Don Wildmon
AFA/AFR founder
March 1999 – Back in 1984, AFA published a study book titled Christianity and Humanism: A Study in Contrasts. In that publication we pointed out the new religion which was sweeping America. Secular humanism may be a new term for some people, but it is a real religion which is taking a devastating toll on our society. Let me share with you the basic beliefs of secular humanism and you can see if it sounds relevant for today. These quotes are taken from Humanist Manifestos I and II.
Religious humanists regard the universe as self-existing and not created…. Humanism believes that man is a part of nature and that he has emerged as the result of a continuous process…. Humanism asserts that the nature of the universe makes unacceptable any supernatural or cosmic guarantees of human values…Humanists are firmly convinced that existing acquisitive and profit-motivated society has shown itself to be inadequate and that a radical change in methods, controls and motives must be instituted.
Humanists believe traditional theism, especially faith in the prayer-hearing God, assumed to love and care for persons, to hear and understand their prayers, and to be able to do something about them, is an unproved and outmoded faith. Salvationism, based on mere affirmation, still appears as harmful, diverting people with false hopes of heaven hereafter. Reasonable minds must look to other means for survival.
Ethics is autonomous and situational, needing no theological or ideological sanction….
Reason and intelligence are the most effective instruments that humankind possesses. There is no substitute; neither faith nor passion….
In the area of sexuality, we believe that intolerant attitudes, often cultivated by orthodox religions and puritanical cultures, unduly repress sexual conduct. While we do not approve of exploitive, denigrating forms of sexual expression, neither do we wish to prohibit, by law or social sanction, sexual behavior between consenting adults.The many varieties of sexual exploration should not in themselves be considered evil.
The right to abortion should be recognized. To enhance freedom and dignity the individual must experience a full range of civil liberties in all societies. This includes a recognition of an individual’s right to die with dignity, euthanasia, and the right to suicide.
The separation of church and state and the separation of ideology and state are imperatives….
We look to the development of a system of world law and a world order based on transnational federal government….
Secular humanism has come a long way in the past 30 years. One could argue that it is today the official religion of our society. Jesus said, “By their fruits you shall know them.” The fruits of secular humanists are now so evident in every realm of influence in our society, even the church. 
