Fully Human: Fully Alive

By Lyle Simpson

Fully Human: Fully Alive is written to help the 70 percent of all Americans living today who are stuck on Maslow's social level of living. Without their realizing it, they cannot find their path that would allow them to rise above the social level of living of Dr. Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs. This book will help them build their own bridges over their own barriers. The barriers that are precluding living a full life exist because they block us from even seeing any conflicting information, so we do not know they even exist. There are unknown barriers in each of us. This book will show you paths around your barriers without conflicting with your current beliefs. You can build a bridge over your own barriers without giving up any belief. It just no longer controls you. Those who read this book with an open mind can find their own path to become among the 1 percent who are able to reach the three levels of Maslow's hierarchy that exist above the social level in order for them to become fully alive.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Aug 10, 2023
• ISBN: 9798886546309

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Fully Human

Fully Alive

Lyle Simpson

Copyright © 2023 Lyle Simpson

All rights reserved

First Edition

PAGE PUBLISHING

Conneaut Lake, PA

First originally published by Page Publishing 2023

ISBN 979-8-88654-629-3 (pbk)

ISBN 979-8-88654-630-9 (digital)

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Preface

You have the power to fully experience your life by giving up all your conflicting wants and simply fully living and experiencing in the circumstances in which you find yourself.

A Human Model: Introduction

A very valid cultural question remains for younger generations today. Do I control my own life, or does God control me? This question has been considered for thousands of years. Previously, the answer has been dictated to us by control people. That is no longer true for many of the younger people in our society today. Many people want control of their own lives. How do we accomplish that? Unitarian ministers Lester and Maria Mondale have shown us the way.

Chapter One: What Is Humanism?

The history of the philosophy of humanism starts with Epicurus, who lived in Athens, Greece. He was born in 341 BCE and died in 270 BCE. In those days, almost everyone believed that God ruled their lives on a daily basis. Epicurus felt that we needed to take the responsibility of our own lives and could not blame God for anything that happened to us. Furthermore, he saw no reason to believe in a life after our death. Therefore, our goal was to make the very most of our own lives while we lived on earth. And the best means for achieving that was to live in harmony with nature and to want nothing and need little. The Epicurean philosophy was drowned out by the cultural meme of its day with God being back in control of the Hellenic people. Epicurean thought would have been forgotten, and no one would know it existed if it had not been for Lucretius writing his two-thousand-page paper describing Epicurean thinking in the last century before the modern calendar. This paper was discovered by a friend of Cosmos Medici of Florence. They adopted this philosophy for the city-state of Florence in the fifteenth century, bringing about the Renaissance that brought European civilization out of the constriction of Catholic control. When the church regained its status, it shared its control with Protestants.

Chapter Two: The Philosophy of Humanism Today

Epicurean philosophy surfaced in Spokane, Washington, in the first decade of the twentieth century. The name humanism was coined as the name of this philosophy in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1917, barely one hundred years ago. Today, the American Humanist Association (AHA) affects the lives of over four million Americans daily and the philosophy of humanism can be found around the world.

Chapter Three: Where Is Our Current Culture?

Our world is in turmoil with many holding outdated beliefs while over 27 percent of Americans, when asked of their religious affiliation, claim none. The AHA has a significant opportunity for influence.

Chapter Four: Why Was I Born?

Are we really alone in our universe? If so, why am I here?

Chapter Five: What is Truth for Me?

Why do I believe what I believe? How do I determine what is true for myself?

Chapter Six: Who Are Control People?

Who are control people? Why do I accept and believe them?

Chapter Seven: How Should We Live Our Lives?

Psychologist Abraham Maslow shows us a path for actualizing our own existence while we live our life here on earth today. Using the logic of his hierarchy of needs gives us a model for understanding people, nations, and institutions of every kind as we seek the highest level of living for our own lives. He provides the goal of living our own lives to the fullest.

Chapter Eight: Why Is Achieving Actualization So Difficult?

We live in a world of violence. We protect our beliefs with scotomas, which create blind spots that block contrary information from even being perceived by us.

Chapter Nine: Who or What Created Humans?

Charles Darwin rather dramatically answered the question of how we came to be—we evolved from sea creatures. God had nothing to do with our creation. Humans evolved from primordial life.

