Home
I. Introduction: In the early 80's evangelical Christianity discovered
secular humanism. Many books were published exposing this anti-
christian worldview. Actually various forms of humanism have been
around since Eden.
II. Definition
A. General:
1. The word "humanism" was coined during the Renaissance.
2. The Encyclopedia of Philosophy (vol. IV, p. 69ff.) defines
humanism as "any philosophy which recognizes the value or
dignity of man and makes him the measure of all things or
somehow takes human nature, its limits, or its interests as
its theme."
3. A humanist was originally one who focused his studies on
man, his art and thought, and nature, as opposed to God,
the spiritual and revelation. Today such study of culture
is called the humanities.
4. It was originally an innocuous term. The humanists of the
Renaissance were Christians. This type of humanism can be
wedded to any religion or philosophy, for it only recognizes
the value and dignity of man and his art. There are as many
varieties of humanism as there are of Christianity. For
example, one of the most visible forms of humanism today is
a mystical variety known popularly as the New Age Movement.
B. Specific and Contemporary meaning:
1. One who makes man his ultimate concern, his ultimate point of
reference.
2. Today's humanist is generally not theistic or at most deistic
or agnostic.
3. It was declared a religion by the Supreme Court in 1961.
4. The best definitions of contemporary humanism can be found in
the Humanist Manifesto I and II (p. 16.). "We find
insufficient evidence for belief in the existence of a
supernatural; it is either meaningless or irrelevant to the
question of survival and fulfillment of the human race. As
non-theists, we begin with humans not God, nature not deity."
C. What humanism is not: Many confuse humanism with humanitarianism.
The latter is simply one who shows philanthropic concern for his
fellowman. Anyone can be humanitarian.
III. An overview of the history of modern humanism.
A. It is the second oldest religion in the world.
1. In Genesis 3:4, Satan told Eve, "Your eyes will be opened,
and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
2. In Psalm 2, the theme of the Bible is the conflict between
these two--God and His kingdom versus man and his schemes
to replace God. Humanism denies the sovereignty of God.
3. Revelation 17 and 18 predicts the outcome of the struggle.
B. The Greeks: Protagoras (5th Century B.C.) coined the phrase
"Man is the measure of all things." The Greeks became known
for their emphasis on reason apart from superstition and
religion. It brought about the Golden Age of Greece. They
believed man could control his own fate.
C. The Romans: They borrowed from the Greeks. Caesar was
worshipped as God.
D. The Renaissance (began about 1200 A.D.): It was a revival of
classical learning. Greek thought and Christian doctrine were
synthesized. Reason began to be separated from religion.
St. Thomas Aquinas mistakenly believed man's reasoning ability
was unaffected by the Fall.
E. The Enlightenment (1600-1800): Humanism became secularized.
The enlightenment became the foundation of modern humanism.
They proclaimed reason a goddess. Principle figures: Rousseau
and Voltaire.
F. The 20th Century: After Darwin's theory of evolution,
humanism had all it needed. Other notable events:
1. Founding of the Ethical Union in England in 1896. It later
became the influential British Humanist Association.
2. In America in 1933, the Humanist Manifesto was published.
Later in 1949 a humanist society was formed.
3. There is now an international network of humanist
organizations.
4. In 1973 the Humanist Manifesto was updated.
IV. The Major Tenets of Naturalistic Humanism.
A. Concerning the nature of things:
1. All is material: no spiritual dimension, no life after
death.
2. All events are natural and uniformitarian. There is no
supernatural, no god.
B. Concerning man and his nature:
1. Man is central, sovereign and autonomous.
2. Man is the hallmark of evolutionary development; only a
part of nature.
3. Man's dignity is derived from his position on the
evolutionary scale; the difference between man and
animals is quantitative.
4. Man does not need salvation. Just more time. Man can
now control his own evolution.
C. Concerning Ethics: Values are relative, based on experience,
human reason, the will of the majority, or based on the
situation, i.e. what will bring the greatest good.
