Paul Kurtz Quotes

United States, Philosopher
December 21, 1925 – October, 20, 2012.

Paul Kurtz was a prominent American scientific skeptic and secular humanist. He has been called "the father of secular humanism". He was Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Buffalo, having previously also taught at Vassar, Trinity, and Union colleges, and the New School for Social Research.

Three key humanist virtues are courage, cognition, and caring - not dependence, ignorance, or insensitivity to the needs of others.

Paul Kurtz
- Courage
- Caring
- Humanist
Humanists hold that ethical values are relative to human experience and need not be derived from theological or metaphysical foundations.

Paul Kurtz

Most humans feel the transcendent temptation, the emotional drive to festoon the universe with large-scale meaning.

Paul Kurtz
The meaning of life is not to be discovered only after death in some hidden, mysterious realm; on the contrary, it can be found by eating the succulent fruit of the Tree of Life and by living in the here and now as fully and creatively as we can.

Paul Kurtz
- Life
- Found
- Now
Only a fool of a scientist would dismiss the evidence and reports in front of him and substitute his own beliefs in their place.

Paul Kurtz
- Place
- Evidence
- Scientist
The beginning of wisdom is the awareness that there is insufficient evidence that a god or gods have created us and the recognition that we are responsible in part for our own destiny. Human beings can achieve this good life, but it is by the cultivation of the virtues of intelligence and courage, not faith and obedience, that we will most likely be able to do so.

Paul Kurtz
- Life
- Wisdom
- Evidence
A skeptic is one who is willing to question any truth claim, asking for clarity in definition, consistency in logic, and adequacy of evidence.

Paul Kurtz
- Truth
- Evidence
- Skeptic
No diety will save us; we must save ourselves.

Paul Kurtz
- Ourselves
- Save
- Diety

Life, when fully lived under a variety of cultural conditions, can be euphoric and optimistic; it can be a joy to experience and a wonder to behold.

Paul Kurtz
- Life
- Wonder
- Optimistic
No one is infallible, and no one can claim a monopoly on truth or virtue. It would be contradictory for skepticism to seek to translate itself into a new faith.

Paul Kurtz
- Faith
- Claim
- Skepticism