Challenge of Secularism Flashcards
How is Christianity embedded into UK institutions
Majority schools in UK are faith schools and have collective worship, parliament has christian prayers, monarch is the head of the church of england
secularism
Idea that religious beliefs and institutions should not affect how the state is ran, all faiths are equal
Secularisation
Process of society changing its views to become less closely linked with religious values
What percent of people in Britain said they have no religion
52%
what percent of 16 - 29 year olds have no religion
70%
Why should the Uk state become secular
Majority of people In the UK are now secular and christianity has declined heavily, especially devout chrisitanity
What are the points in favour of a secular state
- Less discrimination
- Neutral view on beliefs in the state
- social cohesion, we don’t label children politically so shouldn’t label them religiously
- Avoid conflicts like terrorist attacks that come from religious extremism
- example of USA that it works having secular state
Reasons why secularisation is a chance for christianity to develop
- christians are taught to practise their faith within their society so a secular state may help them appreciate their faiths position in society
- Jesus only hoped to change individuals not society so secularism may help christianity refocus
- Secularism may help christians understand people better and accept why people hold secular beliefs
Reasons why secularism won’t help christianity to develop
- Christ is unique and has changed the world, secularism threatens this
- Anything that leads to christianity not being able to proclaim itself in public threatens its development and message
- Just because majority of the UK isnt christian that doesn’t mean 2000 years of tradition will be gone
Psychoanalysis
Analysing the mind through looking at how the conscious self is affected by the unconscious self developed during childhood
Who started psychoanalysis
Freud
What did Freud believe about religion
He believed it was an illusion, as people thought what we can’t get from science we will get from religion, he believed society needs to develop rationally away from religion
For Freud what causes Neurosis
regression to the infantile psychosexual stages of development (oedipus complex), and trying to suppress the guilt of this
Oedipus Complex
Children have an unconscious sexual desire for their parent of the opposite sex
How does Neurosis for freud then cause ritualistic activities
Neurosis makes people feel extreme guilt so they will create rituals to try and feel better
How does Neurosis cause a father figure in religion
Neurosis causes a strong hatred for fathers among men so they will beg for forgiveness, this was done in tribal religion with dead male leaders on totem poles being focused in ceremonies, and in religious institutions which beg forgiveness from an ultimate father figure or god
What did freud then conclude about religion
It was an illusion that came from desire for forgiveness for their repressed feeling and guilt.
What is Freuds quote for religion
Universal Obsessional Neurosis
What was religion necessary in the past for Freud
Helped spread good moral values in an immoral world and calm humans tendency towards violence.
Why did Freud reject the truth and usefulness of religion
Because it has been used to justify wars and more recently terror attacks, immoral actions
What is the oceanic feeling that freud quotes
The feeling of oneness and security brought about by religious experience, Freud interpreted this as the desire for the security and certainty of being a child sucking on mothers tits, explaining how religion is wish fulfilment
What is the most clear reason why there is no need for religion
Rapid scientific advancements
How did David Hume support Freud
He saw religion as childish and practiced by the uneducated
How did Feuerbach support Freud
Religion is just a projection of all aspects human nature and experiences onto a God
Criticisms of Freud
- Dreams and wish fulfillments can still hold value, Martin Luther King
- Religions have many examples of reasons for belief that can’t be condensed to wish fulfilment (Jesus,bible)
- Can’t project neurosis of few onto whole of humanity
- Not all religions put a big focus on god and forgiveness
- Religious beliefs are coherent and uniform so weren’t made up by a bunch of individuals
How does Jung criticise Freud
Religion can be healthy for an individuals development
How does Bonhoeffer criticise Freud
A christian life isn’t regression into comfort but it is difficult, costly grace and Bonhoeffer died for his belief
What is Dawkins work called
The God Delusion
What does Dawkins believe about religion in the modern day
It has a disproportionate place in society and its beliefs are dangerous and intolerant but religion is immune to criticism, it has caused a lot of harm to all people with god as the excuse
How does Dawkins explain the world with science being better than a world with religion
Jut because science hasn’t answered all the worlds questions yet doesn’t mean it won’t one day, doesn’t mean the gaps must be filled with religion. He thinks it is irrational to accept a false explanation to a real question that will be answered through hard scientific work.
How does Dawkins explain evolution replacing the need for god
evolutionary biology completely eradicates the need for god being a creator and designer as there is sufficient evidence in evolution, natural selection and mutation for how things are as they are now.
