The Humanist virtues, as indicated in Barbara Smoker’s What’s this Humanism (1973), are intellectual integrity, tolerance, breadth of sympathy and co-operative endeavour. To this list I would add courage, self-discipline, and two traits which go together – a sense of proportion and a sense of humour.
Bet Cherrington, Facing the World: An Anthology of Poetry for Humanists (1989)
The obituary below appeared in New Humanist, December 1998
BET CHERRINGTON was born in Lucknow, India, where her father was in the Indian Civil Service. She was educated in a variety of English schools and also attended a German Lyceum in Gotha. She obtained a place to study modern languages at Newnham College, Cambridge. Unfortunately while at Newnham College, she suffered a nervous breakdown and left the University. Then she went to work with her sister who had started a market garden in Hampshire.
Three strands of her life are seen in these beginnings: her love of literature and languages and especially poetry, her interest in plants and nature, and a tendency to mental illness which persisted throughout her life.
She moved to London and married Paul, with whom she enjoyed 61 years of close and deep companionship. She had three children, two of whom died, one as a child and one as a young man. Despite recurring depression she enjoyed some teaching of languages.
She was an active and caring individual taking part in Liberal politics and in the local Oxfam shop. She was also active in women’s rights and abortion law reform.
She was a convinced humanist and compiled the anthology: Facing the World: an anthology of poems for humanists, which was published by the RPA in 1989 and raised considerable interest. ‘Facing the world’ was truly what she did in the face of many difficulties. She lived a life of contradiction — the deep depression at times contrasted with great talent and activity and fulfilment. Many have deeply valued her poetry anthology — an expression of her wide literary knowledge and her committed humanism.
A humanist funeral ceremony was conducted on 30 June 1998 by Jim Herrick.
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