By now most of us have seen the harrowing images pouring out of Northern Alberta over the past week. Tens of thousands of people were evacuated from Fort McMurray an neighbouring communities as a massive wildfire engulfed the region.

To provide an opportunity to respond, the BC Humanist Association has launched a fundraiser to support the Canadian Red Cross' relief efforts.

All money donated will go directly to the Red Cross and will help provide emergency food, clothing, shelter, personal services and other necessities.

I am a single vibration, in a single note, in a magnificent symphony, and in prayer I consciously respond to and add my voice to the chorus of life. March 16, 2016 Post

Just finished Gretta Vosper’s With Or Without God. She concludes with a discussion about the meaning of prayer in a universe where there is no god, and examines what the urge to pray might mean when there is no-one out there to pray to?

Vosper references Freud’s theory that prayer is a carryover from infancy, when we are wholly dependent upon our parents – primarily our mothers – for sustenance and protection. Our parents are the archetypes of God, projected into the larger world beyond the circle of family.

Seems an adequate explanation for the phenomenon of prayer, but I think it would be a mistake to settle on that as the only reason we pray. For a narrow atheist the Freudian theory is convenient because it effectively removes God from the equation and demotes prayer to the realm of thumb-sucking. In winning an argument, however, I think such a facile dismissal of prayer as a meaningful urge diminishes the relevance of atheism itself.

The correct definition of ‘atheism’ is a disbelief in the existence of a god or gods. That definition is not at all incompatible with a belief in a spiritual realm. And when you think about it, many of humanity’s most moving and convincing experiences are rooted in the belief in something irrational, something spiritual.

My convoluted, existentialist logic leads me to the unavoidable conclusion that, not only is the spiritual realm likely, it’s essential (Who am I?) – for me the irrational is perfectly rational, it would seem, and I have friends and enemies who will confirm that is my honestly expressed state of being. Without a spiritual realm history, art, science, humanism in its deepest and most elevating manifestations, becomes meaningless if not impossible.

But there is no such thing as spirit disassociated from energy and matter as far as I am concerned. Spirit is incarnate, always and everywhere. And individual manifestations of spirit evaporate when the material context they inhabit – commonly known as our bodies – dies. I experience and express the Life Force for my twinkling; the urge of the Life Force in me is to explore, express and experience the consciousness of the universe awakening; the awe and wonder of that arousal only resonate in me when I recognize myself as part of a much larger evolution – an evolution that encompasses me in both space and time.

Prayer, then, is my fervent, conscious hallelujah shouted into that greater, collective consciousness. I hope that shout is in some sense ‘heard’; that my celebration of the universe that is, and yearning for a world that’s better, will vibrate sympathetically in the realm of spirit.

And if it doesn’t? That’s a topic for future consideration in Why do I pray? – Take 3

Upcoming Ideas: Who am I? / Nothing out of Nothing – so every thing’s always been / The four aspects of living spirit: Physical, Emotional, Intellectual, Spiritual / Morality, Ethics and Natural Rights / Ego: The necessary illusion / Just because or jest because / I think, therefore I spam / Who do I pray to (Take 3) / Killing gods is no laughing matter.

By John Krebs, University of Oxford

Ocean acidification is causing fundamental and dangerous changes in the chemistry of the world’s oceans yet only one in five Britons has even heard of ocean acidification, let alone believes it a cause for concern. Around 97% of climate scientists believe global warming is principally driven by human activity, yet only 16% of the public know the expert consensus to be this strong.

These are just two examples of common misconceptions among the UK public on the science of climate change. When surveyed, many people report feeling unsure and confused about various aspects of the discipline. Furthermore, they lack trust in scientists: in the wake of the IPCC’s fifth assessment report, nearly four in ten people felt that scientists were exaggerating concerns.

We had a successful AGM on Sunday.

We reviewed some of the highlights of the past year and Colin presented our financial position. Thanks to our generous supporters and members, we've managed to turn our 2014 deficit into a small surplus for 2015!

We said goodbye to Kirsten who is stepped down from the board. With Goldis, she will continue to host the book club though. We also welcomed Anna d'Archangelo and Dan Hanna to the board.

We're looking forward to working with our new board toward an even greater BCHA through 2016.

The BC Humanist Association today submitted its brief to the parliamentary committee tasked with reviewing and proposing amendments to the government's draft medical assistance in dying bill. The brief contains a list of amendments to the bill that would restore the "patient-centred approach" promoted by the Special Joint Committee's report.

The bill has been widely criticized for failing to meet the criteria established by the Supreme Court ruling that struck down Canada's ban on physician-assisted dying. The Court has given Parliament until June 6 before its ruling comes into effect.

By David Dunning, University of Michigan

In the hours since I first sat down to write this piece, my laptop tells me the National Basketball Association has had to deny that it threatened to cancel its 2017 All-Star Game over a new anti-LGBT law in North Carolina – a story repeated by many news sources including the Associated Press. The authenticity of that viral video of a bear chasing a female snowboarder in Japan has been called into question. And, no, Ted Cruz is not married to his third cousin. It’s just one among an onslaught of half-truths and even pants-on-fire lies coming as we rev up for the 2016 American election season.

The longer I study human psychology, the more impressed I am with the rich tapestry of knowledge each of us owns. We each have a brainy weave of facts, figures, rules and stories that allows us to address an astonishing range of everyday challenges. Contemporary research celebrates just how vast, organized, interconnected and durable that knowledge base is.

That’s the good news. The bad news is that our brains overdo it. Not only do they store helpful and essential information, they are also receptive to false belief and misinformation.

By Joseph P. Laycock, Texas State University

Robert Eggers' period horror film “The Witch” has been one of the surprise hits of 2016. It’s even gained a second wind since its February 23 release: the first weekend of April it played on 666 screens around the country, raking in an additional $465,000 USD.

The tale of a Puritan family turning on each other as they attempt to root out the supernatural evil plaguing their farm, the film won Eggers the award for best director at Sundance – and even frightened horror master Stephen King.

But neither of these accolades has generated as much buzz as an endorsement from The Satanic Temple (TST), a satanic political movement that first appeared in 2013.

The BCHA and Canadian Secular Alliance have been granted leave to intervene at the BC Court of Appeal in the case of TWU vs Law Society of BC. This means that secular voices will be at the table, arguing for the limits of freedom of religion when it conflicts with the promotion of a more just and equal society.

This is a huge opportunity for our organization and the broader secular movement in Canada to set a strong precedent to define secularism in Canadian law.

The case will be heard from June 1-3, 2016 and the hearings will be open to the public. We'll share the specifics closer to the date.

I helped out at the Vaisakhi Day celebrations with the Tarksheel Society yesterday. It was an invaluable experience. By noon we had over 100 visitors, and there were many others who gave us the thumbs up on their way by.

I asked one of my co-volunteers and he confirmed that Vaisakhi is more of a Punjabi cultural festival than a Sikh one.

Either way there was lots of good and free food, colourful costumes and wonderful folks to talk to.

The BC Humanist Association, along with the Canadian Secular Alliance, have been granted Leave to Intervene at the BC Court of Appeal in a case over a proposed law school at the Christian Evangelical Trinity Western University. Working together with leading lawyer Tim Dickson, the organizations will bring the voice of the secular movement to this case.