The California Collection/TheCaliforniaCollection.cdr/his073/othr11a.arj/OTHR11A.TXT

Text File | 1989-12-25 | 4KB | 84 lines

Secular Humanism Is a Religion

     Secular humanism is a doctrinal belief that morality is based
solely upon the temporal well-being of mankind to the exclusion of
all belief in God, a supreme being, or a future eternity.  It is a
philosophy concerned with the achievements, interests, values, and
quality of human life.  It is a religion which places man at the
center of all things.

     Secular humanism can be traced back to the earliest record of
mankind.  Since it is a philosophical attempt to solve the problems
of mankind and the world independently of God, it can be identified
in the record of the actions of Adam and Eve and their son, Cain.

     Secular humanism, often referred to as the wisdom of man, was
first developed as a system of thought by the Greeks as early as the
5th century B.C., when Protagoras(480-411 B.C.) made two basic
propositions:(1)Man is the measure of all things, and (2
)Contradictory assertions are equally true.

     Western man's philosophic romance with human wisdom began in the
medieval period when it was taught that man's fall did not affect man
as a whole but only in part.  It was taught that man's will was
corrupted but the intellect was not affected.  This has given rise to
the notion that when the intelligence is enlightened, the will is
altered for good and man's problems are reduced.

     The renaissance gave opportunity for this philosophy to
flourish.  Man was glorified in human form, as reflected nude art--in
contrast to the biblical principles of man being given animal skins
to cover his nakedness.

     Voltaire, often called the "Father of Enlightenment", advanced
the utopian dream that can be summed up in five
words:reason,nature,happiness, progress, and liberty.
     The French and Russian revolutions established institutions of
though that do away with absolutes and entrust humanity to human
wisdom and discipline.

     Today universal education in general ignores God and teaches
that there are no absolutes, and that man is self-sufficient and thus
self-indulgent.

TENETS

     1.Irrelevance of Deity. Secular humanism denies the relevance of
deity or supernatural agencies.  It is expressed in a heightened
sense of personal life and in a cooperative effort to promote social
well-being.  It does not accept traditional theism's belief in the
Bible as the divinely inspired Word of God.

     2.Supremacy of Human Reason. Secular humanism encompasses the
belief that man can begin from himself, and on the basis of the
utilization of his mental faculties alone, think out the answers to
the great questions which confront mankind.

     3. Inevitability of Progress. Secular humanism embraces the
belief that nature is moving inevitable to higher and higher forms of
life.  It looks more and more to the state to fulfill the role of a
saving institution through its educational system.

     4. Science, the Guide to Progress. Secular humanism assumes that
science is the guide and ultimate provider of human progress and
morality.  It proceeds on the premise that the universe is
potentially knowable and will eventually reveal the keys to solving
the problems confronting mankind.

     5. Autonomy and the Centrality of Man. Secular humanism
encompasses the belief that man is autonomous and independent of
deity of any kind and is released from any obligation to God.  It
stresses that man is inherently good and in no need of salvation or
theological redemption.  It claims that man, not God, controls the
-More-destiny of the human race.

     6. Essentiality of Evolution. Secular humanism regards the
universe as self-existing and not created.  It teaches that man has
emerged as a result of a continuous process.  Man's culture and
civilization are the product of a gradual development due to his
interaction with  his natural environment and with his social
heritage.