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“Humanist Perspectives on Death and Dying”
Presented by Glen Erikson

This week we will be looking at the third basic element of existence — after birth and life, we arrive at death. Death is inevitable, and like all living things, we die and decay. 

Today’s discussion reminds me of an old Unitarian riddle: A person is walking along and comes to a fork in the road with two signs pointing the way. One road sign points to “Heaven”. The other road sign points to “A Discussion About Heaven”. Hmmm…? 

The path we travel in our life may lead to many different places, but we all eventually arrive at an end point. So this discussion is about looking at the different ways we approach that end point. 

Just to be clear on what is perhaps obvious, Humanists accept life as reality. We share the agnostic/atheist philosophy of embracing what is evident, scientifically proven and do not subscribe to supernatural wishful fantasies of religious beliefs. 

We are aware that virtually all religions are built around the promise of an afterlife — that some form of existence carries on in some alternate realm. There is not and never has been objective evidence for this.

Confucius says “We have two lives, and the second one begins when we realize we only have one.” 

Nevertheless, dying, and especially approaching death, has a great deal of impact for each of us personally and for people in our relationships and communities. We each have personal experiences of people we knew that have died, and these stories can be sad and/or joyful. Obviously, we are all getting older every day and have some thoughts about our own eventual death. I think that it can be an uncomfortable but important consideration. 

As a Humanist, I would like to explore the ways we see these questions: 

• Practical — how are you preparing for your death? 

• Emotional — what are your feelings about your death? 

• Ethics — how does morality fit in your views of death? 

• How are you affected by cultural views of your past and present? 

• What are your thoughts about ending your own life by choice? 

• Would you consider suicide or Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID)? Both are legal in Canada.