A survey published by MaltaToday over the Easter weekend took a look at the evolving social landscape in Malta by examining the role that religion plays in people’s lives. Some very interesting details emerged.

While a large (but shrinking) percentage of the Maltese people still identify as Catholics, fewer than half believe in Hell, a majority agree with assisted dying for terminally ill people, while fewer thana quarter accept the Church’s teachings on contraceptives.

Previous polls and surveys have shown that a growing percentage are at odds with the Church over its stance on homosexuality and gay marriage. Unsurprisingly, the younger generation are more likely to differ from the Church, as are those with a higher level of education.

It’s interesting to note the growing section of society who still call themselves Catholics but reject many of the core teachings of Catholicism. Clearly, the Church as an unassailable edifice sending down decrees to a cowed population to obey, and whose dogma is unquestionable, is long gone.

People nowadays are relying on their own judgement rather than the guidance of the clergy. The parish is no longer at the centre of people’s lives.

There is a wide variety of cultural events, places of entertainment and physical or intellectual endeavours. Professional services have supplanted the well-meaning but inexpert advice handed out by the parish priest. Churches are often almost empty, with the exception of special occasions like Easter, the village feast and Christmas. Many parents only attend Church “because of the children”, keeping it up until they get their communion and confirmation, after which even those tenuous threads are broken.

I suspect that the next generation will be even less likely to do these things just for the sake of appearances.

So, at which point does one stop being a Catholic? Some people do not believe in any afterlife at all. Others have long since rejected the idea of Mary’s perpetual virginity, or even that Jesus was somehow conceived supernaturally. If it becomes a simple matter of following some of Jesus’s teachings just like one might follow those of Gandhi or Martin Luther King or Malcolm X, is that still Catholicism?

I am going to be a bit presumptuous here and say that a significant number of people only say they’re Catholic because they don’t know what else to answer, or simply feel no need to identify as anything else.

Humanism stands for the building of a more humane society through an ethics based on human and other natural values

And yet, this does have a name. This shift away from a lifestyle based on religion, authoritarian decrees and belief in the supernatural, to a moral lifestyle based on human reason, ethics and rights is what Humanism is about.

Humanism has a long history - you can find humanist writings from the classical Greek and Roman periods all the way until today. The modern, organised movement however dates from the last century. The core concept is always the same - creating a moral lifestyle built on human reason, without resorting to anything supernatural or divine, rejecting the idea of special revelation to a chosen person or people, and thus the idea of an authority figure dictating matters.

This lifestyle has over the years developed a number of core principles, such as a respect for human rights, including the principle of equality, the use of science as the most reliable means for learning about the universe around us, and a desire to better ourselves and our societies.

You do not need a supernatural deity to do that, you need a good sense of empathy - the ability to put yourself in other people’s shoes, to feel for others.

This principle is so important that it is found in most of the religions and cultures from every part of the world. It is the principle behind the “Golden Rule”, to “treat others as you would like to be treated”.

From such core principles, Humanism promotes equality and thus opposes sexism, racism, homophobia and many other ways in which people have institutionalised discrimination, actively seeking ways to improve those areas in which more work remains to be done.

Humanism is a democratic and ethical life stance that affirms that human beings have the right and responsibility to give meaning and shape to their own lives.

Humanism stands for the building of a more humane society through an ethics based on human and other natural values in a spirit of reason and free inquiry through human capabilities.

Humanism is not theistic, and it does not accept supernatural views of reality.

If you believe in living a moral life without expecting a reward or punishment in an afterlife; if you believe in doing the right thing not because you are ordered to by an all-powerful being, but because it’s the right thing to do, you are probably a Humanist.

Ramon Casha is chairman of the Malta Humanist Association.