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| Group Profile | Brief History | Beliefs | Controversies | Links | Bibliography |
The roots of secular humanism can be found in the works of ancient Greek and Chinese philosophers. Some Greek philosophers, starting with Protagoras in the 5th century BC, focused on analyzing man instead of nature as their predecessors had done. Humanism also borrows from Naturalism, a branch of philosophy that considers man, earth, space and time as one Nature. Outside of Nature nothing exists, including superphysical supreme beings and an afterlife. The first naturalist was Aristotle, who codified the laws of logic and sought to explain the world, noting the role of process in Nature and civilization.1 Naturalism disappeared from the limelight for two thousand years, but then regained its popularity after Charles Darwin's publication of The Origin of the Species. One of the people inspired by Darwin's work was a professor of philosophy at Columbia University named John Dewey, who was coincidentally born the same year as The Origin of the Species was published. Dewey wrote what were at the time the most scientific and up-to-date works on Naturalism, advocating that the scientific method should be applied in all areas of life.2
Another branch of philosophy starting with the Greeks that influenced the development of Humanism is Materialism. The basis of Materialist philosophy is matter in motion, with all things being explainable by the laws of physics and chemistry. The earliest materialists on record are Democritus and Epicurus. Democritus is well known as the one who first formulated the idea of the atom. Epicurus built on Democritus's ideas by pointing out deviations in atomic theory that allow room for freedom of choice instead of pure determinism. He also taught that there was no divine intervention in human affairs and that there was no afterlife.3 Like Naturalism, work in Materialism also went through a prolonged hiatus. Finally in the seventeenth century, Materialism found a new supporter in Thomas Hobbes, who interpreted Materialism to mean that God must have a corporeal nature.4 In the nineteenth century, Ludwig Feuerbach, a German philosopher, wrote that God is nothing more than the personification of human qualities that people value most. Marx and Engels built on Fuerbach to describe their idea of Dialectical Materialism, a philosophy that the mind is not only an organic function, but is also used to mold the outside world.5 Chinese roots to Humanism lie in the teachings of Buddha and Confucius. Buddha taught altruism and self-renunciation as a way of overcoming life's miseries. Confucius focused more on political and social life than Buddha, stressing men's happiness in this life, knowledge, and human interrelationships.6 The Bible itself also provides part of the foundation for Humanism. The Song of Solomon and Ecclesiastes teach that one should enjoy life while one is able, even though human happiness is merely transient.7 Although the New Testament ethics run counter to Humanism, Jesus repeatedly advocates Humanist ideals, like social equality, altruism, and peace on earth. A fourth century Christian named Arius used this interpretation of Jesus as a great man to support his view that because of his human attributes, Jesus was of a different substance than God. Although outlawed as heresy, this view came to life again during the Protestant Reformation, giving birth to the Unitarian Movement. The Unitarians stressed the humanity of Jesus Christ. In 1825, the Unitarians broke away from the Congregationalists and formed their own domination in the United States and Europe. A century later, some leaders in the Unitarian denomination started the movement later known as Religious Humanism. 8 This movement culminated in Humanist Manifesto I in 1933. Forty years later, a group professing disbelief in the supernatural broke off from this movement, leading to Paul Kurtz drafting Humanist Manifesto II in 1973.Negative sentiments are typically implied when the concepts "cult" and "sect" are employed in popular discourse. Since the Religious Movements Homepage seeks to promote religious tolerance and appreciation of the positive benefits of pluralism and religious diversity in human cultures, we encourage the use of alternative concepts that do not carry implicit negative stereotypes. For a more detailed discussion of both scholarly and popular usage of the concepts "cult" and "sect," please visit our Conceptualizing "Cult" and "Sect" page, where you will find additional links to related issues.
From the webpage for the Council for Secular Humanism, these are the official beliefs of Secular Humanism:
To Secular Humanists, the best part about religion is the encouragement to dedicate oneself to ethical ideals. However, other aspects of religious faith are undesirable. It does a disservice to humanity through its preaching of beliefs in supernatural forces that cannot be proven scientifically. It inhibits people from reaching their full potential. People should be taught to save themselves and not rely on a deity to do it. Promises of an afterlife are harmful because they distract people from more present concerns. However, traditional religions are not the only problem; other ideologies can be just as bad.10
Our rational faculties are the best tools at our disposal. Neither faith nor passion is an adequate substitute. Reason should always be balanced with compassion, and this combination is the best way to solve human problems.11 Individuals should be encouraged to fulfill their full potential. That requires as much autonomy as possible without sacrificing social responsibility. To this end, Secular Humanists believe that civilized society needs to be tolerant of sexual practices. This includes accepting contraception, abortion and divorce. A responsible attitude toward sexuality, including the encouragement of intimacy, sensitivity, respect, and honesty in relationships, needs to be developed. Also included under autonomy is the promotion of civil liberties in all societies. This includes not only the standard freedoms of the press, religion, association, the right to a jury trial, and the right to universal education, but also the rights to die with dignity, euthanasia, and suicide. It is also important that all institutions become more democratic in nature. Church and state should be separated at all levels. The state should encourage moral, political, religious, and social plurality, but not show favoritism to any of them, or support particular bodies through public funds. Moral equlaity must be practiced on all levels, and discrimination on the basis of race, religion, sex, age, and ethnicity must end.12 Economic systems should be based on increasing the economic well being of everyone. Therefore, economic growth and development cannot be handled by one nation alone. Countries can no longer divide themselves up by national boundaries. Travel restrictions need to cease. Nations should stop using force against each other. The world also needs to work together on environmental concerns to repair and stop ecological damage. A system of world law and transnational government needs to be established.13 The key to human progress is through technology. However, it must be carefully used so it does not cause harm or destruction. Most importantly, no attempt should be made to use technology to control or modify humans without their consent.14
