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Secular Celebrations
We've all heard the old joke; "I considered Atheism but there weren't
enough Holidays." Today there are many events we celebrate each year. You
can find full descriptions at Secular Seasons along with many traditional
holiday alternatives.
Whether you choose to attend religious ceremonies or not probably depends
more on family dynamics than on your lack of faith. However, you should be aware
that when planning your own ceremonies you have the option to keep them secular.
A fairly exhaustive treatment of secular celebrations and ceremonies is here.
Planning a wedding?
How about a Humanist celebrant?
Darwin's bicentennial birthday will arrive on February 12, 2009, and your
help is needed at DarwinDay.org. If you could make a donation of 25 to 50
dollars it would make it possible to expand a communication network to the
entire world. For US taxpayers this donation can be tax deductible. Your
support will help to develop the Web site so that by the fall of 2006 it will
appear in at least 8 of the major world languages. Your support will enable us
to create downloadable posters, songs, lesson plans, banners and slogans that
can be used at any time to keep Darwin Day and science advancing. By going to DarwinDay.org,
you can make a donation conveniently through Pay Pal or by other means.
Agnostic Mom plans a week-long celebration of Darwin Day for her family.
Other ideas for Darwin Day:
Try an event that focuses on fossils. Fossils are the physical evidence for evolution. You can use the fossils as a teaching aid at your Darwin Day event to educate your members about some of the terms and life forms of prehistory. If you have enough varied kinds of fossils, they can be used for scavenger hunts. Give all your participants a photo of each fossil along with the name and see who can find the most. Save the rare or expensive fossils for door prizes. Almost any Darwin Day activity could incorporate the use of fossils.
If you need to obtain some fossils quickly for your event, there are several ways to acquire them. If you live in a state where there are caverns or other natural geological tourist sites, try the gift shops of these establishments. Check cavern.com for the caverns in your area. There are also many field guide books on the market to help you find natural fossil sites in your area. Why not make a field trip out of it?! Take your organization out on a sunny day for a picnic/fossil dig! If you need some help, team up with a local fossil collectors club. These can usually be found by contacting a natural science museum or educational institute in the area or by searching the internet for 'Paleontological Society', 'fossil club' or 'fossils' followed by your state's abbreviation. Also, try your state's Geological Society for publications on fossil sites to explore. If you enjoyed digging in the dirt as a child and like the sciences, fossil collecting may get into your blood. Don't forget to donate some of these fossils to your local school district to enhance their science program.
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