The Humanist Hour

In this episode, Bo Bennett speaks with Kile Jones, creator of the “Interview an Atheist at Church Day” project. Listen as they discuss what the project is about & why it is needed, and marvel as Bo channels his inner preacher by conducting a “mock interview” with Kile, who demonstrates what it is like to be an atheist in church. From Kile’s website: Interview an Atheist at Church Day is a project created by Kile Jones, a Ph.D student at Claremont Lincoln University, an inter-religious school to train ministers. Kile is an atheist who is interested in helping liberal religious people work together with unbelieving communities for the betterment of society. Interview an Atheist at Church Day is a community project aimed at bettering the under-standing between atheists and religious persons. We hope to connect atheists who are willing to be interviewed with congregations in their area that are interested in developing ties with atheists in their area. The “day” represents our desire to grow into something f

In this episode, Bo Bennett speaks with American Humanist Association Executive Director Roy Speckhardt about his brand new book, "Creating Change Through Humanism". Bo also speaks briefly with AHA Legal Director David Niose about his article in Psychology Today exploring anti-intellectualism and how it can be seen as a major factor in the recent church shooting tragedy. About Roy: Roy Speckhardt has served as the executive director of the American Humanist Association since 2005. He is a frequent media commentator who has appeared on Good Morning America, CNN Headline News, Fox News, and National Public Radio, among others. He writes a regular column for The Huffington Post and has written for Patheos, Washington Post's On Faith, and other publications. He has spoken at universities from Stanford to Oxford, and given speeches at national conferences across the United States. Speckhardt holds a Masters in Business Administration from George Mason University and a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from Mary Was

In this episode, Bo Bennett speaks with neurologist Dr. Robert Burton about what it means (or doesn’t mean) to be "certain." Wars have been fought and people murdered because people are claim certainty about "what they feel is right," whether that be following a god's commands or simply following a passionate and convincing human leader. Dr. Robert Burton graduated from Yale University and the University of California, San Francisco’s School of Medicine, where he also completed his neurology residency. At age thirty-three, he was appointed chief of the Division of Neurology at Mt. Zion-UCSF Hospital, where he subsequently became Associate Chief of the Department of Neurosciences. His writings include "On Being Certain: Believing You Are Right Even When You're Not," three critically acclaimed novels and a neuroscience and culture column at Salon.com, "Mind Reader" (2008-2009). He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. His new book, "A Skeptic's Guide to the Mind; What Neuroscience Can and Cannot Tell Us About O

In this episode, Bo Bennett speaks with Dr. Tom Greening about Humanistic Psychology: how it differs from modern day humanism, its origins, its relationship to positive psychology and the self-help movement, and much more. Dr. Greening received his B.A. from Yale University, spent a year in Vienna on a Fulbright Fellowship, and attended graduate school at the University of Michigan, receiving his Ph.D. in 1958.

In this special extended episode, we hear from several humanists on a variety of humanist issues. Listen as Kim Ellington interviews Andy Norman, Teresa MacBain, Sheila Malcolm, Richard Howse, Jason Torpy, Roland Halpern, Kelley Freeman, and Ed Gogol.

In this special hour and a half episode, we hear from several humanists on a variety of issues covered this past May 7-10 at the AHA’s 74th Annual Conference in Denver, CO. Listen as Kim Ellington interviews Gretta Vosper, Kevin Jagoe, Steve Hill, Joe Brady, Dr. Calvin and Tonda Kelly, Stephanie Downs Hughes, Juhem Navarro-Rivera, and Bishop McNeil.

In this episode, Bo Bennett and Kim Ellington speak with Professor Dan Ogilvie about the concept of the soul and how to teach this concept to both secular and religious students. After 45 years of teaching, Dan has been engaged in removing the wraps from the topic of soul and afterlife beliefs. He is a personality and social psychologist who formed a partnership with his brain scientist colleague, Leonard Hamilton, and together the two have been exploring the riches of a new field of inquiry. The topic of soul and afterlife beliefs provides an easy entrance into the disciplines of psychology, history, philosophy, brain evolution, child development, cognitive development, anthropology, religion, mythology, and other fields of inquiry. About Dan’s course (from coursera.org): Throughout history, the vast majority of people around the globe have believed they have, however defined, a “soul.” While the question of whether the soul exists cannot be answered by science, what we can study are the causes and con

In this episode, Bo Bennett interviews singer, actor, and gameshow host John Davidson on being openly secular. They discuss Davidson’s decades-spanning career, religion, and how he manages to still be so good looking in his seventies. From Wikipedia: Davidson was born to two Baptist ministers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and graduated from high school in White Plains, New York before entering Denison University. His boyish good looks, broad smile, and telegenic charm gained him entry to such television venues as sitcoms, game shows, variety shows, and talk shows. He is perhaps best known for hosting 1980–84's "That's Incredible!", a human interest/stunt-themed series created in the tradition of the 1950s television show "You Asked for It".

