[BES Friends] September Schedule

[Stephen Meskin]

Unless otherwise indicated, all meetings will be held from 10:30 to noon
at the Society, in The Congress Hotel at 306 W. Franklin St., Suite 102.

On street parking is available. Handicap parking and entrance are 
available in the adjacent lot with appropriate identification. Ethical 
Humanist Sunday School for children during platform meetings. Call 
410-581-2322 for more information. The following is copied from our 
newsletter and web site www.BaltimoreEthicalSociety.org

SUNDAY MORNING PLATFORMS
Sept. 11th – “A Religion for the 21^st Century” by *Fritz Williams*
Sept. 18th – “Felix & the Humanists: An Irreverent History of Ethical
		Culture” by *Steve Meskin and Ron Solomon*
Sept. 25th – “The Costs of War” by *Susan Crane*
(See details below.)

OTHER ACTIVITIES
Sept. 11 & 25, 9:30 AM: _Poetry Group_, facilitated by *Karla Mancero*; 
usually the group focuses on a different theme each meeting, sharing 
poems by ourselves and others. Contact Karla at nada23_2002 at yahoo.com 
to receive e-mail notification of topics.

Sept. 11, noon to 3 PM: _The annual Peace Path_, organized by Women in 
Black, on Charles St. from the Inner Harbor to the Beltway. We suggest 
that BES members walk 3.5 blocks east on Franklin St. to Charles St. 
after the Sunday platform.

Sept. 23 - 25: _BES at the Baltimore Book Festival_: Come visit our booth 
and then enjoy the rest of the festival. Special event: Friday the 23rd 
from 8 - 8:45 PM, BES hosts a panel discussion of ethics in poetry at 
the Creative Cafe, featuring our own Karla Mancero, Carol Mays, and Gary 
Blanchard along with Marcus Colasurdo of local performance/social action 
group Gimmee Shelter. Volunteers are needed to staff the booth (2 hour 
shifts); if interested contact Karen at 
president at BaltimoreEthicalSociety.org 


PLATFORM DETAILS
Sept. 11th – “A Religion for the 21^st Century” by *Fritz Williams*, 
Leader, Baltimore Ethical Society
We live at a time when religion is at war with science, secularism, and 
modern values, and when it appears that people are being forced to take 
sides - to choose between imperialistic, irrational religiosity and 
unrestrained, unfocused secularism. Fritz Williams says we need to 
abandon the supernatural beliefs and practices of traditional religion 
in order to rediscover the enduring relevance of a religious approach to 
life.

*Fritz Williams* is Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society and serves 
as primary speaker, teacher, pastor, and organizational leader. Fritz 
also performs weddings and commitment ceremonies. He has worked as a 
parish priest in the Episcopal church, and as a writer and producer at 
public TV stations in Harrisburg, PA, and Detroit, MI.

Sept. 18th – “Felix & the Humanists: An Irreverent History of Ethical 
Culture” by *Steve Meskin and Ron Solomon*
Felix Adler, as founder of the Ethical Culture movement, naturally had 
an enormous impact on every aspect of the ethical movement during the 
more than 50 years he served as Leader of the New York Society and 
“patriarch” of the movement. Advocating a metaphysical neutrality, he 
had a vision of ethical culture as a movement representing “unanimity in 
the deed, diversity in the creed.”
Even during Adler’s lifetime, his vision of ethical culture was not the 
only vision (which of course was entirely consistent with his views). 
The first Humanist Manifesto was issued in 1932. Adler was not among the 
34 signatories, although several prominent ethical culturists were. 
During the decades following Adler’s death, calls for the ethical 
movement to become more naturalist and humanist became increasingly 
pronounced.
BES members *Steve Meskin* and *Ron Solomon* invite you to listen as they 
recount a bit of the storied past of the ethical movement, and then join 
in a discussion of what relevance this has to our lives today.
*Steve Meskin* has been a member of BES and Ethical Culture for about 20 
years. He has served as President of BES and as a member of the Board of 
the AEU. He is a graduate of the Humanist Institute and is currently its 
Treasurer. *Ron Solomon* has been an Ethical Culture member for over 40 
years. He is a former president of BES, the AEU, and the North American 
Committee for Humanism, and currently serves on the boards of BES and 
AEU. He has led or co-led membership growth workshops, e.g., Five Things 
You Need to Know to Grow, and book discussion groups, e.g., Radest’s 
Toward Common Ground, and given several platform addresses, including 
one last March entitled Social Security Reform: Distinguishing Facts 
>From Spin.

Sept. 25th – “The Costs of War” by *Susan Crane*, Jonah House
*Susan Crane* is a member of Jonah House, a faith-based non-violence 
community. She has participated in three Plow Shares action standing in 
witness against war and has served five years in prison for her actions. 
She will explore with us the many costs of war.