The Vision
Persons who have a naturalistic worldview should be accepted as fellow citizens and full participants in the cultural and political landscape, and not be culturally stifled or civically marginalized due to society’s pervasive supernaturalism.
This egalitarian vision is not the reality today. Moving toward it requires that individuals who do hold a naturalistic worldview make manifest their existence within society. The idea of materializing as Brights at the Internet hub of The Brights’ Net is to acquire visibility, fortify one another in what is a worthwhile outlook on the world, and grow a constituency that can join forces broadly to work on broad aims of social and civic action. Those who register into this Internet constituency have worldviews free of the supernatural deities, forces, and entities in which so many others believe. They stand for “a level playing field” that provides the same foothold in society as citizens who believe in the supernatural. The time is here to garner visibility and work for full social acceptance and civic participation.
The Brights' Principles
The Brights’ Net has a set of guiding principles for association and action. While spreading the word about the constituency, the organization stands for these principles—as values, not dogma.
Civic Considerations
For Brights to establish the civic worth of persons who rely on naturalistic explanations, some approaches are likely to be more fruitful than others.
Naturalistic Worldview Considerations
A social movement benefits when participants have a pragmatic stance. Effective advocates are flexible and resourceful. It is helpful when activists in this movement can consider their worldview in the broadest of terms. Examine your naturalistic worldview and its context, the better to direct your own conduct to advantage in varied circumstances.
Symbolism
Light!—clear and vivid! The imagery of brightness speaks to humanity’s impetus toward learning, audacity for open inquiry, and spirit of skepticism that once characterized an optimistic time on earth when science and reason seemed to offer the key to the future.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
These concise questions and answers are a primer about the constituency of Brights, the Brights’ Network, and the overall Bright endeavor.
Curing Misconceptions
What do you already know about the Brights movement?
Tagline Talk
A Tagline Q&A
Word Talk
The generic noun form of bright is a tool to lay emphasis on the shared naturalistic worldview of a potentially large aggregate of persons. The term offers many individuals a means to step forward free of socially burdensome labels to speak more candidly and positively about their outlook.
Backtalk!
The idea of the noun bright as an umbrella term covering individuals with a naturalistic worldview is controversial. Here are some comments from individuals, followed by a bit of counter-commentary on our part.
Essays on the Brights
The authors of these selections write as individuals and offer depictions of the Bright movement somewhat at variance. Nevertheless, the material offers useful background and exemplifies some of the controversy over the noun, bright.
