An important aspect of adopting an experimental mindset involves reorienting what we do when we gather in groups from ritual to experiment.
Most traditional faith-based and supernaturally oriented communities rely on repetitive rituals in the form of prayer and other activities, however in the practice of Naturalistic Humanism, rituals play a much less prominent role. In traditional faith based and supernaturally oriented communities, many rituals involve an out loud declaration of faith either spoken, chanted, or sang in unison with other congregants. When beliefs are not based on verifiable evidence, such public assertions are important and need to be executed with regularity. In addition to demonstrating devotion to a god, some rituals are believed to have magical powers which can, among other things, bless, protect, and heal.
In Naturalistic Humanism, where there is no need for participants to demonstrate fidelity to ideas lacking objective evidence, and where rituals are not believed to confer supernatural benefits, rituals are few. Although there are rituals which have at least some evidence of efficacy, such as the physical and mental benefits of activities like group singing, group dance, daily meditation, and, when there’s been the loss of a loved one, mourning rituals, generally the practice of Naturalistic Humanism is more focused on experiment than ritual.
In scientific naturalism and in social science, experimentation, functions, in some important ways, like rituals do in faith-based and supernatural belief systems. Both involve a series of precise steps that need to be executed in a particular sequence. Both can provide participants a sense of encountering something that is believed to be factual or true. Both claim to provide a glimpse of the nature of reality, normally unseen. But while experiments can be conducted to demonstrate known scientific principles, experimentation also has the unique capability to produce results that were previously only hypothesized, and even produce results that are completely unanticipated. This is especially true when we gather together with an experimental mindset. Prioritizing experiment over ritual, a Naturalistic Humanist community supports critical thinking, curiosity, creativity, flexibility, playfulness, becoming comfortable exploring the unknown, a willingness to take risks, and being open to sharing more of our knowledge and experiences. Fostering an experimental mindset is highly beneficial to our personal lives, but it’s also essential for our society as we struggle with the dilemma of accelerating technological change and lagging social progress.