of the same family tree as Judaism, but that tree branched 2000 years ago.  And a Seder is so much a part of Jewish identity that it is wrong for Christians to cannibalize it.  I would not want a synagogue to hold a Eucharistic service, since doing so would take the Lord’s Supper and strip it of its central meaning.1

I know that such things do happen. We live in such a buffet culture that we feel we should be allowed to take what we like from each religion and build our own.  But such a model raises the individual above the community.  Each community of faith has the right to decide its own rituals, and other communities should not feel they have the right to take things from other communities, strip them of their essential meaning, and reinvent them for themselves.  Religions learn a lot from each other, but rituals are so central that they should not be treated as swappable parts.

A couple of other things raised my hackles.  One was that Epstein referred to atheist Jews and atheist Christians.  Presumably he meant atheists who were once Jewish or Christian but do not practice anymore.  This term is highly problematic, especially for Christians.  While Jewish is both a religious and ethnic designation, Christian is not.  Once one ceases to believe as a Christian, one no longer has the right to be called a Christian.  You may be an ex-Christian who is an atheist, but you are not a Christian atheist.

The other thing was his statement that we, as humans, need to realize that all the strength we need is within ourselves if only we would realize it.  From a pastoral standpoint, I have serious problems with this statement.  Telling someone who is at the end of their rope and being crushed under the weight of life that they just need to realize that they are strong enough is little more than telling someone to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps.  It would probably push many people into deeper depth of despair when they feel that they do not have the strength.  The message they would hear is, “Everyone else is strong enough to handle life, but I am not.”  Such a philosophy offers little hope.

Granted, we do not decide which theology is correct based on which one offers us hope.  But humanists (including Epstein yesterday) criticize religion for abuse.  To me, telling someone who needs help that they just need to find the strength within themselves is abusive.  The message of Christ that His strength manifests itself when we are weak is a much more pastoral response.  And I believe this not because it makes me feel better but because I have experienced it.


  1. Yes, I am aware that the Lord’s Supper is related to and derived from a Seder. [back]
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