In a speech to mark the 20th anniversary of the Humanist Association of Germany yesterday evening in Berlin, Frieder Otto Wolf, President of the association, spoke out in favour of recognizing the importance of an international humanist perspective. Wolf also argued that questions of organized humanism should focus less on the development of social secularization in the future.
The anniversary of the Humanist Association of Germany goes back to the merger of seven associations with free-religious, free-thinking and humanist-oriented traditions to form a federal association on January 14, 1993 in Berlin. The event will be commemorated with a ceremony on April 13, 2013 at the Humanist Center in Stuttgart.
In his speech on the occasion of the anniversary, Wolf recalled why, over the past two decades, the humanists in the Federal Association had come to realize that it was necessary to develop a perspective that extended beyond the immediate sphere of activity of the individual associations.
And on the basis of this insight, “we must not close our minds to the realization that a humane life can no longer be lived without taking into account the global and European dimensions of economic and cultural development,” said Frieder Otto Wolf.
In the future, it will therefore be necessary to think more about humanists in countries “where the ideals of humanism and enlightenment are even less realized than in this country.” These should not be lost sight of when discussing our own plans and projects.
Wolf made it clear that in today’s globalized world, the development of a transnational perspective is just as necessary as the perspective developed over the last 20 years for the entire Federal Republic of Germany.
Just as it should not be forgotten in view of new possibilities for communication: “If people do not experience us as active humanists, they cannot experience our world view at all.”
And with the goal of overcoming the major crises facing humanity today, in the context of which the enlightenment and humanization of social conditions is an essential condition, humanists must and could also win over religious people as allies.
Further information:
20 years of the HVD: Frieder Otto Wolf on the anniversary of the federal association
