Army officially recognizes atheists but not humanists
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RALEIGH, N.C. — Soldiers who don’t believe in God can go to war with “Atheist” stamped on their dog tags, but humanists and others with various secular beliefs are still officially invisible in the Army.
Maj. Ray Bradley is applying to be the first humanist recognized as a “distinctive faith group leader” by the Army. In the meantime, he can’t be designated as a humanist on his official records or dog tags, although he can be classified as an atheist.
The distinction may not seem like a large one to those unfamiliar with humanism, but the Fort Bragg-based officer says it’s the equivalent of being told that “Christian” is an acceptable designation, but not “Catholic.”
“Humanism is a philosophy that guides a person,” Bradley said. “It’s more than just a stamp of what you’re not.”
Humanism’s core beliefs range from the assertion that knowledge of the world is derived from observation and rational analysis to the conviction that working to help others also promotes individual happiness.
The issue is another sign of the growing willingness of military personnel at Fort Bragg and other military bases to publicly identify themselves as atheists, agnostics, humanists or otherwise without belief in a supernatural higher power and seek the same recognition granted to Christians, Jews and other believers.
“There are a lot more people with these beliefs than just Maj. Ray Bradley, but he’s in a position where he can stand up and put in a request for this,” said Jason Torpy, President of the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers and an Army veteran.
Bradley, a veteran of the war in Afghanistan who enlisted in 1986, is respectful and protective of the Army, and careful to say his views are his own. He said he has been a humanist since before he enlisted, when “No Religious Preference” was his only option. Now he feels getting his official records to match his convictions is an important symbolic point.
“There’s no regulation that says I can’t go downtown and get a set of tags made that say ‘humanist,’ but I won’t do that because it won’t be on my official record,” he said. “To me, this is an individual right.”
A petition campaign organized by Torpy’s group wants “humanist” and “spiritual but not religious” added to the currently available religious designations.
Bradley said he applied for the change to his record after learning that “atheist” was now an officially recognized choice for soldiers. His request was ultimately rejected by the Army Chaplain Corps, he said, which didn’t respond to a request for comment. Bradley believes some of the resistance comes from a lack of familiarity with humanism.
“I don’t think the chaplaincy really understands the difference between atheism and humanism,” he said.
Humanism goes beyond a simple statement of disbelief in the existence of a deity or deities, said Howard Katz, president of the Humanist Society, which is sponsoring Bradley’s application to become a lay humanist leader at Bragg.
Katz said humanists have formal “life-cycle celebrations” for occasions like marriages, funerals, even what Katz calls “humanist bar mitzvahs.” Founded in 1939 and chartered as a religious organization, the Humanist Society also certifies celebrants to perform the ceremonies, who then have the same legal authority as members of the clergy.
It shouldn’t be a surprise that humanists and other non-theists in the military are becoming more vocal, because their civilian counterparts are doing the same thing, said Penny Edgell, a sociologist at the University of Minnesota who studies American religion.
“There are lots more organizations for atheists, agnostics and humanists now than there used to be,” she said. “This is an emerging identity.”
Thanks to Green Bay Press Gazette and a hat tip to Julie.
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More power to him. Major Bradley is right that humanist says something different from atheist. Denzel Washington’s recently describing sociopaths as atheists on the Today Show proves the point. For more, check out my blog post on the topic: http://biblefunmentionables.wordpress.com/2012/02/11/et-tu-denzel/
I belong to a Secular Humanist group and obviously we are all atheists. A Naturalist, Agnostic, Freethinker all allude to the idea we are non-believers. A Humanist whether secular or religious basically means we care about all people whether or not we believe in deities. I am an atheist but I am beginning to prefer the word Naturalist as it has a softer connotation. Besides, it doesn’t scare the religionists as much and forces them to go look the word up in the dictionary. How about that for the dogtags of non-believers? It’s always about using the right word at the right time in the right place. (LOL)
Good for them, they deserve to be recognized.There’s more to the military then Christians, Jews, and atheist-which, by the way, I’m psyched that atheism is recognized now. I hope the desired result is achieved sooner rather than later.