Whatever a fool learns,
It only makes him duller.
Knowledge cleaves his head.
For then he wants recognition,
A place before other people,
A place over other people.
"Let them know my work,
Let everyone look to me for direction."
Such are his desires,
Such is his swelling pride.
---Dhammapada
The challenge of secular humanist practice in the 21st century is the double edged sword of knowledge which comes with education. I believe it takes a considerable amount of formal or informal education to progress from ritualistic religion to humanism. Academia or School of Life, either or both bring the thinker, the awakened, to humanism in name and/or practice.
Class consciousness is corrosive to humanist practice. Education and its socioeconomic benefits can lead to an unconscious and poisonous elitism in the humanist, as it has in the religious for centuries. The intentional denial of classism in the U.S. presents a particularly difficult challenge to humanist awareness in practice. The veneer of political correctness and superficial diversity, based in race and ethnicity, covers an entrenched socioeconomic class system, which is becoming more and more destructive to the democratic ideals of the U.S..
Within humanist communities, often centered in cosmopolitan centers, which in themselves are becoming economically gated communities for the wealthy, the challenge of elitism can often be ignored and minimized. It may be fashionable in some circles to scoff at the concept that simplicity, modesty and even poverty can lead to greater mindfulness, liberation and compassion. The secular cult of materialism and greed may be seen as acceptable and even honorable among "Sunday humanists" as it has been for centuries among "Sunday Christians", for example.
Arrogance leads to prescriptive moralism. The elite bolster their own holiness, their own superiority, in endless, subtle ways. Before long, a jewel-encrusted Hierophant is dispensing indulgences within a gated, vaulted cathedral, while the great mass of humanity starves on its steps.
The solution is simple to see and difficult to master. This is the middle way. This is the true meaning of practice. Practice is lived on the ground with the people in every situation of every day. This is humanist practice, as I see it and attempt to live it.
