Humanism. Practitioners of REBT view human beings as holistic, goal-directed
organisms who are important because they are alive (Dryden, 1990, p. 4). This
position is consistent with that of ethical humanism, which emphasizes human
interests over the interests of a deity, leading to misinterpretations that Ellis is
against religion. He has stated, “It is not religion, but religiosity, that is a cause
of psychopathology. Religiosity is an absolutistic faith that is not based on fact”
(Ellis, 1986a, p. 3). Ellis (1986b, 2000) believes that accepting absolute notions of right and wrong, and of damnation if one acts wrongly, without thinking them
through leads to guilt, anxiety, depression, and other psychological dysfunctions.