Chapter Ten: What Does Our Age Have to Do with Our Values?

The cultural conditions existing when we were born form our values. They have much greater effects than our parents, the area in which we live, or the status of our family. We are conditioned more by the science and technology existing in our formative days than we are by our family values. Understanding the values of each generation and what caused them is essential if you are trying to influence their thinking.

Chapter Eleven: What Controls Do We Have for Our Life?

Our attitude is the valve to access our brain. A negative attitude defeats learning anything new. A positive attitude creates reception for new ideas and learning. Most people accept their beliefs from those who are members of whatever group with whom they identify. We see this in our grade school days, in our political affiliations, and in the church where we belong. It is called group think because the group thinks for you.

Chapter Twelve: Live a Happier Life with a Free Mind

Lowering your expectations and being more accepting of those events in life that are beyond your control while appreciating the path for fulfilling your goals on life's journey is the way to happiness. To do so requires a free mind that you control with expectations and the manner of your reactions to the circumstances you encounter your own and not someone else's who is controlling you.

Chapter Thirteen: Why Do We Have All of the Many Beliefs That 

We Currently Have?

Considering why we even have the notion that there is a life available for us following our death shows the effect of historic thinking and the control meme have over our beliefs. Very few of our beliefs are our own original thinking. Why do we latch on to some and reject others? The millions of new thoughts entering our minds on a daily basis is an important area of study. Using life after death as the example clearly demonstrates why we have many of the beliefs we hold. You can consider all of your beliefs using that technique for analysis to establish the validity of your own beliefs.

Chapter Fourteen: Myths of Faith

Although in some cultures, like China, daily behavior is not controlled by religious faith, for most of the rest of the world, religion is our social glue. For those relying on the Bible as their source of truth, many accept what they are told without question without realizing that they read the Bible from a myopic perspective. They accept verses as absolute truth, ignoring the conflicting provisions in other chapters. The Bible was written by many people living in a far more primitive culture with very little knowledge of the means for determining what is true. In the New Testament, they were doing their best to make the life of Jesus acceptable to Jews. It parallels many prophecies of the Old Testament. Many of the cultural religious beliefs we have today have no basis in reality. If you look upon religion as a myth that provides you symbols for enhancing your life rather than your faith relying upon their truth, those differences really need not matter to you.

Chapter Fifteen: What Happens Next?

Striving to make the very most of our life while we are here on earth causes us to encounter many obstacles. How do we measure our own life? What scotomas block conflicting information from even being heard by me?

Chapter Sixteen: What about Religion?

What does religion have to do with this discussion? Does everyone need religion? E. O. Wilson tells us everyone has a biological need to relate to nature, a need we identify as spirituality. It is a basic need that the religious would like you to believe is their exclusive turf. Retired Episcopal Bishop John Shelby Spong tells us humanism can be adapted by most religious people. It could make Christianity relevant in the future.

Chapter Seventeen: What Is God’s Answer?

How do we define God? Aristotle says the real philosophical question is why something happens or exists. We now can accept that there may not be an answer to all why questions. We discuss different views of what God is and whether such perspectives make any difference. The point is that we are left without a universal answer. We each create our own god. God has not answered the question of why we are here for everyone.

Chapter Eighteen: What about Those Who Claim to Be Atheists?

Looking at the definition of God from Maslow's perspective, people's god concept depends upon the level where they are primarily living. A fear god concept prevails on the basic level, a father god is predominant on the social level. But by the time a person is actualized, their god concept is generally abstract. If your definition of god is nature, how could you be an atheist? It would no longer make sense. Atheists can validly object to theism, and most theologians would agree with them today. There is no need for a supernatural view of god.

Chapter Nineteen: What Is the Role of Religion?

Religion became our social glue when our culture became dominated by agriculture and the domestication of animals. Hunter-gatherer societies of fewer than 150 people could control negative behavior with reputation. Beyond that size, society needed a system of control. In early days, each community of city-states among Sumerians had their own god. Priests were appointed to manage their religion. They became powerful, even to the point of anointing their kings to demonstrate they ruled by the power of their god.

