Diary
An introduction to the Cosmos
Monday, Mar 23, 2009Our member Tom Boles will boggle our minds with a talk about astronomy, referring to photographs from the Hubble Space Telescope. Come prepared to be awed. We’ll be in the lounge at the Pinewood Community Hall – see map. You’ll find directions with the notice of the May meeting in the calendar.Teaching the new RE syllabus in a Suffolk primary school
Monday, Mar 23, 2009The new RE syllabus for Suffolk schools was introduced in September 2007. It includes Humanism and secular world views. The idea is that children should learn about religion and its alternatives, not to be religious, though the many church schools in the county do things differently. We’ll be visited by a teacher from a local county primary school, who’ll tell us about her approach. I visited this school a couple of years ago to do an assembly and talk to the older children afterwards.Ipswich Meeting The BHAs role in contemporary Britain
Monday, Mar 23, 2009Group member and British Humanist Association trustee Michael Imison will offer his ideas about the BHA’s role in society, followed by another point of view from Margaret Nelson, then there’ll be a discussion. What do you think about the suggestion that there should be a “Humanist Movement”? Should Humanists and Secularists try to replicate religious services? Should you be able to have legally-recognised Humanist weddings in England and Wales? What might we do to increase our membership?How the Daily Mail got it wrong
Monday, Mar 23, 2009Any of our members and supporters who read the Daily Mail may have been alarmed by the article they published on Friday 20 March headed “How cash meant for promoting faith is going to an organisation that campaigns AGAINST Christianity”. It referred to a grant given to the BHA by The Equality and Human Rights Commission. James Chapman, the Daily Mail journalist, could not have got his facts more wrong. The BHA is seeking a correction from the Mail, and has published its own corrections on its website.Pinewood Community Hall, Ipswich
Friday, Mar 20, 2009Found, a new home!
Friday, Mar 20, 2009Good news! Thanks to the efforts of committee member John Palmer, who scouted the area, we’ve found a new venue for our meetings. From next month (our AGM) we’ll be at the Pinewood Community Hall (owned by the parish council) on Hawthorn Drive, Ipswich, not far from the A12/14 Copdock interchange and Tesco. The car park is in Laburnum Close at the rear, next to Pinewood Surgery. See the events calendar for a map.Humanist funeral for young victim of reckless driver
Thursday, Mar 12, 2009Yesterday, our Celebrant David Mitchell conducted a Humanist funeral for Kate Wasyluk, one of the victims of Scott Nicholls, whose car struck Kate and her friends Emma (who was also killed) and Rebecca Harold, who were walking home from an evening out on 21 February. Nicholls has been charged with dangerous driving, driving while disqualified, and driving without a licence. Nearly 300 mourners attended the funeral at Ipswich Crematorium, where David described the incident as “utterly pointless, utterly random, utterly wasteful”.Evolution in 60 seconds
Saturday, Mar 7, 2009Seed magazine’s website has a video of 4.6 billion years of the earth’s history condensed into a minute. The evolution of humankind is a barely discernible blip.Is a Humanist Movement a bad idea?
Friday, Mar 6, 2009In response to the article in the latest Newsletter, ‘Replicating the social functions of religious organisations’. Firstly, a quick nod to Margaret. Margaret, I see you often end forum posts and have signed-off the most recent Newsletter with an appeal for more activity. I haven’t (as yet) attended any of the Suffolk Humanist meetings and (until now) haven’t really posted on the forums with any conviction. This doesn’t mean I’m shy or less than a committed Humanist.March newsletter
Friday, Mar 6, 2009Our March newsletter is online now for you to download. Feel free to give copies to all your family and friends, especially all the “godless” people we hear are in East Anglia. File Attachment: SH&S News March 2009 A4.pdf (634 KB) Not sure about pdf files? No problem!