- During the last part of the 19th century, following on the heels of Naturalism and Darwinism, Humanism, or Optimistic Humanism, became the dominant Secular philosophy of life.
- Taking inspiration from philosophers like Nietzsche, Humanism believed that it was religion, and specifically Christianity, that was holding humanity back from our ongoing evolutionary progress towards the emergence of the “Superman”.
- So, Humanistic philosophers declared, “God is dead”, and supposedly freed humanity from the restrictions of religion, believing that in our innate human goodness we could achieve Utopia on earth apart from God.
- However, coming into the 20th century the idealistic hope of Secular Humanism was shattered by the realities of two World Wars, the Holocaust, the Great Depression, a nuclear arms race, and many other examples which demonstrated that men and women are not “basically good”, but instead are bent towards evil.
- The philosophy of Secular Humanism has proven itself to be morally bankrupt and unable to provide a basis upon which to build a just society. However, instead of turning back to God in this situation, humanity has continued to search for meaning and purpose on our own terms.
- In our upcoming Fast Facts we will see the inevitable consequences and the ongoing spiritual confusion that’s resulted from Humanity’s fundamentally flawed search for meaning and purpose divorced from our Creator’s guidance.
For more information on the implications of a person’s worldview, please check out the book, Answers For A Confused Church, available in our online store.