Humanism, Satanism, and The New Age Movement
Humanism
Perhaps the best definition we could give of Humanism would be that of Protagoras (born c.480 BC) when he stated, "Man is the measure of all things." This should not be confused with humanitarianism, which all Christians should strive for, seeing that humans are made in the image of God (Gen 1:27) and we should teach them how to save their souls (Rom 1:16). Humanism, as the name implies is the doctrine (ism) or adoration of man (human) or mankind. It is this dogma which sparked the "God is dead" movement on campuses in the 1960's. A Pogo Possum cartoon from that time more aptly declared "God isn't dead, just unemployed."
Humanism has correctly been defined as a religion, both by the Supreme Court and the Humanists themselves. The 1961 Supreme Court case of Torcaso V. Watkins declared that the government could not aid religions with a belief in God as opposed to religions which did not and specifically named Secular Humanism as one example of such. In the 1963 case of Abington vs Schempp, the case which forbad the reading of the Bible in public schools, the court also stated that the state may not establish a "religion of secularism."
To the Humanist, man has replaced God. Man's achievements are his redemption. There is no need for God in his system or vocabulary. Instead of evolving, man is going full speed back to the sins of the Gentiles of Romans chapter 1. Like other religions, the Humanist has his creed as well. The Humanist Manifesto I and II are the documents that capture the thoughts and goals of the Humanist best. These two booklets use the phrase "religious Humanism" repeatedly to show that they accept it and recognize it as a religion. Manifesto I was signed in 1933 by 34 well known Humanists. The second was signed in 1973 by 114 individuals who represented science, education, philosophy and religion. Included were John Dewey (father of American modern education and the "Dewey decimal System" as used in American libraries), science fiction writer Isaac Assimov, B.F. Skinner (father of Behavioral Modification), Carliss Lamont (pro communist head of the ACLU) and others of considerable note. Through these, Humanism has made its way into virtually every industry, business and subject. The Manifesto is a readily available small paperback of 31 pages, and is worth having just to know their beliefs and frank agenda. We could basically sum up the points of the Manifesto by saying do away with all religion and national borders, for these are the things that cause war. Point one of Manifesto II states "No deity will save us, we must save ourselves." Morality and religious views must not hinder science, such as point 17 of Manifesto II, " We would resist any moves to censor basic scientific research on moral, political or social grounds." Thus the advancement of cloning, stem cell research, etc. According to point 14 of Manifesto II, world population must be kept in check (shades of the forced sterilizations and abortions of China?) while euthanasia and suicide must be allowed, point 7.
The Humanists have done a better job in understanding Christianity than we have of their religion. They understand that to destroy the Bible, an all out assault is not necessary, but rather destruction of the foundation of the Bible, Genesis chapters one and two. These two chapters are dismissed, discarded and ridiculed. Yet, if they are not literal and inspired, then we must dismiss the rest of scripture. We, on the other hand, have been fighting the fruits of humanism, rather than the roots. Divorce, racism, pornography, euthanasia, abortion, homosexuality, ad nauseum, are all fruits of the Humanist tree of evil.
Humanism is not a subject, as such. It is instead a worldview, a framework upon which they would build all the other subjects. Thus, when Humanism is applied to politics, you get communism; to economics, you have socialism; for ethics, the outcome is hedonism; and to religion, the end result is atheism. Thus, Humanism should be of vital interest to everyone. Humanism fails miserably, as the answer is not in man, but rather the problem is in man, Rom 3:23. Man does not have all the answers, but rather the questions, for "it is not in man who walks to direct his steps." Jeremiah 10:23. - Wayne Goforth