Theocratic Secularism: Part 3: American Humanism

Secular humanism doesn't oppose
deity worship; in rejecting God,
it simply deifies man in His place. For
secular humanism, man is the center
and measure of all things, and
therefore worthy of worship--
a worship that must be imposed
by the state.
(photo by Oren neu dag/CC BY -SA 2.5)

by Steve C. Halbrook
(posts in this series: part 1, part 2, part 3)

Let us not forget another philosophical heir of the French Revolution, American secular humanism.  Like the French and Russian revolutions, secular humanism elevates reason[1] and matter.[2]   Its god is humanity, the embodiment of these attributes.

In 1933, the Humanist Manifesto officially declared the humanists’ goal “to evaluate, transform, control, and direct all institutions and organizations by its own value system” (emphases mine).[3]

This language clearly indicates a desire to dominate society with the religion of humanism—to establish a totalitarian humanistic theocracy.  Humanists were already in the process of converting a school system that originally taught Christianity[4] into temples of humanism.  As early as 1930, the founder of the First Humanist Society of New York[5] writes in Humanism: A New Religion:

  

Education is thus a most powerful ally of Humanism, and every American public school is a school of Humanism.  What can the theistic Sunday-schools, meeting for an hour once a week, and teaching only a fraction of the children, do to stem the tide of a five-day program of humanistic teaching?[6]

Under the ruse of advocating separation of church and
state, secular humanists have duped Americans into
embracing so-called religiously neutral public
schools, which are really temples of humanism. 

Secular humanists figured out long ago how to circumvent the Constitutional guarantee against a nationally-established church:  Simply label national secular humanist churches with the euphemism “public schools,” and have the church service times weekdays instead of Sunday, the day America associates with attending worship services.  Then, deflect attention away from the religiosity of these humanist churches by positing a false dichotomy between secular and religious education.  Such legerdemain has to this day duped Americans into unwittingly embracing compulsive humanistic religious instruction. 

The secular humanist political platform is consistent with its desire to impose a theocracy in all areas of life.  R. J. Rushdoony writes, 

[O]ur increasingly humanistic laws, courts, and legislators are giving us a new morality.  They tell us, as they strike down laws resting upon Biblical foundations, that morality cannot be legislated, but what they offer is not only legislated morality but salvation by law …  Wherever we look now, whether with respect to poverty, education, civil rights, human rights, peace, and all things else, we see laws passed designed to save man.  Supposedly, these laws are going to give us a society free of prejudice, ignorance, disease, poverty, crime, war, and all other things considered to be evil.  These legislative programs add up to one thing:  salvation by law.[7]

The object of a secular humanist's
worship: non-spiritual matter in
motion, especially in its most
advanced form, humanity.
(photo by NuclearVacuum)

As Rushdoony observes, the secular humanistic faith pervades everything.  Moreover, Rushdoony demonstrates that, despite secular humanism’s attempts to conceal its desire to impose a theocracy by appealing to neutrality, it is obvious that secular humanist policies are anything but neutral.  They are all concerned with salvation of humanity by humanity; as the Humanist Manifesto II states:  “No deity will save us; we must save ourselves.”[8] 

Secular humanists thus deify humanity.  They look to humanity as their lord and savior.  In humanism, lordship and salvation come through the state, the most physically powerful reflection of humanity.

Secular humanism, in short, is as theocratic as any worldview gets.  Even its religious pioneers could not escape repeated references to faith and religion:

The Humanist Manifesto I (1933)[9] declares “to establish such a religion (of humanism) is a major necessity of the present,” and to “break with the past” in order to establish a “vital, fearless, and frank religion capable of furnishing adequate goals and personal satisfactions,” is the goal of humanism.  The Humanist Manifesto II (1973) uses the words religion and religious some 19 times while stating that “Faith, commensurate with advancing knowledge, is also necessary,” among nontheists whose center of thought or worship is “nature, not deity.”  Not only is there an influential journal entitled The Religious Humanist, but one of the most prominent humanists, Julian Huxley, referred to his beliefs as “the religion of evolutionary humanism” while still another, Michael Kolenda, entitled his book on humanistic religion, Religion Without God.  Of course, the U.S. Supreme Court recognized humanism as a religion in Torcasco v. Watkins (1961), and The Secular Humanist Declaration (1980)[10] concludes that “Secular humanism places trust in human intelligence rather than in divine guidance.”[11]

Secular humanism, instead of looking for salvation in Jesus Christ, looks to humanity for salvation.  It rejects the theocratic “rule of God” for the theocratic “rule of humanity.”  

Excerpt from the (Lord willing) upcoming book, God is Just: A Defense of the Old Testament Civil Laws: Biblical Theocracy, Justice, and Slavery versus Humanistic Theocracy, "Justice," and Slavery by Steve C. Halbrook.  Copyright © 2010 by Steve C. Halbrook.  Based on the master's thesis, God is Just: A Defense of the Old Testament Civil Laws.

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     [1] The Humanist Manifesto II (1973) states, “Reason and intelligence are the most effective instruments that humankind possesses.”  Cited in Josh McDowell and Don Stewart, Handbook of Today’s Religions (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1983), 467.

     [2] The Humanist Manifesto II (1973) states, “We find insufficient evidence for belief in the existence of a supernatural.”  Cited in Ibid., 464.

     [3] Cited in David Limbaugh, Persecution: How Liberals Are Waging War Against Christianity (Washington, D.C.: Regnery Publishing, Inc., 2003), 66.

     [4] Gary Demar, America’s Christian History: The Untold Story (Powder Springs, GA: American Vision Inc., 2007),108.

     [5] Limbaugh, Persecution, 65.

     [6] Cited by David A. Noebel, Clergy in the Classroom, The Religion of Secular Humanism, 8.  Noebel’s quote cited in Limbaugh, Persecution, 65.

     [7] Rousas John Rushdoony, Law and Liberty (Vallecito, CA: Ross House Books, 1984), 2, 3.

     [8] McDowell et. al., Handbook of Today’s Religions, 464.
     [9] Analysis of and quotes from Humanist Manifestos One and Two come from Paul Kurtz, ed., Humanist Manifestos One & Two (Buffalo, NY: Prometheus, 1973).
     [10] Free Inquiry (Winter, 1980): 3-6.

     [11] Charles W. Dunn, ed., American Political Theology: Historical Perspectives and Theoretical Analysis (New York, NY: Praeger Publishers, 1984), 83.