Secular Humanism and Humanity: What are they?

[Ignorant]

Philosophical Anthropology

I vehemently disagree with your assertion that a secular humanist be able to unpack the confusion laid out above. One just simply needs to be able to differentiate a human from a non-human which doesn't require the explanation you deem fundamental.

Sure it does, even if it is simply:

"The genetic code is what distinguishes any particular species from another."
-You

That wasn't so hard. A thing having and expressing the genetic code of homo sapiens, according to you, is what "distinguishes a thing as a human being." Thanks!

But also, for a philosophy which takes on the term "humanism", is it really odd to expect a robust answer of what it means "to be human"?

Secular humanism is simply humanism without the need for a god. I'm sure you've heard "you don't need god to be good" before.

It seems that secular humanism, to you, is really just human biology (which is fine) and its ethical applications. Is moral philosophy also a misnomer for you? Is ethics actually just an aspect of human biology?

And yes, I have heard that phrase many times. Understood in the way that I think you understand it, I agree with it.

But generally, I'd say what makes us human is: self awareness; and a capacity for rational thought, empathy, self awareness, and language . . . How would your definition be different from mine?

Thanks! The only differences might be how we understand the terms you used to describe the specifically human capacities, and also I might have a working philosophical description/explanation of the those capacities' relationship to human action?

The sure and certain knowledge that I will one day die. Humans are (insofar as we know) the only organisms that possess a sense of their own mortality . . . As to the rest of your opening question, secular humanism - at its core, I think - is the position that human morality is an exclusively human concern, because it is a uniquely human creation."

Thanks for your feedback! That is an interesting distinguishing trait! What is it about a human, do you suspect, causes this sure and certain knowledge?

Secular humanist anthropology? . . .Is that atheistic science?

No. You might call it an atheistic philosophical description of what a human is. In other words, what is it about a thing that a secular humanist can point to/describe/observe/etc. and conclude, "that thing is a human"?

The problem I have with this question is that nothing is going to uniquely identify Homo sapiens except genetically.

You are probably right. Using "homo sapiens" has lead to confusion. Does "human" mean something different than "homo sapiens"? If so, what is the difference for you? If not, then please ignore that original formulation of my question.

Well, our particular genetic make-up is what makes us human to the extent that we are enabled to engage in activities that we differentiate from other species as uniquely human endeavors . . . I would say can be defined on compatible levels of abstraction, from one's close genetic relation to others...

Thanks, Nestor! Is there any essential (don't read too much into my use of the word, I simply can't think of a better one) unity to a human, or is human-ness merely a mixed composite sum of genetically human parts?