In this episode, Bo Bennett answers some listener feedback about critical thinking and interviews humanist Matthew Facciani about his activism & research in the areas of feminism, religion, and science communication. From Matt’s website: Matthew Facciani is a PhD candidate in cognitive neuroscience at the University of South Carolina. He completed his undergraduate education at Westminster College, PA receiv-ing a B.A. in Psychology with honors. Facciani has done research on neuroimaging methods and is currently studying the themes of race, class, and gender in comic books. His dissertation will be on the neuroscience of religiosity. He is also an instructor at the University of South Carolina where he teaches psychological statistics. Facciani's writing has been featured on Faith Street, The Good Men Project, The Feminist Observer, Patheos, Skeptical Raptor, Feministing, Secular Nation, and others which are linked in the writing section of this site. As for activism, Facciani is involved with variou

In this episode, Bo Bennett speaks with Drs. Joe Gerstein and Bill Abbott about a secular approach to addiction education and recovery via the SMART Recovery® program. From SmartRecovery.org: SMART Recovery® is the leading self-empowering addiction recovery support group. Our participants learn tools for addiction recovery based on the latest scientific research and participate in a world-wide community which includes free, self-empowering, secular and science-based, mutual-help support groups. SMART Recovery® helps people recover from all types of addiction and addictive behaviors, including: alcoholism, drug abuse, drug addiction, substance abuse, alcohol abuse, gambling ad-diction, cocaine addiction, and addiction to other substances and activities. SMART Recovery sponsors face-to-face meetings around the world, and daily online meetings. In addition, our online message board and 24/7 chat room are excellent forums to learn about SMART Recovery and obtain addiction recovery support.

In this episode, Bo Bennett speaks with Dr. Michael Britt, host of The Psych Files podcast. Listen as they discuss critical thinking and anti-intellectualism--—why it’s a problem, examples, and what we can do about it. Dr. Britt has a Ph.D. in psychology from The State University of New York at Albany (with a specialization in social and industrial/organizational psychology), and a B.A. in Psychology from Marist College in Poughkeepsie, NY. He attended L’Ecole des Psychologues Praticiens in Paris, France. Dr. Britt taught psychology at Marist for 10 years at the graduate and undergraduate level. He currently runs B & E Productions, LLC – a mobile app and social media firm – from his home in Rhinebeck, NY.

In this episode, Bo Bennett speaks with Lisa Montoya, organizational development coach and current seminary student. From Lisa’s website: Lisa Montoya is pursuing her own personal and spiritual development by attending One Spirit Interfaith Seminary. As a soon-to-be ordained interfaith/interspiritual minister, she is also a volunteer pastoral care visitor at the Leonard Morse Hospital at MetroWest Medical Center in Natick, MA. Additionally, she is a certified Grief Recovery Specialist, helping people work through the pain of major life losses (divorce, death, job loss, etc.). This grief work ties directly to her work with organizations going through major change. Lisa is especially skilled at helping managers assist their employees with the emotional aspect of change which, if not acknowledged and handled properly, can delay or derail the change efforts, regardless of how rational they may be. When not working, Lisa enjoys yoga, walks in nature, spending time with family and friends, and traveling.

In this episode, Bo Bennett speaks with Sean Michael Wilson, author of the graphic non-fiction "Goodbye God?", exploring the art of graphic illustrations, church-state separation in England and Scotland, and several other humanist issues. Sean Michael Wilson has written around 20 books, published by a variety of US, UK and Japanese publishers and translated into eight languages. As well as writing 'western' style graphic novels, he often works with Japanese and Chinese artists on manga style books. Japanese publisher Kodansha has published 3 of his manga books so far, and he has had work published in the keitai/mobile phone manga format in Japan - both very unusual for a British creator. His comic books are different from the normal superhero/fantasy brands in collaboration with a variety of 'non-comic book' organizations, such as charities and museums. His main influences include British and American creators, such as Alan Moore, Grant Morrison, Eddie Campbell and Harvey Pekar.

In this episode, Bo Bennett speaks with Sarah Morehead, Executive Director of Recovering From Religion about her personal journey from religion, the Secular Therapist Project, and the Hotline Project. A life-long evangelical Southern Baptist, Sarah spent years as a dutiful wife and mother before finding the courage to leave an abusive marriage. She ultimately let go of her faith, becoming a passionate advocate for growing the secular community by developing resources for practical support as people reconsidering the role of religion in their life. In 2011 she joined the leadership of Recovering From Religion and in 2012 she was appointed the Executive Director. Thanks to her tireless efforts, Recovering From Religion is well known as the bridge of hope for those negatively impacted by religion. In 2014 she was honored with the American Atheists “Atheist of the Year” award for her activism throughout the secular movement and in January 2015 she was elected President of the Reason Rally Coalition. When she i

