Members Newsletter June 2010
Edited by Margaret Godden
Living without religion
Affiliated to the British Humanist Association
and the National Secular Society
A letter from our Chair
Dear Member
Over recent years, Oxford Humanists’
membership has more than doubled whilst
our average age has reduced! Further, our
current membership hails from c.10
countries , resides in 6 different Post Code
areas, and includes apostates from at least
3 of the world’s major religions. And now,
as this document so emphatically
demonstrates, we are once again publishing
our own Newsletter. No wonder I’m so
proud to have been elected your Chair !
But, whilst we have Margaret Godden to
thank for this trial issue, future editions will
rely increasingly on the interplay of ideas
amongst all of our members. And, in this
vein, I look forward to sharing your feedback with the rest of your committee –
and beyond.
The Oxford Humanists stall at Burford for the annual
Levellers celebration
Taking the Message to the People
The Salvation Army asked why the Devil should have all the best tunes. In a similar spirit, we
asked ourselves why the believers should have all the best publicity.
We observed the proliferation of religious bodies selling their wares to shoppers in Oxford’s
Cornmarket every week-end, and decided to do something about it. We acquired a folding table,
an ‘Oxford Humanists’ banner and a gazebo to keep the rain off and we set up our stall. We
soon found that people didn’t understand the term ‘Humanists’. So we bought a tablecloth and
have had our new strapline ‘Living without Religion’ printed on the side facing our visitors.
Our first outing was to the annual Elder Stubbs Festival last August, a gentle gathering of
environmentally inclined groups in East Oxford. Since then we have been at the Greens’
Christmas Fair, the Levellers Day commemoration in Burford, and several outdoor events in
Oxford. On a bitterly cold day in February we set up the stall in Cornmarket as part of the
students’ Think Week (see overleaf). Now that the summer has come we have already been out
once in Cornmarket and intend to be there at least once a month - more often if we can find
members willing to help. People told us it was good to see somebody who wasn’t selling religion.
People are generally friendly. Some are pleased to find they have been humanists all their lives
without realising it! We have had some interesting discussions and there seems to be growing
interest in humanist celebrations - births, weddings and funerals.
If you would like to be involved with this activity please contact Penny Jaques (see overleaf). She
would also like to hear from anyone willing to set up the stall at a local event outside Oxford. We
can supply all the literature you would need.
Changes in our Meeting Venues
We have moved our Friday speaker meetings away
from the Town Hall to the friendlier atmosphere of the
Restore meeting room in Manzil Way, off Cowley
Road.
Any bus going up Cowley Road will take you there,
including the No 5 from the railway station. Book to
Manzil Way, walk up towards the mosque and the
Restore car-park is on your right with the hall at the
far end of the car-park.
Sunday afternoon meetings continue at Pegasus
Grange, Whitehouse Road, off Abingdon Road..
Contact a committee member for advice about
access.
Sunday morning meetings will, for the time being,
change venue from month to month. We are asking
members who could accommodate up to 12 people to
offer their hospitality for one of these meetings. This
will mean that we can get some of them out of Oxford
and around the county. If you could offer to host
such a meeting please get in touch with the Chair.
Question
Answer
...even though half the guests still opt for turkey and
plum pudding (neither of which, of course, have any
relevance to the birth of Jesus of Nazareth).
The problem of finding a name for our annual meal
has been discussed at ridiculous length by your
committee. Then someone asked the simple
question: Why do we want to hold it during the
Christmas season anyway? It is a busy time, the
venues are over-crowded and the prices are high.
Let’s celebrate the birth of Charles Darwin instead!
So we shall not be having our lunch this December
but instead it will happen in February, close to
Darwin’s birthday on the 12th. We are wondering
about making it less formal, perhaps in a friendly
pub with some activity (a bowling alley, a darts
match?) which would get us mixing more.
We would welcome your views and suggestions.
Please let the Chair know what you think.
Margery Jones
FUTURE EVENTS
Celebrating a Good Life
Margery Jones died last
month, after a long and
rewarding life, aged 102.
She had been a member
of Oxford Humanists for
the 22 years of our existence. Indeed, she and
her late husband, Arthur,
were amongst the earliest members of the original Oxford Humanist group, founded in the 1960’s.
Margery generously hosted our Sunday morning
meetings up to a few months before her death.
She had strong views on many things apart from
humanism, including vegetarianism, pacifism, socialism, republicanism and multiculturism. She was
an inspirational example of someone who stuck
firmly to her principles throughout her life. Her
moving funeral was conducted by her long-time
friend and fellow Oxford Humanist, Jenny Perry.
John White
When is a Christmas lunch
not a Christmas lunch?
When it’s a Midwinter meal
or a Michaelmas feast
Sunday, 4th July, from 12 noon
Manning our stand at the Cowley Road Carnival (this
year, in South Park). Contact Penny if you can help.
Sunday, 11th July, 10.45 for 11.0 am.
Ascott Manor, Stadhampton (hosted by Dane &
Vicky Clouston). A discussion on ‘Equal
Opportunities from a Humanist standpoint’. (Please
contact the Chair beforehand for details of how to
get there.)
Friday. 16 July, 7.45 for 8.0 pm.
Restore Centre. Prof John Howson will talk about the
Coalition Government’s proposals for free schools
and academies with special reference to faith
schools.
Sunday, 1st August, 3.45 for 4.0 pm
The Library, Pegasus Grange. Discussion meeting,
subject to be announced.
Sunday. 15 August, from 12 noon.
Summer Garden Party. Hosted by Penny and David
Jaques at 7 Stanley Road, Oxford. Please bring a
plate or two to share and alcohol drinks if you wish
(soft drinks and nibbles provided).
Think Week success
This February saw an exciting new venture. The two Oxford
student societies, the Atheist Society and the Secular Society,
planned a week of events to spread the word amongst students.
They invited us to get involved. Three of our members, Dane
Clouston, Joe Trakolo and John White, helped with the planning
and organisation. We also made a financial contribution.
To contact us:
Chair, John White
[email protected]
01865 891876
Membership, Graham Pierce
[email protected]
01865 872546
The students were very enthusiastic and they organised a crowded
week of meetings and events including high calibre speakers
drawn from the academic and wider humanist world. We
particularly supported their Sunday publicity drive in Cornmarket.
Treasurer/Newsletter Editor
Margaret Godden
Think Week is likely to become a regular event and we are
delighted with this contact with an admirable bunch of young
people.
Events, Penny Jaques
[email protected]
01865 721530
[email protected]
01865 724141