D. Concerning the process of knowing:
1. Reason is supreme
2. All that can be known is known through the scientific
method.
E. Concerning Government:
1. It is a positive force, a tool to re-engineer man.
2. Internationalism: goal is world government. "We
deplore the division of humankind on nationalistic
grounds. We have reached a turning point in human
history where the best option is to transcend the
limits of national sovereignty and to move toward
the building of a world community in which all
sectors of a human family can participate." from
THE HUMANIST MANIFESTO p. 22.
F. Concerning Social Concern:
1. Emphasis on education and changing the environment.
2. Equitable distribution of wealth, eliminating
poverty, disease, etc.
3. Ending oppression caused by religion.
V. Four Mistaken Illusions about Humanism
A. Humanism is humane.
1. But humanism has no basis for human dignity. Man
was not created in God's Image but rather evolved
from the slime by a purely chance operation.
There is therefore, no clear demarcation between
human and animal rights.
2. Values are relative. On what basis do we declare
Himmler more Humane than Mother Teresa?
3. No adequate reasons can be given as to why survival
is important.
4. There is no safeguard against manipulation.
B. Humanism is not a religion.
1. A non-theistic belief is not necessarily non-religious.
Several Religions of the world do not subscribe to a
supreme being, i.e. Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism.
2. The Supreme Court declared it to be a religion in 1961
in Torcaso vs. Watkins.
3. Humanist publications refer to it as a religion.
4. Julian Huxley predicted that humanism would be the
ultimate religion of the world.
C. Humanism is unbiased.
1. Neutrality is a myth; we all have presuppositions or
unprovable assumptions.
2. A school teacher with humanistic convictions cannot
help promoting humanistic values.
3. If humanistic objectives are to be achieved it cannot
allow a pluralistic society.
D. Humanism is broadminded.
1. It ignores the facts concerning the resurrection of
Christ.
2. It ignores contradictory evidence concerning
evolutionary theory.
3. It ignores logical contradictions in its worldview.
For example:
a. The universe is self-caused. If it caused itself it
would have to exist prior to causing itself--a logical
absurdity.
b. It says man must determine his own future yet its
scientists proclaim all man's behavior is determined by
his genes and environment. Free will is a myth.
c. They say there are no absolutes yet that is an absolute
statement.
4. It claims to be the only hope for man yet it has no valid
basis for that hope.
VI. The Current Influence of Humanistic Philosophy
A. Education: It is the major unifying factor in public
education today. Children are viewed as property of the state.
Their primary aim is the social adjustment of children into
group-oriented mentality. Education is social and not content
oriented. Self-development is stressed rather than learning
from the wisdom of the past. Secular does not equal neutral!
The public education system from elementary to college is a
monopoly of the religion of Humanism! They are parochial
schools!!
B. Media
1. Newspapers-- Most newspapers are compiled from two wire
services.
2. TV. Most news is from 4 networks.
C. Active Humanist Organizations: The most active and visible
are: The American Civil Liberties Union, People for the
American Way, The American Humanist Association, and the
National Education Association.
VII. The most Influential Humanist Books
THE ORIGIN OF THE SPECIES by Charles Darwin.
THE ESSENCE OF CHRISTIANITY by Ludwig Feuerbach.
THE FUTURE OF AN ILLUSION by Sigmund Freud.
WHY I AM NOT A CHRISTIAN by Bertrand Russell.
BEYOND FREEDOM AND DIGNITY by B.F. Skinner.
THE COMMUNIST MANIFESTO by Karl Marx.
BEYOND GOOD AND EVIL by Friedrich Nietzsche.
VIII. What can Christians Do?
A. Pray for our country and its leaders.
B. Take responsibility for the education of your children.
C. Boycott slanted news or immoral TV programming.
D. Share your faith.
E. Create Christian alternatives in education and the arts.
F. Be informed.
G. Seek intellectual superiority.
H. Learn to see all things from a Christian perspective.