In this episode, Bo Bennett and Kim Ellington interview Mr. “Godless in Dixie,” Neil Carter. They discuss what it is like to be an atheist in the Deep South, and more generally, the benefits that come with living the secular life. From Neil’s website: What you’ll find here are mostly my thoughts and ramblings about living as a skeptic in the Deep South. If you’re not from around here, you probably wouldn’t believe how central religion is to life in the South. I was raised in this culture, and I spent two decades of my life passionately pursuing the ideals of evangelical Christianity. Around age 35 I changed my mind, however, and now I find myself daily wrestling with the implications of unbelief and skepticism amidst a culture which praises faith in the unseen. I am not by nature a confrontational person (in fact, I’m pathologically conciliatory) so if the opinions expressed herein strike you as unduly antagonistic towards some aspects of religion in general, and evangelical/fundamentalist Christian fai

In this episode, Bo interviews former AHA board member Margaret Downey about several humanistic issues as well as her famous anti-superstition parties. Downey has been active in a variety of causes including feminism and anti-smoking campaigns before becoming a public representative of atheism, and has known for her activities in this area. Her first major involvement as a publicly active nontheist was when her son Matthew was not allowed to renew his membership in the Boy Scouts of America since he was raised in a nontheist household. This led to Margaret Downey v. Boy Scouts of America, which did not go far in the courts before the United States Supreme Court's 2000 decision in Boy Scouts of America v. Dale that the Boy Scouts constituted a private organization and could thus choose their own membership criteria, preventing Downey from taking her case further. Since then Downey has been a prominent public representative of atheism in the United States as well as representing atheists and other non-theist

In this episode, Bo Bennett and Kim Ellington interview Susan Porter and Rose McDonnell from PolyColumbus.org. Listen as they discuss polyamory – the practice of having multiple simultaneous sexual and/or romantic partners. From the PolyColumbus.org website: PolyColumbus empowers individuals that either self-identify as polyamorous, open, or ethically non-monogamous, or are exploring such possibilities. We build community to provide a safe and inclusive place to not only be ourselves, but also meet like-minded individuals from all backgrounds. We advocate for the equal treatment of the ethically non-monogamous under law, and for broader societal acceptance of the same. We serve organizations with similar goals by documenting best practices and creating other resources for successfully running such an organization. Finally, we educate each other, allied organizations, and the broader community on what it means to be ethically non-monogamous.

In this episode, Bo Bennett interviews Horus Gilgamesh, author of the "Awkward Moments (not found in your average) Children's Bible" series. From Horus’ website: Horus was raised Catholic before being "born again" in college when he began following a calling toward full-time ministry. Early on, his efforts were focused on youth evangelism and Biblical literacy around the world. When he was on a missions trip to Africa, a fearless young boy approached, pleading, "Chakula? Maji?" - the Swahili words for “food” and "water." Unfortunately, Horus had no food or water to offer the poor child – only Bibles. A few days later, Horus met a humanitarian relief worker from Spain who shared five simple words of wisdom that would change his life forever – "Empty stomachs have no ears." Horus realized that he was not meeting the very real needs of the people he was hoping to help – he was struggling to finding a purpose in his own life, as a self righteous servant of his Creator. To many Christians, the most importan

In this episode, Bo Bennett interviews Margaret Placentra Johnston, author of the book 'Faith Beyond Belief.' From Margaret’s Patheos blog: While the word spirituality can mean many different things to different people, on this site we consider it less as a supernatural (and perhaps escapist) concept, and more about living more authentically in this life. Rather than sequester herself away on a mountain-top, a spiritual person as I am using the word, involves herself fully in the world, faces its questions and problems honestly and directly and does what she can to help out. Specifically the term spiritual development, as used on this site, refers to the intention to move forward spiritually in three ways – Spiritual strength, spiritual maturity and spiritual courage. If you would welcome a broader perspective about religious belief versus nonbelief, please join me here for a bird’s eye view of the unitive and non-literal belief stance that often develops in true spiritual maturity.

In this episode, Bo Bennett and Kim Ellington discuss discovering meaning and purpose with Gleb Tsipursky, co-founder and chief insights officer at Intentional Insights. From his bio at IntentionalInsights.org: Gleb's passion for helping people use science to find purpose and meaning, evaluate reality rationally, and make effective decisions to led him and his wife, Agnes Vishnevkin, to co-found Intentional Insights in the Spring of 2014. Since that time, Gleb has collaborated with a group of like-minded enthusiasts to translate complex academic research on rational thinking and emotional intelligence into pragmatic tools and strategies relevant to a broad public. He was always excited about studying and promoting such ideas, leading him to get a PhD in history, and to research and teach students about meaning and purpose, decision making, emotions, and agency in various historical contexts. As a historian, he is in the fortunate position of having scholarly expertise in combining research from many differ