The World Pantheist Movement (WPM) is the world's largest organization of people associated with pantheism, a philosophy which asserts that spirituality should be centered on nature. The WPM promotes strict Naturalistic Pantheism without belief in any supernatural beings, realms, or powers.
The WPM grew out of a mailing list started by Paul Harrison in 1997, arising around his Scientific Pantheism website. An initial group of 15 volunteers worked on a joint statement of agreed beliefs (the Pantheist Credo). [1] The WPM officially opened for membership in December 1999.
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The official views of the World Pantheist Movement are listed in the nine points of the Belief Statement (see external links). These are summarized as follows[4]:
The WPM encourages wonder and awe at the beauty and mystery of the Universe and fosters the full range of positive emotional responses to life. The WPM promotes ethical principles such as respect for the rights of humans and other living creatures, non-discrimination, justice and peace.
It respects the scientific method as humanity's most accurate approach for deepening its understanding of nature, while accepting that science is a never-ending quest and that some technologies have created massive social and environmental problems. It accepts that there are some questions that science may never answer - such as why anything exists, rather than nothing at all. It does not give any credence to ideas such as a separate soul distinct from the body, or of the consciousness' survival after death, but believes that people achieve a form of immortality through the ongoing effects of their actions, the things they create, others' memories, the legacy of their genes, and the recycling of their elements in nature.
It does not prescribe any particular set of religious practices, instead leaving the matter up to individuals. Pantheistic activity is viewed not as a ritual that must be upheld in order to placate gods and spirits, or to follow rules prescribed in scripture, but rather as an individual expression of one's deep feelings towards Nature and the wider Universe. Among members and friends of the WPM, the most common practices are meditation and close, daily observation of nature. Both of these are sometimes accompanied by the use of natural objects such as pebbles, shells, bark etc. About a quarter of WPM members report using some form of pagan celebration, but this is done for self-expression and fun, rather than out of literal belief in pagan theologies.
Members and friends may meet in small groups, the format of which varies. Groups may discuss general ideas; watch and discuss relevant (often nature-related) books, or films; share personal experiences; go on nature outings; or participate in nature conservation projects or other forms of community service.
Viewing the recycling of human elements in soil, water, and the atmosphere as a major element of human "immortality," the WPM supports the "natural death" approach. In this context, it seeks to return the elements to the natural cycle in the fastest and most responsible way possible, such as burial in a biodegradable container in nature-reserve type grounds.[5]
The WPM is governed by a board of 13 directors. Its main forms of activity consist of
The WPM has a policy of accepting a diversity of language and methods of celebration among its members, although - following large surveys of its website visitors' preferences - it generally avoids overtly theistic or religious language in its official literature. Some members view themselves as atheists, while others hold agnostic stances. Some members use or theistic vocabulary, however they do not believe in a thinking creator god, and simply use the word "God" to describe their feelings of reverence towards Nature and the wider Universe. Some members, while accepting the basic naturalistic beliefs of the WPM, like to combine these with symbols and ceremonies from other traditions, most commonly paganism, philosophical Taoism, and Buddhism.
The WPM does not interfere with or promote any specific personal choices regarding sexuality or the use of recreational or psychotropic drugs. Similarly, members have a diversity of views on vegetarianism, hunting, non-violence, and many other political, social, and technological issues. All these issues are left to members' understanding of Naturalistic Pantheistic morality and the Belief Statement.
Paul Harrison, the World Pantheist Movement founder, was vice president of the Universal Pantheist Society (UPS) in the mid-1990's, but resigned after becoming skeptical of the possibility of promoting "generic" pantheism given the very wide variety of beliefs held by different types of pantheist (specifically, by those with naturalistic beliefs and those with dualist or idealist beliefs). The WPM has since gained a membership considerably larger than the UPS, along with a wider circle of non-members who participate in its online forum and Facebook pages.