Chapter Twenty: This Life May Be Our Only Opportunity to Exist

There is absolutely no valid proof an afterlife exists. Our mind can play tricks on what we perceive. Our goal should be to make the most of this life that we can.

Chapter Twenty-One: How Do We Face Our Own Death?

We enjoyed grade school the first time. But we really would not want to go back and start over. Likewise, if we have lived a fulfilled life, we no longer need to fear death. It is as natural to accept as our life has been to live. If our body fails us, death may even be welcomed. Once we have lived a full life, death is no longer an issue. Protecting our loved ones may be the only thing that matters to us.

Chapter Twenty-Two: How Should We Handle Diversity?

We expand our horizons when we experience new and different cultures and personalities. Humanists should seek the opportunity to see life from all perspectives in order to enrich their own lives.

Chapter Twenty-Three: Why Do We Need Others?

From the day we were born, we were dependent on others. As we age, our needs change, but sharing our life with others is no less important for our growth. Meyers-Briggs psychology tells us there are four primary temperament types with different ways to process information.

Chapter Twenty-Four: Why Should We Make Our Lives Significant?

If there is no life after our death, the real value of our life comes from whatever we do that lives on after us. That becomes our own immortality.

Chapter Twenty-Five: What Can We Do Collectively?

Those who wish to actualize their own existence face all kinds of barriers for growth. Our society is still very antiquated in their beliefs. Humanism can build bridges around cultural barriers.

Chapter Twenty-Six: What Values Ultimately Are Important for My Life?

For me, only two aspects of life are really important. My life is meaningful to the extent that I can actualize my existence, and my life is significant to the extent the world is a better place because I have been here. The healthy person keeps both in balance. Nothing else is as important.

Chapter Twenty-Seven: So What Can I Do Now That I Have Discovered I Am a Humanist?

You can seek opportunities where your unique talents and life experiences can make a significant difference in the world. There are all sorts of opportunities that surround each of us daily, if we are only looking for them.

Chapter Twenty-Eight: How Do I Begin My Own Journey?

You could join the American Humanist Association to find opportunities and to gain literature to advance your humanist edu- cation. I set forth numerous alternatives to prime the pump. You can create your own. This can add significant excitement to your life.

Chapter Twenty-Nine: In Conclusion

This chapter is intended to tie everything together. That task is impossible. Our life is best summarized by the last statement of Humanist Manifesto III. As humanists, The responsibility for our lives and the world in which we live is ours and ours alone.

Our Road through Life

Appendix

A Declaration of Humanism A Humanist Ethic

My Goal

Humanist Manifesto III

About the Author

Preface

It is amazing the effect that taking a pause to smell the roses can really have on us. I am, at the time of writing, entombed in my apartment, now approaching two weeks, and I could have longer to go. I flew on an airplane as the coronavirus started to spread. Life in our community has simply stopped, although I am actually enjoying some aspects of this. It allows me to explore my life from a different perspective. I now see life as much as the Epicureans saw theirs. Their goal in life was always to want nothing and need little and to fully live in and experience wherever you are with a positive attitude. You might want to try that too. I find it frees me from useless problems that otherwise would have plagued me.

I have even improved my relationship with my puppy, now nine years old. My wife and I cannot move into a retirement home as long as we have our dog, as they are forbidden to come with us. Yet living in our condominium is not so bad. We live on the top floor of our building that sits on a high hill, and we are able to look over our entire city. I should do this more often. To make the best use of my time, I think that I shall write a book on what this all means for us.

My subject is all about how we can each make the very most out of our own lives and why we should do that. This is not a new subject that I dreamed up. Ancient Greek philosophers developed these ideas over 2,500 years ago. Their thinking was new and different. However, anything new is frightening for people with more ancient views of life. No one wants to have their beliefs challenged. They are our safety net, and they make us feel secure. Therefore, challenging them is threatening. Since the view of these philosophers were not generally accepted, their ideas were soon forgotten—or rather, overridden by priests and those in the public who followed their leadership—so it was as if they had never existed. We still do this today. That behavior in psychology is called a defense mechanism. We all have this.

