While it is normally agreed that
definitions have meaning and should attempt to actually convey something
consistent that has not been the case in many instances. (Fundamentalism comes to mind!) The goal to have secular humanism identified
as a religion has been waged by those who are secular humanists. They are the ones who have insisted that they
are indeed a religion. So it is
difficult to understand how, letting their own definitions of themselves be
used as an attack upon traditional religionists. Just for clarification here are a few points
that are germane to this topic.
1) The Humanist Manifesto 2000[i]
a) They openly
equate humanism with modernism. "Indeed, humanism and modernism have often
seemed synonymous for humanist ideas and values...” They even admit to having "ideas"
and "values."
b) They talk about
the "unique message of humanism"
and state it’s “commitment to scientific
naturalism," (a philosophical position), which enables the secular
humanists to "construct a coherent
world view disentangled from metaphysics or theology and based on the sciences." Secular humanists, by their own admission,
have a worldview!
c) They even
understand the urgency of proselytizing as they state: "[t]he
overriding need of the world community today is to develop a new Planetary
Humanism ..." They even go so
far as to declare that they want their worldview to "appl[y] to all members of the human species."
d) They actually
believe that their worldview is the best for humanity because "Planetary humanism holds forth great
promises for humankind."
2) The Humanist Manifesto II[ii]
a) They identify
that "[m]any kinds of humanism exist
in the contemporary world. The varieties and emphases of naturalistic humanism
include ‘scientific,’ ‘ethical,’ ‘democratic,’ ‘religious,’ and ‘Marxist’
humanism. Free thought, atheism, agnosticism, skepticism, deism, rationalism,
ethical culture, and liberal religion all claim to be heir to the humanist
tradition."
b) They acknowledge
that humanism has a moral force on its side by stating: "Humanism
thus interpreted is a moral force that has time on its side."
3) The Humanist Manifesto I[iii]
This is the foundation of the
secular humanists movement in the States.
(Visiting many of the humanists’ sites on the web will confirm
this.) It is amazing how much they
wanted to be understood in religious terms.
They used the term "religious
humanists" or one of its derivatives six times.
a) "In order that religious humanism may be
better understood we, the undersigned, desire to make certain affirmations
which we believe the facts of our contemporary life demonstrate." They acknowledge certain affirmations,
otherwise known as dogmas that are inherent to the religion of humanism.
b) "Such a vital, fearless, and frank religion
capable of furnishing adequate social goals ...” They understand their
religion to be vital, otherwise known as essential, and express a desire for
"social goals," otherwise known as political agendas.
c) Their first
affirmation, or dogma, is their creation theory of the universe as they affirm: "Religious
humanists regard the universe as self-existing and not created."
d) Their second
affirmation, or doctrine, is their creation theory of mankind as they
affirm: "Humanism believes that man is a part of nature and that he has emerged
as a result of a continuous process."
e) Their seventh
affirmation, or tenet, is their belief in the wholeness of man which cannot
separate the sacred from the secular as they affirm: "Nothing
human is alien to the religious. It includes labor, art, science, philosophy,
love, friendship, recreation -- all that is in its degree expressive of
intelligently satisfying human living. The distinction between the sacred and
the secular can no longer be maintained." In other words, it is impossible for the
humanists to separate his/her daily activities from his/her worldview, even
his/her desire to have the type of culture that reflects his/her particular worldview.
f) Their eight
affirmation, or creed, is their belief that humanism has a goal-oriented life
and seek to fulfill that goal in his/her life, even to the point of pushing for
"social" action as they affirm:
"Religious Humanism considers
the complete realization of human personality to be the end of man's life and
seeks its development and fulfillment in the here and now. This is the
explanation of the humanist's social passion."
g) Their ninth
affirmation, or truth, is that fulfillment, or satisfaction, comes when the
humanists "promote" the social agenda of their faith as they affirm: "In the place of the old attitudes involved
in worship and prayer the humanist finds his religious emotions expressed in a
heightened sense of personal life and in a cooperative effort to promote social
well-being."
h) Their fourteenth affirmation,
or conviction, is that capitalism is inadequate and there needs to be a radical
change in society to reflect a "shared world," (liberalism? and/or socialism?),
as they affirm: "The humanists are firmly convinced that
existing acquisitive and profit-motivated society has shown itself to be
inadequate and that a radical change in methods, controls, and motives must be
instituted. A socialized and cooperative economic order must be established to
the end that the equitable distribution of the means of life be possible. The
goal of humanism is a free and universal society in which people voluntarily
and intelligently cooperate for the common good. Humanists demand a shared life
in a shared world."
i) Their fifteenth
affirmation, or canon, is that they will "endeavor to establish"
their affirmations upon all people as they affirm: "... endeavor
to establish the conditions of a satisfactory life for all, not merely for the
few." They simply are not
content to believe the way they do, they want to "force" their
humanism upon "all."
j) Their last
paragraph affirms: "So stand the theses of religious humanism."
[i] Council
for Secular Humanism, Humanist Manifesto
2000, https://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php/1169
[ii]
American Humanist Association, Humanist
Manifesto II, http://americanhumanist.org/Humanism/Humanist_Manifesto_II
[iii]
American Humanist Association, Humanist
Manifesto I, http://americanhumanist.org/Humanism/Humanist_Manifesto_I
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