The Humanist Society of New Mexico and its UNM chapter aim to teach social responsibility through education and discussion.
Harry Willson, an author and member of the state chapter of the Humanist Society, said the philosophy of humanism emphasizes reason, science and human interests and often rejects the importance of belief in God.
He said that one of the group's goals is to change the negative perception people often have of humanists.
"We want to counter the belief that humanists and nonreligious people are immoral or aren't good citizens," Willson said.
Willson helps organize monthly lectures at the UNM School of Law and said the topics range from social responsibility to environmental preservation. This month's topic is water preservation.
He said the Humanist Society's events are open to the public and meant to inform and educate.
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There are also educational events geared toward young people, Willson said. These include the biweekly, nonreligious Sunday school meetings for children.
The society is a completely nonreligious group, but its openness allows diversity among its members, he said.
Willson said he became a humanist after leaving his position as a Presbyterian minister.
"We don't have any belief system; we don't have any creed at all," he said. "We have atheists and those who say it simply can't be known whether or not there is a god."
UNM Humanist Society Vice President Jeff Glover, a senior in University Studies, said the group aims to promote education through discussion.
Glover said changes in leadership have turned the group in a new direction. While it is still connected with the state chapter of the Humanist Society, it is more of its own entity than it was before, he said.
Glover said the UNM branch is more open than the state chapter, especially since its change in leadership.
"We were headed in kind of a negative direction, and discussions were being very negative toward religion," he said. "Now our discussions are much more open-minded, and we have more diversity among our group. We have atheists, agnostics, even pagans. We have to remember that no one religion is better or worse than another."
The group discusses controversial subjects at every meeting, and they usually end in heated debates, Glover said.
"The idea is to challenge everything that we take for granted," he said.
He said his role as a leader is to make sure discussions don't get too out of hand, as well as to be a facilitator for discussion, sometimes playing devil's advocate.
One belief Glover subscribes to is the importance of science.
"What science tells us is that nothing is set in stone - teaching us to accept change," he said.
He said the group has also organized several charity events, such as blood drives.
"We are really finding ourselves in a rebuilding stage right now," Glover said. "We are going through changes in leadership and are trying to grow our numbers."
