Bryan BeilkeTwo new clubs on campus will offer students an alternative way to think about religion and spirituality with the Secular Society and the Cal Poly Brights coincidentally popping up at the same time.
“There needs to be a campus-wide discussion because there are so many religious groups,” said Nick Sagan, the Bright’s treasurer and computer engineering senior. “We’re just as normal as everyone else, we’re just as happy, we’re just as helpful, we’re just as giving to society and moral.”
Walter Handloser, secretary for the Secular Society, had a similar hope for acceptance and awareness on campus.
“At the WOW block party, we were surround by at least 10 different church groups,” said Handloser, an architectural engineering senior. “What we want to do is make people aware that there are other people like them out there on campus. If they’re questioning God and the existence of God, if they’re questioning their religion, if they’re questioning the things that the government is doing, we want them to know there is a place to meet.”
Although they hope to come to each other’s meetings and exchange ideas, the Secular Society and the Brights have some fundamental differences.
Harrison Weinstein, co-founder and treasurer of the Secular Society, said he started the club to help keep church and state separate and have an open forum for atheists to come and discuss issues.
“One of the problems we’ve seen is a lot of people tend to call this a Christian nation which is completely wrong,” said Weinstein, a mechanical engineering senior. “Obviously it is a majority of Christians, but that doesn’t by any means make it a Christian nation. We want to give awareness and show people that it isn’t (such) a religiously-based country.(and break) the spell of not really being able to question peoples’ beliefs.”
Handloser, wearing his club shirt, painted with a large scarlet A for atheist, said that the Brights are somewhat more inclusive than the Secular Society when it comes to different religions and beliefs by focusing on beliefs other than atheism.
“(The Secular Society) can be pretty blunt with our perspectives,” he said. “The Brights are the bridge-builders. (that) encompass all naturalistic world views.”
Sagan said the word ‘bright’ is an umbrella term for atheists, agnostics, no theists, naturalists and those of other beliefs that see the world as a natural place.
“The slogan for the Brights is ‘a naturalistic worldview free from supernatural and mystical objects,'” Sagan said. “We want to put a good view on naturalism because right now the word ‘atheist’ is a pretty bad word.”
The Brights plan to accomplish that by meeting with religious groups on campus, inviting friendly discussion during community projects, debating and providing an alternative viewpoint at events such as the annual Christian event, Veritas Forum.
“One of our big things is to work with believers to kind of bridge the gap between non-believers and believers to dispel all of the stereotypes that they might have of us and also what we might have of them,” said Misha Davies, president of the Brights and psychology senior. “Both groups do have their biases.”
Davies said she was inspired to help the group become official by the upcoming presidential election.
“Deciding to come out as an atheist started with politics because. Barack Obama can’t even be president if he’s possibly Muslim,” she said. “What does that say for an atheist? Less than 50 percent would vote for an atheist. More than politics, this will affect our lives in other ways. Just because we don’t believe in a person’s god doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t be accepted in this society.”