Occam's Razors

"entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem"

Welcome to the website of Occam's Razors. This is a new group at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville for all students with the assistance of faculty and local Freethinkers.

College is a time of transition whether you are leaving your parent’s house or returning to school as an older adult. College is a time for exploring and defining who you are as a person and your place in society as you learn more about the world in general and your intended field in particular. During this time we come to explore many issues in depth that may not have been available before such as political, social, or religious issues. As a result, some beliefs or even our worldview may become unstable thereby creating a need to explore manifold ideas and philosophies.

Our group is here to give students an opportunity to learn about Freethought and Freethinkers who have contributed to the betterment of our society such as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Albert Einstein, and Isaac Asimov. This is a place where you can find a community of students, faculty, and local citizens who accept you for who you are, not what you may or may not believe; other than sharing a disbelief in the supernatural, Freethinkers do not necessarily share any other characteristics or beliefs, which makes for a diverse and interesting group.

We are also here as a resource for religious true-believers who want to learn more about what it means to be a Freethinker, what theist/atheist differences are, and what our common ground may be. For example, Humanism offers a highly developed ethical philosophy based upon modern concepts without any reference to a higher power. There are many other examples of overlapping grounds between theism and atheism but I will leave that for future discussions and articles.

While we show respect for people we may not necessarily show respect for all beliefs, ideas, or concepts; this is inevitable as all beliefs are not equal and some may be harmful. This may be more understandable to those familiar with the concept of “hate the sin, love the sinner.” We may better define this as “respect the person, question the belief.” Religion is no longer free from public inquiry and that is one of the goals of this group; we are not just here as Freethought diplomats or a social group.

We have something to offer everyone, especially those who have never found religion to make much sense. Many of us grew up in church and religious homes but never could seem to “get it” despite all the prayers and effort. We always felt that there had to be an alternative but, until recently, there was not much publicized about Freethought, Humanism, or atheism. Whatever your personal beliefs, you are welcome here as long as it is for respectful and open discussion, not to proselytize.