Secular religion
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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"If the origins of art are to be found in religion, the movies are surely the universal secular faith of the twentieth century."--The Hollywood Hallucination (1944) by Parker Tyler |
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Secular religion is a term used to describe ideas, theories or philosophies which involve no spiritual component yet possess qualities similar to those of a religion. Such qualities include such things as dogma, a system of indoctrination, the prescription of an absolute code of conduct, an ideologically tailored creation story and end-times narrative, designated enemies, and unquestioning devotion to a higher authority. The secular religion operates in a secular society by filling a role which would be satisfied by a church or another religious authority.
Social philosopher Raymond Aron notably uses the term to refer to Communism. Likewise, philosopher of science Michael Ruse has made use of the term in discussing evolution theory. Similarly Thomas Frank suggests that the free market has become a secular religion in the United States.
See also
- Cult of personality
- Morality without religion
- Political correctness
- State atheism
- Secular ethics
- Secular sharia
- Separation of church and state
