Humanism is a progressive philosophy of life that, without supernaturalism, affirms our ability and responsibility to lead ethical lives of personal fulfillment that aspire to the greater good of humanity.
Humanism and Its Aspirations
Upcoming Events
Humanist Explorations - Letter From an Unknown Woman
Saturday, September 6, 2025, 2:30PM
In the nineteen twenties and thirties, Stefan Zweig, a Viennese Jew, was a highly regarded and extremely popular author, with numerous works of both fiction and non-fiction. One of the world’s most widely translated writers, he completed his memoir The World of Yesterday in exile, having fled his beloved Europe in 1934 with the rise of Nazism. In 1942, heartbroken over the state of culture and civilization, he committed suicide with his wife in Brazil. Decades later, in 2014, the filmmaker Wes Anderson based his film The Grand Budapest Hotel on Zweig’s work. One of Zweig’s best-known works, Letter From an Unknown Woman, was dramatized in a film directed by Max Ophüls in 1948, starring Joan Fontaine and Louis Jourdan. This touching and heartrending tale is our presentation this month.
Join us for snacks and conversation, followed by the the film and then discussion.
HAC Timely Topics: "Tom Lehrer in Copenhagen Concert"
Saturday, September 13, 2025, 4:30PM
We’ll start with a potluck dinner at 4:30 pm, followed at 5:15 pm by a 50-minute video of Tom Lehrer’s 1967…
Monthly Meeting
Monday, September 15, 2025, 6:30PM
This is our monthly meeting, held on the third Monday of the month at 700 Hartford Turnpike in Hamden.
We usually meet for coffee …
Board Meeting
Sunday, September 21, 2025, 7:00PM
All members of the Humanist Association of Connecticut are welcome to attend. If you have something to bring to the board or wish …
Online event
Northern Social Dinner
Tuesday, September 23, 2025, 7:00PM
We’ll be meeting again in Wallingford at Pacific Buffet & Grill (https://pacificbuffetandgrill.com/). (Buffet Prices:…
Book Discussions
"The Myth of Normal" by Gabor Maté
Saturday, September 20, 2025, 2:30PM
Our book for September is The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, & Healing in a Toxic Culture by Canadian physician Gabor Maté.
From Amazon: In this revolutionary book, renowned physician Gabor Maté eloquently dissects how, in Western countries that pride themselves on their healthcare systems, chronic illness and general ill health are on the rise. Nearly 70 percent of Americans are on at least one prescription drug; more than half take two. In Canada, every fifth person has high blood pressure. In Europe, hypertension is diagnosed in more than 30 percent of the population. And everywhere, adolescent mental illness is on the rise. So what is really “normal” when it comes to health?
Over four decades of clinical experience, Maté has come to recognize the prevailing understanding of “normal” as false, neglecting the roles that trauma and stress, and the pressures of modern-day living, exert on our bodies and our minds at the expense of good health. For all our expertise and technological sophistication, Western medicine often fails to treat the whole person, ignoring how today’s culture stresses the body, burdens the immune system, and undermines emotional balance.
“An important, insightful book explaining how society became a vortex of mental illness and offering possible remedies.” – Kirkus Reviews
"The Undertow" by Jeff Sharlet
Saturday, October 25, 2025, 2:30PM
Our book for October is The Undertow: Scenes from a Slow Civil War by journalist and author Jeff Sharlet.
Note: Date is 4th,…
"Under Tiberius" by Nick Tosches
Saturday, November 15, 2025, 2:30PM
Our book for November is Under Tiberius by the late journalist and biographer Nick Tosches.
From Amazon:
[A] thrilling story of…
You can download the New Haven Free Public Library’s flyer for the 2024 book discussions at the Wilson Branch.
Our Calendar
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You can RSVP for most HAC events via meetup.com.
Newsletter
Titles selected for our book discussions can be found in most local libraries or ordered from bookstores such as Barnes and Noble.
HAC is a chapter of the American Humanist Association, a member of the Connecticut Coalition of Reason, and a UU Humanists local group.