Notes on Secularism in accordance with the OCR Religious Studies specification. The notes provide information, scholars, ideas and quotes compiled from various resources from both within and outside of the curriculum.
Secularism
Philosophical Secularism: God is an Illusion, No Good Reason for God
Dawkins
- ‘it is a matter of belief without evidence’ Dawkins. For Dawkins there is no
knowledge/arguments for God’s existence as there is no such thing as the
metaphysical.
- Humans are deluded by religious belief as it acts as a ‘wall of separation
from truth.’ Dawkins view that religious beliefs are repressing truth and
logic. Because religious claims are based on faith rather than evidence,
‘religious fanatics want people to switch off their own minds, ignore the
evidence, and blindly follow a holy book.’
- Religion’s morality is harmful. ‘I want a morality that is thought out and
reasoned.’ Dawkins and the Old Testament God is horrible
- belief in God arises from a meme or a ‘virus of the mind.’
Strengths
1. Science demands logic and evidence for answers whereas religion demands a
lack of critical thinking so Polkinghorne’s ideas need to be rejected
2. Religion has outdated morals
Weaknesses
1. Dawkins doesn’t believe that people should just believe in what they want
because in the 21st Century an absolute truth is found in science.
2. Dawkins sets up a false dichotomy, religion isn’t an illusion as it can work
alongside science. ‘agnosticism is of the essence of science’ McGrath,
because science can’t answer or speak on metaphysical questions so religion
is needed for a full understanding of the world.
3. Faith isn’t necessarily blind, it comes in a variety of forms and functions
which Dawkins doesn’t recognise
4. Dawkins presents religion within a straw man argument
5. McGrath argues atheism is as harmful as religious societies, he uses the
Soviet Union as the example.
Freud
- religion is just a ‘universal obsessional neurosis.’
- Freud claims that many taboos common in primitive religions are found in
modern religions because they are just an illusion.
- Religions are ‘illusions and insusceptible of proof.’
- Freud thinks instead religion should be replaced by secular morals as
‘civilization has little to fear from educated people and brain-workers.’
as this isn’t infantile but grounded in reason
- projectionism, God provides a supreme Being of what humans want/should be
- Freud satisfies 3 wishes of people: external forces of nature which God can
control, internal conflicts and helplessness God can help and the longing for
a father figure in adulthood
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