Dr Samir Gandesha - Nihilism and Terror.
Samir Gandesha is an Associate Professor in the Department of the Humanities and the Director of the Institute for the Humanities at Simon Fraser University. He specializes in modern European thought and culture, with a particular emphasis on the 19th and 20th centuries.
A key element of humanism must be a critical assessment of religion. Today such a critical assessment is more important than ever given the rise of Christian fundamentalism in the US, Hindutva or Hindu fundamentalism on the Indian subcontinent as well as politicized forms of Islam. In my talk, I will sketch out some of the key criticisms of religion in the work of Sigmund Freud, Karl Marx and Frederich Nietzsche, before going on to show how their ideas might help us understand the combustible connection between religion and politics in our contemporary world.
All are welcome to attend. Join us at 10 am for BYO coffee, tea, and socializing. At 10:30 am we start our presentation and discuss topics of interest to our members.
The BC Humanist Association was formed in 1984 and we have a regular attendance of over 30 people at our Sunday meetings.