Secular Humanism first became a topic in the Supreme Court in the Case of Torasco v. Watkins. In that case, Torasco was an appointee by the governor of Maryland to the office of Notary Public. He was refused his commission because he would not declare his belief in the existence of God as required by the Maryland state constitution. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Torasco, citing that "Among religions in this country which do not teach what would generally be considered a belief in the existence of God are Buddhism, Taoism, Ethical Culture, Secular Humanism and others." 15
Christian Fundamentalists have seized upon the wording in that decision as one of the reasons that they reject Humanists' claims that Humanism is not a religion. They also point out the Humanism has scriptures (the two Humanist Manifestos), dogma, an object of worship (mankind itself), a priesthood, missionaries, seminaries, temples (public schools), and its own support base. 16 Fundamentalists are outraged by Secular Humanist beliefs and their perceived influence in society. They see Secular Humanism as a "Godless, man-centered philosophy of life that rejects moral absolutes and traditional values. . . This worldview is the most harmful, anti-American, anti-Christian philosophy in our country today." 17 And since many government sponsored institutions require a secular basis so as to not embrace any particular religion, Fundamentalists have accused Secular Humanism as the pervading religion in public institutions. As the basis for political liberalism it will turn the United States into a modern day Sodom and Gomorrah. If liberals gain control of the country, they will remove religious broadcasting from the major networks and make it impossible for the conservative movement to use bulk mail to educate members and raise money.18Humanists are supposed to be enemies of the family, too. Fundamentalists have accused Humanists of taking control of children's sexual choices away from parents and instead putting it in the hands of schools, Planned Parenthood, and abortion doctors. Sex education in school, also encouraged by Humanists, is frowned upon by Fundamentalists. 19
In the area of education, Humanists are apparently responsible for the decline in public schools. They have effectively removed Christian and traditional moral values from the classroom and replaced them with Humanism's "amoral" values. The Humanist educrats' method of teaching students to read, the "look-and-say" method, is responsible for lower levels of literacy in this country. 20 Fundamentalists also disapprove of the "open" classroom where students are asked their opinions because it denies "absolute right and wrong." They are also outraged over laws against prayer in public school and the teaching of evolutionism over creationism. In the state of Louisiana, State Senator Keith sponsored a bill, the "Creationism Act," requiring teachers in Louisiana public schools to teach both evolution and creationism if they were going to teach one or the other. Keith's reasons for sponsoring this bill were to further academic freedom, since, in his view, there were equal amounts of evidence for both views. He also disdained evolution because it supported philosophies contrary to his own religious beliefs, these philosophies including Secular Humanism and atheistism. The U.S. Supreme court ruled the Creationism Act as unconstitutional in Edwards v Aguillard because they did not see the bill as having a genuine secular purpose. However, as some of those who wrote the minority opinion pointed out, since the Supreme Court has also stated that Secular Humanism is a religion, then censoring creationism is a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.21
Another group that Fundamentalists have associated with Humanists is the American Civil Liberties Union. According to Fundamentalists, the ACLU is not only a Communist Front, but also the legal arm of the Humanist movement. This arm is using the court system and Humanist judges to undermine the moral fabric of America.22
Humanists feel that they are Fundamentalists' scapegoats, taking issue with the Fundamentalists argument that since the Supreme Court has said that American public institutions must be neutral with respect to religion, neutrality implies humanism, making humanism the dominant religion in America. Humanists see the separation of church and state as necessary, given the large number of people in this country who are not members of Judeo-Christian faiths. As for the Fundamentalists' claim that Humanists dominate the education system, that simply is not possible since there are many, many more teachers than there are members of Humanist organizations. And ironically, Humanists see the Moral Majority as having learned how to control electronic media instead of vice versa. 23
1. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 31-33.
2. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 36-37.
3. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 39.
4. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 41.
5. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 42-43.
6. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 48-49.
7. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 50.
8. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 51-54.
9. Council for Secular Humanism. The Affirmations of Humanism: A Statement of Principles.
10. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 292-293.
11. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 294.
12. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 294-297.
13. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 297-298.
14. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, 298-299.
15. Torasco v. Watkins. 1961.
16. LaHaye, Tim. The Battle for the Public Schools, 78-89.
17. LaHaye, Tim. The Race for the 21st Century, 139.
18. LaHaye, Tim. The Race for the 21st Century, 145-146.
19. LaHaye, Tim. The Race for the 21st Century, 142-143.
20. LaHaye, Tim. The Battle for the Public Schools, 31-33.
21. Edwards v Aguillard, 1987.
22. Lamont, Corliss. The Philosophy of Humanism, xi-xiii.
23. Kurtz, Paul. In Defense of Secular Humanism, 3-13.
| Group Profile | Brief History | Beliefs | Controversies | Links | Bibliography |
Created by Sefton Smyth
For Soc 466: Religion and the Internet
Fall Term, 2000
University of Virginia
Last modified: 07/24/01
