Roslyn Mould on the Difficulties of Interfaith Dialogue
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): The Good Men Project
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2024/10/10
Roslyn Mould is the Vice President of Humanists International (2023-). She was Secretary and Chair of the Young Humanists International African Working Group from 2014 to 2019 and a Board Member for Humanists International from 2019 to 2023. She was a member of the Humanist Association of Ghana since it was founded in 2012 and held several positions, including President of the group from 2015 to 2019. She is the Coordinator for the West African Humanist Network, an Advisory Board member of the FoRB Leadership Network (UK), a Board member for LGBT+ Rights Ghana, and President of Accra Atheists. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Linguistics and Modern Languages.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: How do you bridge the gap between humanists, liberal religious people, and traditionalists?
Roslyn Mould: Tolerance bridges the gap between religious and non-religious communities. Generally, humanists and non-religious people tend to be more open and inclusive, often adopting the attitude, “Let’s all get along; everyone has the right to their beliefs, and we accept that.” However, religious individuals are often less tolerant of differing perspectives, especially those who challenge their beliefs or are perceived as nonconformists.
Jacobsen: How do you feel about being in the company of people who resent your existence? How do you navigate interactions with those who reject your existence and build bridges with those who accept your existence and show essential tolerance?
Roslyn Mould: As president of the Humanist Association of Ghana, I aimed to promote humanism in a deeply religious society. We wanted to normalize atheism and secularism while collaborating with religious groups without making them feel threatened. Do you understand? For many religious people here, if you’re not aligned with their faith, you’re considered to be against God or even aligned with the devil. There is no gray area.
The challenge was how to normalize atheism and non-belief. We shared common ground with other organizations and NGOs, such as feminist and environmental groups, and found commonality with cultural groups. Whenever there were events related to art, music, or causes vital to humanists, we participated as a group, often wearing our Humanist Association of Ghana t-shirts.
For example, we attended environmental events like the March for Science and Women’s March. We made a concerted effort to show up in numbers, which piqued people’s curiosity. People would see us at these events, united around a common cause, and they would begin to wonder who we were.
People are at these events, whether for art or music, because they love those things. Over time, they would ask questions like, “Who are you? What is humanism?” When they realized that we were like-minded in our interests but didn’t share their religious beliefs, it helped them see us as more normalized. We weren’t witches or demonic figures because we were non-religious. By starting with what we had in common, rather than leading with our atheism, we made people more comfortable, which allowed for collaboration even after they learned that we were atheists or non-religious.
And even further, out of curiosity, they will invite us to upcoming or future events. Do you understand?
Jacobsen: Another essential part probably supersedes that—your response prompted this. How do you handle the laity who, in conversations, are influenced by elders with supernatural hate theologies? So, they see you as a demon, under Satan’s control, or even as a witch. These are not just accusations but genuine beliefs. People genuinely believe these things, as Dr. Leo Igwe’s research and activism have shown us.
Mould: Yes.
Jacobsen: How do you even overcome that barrier from regular people who happen to be immersed in those communities? They have so much invested in it.
Mould: That’s tricky—there’s no clear-cut formula to it. But you have to keep demonstrating through humanism. For example, the Humanist Association of Ghana adopted the motto “Good Without God,” right? The fact that we emphasize “good” shows that we aren’t people with evil intent. We try to highlight the positive aspects of humanism to show that we are not as frightening as they may think. However, many humanists in Ghana are still very much in hiding. Their parents, families, friends, and communities have no idea they’re non-religious. We’re still living in secrecy.
It’s not something we’re necessarily comfortable with. Very few of us are privileged enough to come out openly and use our real identities to speak about our atheism or non-religious beliefs. So, it’s a delicate situation. Years ago, when we worked with the Humanist Service Corps on anti-witchcraft issues, that was part of not only assisting victims of witchcraft accusations but also demonstrating that we don’t fear witchcraft because we don’t believe it’s real.
Secondly, we show that we are thoughtful and compassionate, which is why we, rather than religious groups, are the ones on the ground helping these victims. Religious people, instead, are often the ones condemning these vulnerable women. Do you understand?
Jacobsen: Yes.
Mould: We try to create as much awareness as possible that we can be good without God. We can live with a stance of reason and still be kind to people, contribute positively to society, and so on. We do this through our website, social media, and other platforms, trying to demonstrate that it’s possible to not believe in supernatural things and still be decent human beings. We are not witches, nor are we fearful.
However, much work still needs to be done because these beliefs have been entrenched for generations. It’s ingrained in our culture—witchcraft, the supernatural—it’s all tied into our worldview. Do you understand? So, it’s going to take time. You can’t untangle or unravel all of this in a single day. It’s a long process, and we are still on that journey. I wouldn’t say we have all the answers yet. We are still advising our members, who are still in hiding and fearful of being exposed.
Jacobsen: Yes.
Mould: So until you are financially independent and more comfortable coming out yourself, we advise our members to stay private because it could be dangerous if they were to come out. It isn’t easy. Another thing I’ve been doing is working with the African Center for Parliamentary Affairs. They collaborate with the International Panel of Parliamentarians for Freedom of Religion and Belief.
They invite me to certain events where civil society organizations (CSOs), NGOs, and especially humanists can interact with parliamentarians, lawmakers, and legislators. We aim to help them understand why, in every decision they make in parliament, they must respect people’s right to freedom of religion and belief and avoid imposing their personal beliefs on all citizens. Not everyone believes the same as they do, or at all. Do you understand? So, there are ways we’re addressing these issues from the top.
We are engaging with leaders to make them aware of freedom of religion and belief issues, something they might have never questioned before. Many of them are just as unaware as the general public that some people do not believe in religion at all. Some leaders, even within the government, need to understand this fully. So, we need to educate them.
I’m glad to have received recognition from the African Center for Parliamentary Affairs (ACIPA), which invites me and other humanists to these events. This allows us to interact with legislators in a safe space to explain these issues and emphasize why they need to support freedom of religion and belief.
Jacobsen: Yes, that’s important. I want to be mindful of the time.
Mould: Right, of course.
Jacobsen: I’ll take this recording, Ros. Thank you for your time. I’ll get this to you soon. Is that cool?
Mould: Yes, yes, that’s cool.
Jacobsen: Okay.
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