Epicurean thinking was rediscovered three times in human history. On the first two times, the same thing happened because people feel safe with whatever they believe, and that is usually what everyone else believes, even if their views are outdated. Many of our current beliefs today no longer make sense in our modern world. Some say, So what? They are rooted to ancient history that adds meaning to our lives. If they were good enough for my grandfather, why wouldn't they be good enough for me? They may be, and I certainly wouldn't tell anyone they are wrong, because if whatever sustains them is necessary for that person, then who am I to insist otherwise? As Shakespeare said, There is nothing either good nor bad. But thinking makes it so. Therefore, the goal of this book is not to change you or challenge anything you wish to believe. That is your right.

My goal, however, is to challenge those people who totally miss living this life to the fullest, because this life is all that we know for certain that we have. No one has been proven to have come back to tell us that there really is more. Although some claim otherwise, they offer no credible proof and require blind faith. Why would we want to be blind? There are so many better ways we can look at our life that will make the very most of this life you can have. For those who really do find a life hereafter, you will not lose that. You will simply have both. Read on and see what all of this means to you.

A Human Model: Introduction

Introduction

Regardless of what we each might want to believe, primarily because it makes us feel better, we ought to face reality eventually. Many more people today than ever before realize this life is likely our only life. Such people recognize there probably isn't a life hereafter, regardless of what they may want to believe. How can you be sure they are not correct? If they are correct, that leaves one of two choices:

Those relying upon unexamined beliefs can simply continue to believe by blind faith and continue life as before this question was considered. After all, if we held these beliefs since childhood, why should we believe otherwise now? However, if people who have set aside the notion of an afterlife are correct, those of us who have been relying on a future in heaven may easily miss living our life to its fullest while we are here on earth. What a sad loss that would be. Do we really want that for ourselves?

We can consider the possibility that they may be correct. Why? It is because there is absolutely no credible evidence that an afterlife exists. When we really consider that belief, we may soon realize that if this is the only life we know for certain we do have, we had better make the most we can out of this life. Time is fleeting.

Which decision makes the most sense to you? Faced with the question if there is the slightest possibility that they may be right, we better hurry. Our own lives are passing by each day.

If you agree to try and improve the quality of your life so that you can still fulfill the only life we know we have, read on. The point of this book is to help you find your own path so you may actualize your own life. That simply means that your life will be the best if you understand how to get the most you can out of this life on earth. You are entitled to the opportunity to make the very most out of your life. Those of us who choose to pursue the opportunity, if there is no life hereafter, at the very least, will not miss making the most of their own life while here on earth, starting today.

In addition, you may contribute meaningful good for others who live on after you are gone, good that you would not have even thought about before reading this book. Doing good is, in a way, a form of immortality. More importantly, you will not have wasted the only life we are certain we are able to live in the hope for some life hereafter that may not be there. Where did the notion that there is a life after our death come from in the first place? We at least owe it to ourselves to try and find this out. This book will help you do that.

Even though it does not require deep thinking to recognize that this may be the right thing for you to do, some people will still take their current path—so sure that they are right—since it appears to be the easiest path for them. So why bother to change? The easy answer is that some people are willing to follow the lead of anybody whose language is consistent with what they were taught in their early childhood before they had the ability to reason for themselves. They do this solely for emotional reasons, not for logical reasons. Simply put, they allow themselves to be controlled.

It is okay to be content to follow such a path without analyzing it. However, if you read on, you will discover their beliefs persist because they were blocked by a scotoma, which is a blind spot in one's mental vision of the world. If you understand how that can apply to unexamined beliefs that come from others, you can avoid that happening to you. Humanists, like anyone, do not like to be viewed as sheep and take extra care to avoid such a connection. We want control of our own lives and to think for ourselves.

Sheep continue down their current path because it feels safe, accepting that they are controlled. Some members of the clergy impose the notion of a life after death on others, using fear of damnation to maintain their control. In effect, these clergy are stealing the potential life of the naïve so they can continue to control them. They claim that they do this for the good of the people they are controlling, of course! But is that true? How can we be sure they are not doing this to control them for their own benefit?

