The National Day of Reason was created by the American Humanist Association and the Washington Area Secular Humanists in 2003. In addition to serving as a holiday for constitutionalists and secularists, the National Day of Reason was created in response to the perceived unconstitutionality of the National Day of Prayer.
The National Day Of Reason site says:
"A consortium of leaders from within the community of reason endorsed the idea of a National Day of Reason. This observance is held in parallel with the National Day of Prayer, on the first Thursday in May each year. The goal of this effort is to celebrate reason—a concept all Americans can support—and to raise public awareness about the persistent threat to religious liberty posed by government intrusion into the private sphere of worship. The National Day of Reason website is co-sponsored by the American Humanist Association and the Washington Area Secular Humanists. The Day of Reason also exists to inspire the secular community to be visible and active on this day to set the right example for how to effect positive change. Local organizations might use “Day of Reason” to label their events, or they might choose labels such as Day of Action, Day of Service, or Rational Day of Care. The important message is to provide a positive, useful, constitutional alternative to the exclusionary National Day of Prayer."
And to celebrate National Day Of Reason, here is a lovely video of José González (previously here, here, here, and especially here) singing his song "Leaf Off/The Cave" live at a Sunday Assembly meeting in Gothenburg, Sweden.
The Sunday Assembly website says:
"The Sunday Assembly was started by Sanderson Jones and Pippa Evans, two comedians who were on the way to a gig in Bath when they discovered they both wanted to do something that was like church but totally secular and inclusive of all—no matter what they believed.
The first ever Sunday Assembly meeting took place on January 6th 2013 at The Nave in Islington. Almost 200 people turned up at the first meeting, 300 at the second and soon people all over the world asked to start one.
Now there are over 70 Sunday Assembly chapters in 8 different countries where people sing songs, hear inspiring talks, and create community together.
Why do we exist? Life is short, it is brilliant, it is sometimes tough, we build communities that help everyone live life as fully as possible."
So, as Sanderson Jones says in the video, let's "live better, help often, and wonder more" today and every day!
Let the light lead you out
Let the light lead you out
Why can't you take the leaf off your mouth
Now that you have the facts on your side?
Take a moment to reflect where you're from
Let reason guide you
See all tracks lead you out from the dark
See all tracks lead you out to the stars
Why can't you take the leaf off your mouth
Now that you have the facts on your side?
Take a moment to reflect where we're going
Let reason guide you
See all tracks lead you out from the dark
See all tracks lead you out to the stars
Let the light lead you out
Let the light lead you out
Why can't you take the leaf off you're mouth
Now that you have the facts on your side?
Take a moment to reflect who we are
Let reason guide you
See all tracks lead you out from the dark
How the light feeds life
What makes up you and I
What it takes to thrive
What we need to survive
How we flourish and die
What it means to be alive
What it means to be alive
Let the light lead you out
Let the light lead you out
For more information about The National Day Of Reason, visit the website:
http://nationaldayofreason.org/
For more information about Sunday Assembly and to find a chapter near you, visit:
http://www.sundayassembly.com/
And to learn more about Jose, visit:
http://jose-gonzalez.com/
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