There have been a number of prominent faces speaking out against secularism of late, amongst them Baroness Warsi, Pope Benedict XVI and Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor, but each of them seem to have curious conceptions of what secularism actually means. I hear them say secularism a lot, but I don't think it means what they think it means.
Over at the National Secular Society, Anne Marie Waters has just released an article that gives a very good account of both what secularism is - and equally important - what it is not. She opts to begin with what secularism is not;
Those that are hostile - and I use that term advisedly - to secularism give the impression that secularism's supporters want to ban religion, destroy churches in the image of Joseph Stalin and to adopt a totalitarian dictatorship in the image of the National Socialists (or Nazis as they are more popularly known).
This simply couldn't be further from the truth, and is either a staggering ignorance of the term, or wilful and deliberate lie. Neither are acceptable in a decent right-thinking society.
So how do we counter this rising tide of ignorance and misrepresentation?
As is always the key to confounding incorrect assumptions, education is the most important tool in the secularist toolbox.
The Internet is the perfect sphere for correcting people's errors. Trawl Google for secularist threads in forums, the comments in news articles and the #secularism hash-tag in Twitter, for example.
Admittedly, most of your interlocutors will not listen to you, but you will have got the truth out there, and if enough people do this, secularist bashers will eventually not have the luxury of saying they haven't been informed that their positions are wrong, and that their continued misrepresentation annihilates their credibility.
Write a blog on the subject and post it to the Christianity subreddit and other religious forums. Indeed, anywhere those that are misinformed about the nature of secularism. They need it. (You can post this to r/Christianity here)
Your local member of Parliament is a must. If he or she doesn't know the meaning of the terms that are important to you, how can you be said to be represented at all? All members have contact addresses, you should drop them a line. Example questions could include:
You can find your local MP by entering your post code in the search box here
Join a local discussion group. Both the British Humanist Association and the National Secular Society have listings of groups in your area. Not one nearby? Start your own. By contributing to the discussion, you add gravitas to the weight of opinion supporting secularism. The more people align with secular principles, the more likely their voices are to be - not only heard - but recognised.
Write to the editor of your local newspaper. Every local paper has a 'letters' page. It is your forum to state your case to a wider audience. Trying to fit it in with a pertinent story that you have seen in the paper will increase the likelihood of getting published.
In my own area, all the local papers have a collective website called 'thisiscornwall', and I know that other counties have similar portals. Here, at least, I know I can write articles of interest to the wider community that are listed alongside the newspaper's content. It is a really useful 'citizen journalism' tool that can really make an impact on its readership.
Why stop at the local level? National newspapers also have letters pages. More difficult to get published, but if you don't try, you don't get.
You could start by sending the embarrassment that is Baroness Warsi an email to let her know how you feel.
As always, keep it civil, but more importantly, keep it up.
Over at the National Secular Society, Anne Marie Waters has just released an article that gives a very good account of both what secularism is - and equally important - what it is not. She opts to begin with what secularism is not;
It is not a threat to religious freedom, in fact the opposite is true. The aim of secularism, and the National Secular Society, is to protect fundamental human rights, including the right to religious freedom, by ensuring that we are governed by a state that is neutral on matters of religious faith and that religion remains a matter for the private sphere. This does not mean that there should be no churches or synagogues or mosques, nor that they should be excluded from putting forward their political views, it simply means that those who do not believe in a particular faith are not obliged to do so, and are not obliged to follow the dictates of that faith. This is as important for people of faith as it is for non-believers.Let me summarise that for you. Secularism strengthens religious freedom.
Those that are hostile - and I use that term advisedly - to secularism give the impression that secularism's supporters want to ban religion, destroy churches in the image of Joseph Stalin and to adopt a totalitarian dictatorship in the image of the National Socialists (or Nazis as they are more popularly known).
This simply couldn't be further from the truth, and is either a staggering ignorance of the term, or wilful and deliberate lie. Neither are acceptable in a decent right-thinking society.
So how do we counter this rising tide of ignorance and misrepresentation?
As is always the key to confounding incorrect assumptions, education is the most important tool in the secularist toolbox.
 |
| XKCD |
Admittedly, most of your interlocutors will not listen to you, but you will have got the truth out there, and if enough people do this, secularist bashers will eventually not have the luxury of saying they haven't been informed that their positions are wrong, and that their continued misrepresentation annihilates their credibility.
Write a blog on the subject and post it to the Christianity subreddit and other religious forums. Indeed, anywhere those that are misinformed about the nature of secularism. They need it. (You can post this to r/Christianity here)
Your local member of Parliament is a must. If he or she doesn't know the meaning of the terms that are important to you, how can you be said to be represented at all? All members have contact addresses, you should drop them a line. Example questions could include:
- What is your personal opinion on secularism?
- Will you personally support the removal of unelected Anglican bishops in the House of Lords?
- Do you personally believe - as happens in courts of law - one's religious persuasion is incidental to the machinations of governance serving a diverse population?
You can find your local MP by entering your post code in the search box here
Join a local discussion group. Both the British Humanist Association and the National Secular Society have listings of groups in your area. Not one nearby? Start your own. By contributing to the discussion, you add gravitas to the weight of opinion supporting secularism. The more people align with secular principles, the more likely their voices are to be - not only heard - but recognised.
Write to the editor of your local newspaper. Every local paper has a 'letters' page. It is your forum to state your case to a wider audience. Trying to fit it in with a pertinent story that you have seen in the paper will increase the likelihood of getting published.
In my own area, all the local papers have a collective website called 'thisiscornwall', and I know that other counties have similar portals. Here, at least, I know I can write articles of interest to the wider community that are listed alongside the newspaper's content. It is a really useful 'citizen journalism' tool that can really make an impact on its readership.
Why stop at the local level? National newspapers also have letters pages. More difficult to get published, but if you don't try, you don't get.
You could start by sending the embarrassment that is Baroness Warsi an email to let her know how you feel.
As always, keep it civil, but more importantly, keep it up.
Do you have any tips on how to spread the true nature of secularism to its opponents? Do you have a story about how it went? What have I overlooked?
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