47 Humanist Quotes and Sayings

Humanists are supporters or followers of the principles of humanism. Humanism is a philosophical thought that puts forward humans’ values and positions and makes it a criterion in all things. Humanism has become a kind of ethical doctrine whose scope extends to humans’ entire ethnicity, in contrast to traditional ethical systems that only apply to certain ethnic groups. The word “humanist” is derived from the Renaissance era through the Italian poet Lodovico Ariosto. Everyone has to be a humanist. There are many collections of humanist quotes and sayings that you can use as motivation.

Humanism was not wrong in thinking that truth, beauty, liberty, and equality are of infinite value, but in thinking that man can get them for himself without grace. – Simone Weil

Hope is believing in something that eludes you. It’s a desperate feeling in a desperate situation.     – Carroll Bryant

The true humanist maintains a just balance between sympathy and selection. – Irving Babbitt

We need to inject humanism into our AI education and research by injecting all walks of life into the process. – Fei-Fei Li

To be a ‘believer’ does not make you superior to others; but to be a ‘humanist’ does make it so! – Mehmet Murat Ildan

Humanism is a rational philosophy informed by science, inspired by art, and motivated by compassion.     – American Humanist Association

We have a great history; we have a great humanist face to put forward to the world. – Emmanuel Macron

It’s no secret that in New York during the last 30 years there has been a tragic exodus from the churches into materialism, secularism and humanism. – Billy Graham

Humanism is the commitment to the use of reason in human affairs, applied in the service of compassion.     – Hans Jürgen Eysenck

The Humanist view of life is progressive and optimistic, in awe of human potential, living without fear of judgement and death, finding enough purpose and meaning in life, love and leaving a good legacy. – Polly Toynbee

Being a Humanist means trying to behave decently without expectation of rewards or punishment after you are dead. – Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

Humanism: an exaltation of freedom, but one limited by our need to exercise it as an integral part of nature and society. – John Ralston Saul

The weal of the race, and the cause of humanity, here and now, are enough To give life meaning and death as well. – Edgar Lee Masters

Confucius was a humanist and an agnostic.     – Hu Shih

A humanist is someone who does the right thing even though she knows that no one is watching. – Dick McMahan

Maintaining spirituality and humanism are the keys to success. It’s a balance. – Bikram Choudhury

We have to claim anarchy and realize that systems have a life of their own that is anti-humanist. There is definitely an anti-humanist tendency in all systems. – Terence McKenna

Most men have bound their eyes with one or another handkerchief, and attached themselves to some one of these communities of opinion.     – Ralph Waldo Emerson

What we need to do is to humanize the scientist and simonize the humanist. – C.P. Snow

Men are from Earth, women are from Earth. Deal with it.     – George Carlin

It seems to me that in our lifetime we have passed from the wreck of liberal humanism to the beginning of a new recognition of dogma: isn’t it rather tremendous? – Ruth Pitter

This Humanist whom no beliefs constrained Grew so broad-minded he was scatter-brained. – J. V. Cunningham

Humanists recognize that it is only when people feel free to think for themselves, using reason as their guide, that they are best capable of developing values that succeed in satisfying human needs and serving human interests. – Isaac Asimov

A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence.     – David Hume

My feminism is humanism, with the weakest being those who I represent, and that includes many beings and life forms, including some men. – Sandra Cisneros

We have to replace beauty, which is a cultural concept, with goodness, which is a humanist concept. – Philippe Starck

The real enemy is the secular humanist mindset which seeks to destroy everything that is good in this society. – Paul Weyrich

The feelings of the individual are the prime authority in ethics. ‘If it feels good, do it’ is the basic ethical ideal of humanism. – Yuval Noah Harari

Education no longer has a humanist end or any value in itself; it has only one goal, to create technicians. – Jacques Ellul

The four characteristics of humanism are curiosity, a free mind, belief in good taste, and belief in the human race.     – E.M. Forster

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

Religion, as it is understood in the West, does not lead toward progress, and science does not lead toward humanism. – Alija Izetbegovic

A humanist is anyone who rejects the attempt to describe or account for man wholly on the basis of physics, chemistry or animal behaviour. – Joseph Wood Krutch

Life has no meaning a priori. It is up to you to give it a meaning, and value is nothing but the meaning that you choose.     – Jean-Paul Sartre

Intelligence, guided by kindness, is the highest wisdom. – Robert Green Ingersoll

From my point of view, there is a tremendous amount to be said for secular humanism. – Vidal Sassoon

Science itself is a humanist in the sense that it doesn’t discriminate between human beings, but it is also morally neutral. – Max Lerner

Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge.    – Charles Darwin

The present age has seen a great slump in humanist values. – Christopher Dawson

Christianity and Judaism have gone through the laundromat of humanism and enlightenment, but that is not the case with Islam. – Pim Fortuyn

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

Humanism is about the world, not about humanism.” – Harold Blackham

Our humanist attitude should therefore throughout be to stress what we all have in common with each other and relegate quarrelsome religion to the private domain where it can do [less] harm. – Hermann Bondi

I don’t find biology as interesting as politics and humanism. I talk more about existential stuff. – Dana Carvey

A humanist is anyone who rejects the attempt to describe or account for man wholly on the basis of physics, chemistry or animal behaviour. – Joseph Wood Krutch

The value of life lies not in its length, but in the use we make of it. – Michel de Montaigne

Dutch values are based on Christianity, on Judaism, on humanism. – Geert Wilders

Some expressions from various quotes about humanists can make you change your life to be more excited, and the above quotes on for motivation in living life for the better.