How does Dawkins compare religion to a memetic
A memetic is an idea, internet meme is an idea that is spread around and may go viral, it spreads a bit like genes as the best ones are the ones that survive and go viral like genes, series of ideas can make up a memeplex that exists as long as it needs to, religion is a memeplex and there is no longer any need for it
How does Dawkins explain religion as a cause of war
Religion is a primary cause of war all throughout history and still in the modern world today, Old testament god advocates for a lot of violence and war and can be used to justify immoral actions
How does Dawkins explain religion as a form of child abuse
Labelling a child with a religion before they can understand what it means is a form of kidnapping or grooming. This is clear looking at creation teaching in schools which is a clearly false story that can be harmful, forcing children into these beliefs is abusive
Support of Richard Dawkins
- Christianity is the established religion in the UK so is unfairly preferenced
- Holds back society by rejecting science
- Ethical aspects of christianity don’t line up with modern views like homosexuality and abortion
- Christianity and religion oppresses women (dress code)
Criticisms of Richard Dawkins
- Dawkins ignores wars that weren’t caused by religion, he uses many isolated extreme examples
- He uses extreme hard line religious beliefs to portray his argument which isn’t representative of the everyday religious believer
- Christianity has extensive track record of social justice and improving society like working with poor in charities, civil rights campaigning
How does Polkingthorne criticise Dawkins
Some scientists are motivated by their religious beliefs to continue to explore science
What is humanism
system of thought that aims for a morally good happy life without the existence of a God
What did the 2002 Amsterdam Declaration Include
- dignity of the individual and importance of care for all people
- centrality of reason and science being used for good
- importance of human rights and democracy
- Beauty of creativity and imagination for human fulfilment
What did humanists say about belief
All belief is personal so there is no place for a wider religious belief in society
Why are all humanists secularist
They seek to live a good life without religion
Why do humanists campaign for a secular state
Society is pluralist so if the state holds one religion over another this is fundamentally wrong and unfair so it should have no religion, this is why they oppose bishops on the House of Lords
What are spiritual values
Those values found when considering life at more than just face value
Why do humanists believe spirituality is misinterpreted in England
In education spirituality is
What do humanists believe about spiritual values
Spiritual values don’t have to be connected to religion as whilst religious values are spiritual one can have spiritual values without being religious, most religions share the same values which expresses that they are human values
Reasons why spiritual values are just human values
- Human values of goodness are found in all religions
- Human values come first historically as the Ten Commandments wouldn’t differ majorly from other religions values
- Religions wouldn’t object to the humanist declaration, no need for religion to be spiritual and ethical
Reasons why spiritual values are not just human values and are connected to god
- Spiritual values in their fullest require a belief in god as the final purpose of these values
- Some christian ethical values conflict with non religious values like euthanasia
- spirituality is about finding connection with a divine god not of this world, this is only accessible through religion
What does Dawkins argue is the problem with the spirituality debate
There is a definition issue as he doesn’t reject spirituality as thinking beyond the physical but he does reject the presence of another supernatural world where god resides
How many schools in Britain are faith schools
1/3
Why do some argue schools shouldn’t teach chrsitiantiy compulsory
It isn’t the place to expose children to these ideas and focus should be on the wider curriculum
–> may ignore spitiritual aspect of life only focusing on science and technology
Why do schools teach British values
teach children of democracy, law, individual liberty, mutual respect and appreciation for all beliefs, includes appreciating christian tradition in Britain
How does Brexit show that religion isnt the cause of unrest in Britain
Brexit was nothing to do with religion yet still caused mass unrest in Britain and the British government, religion isn’t the source of all unrest, a secular state doesn’t solve everything
Richard Dawkins and cultural christian
He appreciates and accepts the traditions and heritage of christianity in Britain and the impact in history and now on British life, but he maintains the importance of a secular society in the future and dense believe in god
Reasons why Christianity should contribute to society’s culture and values
- UK would lose its identity and hundreds of years of history without christianity
- Other faiths can contribute aswell as christianity
- Christianity can provide a moral balance to unchecked scientific advancements
Reasons why chrsitianty should not contribute to societies culture and values
- Chrsitainty must become a thing of the past
- Can contribute to individuals but society must remain neutral
- Heritage of other religions and cultures are valuable and incorporating them would help the UK reflect its makeup
How does Keith ward criticise Freud
He label Freud as a reductionist because he brings everything to material terms, doesn’t explain spirituality, freud generalises religions as hierarchal and institutional so harmful, most religions are very helpful to the individual.
What is the example for christianity oppressing women
Philomena Lee had a child out of wedlock, she was admitted to a place for mothers with children out of wedlock and he child was then taken from her and sold to a ‘true’ catholic family
How did Mcgrath criticise Dawkins
Christianity has many instances against violence and atheism has many instances of violence (communism), science and religion can be used together more as the world as seen by science can still point to intelligent designer - Dawkins is dismissive of this
