What is Gator Freethought, and what do we do?
The following outline provides nearly all the useful information you can ask for about Gator Freethought.
Overview:
Purpose:
Meetings:
Origins:
Our current officers are:
Overview:
- Welcome to Gator Freethought at the University of Florida. We are a registered student organization dedicated to promoting open dialogue about religion and non-religion alike. We provide people of any religious background the opportunity to meet and discuss a wide variety of topics, not only on religion but also on politics, sex, ethics, philosophy, and so on--the list is endless! You do not need to identify with any particular religious or nonreligious beliefs; you need only identify as a freethinker—someone who holds their beliefs because they find them, after careful thought and rational inquiry, to be the most reasonable beliefs one could possibly hold. Many of our members self-identify as non-religious, secular, naturalist, humanist, atheist, agnostic, ignostic—but others also self-identify as Christian, Jewish, or Islamic, and still more find the entire idea of self-identification either impossible or pointless.
- We meet every 2 weeks during the school year to engage in lively and interesting discussions on a wide variety of topics. Typically, we also go out for food and drinks afterwards. In addition, our members usually offer to host get-togethers every few weeks for the group.
- If you consider yourself interested in critically examining religion and non-religion alike, you will fit right in. Again, the only requirement is that you allow your own beliefs to be discussed critically and rationally, just as you discuss critically and rationally the beliefs of others. Though we are made up of atheists, theists, and everything in between, the group itself is neither religious nor nonreligious. We are neither "anti-religion" nor "pro-religion." We are neither "anti-atheism" nor "pro-atheism." We are defined not by our conclusion but by our method—free, peaceful, and rational inquiry. Come out and join us!
Purpose:
- We aim to provide a forum for discussion, rational debate, guest speakers, and social activity in order to promote an open and supportive environment for the free discussion and analysis of religion and nonreligion alike. Our goals are to enable students to meet and discuss religious, philosophical, ethical, political, and other issues in an environment free from the pressure of reaching a certain conclusion (for instance, whether for or against the existence of a god) and to promote skepticism, rational thought, critical inquiry, science, and the worth of the individual. We do not all agree on politics, values, ethics, or fashion, and we do not demand conformity − instead, we encourage freethinking.
Meetings:
- Information about our meetings will be posted on the main blog and also on our Facebook page.
- The short, interesting talks and Q&A will come from departments in philosophy, comparative religion, theology-related groups, mathematics, physics, biology, chemistry, etc. They could speak on everything from epistemology, metaphysics, culture wars, arguments for/against gods, string theory and cosmology, abiogenesis… anything relevant to religious belief.
- We also have hosted and plan to host speakers from SSA, AA, CFI, and others for campus-wide debates or large-audience talks.
Origins:
- Gator Freethought began as the Atheist, Agnostic, and Freethinking Student Association, which was resurrected in March of 2006 by a chemistry graduate student. He had noticed the lack of any freethought group on campus, and given the proliferation of openly religious groups, he decided to create an openly nonreligious one. In the past, other groups have filled this role: HASA (oldest), AASA (older), AASA (2002). Since these groups had all dissolved, he contacted the old leadership and registered AAFSA with the Center for Student Involvement. We have now evolved to Gator Freethought, and so too has our purpose. Our identity has shifted from being a collection of a certain kind of discussers—atheists, agnostics, freethinkers—to a certain kind of discussion—freethought.
- We are an officially registered student organization at the University of Florida, registered through Student Activities and Involvement. If you are interested in viewing our constitution, you may do so by clicking here.
Our current officers are:
- President: Michael Johns
- Vice President: Patrick McHugh
- Treasurer: Michael Goodwin
- Secretary: Amanda Guzman
- Faculty advisor: Philosophy Professor Dr. Gene Witmer