Concept
Free Inquiry
Overview
Free Inquiry is a bimonthly journal of secular humanist opinion and commentary published by the Council for Secular Humanism, a program of the Center for Inquiry. Philosopher Paul Kurtz was the editor-in-chief from its inception in 1980 until stepping down in 2010. Kurtz was succeeded by Tom Flynn who worked as Editor in Chief until 2021. Paul Fidalgo was named editor in 2022, beginning with the October/November issue. Feature articles cover a wide range of topics from a freethinking perspective. Common themes are separation of church and state, science and religion, dissemination of freethought, and applied philosophy. Regular contributors include well-known scholars in the fields of science and philosophy.
Overview adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0; see the article history for authors).
Possible passages
Found by search and not yet checked by a person; they may only mention the idea in passing.
Reason and persuasion are the only practicable instruments. To make way for these, free inquiry must be indulged; and how can we wish others to indulge it while we refuse it ourselves. But every State, says an inquisitor, has established some religion. No two, say I, have established the same. Is this a proof of the infallibility of establishments?
Thomas Jefferson, The Writings of Thomas Jefferson, Vol. 8
Names Free Inquiry.
The result in all these cases is the same: free inquiry is checked, and on the most important matter in the world the child is met with dogma or with stony silence.
Bertrand Russell, Why Men Fight
States what Free Inquiry is; names Free Inquiry.
Inquiry is emancipated. It is encouraged to attend to every fact that is relevant to defining the problem or need, and to follow up every suggestion that promises a clue. The barriers to free inquiry are so many and so solid that mankind is to be congratulated that the very act of investigation is capable of itself becoming a delightful and absorbing pursuit, capable of enlisting on its side man's sporting…
John Dewey, Reconstruction in Philosophy
States what Free Inquiry is; names Free Inquiry.
Philosophers who discussed Free Inquiry
- George H. Smith
- Sam Harris
- John Passmore
- The End of Faith
- Victor J. Stenger
- Freedom from Religion Foundation
- Sven Ove Hansson
Related ideas
- Separation of church and state
- Tibor Machan
- Christopher Hitchens
- Center for Inquiry
- Richard Dawkins
- Secularism
- Freethought
- Secular humanism
- The New York Times
- Paul Kurtz
- Applied philosophy
- Russell Blackford
Place in the tradition
Part of Naturalism (philosophy).