The better question for you might be this: What will create the very best life for me? Those who want to control you to bolster their own position may not tell you how to achieve the best life. Why should they? Many of those people like having their blind followers. Are you one of their followers? Some of those control people actually have the nerve to tell you that you are their sheep and they are your shepherd tending to their flock. Why would you even tolerate that? Is it because they claim they know more than you do? Did you ever ask, Why do they do that? Let's find out why together. Let us also learn why we need some control people but also how some attempting to control us abuse their power to maintain their control.

Reading this book will tell you why people have the beliefs they have and how those beliefs regulate our lives. We should all consider where such beliefs come from. What are our alternatives for living our own lives to its fullest?

If there is a life hereafter, the people who have actualized their own existence could benefit even more. If there is not a life hereafter, those who have actualized their lives will not have lost living the only life they know exists because they will have made the most out of it. This book will assist you in making the most of your own life—as you wish to live it. There is not one simple answer for fully living life available for all of us. We each get to make and enjoy our very own lives.

People will find their answers in a thousand different ways. Some will feel that taking what they want from others will provide them more, but will it in the long run? Do we really want to be remembered as someone who takes from other people in ways that harm them? There are those who became famous doing that. Bugsy Siegel, John Dillinger, Bonnie and Clyde, and Al Capone were some of those who took from others. But consider their life of continual fear. They lived on a security level of just existence. Do we really want that for ourselves? In this book, you will discover what our level of living can really mean.

What will produce the highest quality of life for each of us, starting today? In the long run, what really matters the most to us? Is it power, wealth, or fame? Once we die, will we still have any of those to enjoy? Is that goal worth the effort? Are people who attain these goals truly happy with what they have, or do they only seek more to quench an insatiable thirst?

What is the purpose for our own life? Is our life ordained by some supernatural force that controls us like a puppet? Or are we all alone with eight billion other people, living our lives together on a small planet in a universe with billions of other planets?

Is there a god that ordered this universe? There may be, but why would any god even want to control each of our individual lives? What would be the point? Is that god playing a game with us? Even though that notion sounds indefensible, some people still believe that. Or is that notion only a control device preached by those who want to control us? For people who really need to believe in direction from a god, what value does that really add to their life? The notion makes the believers feel safe, and they do not have to think for themselves or seek out answers. They have become blind because of their faith. When it comes to questions of meaning, they really are living a sheep's life.

Adherence to such beliefs takes the responsibility for living our own lives away from those who could otherwise choose their own paths. The point of this book is to not let that happen to you. An uninformed life can be a wasted one. That would be so sad when there are so many better alternatives available to you if you only accept living your own life while you are here on earth to the very most that you can.

The purpose of this book is to consider, in some depth, an overview of life based upon truth, not relying upon blind faith imposed by others. The goal is to provide a means for each of us to find our own path to actualize our own existence to the fullest for ourselves, in whatever circumstances we may find ourselves. This is true for everyone.

Even those incarcerated for life can still live a good life for themselves. I have proven that by starting local American Humanist Association chapters in two Iowa penitentiaries to educate those incarcerated who wished to make more of their lives. They asked for my help so that they can still live their own lives in a fulfilling manner while they are here on earth, even in their confined circumstances. Many of them are imprisoned for life. One humanist prison chapter agreed to first clean up their own cellblocks and to start a recycling program for their penitentiary. Their initiative was a meaningful start. It proved to them that what I am saying is true: you can live a high-quality and purposeful life even in limited circumstances, even without believing in a god. The resulting change in their attitude really impressed their warden. It only requires a little effort to make a real difference in your own life. And it all starts with a positive attitude.

We all start with only the ability to live our own life. Everyone's slate is clean. We are each entitled to live our own life to the fullest, with whatever resources we currently have available. In the United States, we have the freedom to do that. Many other countries deny their citizens that possibility.

Money cannot buy happiness is often quoted but seldom believed. If you do not currently feel that you have what you consider to be enough, I bet that you believe you would be a lot happier if you had more. Life does not come with a guarantee of happiness. But that has never deterred anyone from feeling entitled to it. The real point is that happiness is only a state of the mind. How do I manage this state of mind so that I can be truly happy?

Lester and Rosemary Maria Mondale were good friends of mine. Lester retired as a Unitarian minister, having been the youngest of thirty-four people who first identified the notion that we are solely responsible