The Last Stand: Science vs. Superstition

This print, published in 1899, shows Ethical Culture founder Felix Adler and other representatives of scientific thought in battle against superstition and dogmatism. Although the machine gun hardly fits with Adler’s emphasis on tolerance and cooperation between those of all beliefs, its barrels (labelled history, archaeology, evolution, enlightenment, and geology) and ammunition (scientific facts, historical facts, rational religion) speak to the the origins of the organised humanist movement: rooted in reason and freedom of thought. Felix Adler, who founded the New York Society for Ethical Culture in 1876, directly influenced fellow American Stanton Coit, who went on to be a key figure in the 1896 formation of the Union of Ethical Societies (now Humanists UK).

_{Image: The last stand – science versus superstition by Udo J. Keppler, Library of Congress}