The Secular Humanism Worldview

Humanism is a philosophical and ethical stance on the value of human beings. The idea of humanism started around the early to mid-14th century starting with Petrarch, who is considered to most, as the “father of humanism.” Petrarch’s expertise in the promotion of this study earned him the name as the first great humanist. Humanism first started to become popular in the mid-15th century though during the Italian Renaissance due to many factors but at the same humanism was spreading all throughout Europe and became increasingly popular in Northern Europe, but didn’t spread as fast. With humanism spreading around in different areas of the world it was safe to assume that the teachings and practice of humanism from these areas would also be

Secular humanists trust that humanity is a very developed creature, and are continually looking for essential truth through test and perception. “To the secularist, we are nothing more than an advanced animal.” (Weider p.57) Since man was developed from creatures, we are not above them and ought to treat all of existence with the same regard.

The Bible was inspired by God and given to people in order to give guidance and clarity on how to view the world. A biblical worldview can be established by looking at the Bible, specifically at certain passages such as Romans 1-8. These chapters in Romans explain a biblical worldview in four categories: the natural world, human identity, human relationships, and culture. The secular worldview has immense differences in these same categories. The biggest difference between the secular worldview and the biblical worldview is that the biblical worldview is founded on the truth of scripture.

What is Secular Humanism? It is humanism, with regard to the belief that humanity is capable of morality and self-fulfillment without belief in God. Christian worldviews are based on the bible, we believe that God created the all. Secular Humanist are critical thinkers, focused on modern beliefs without having any religious ties. “Many Christians and proponents of secular humanism share a commitment to reason, free inquiry, the separation of church and state, the ideal of freedom, and moral education; however, they differ in many areas. Secular humanists base their morality and ideas about justice on critical intelligence unaided by Scripture, which Christians rely on for knowledge concerning right and wrong, good and evil.” (3)

In contrast to the humanist’s worldview that everything happened by chance, Christians believe that from the beginning, everything that exists, including humans was the result of God. Now Christians do believe in micro-evolution, also known as adaption, where an animal can endure some changes to help itself adapt to a different condition, but will never form into a different species. There is still no scientific evidence that can prove otherwise. God made sure of this when he was creating all living things that he kept all species “according to its kind” (Genesis 1:21-25).

What are the biggest differences between a secular and a Christian worldview? Why is this an important question for this particular study of the Old Testament?

Throughout the fifteenth century, the Roman Catholic religion was studied by the majority of the European population. A new movement known as the Renaissance slowly began to change the public’s opinions of Roman Catholic theology. The Renaissance sparked a movement that was highly popular in the upper class known as Humanism. Humanism focused on the classical works and becoming a well- rounded citizen. The new undertaking sculpted influential individuals who would change history, known as Christian humanists. The Christian humanists emphasized the structure of the early Christian Church which was much different than the Roman Catholic Church in this point in history. In the sixteenth century, the Christian humanists’ influence finally took a toll on the Roman Catholic Church by sparking the Protestant Reformation. The desire of the Christian humanists was responsible for the Protestant Reformation because it caused them to question the principles of the Catholic church, take stand and start new beliefs, and by exposing the corruption of the Roman Catholic Church

David Chidester defines religion as the ways of being a human person in a human place. He further goes on to describe it as “the practices and discourses that negotiate what it is to be human in person in relation to the superhuman or in relation to whatever might be treated as subhuman” (Chidester). As such religion can be said to encompass the beliefs customs and even the cultures of the people. It defines and shapes the human out view to life and how they relate to each other based on the morals and ethical guidelines outlined in the various doctrines governing the religions. Over the years, religion has been interpreted from different perspectives. Over time in history, religion was directly intertwined with the activities and the lives of the people. For instance, where the people practiced farming, they had deities or gods which were thought to control and protect the seasons which were an integral part of the farming activities. The same case applied to those who practiced pastoralism activities. In all aspects, the religion was in tandem with their activities.

Secular Humanism I begin by describing “Secular Humanists” as non-believers of God. A very different religion, yet it carries slight similarities to Christianity. “Donavon Flegeance” mentioned in his book “Reality Check”, that in every religion, people choose certain parts of the evolutionary theory to believe in. I agree with the author here because each religious belief is based off of the gradual development of how the world has come about from what has been perceived through each religion. Humanists deny the idea that there ever was or is an existence of God.

Secular humanism is a non-theistic worldview. Humanists do not believe in a God of any kind, rather, they take their answers about life, death, and the universe from science. They choose to rely on facts and proof instead of faith. Although they do not believe in a God they still believe that we should live good lives. They do this because it is the right thing to do, not because they are hoping to get into heaven. Secular Humanists believe that there is no afterlife, once we die, that is it. There is no eternal life and no heaven, hell, or purgatory. Humanists believe this because there is no proof of an afterlife. They see the afterlife as wishful thinking, an idea created to make the inevitability of death slightly less terrifying. They

Analyse the key beliefs of a religious and secular world view in relation to ultimate questions – Taylor Murfitt.

All systems of thought and each worldview have a notion of God. Secular humanism is defined as a belief system where humanity is the sovereign of all beings, and where reality and information rests in science and reason. The secular humanistic worldview started as a substitute among religions. Humanism is not a religious belief system in itself, while secular means “not religious.” A religion is any system of belief that informs an individual’s worldview. The secular humanistic worldview has a distinctive belief on many disciplines such as theology, ethics, and evolution among others. Thus, the thesis of this paper is; the secular humanism worldview is religious, as secular humanists uphold beliefs and values that hold them with dedication. The purpose of this research paper is to discuss whether the secular humanistic worldview is indeed religious and how it has influenced the American Culture. Secular humanism is nontheistic and religious because it directs itself towards beliefs and practices that are in active opposition to customary theism. According to the Humanistic Manifestos I and II, secular humanism is a religious and philosophical moral point of view (House 381).

4, pp. 69 ff.), "Humanism recognizes the value and dignity of man and makes him the measure of all things or somehow takes human nature, its limits, or its interests as its theme."

A similarity is that both Catholicism and Secular Humanism believe that there is a moral code which must be followed to live a peaceful life, however they differ as to the origin, with Catholicism being that God created the moral compass whereas Secular Humanists believe that human character and behaviour created moral beliefs. Both believe in the ethical principles and the dignity and worth of all people and creation. Both also believe in the truth setting individuals free and that there is a purpose in life. Another similarity is that both believe that something happened in the universe a long time ago which created human life and the earth which we live on.

Through criticism toward cruel rule of aristocrats and bloody revolution of people and praise humanity, A Tale of Two Cities by Dickens demonstrates his humanistic thinking perfectly. Main figures’ experiences and analysis of their characters is an important aspect to understand the theme this novel reveals.