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editorial
Metaphorical Language by Gary Bauslaugh

A skeptic’s response to the documentary film Capturing the Friedmans illustrates that literalism is a problem that is not confined to religious fundamentalists.

letters from our readers
Letters

the world around us
What’s in a Word? by Theo Meijer

Meijer ponders the question of what humanists ought to call themselves.

feature

A Bard’s Curriculum:
aphorisms on creativity by Timothy Brownlow

Brownlow contributes two poems and a meditation on writing poetry.

A Man’s Reach Should Exceed His Grasp
or, What is a Metaphor? by Ian Johnston

Johnston writes about the power of imagery.

Myth & Fantasy:
a Humanist Perspective by Shawn Dawson

There a value in myth and fantasy that humanists should not ignore.

columns

a humanist at large
Preaching What We Practice by Henry Beissel

We usually do not practice the Christian principles we preach. Beissel wants to make honest men and women of us and get us instead to preach what we practice. Let’s not be hypocrites; let’s openly advocate killing and war.

practical philosophy
How Good is the Story? by Trudy Govier

Govier writes about the value, and limitations, of stories.

films
Hollywood & the End of History by Shirley Goldberg

While the cinema may be the “art form of our time” and a “uniquely humanistic medium for understanding each other,” Hollywood has a stranglehold on distribution.

things that go bump
Potholes in Memory Lane by James Alcock

Alcock writes about distortions and outright errors in our memories.

departments

children’s books
Harry Potter and the Humanist edited by Gwyneth Evans

Evans argues that Harry Potter has something for humanists too.

Darwin’s Goblins edited by Gwyneth Evans

Governor General’s Award winner Sarah Ellis looks at the influence of Darwin on his contemporary, fantasist George MacDonald.

books
Fences and Windows edited by Ian Johnston

Gary Ansell reviews Naomi Klein’s Fences and Windows: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Globalization Debate.

Mother Teresa: the Final Verdict noted by Ian Johnston

Short History of Nearly Everything reviewed by Ian Johnston

Johnston reviews Bill Bryson’s book, Short History of Nearly Everything.

fiction & poetry

poetry
In the Vatican

poetry
One mouth and two ears by Timothy Brownlow

fiction
Billy by Bob Lane

A young farm boy learns about Jesus and polio.

poetry
The Terracotta Army by Henry Beissel