Misplaced Pages

#852147

74-422: Founded in 1851, the society is the oldest surviving of numerous Secular Societies formed throughout England in the mid-19th century, largely through the efforts of George Jacob Holyoake and his supporters. (The National Secular Society was founded in 1866). The 'Principal Aims' of Leicester Secular Society as stated on current (2012) literature are: 1. Challenging religious privilege and dogma We advocate

148-419: A complete blanket separation. The latter in the case of India, is termed as interventionist secularism, wherein the state intervenes to abolish practices of religion which it considers against constitutional principles, although this equidistance has been constitutionally understood to not exclude the concept of a God. The purposes and arguments in support of secularism vary widely, ranging from assertions that it

222-636: A designer in the Arts and Crafts movement of William Morris , whose speech on "Art and Socialism" at the Secular Hall in 1884 marked the beginning of the Socialist movement in Leicester. The Society was well financed in this period, able to employ a full-time librarian and manager and run a swimming club, gymnasium, Sunday School, evening classes and a women's group. To accommodate an increased working class membership,

296-419: A global context, and starts with this sentence: "Secularism is a beleaguered doctrine." Henry Hyndman Henry Mayers Hyndman ( / ˈ h aɪ n d m ə n / ; 7 March 1842 – 22 November 1921) was an English writer, politician and socialist . Originally a conservative , he was converted to socialism by Karl Marx 's Communist Manifesto and launched Britain's first socialist political party,

370-478: A legal hierarchy on the basis of religious belief or lack of religious belief. It is also associated with a separation of church and state, considering these to be two distinct entities that should be treated separately. State supremacy is a secular principle that supports obedience to the rule of law over religious diktat or canon law, while internal constraint is a secular principle that opposes governmental control over one's personal life. Under political secularism,

444-471: A major role in public life, while in Europe the impact of the church on public life is declining. Most societies become increasingly secular as the result of social, economic development and progress , rather than through the actions of a dedicated secular movement. Modern sociology has, since Max Weber , often been preoccupied with the problem of authority in secularised societies and with secularisation as

518-870: A means of defending their rights against the majority. State secularism is most often associated with the Age of Enlightenment in Europe and it plays a major role in Western society . Some of the most well known examples for states considered "constitutionally secular" are the United States, France, Turkey, India, Mexico, and South Korea, though none of these nations have identical forms of governance with respect to religion. For example, in India, secularism does not completely separate state and religion, while in France, secularism precludes such mutual involvement. Separationist secularism enforces

592-417: A means to curb tensions in the religiously diverse nation. The Indian model of secularism stressed equality of citizens regardless of faith before the law, along with some separation. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was proclaimed in 1948, protecting freedom of religion in international law. In political terms, secularism is a movement towards the separation of religion and government, often termed

666-403: A morality for life We believe moral values and virtues like fairness, kindness, loyalty and honesty arise from people needing to live together in peace and harmony, not from any religion. Moral rules must be judged by their consequences for people now, not by their appearance in the 'holy' writings of ancient societies. Secularism in Leicester goes back at least as far as 1780s, when artisans in

740-461: A periodic fluctuation or a larger trend toward long-term adoption of secularism. The principle of Laïcité , the French notion of strict separation, was enshrined into law in 1905. After the rise to power of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in 1923, Turkish secularism, or laiklik , became a state ideology under Kemalism , aiming to modernise the country. Turkey 's secular tradition prior to Atatürk's reforms

814-531: A philosophy, secularism seeks to interpret life based on principles derived solely from the material world, without recourse to religion. It shifts the focus from religion towards "temporal" and material concerns. There are distinct traditions of secularism in the West, like the French, Benelux-German, Turkish, and American models, and beyond, as in India , where the emphasis is more on equality before law and state neutrality and equidistance from all religions rather than

SECTION 10

#1732916716853

888-620: A right-handed batsman between 1864 and 1865. In 1866, Hyndman reported on the Italian war with Austria for The Pall Mall Gazette . Hyndman was horrified by the reality of war and became violently ill after visiting the front line. Hyndman met the leaders of the Italian nationalist movement and was generally sympathetic to their cause. In 1869, Hyndman toured the world, visiting the United States, Australia and several European countries. He continued to write for The Pall Mall Gazette , where he praised

962-553: A socialist, sometimes a friend and sometimes an adversary of Karl Marx , Hyndman read The Communist Manifesto . Although he had doubts about some of Marx's ideas, Hyndman was greatly impressed by his analysis of capitalism. Hyndman was also greatly influenced by the book Progress and Poverty and the ideology of Henry George known today as Georgism . Hyndman decided to form Britain's first socialist political party. The Social Democratic Federation (SDF) had its first meeting on 7 June 1881. Many socialists were concerned that in

1036-406: A sociological or historical process. Contemporary ethical debate in the West is often described as "secular", as it is detached from religious considerations. Twentieth-century scholars, whose work has contributed to the understanding of these matters, include Carl L. Becker , Karl Löwith , Hans Blumenberg , M. H. Abrams , Peter L. Berger , Paul Bénichou and D. L. Munby , among others. There

1110-588: A total of 59 votes. The story leaked out and the political reputation of both men suffered because they had accepted "Tory gold". During the 1880s, Hyndman was a prominent member of the Irish National Land League and the Land League of Great Britain. He took part in the unemployed demonstrations of 1887 and was put on trial for his share in the West End Riots of 1886, but he was acquitted. Hyndman

1184-455: A virtue. Secularists also support freedom from religion as an extension to freedom of religion. Secularism in practice has existed since ancient times. In societies such as Ancient Greece , a limited secularism was practised in which religion was not involved in governance, though it was still prevalent in public life. In Europe, secularism emerged in the early modern period . Due to functional differentiation , religion changed from being

1258-447: Is a crucial element of modernization , or that religion and traditional values are backward and divisive, to the claim that it is the only guarantor of free religious exercise. Secularism takes different forms with varying stances on where and how religion should be separate from other aspects of society. People of any religious denomination can support a secular society, or adopt the principles of secularism, although secularist identity

1332-469: Is a total ban on religion. Under this system, the state enforces laws that do not allow religious practice or the expression of religious beliefs in society. Unlike other secularist frameworks, state atheism does not permit freedom of thought or the separation of government from personal belief. Because of this distinction, state atheism may or may not be considered a form of secularism. It is typically associated with Marxism and Communist states , in which it

1406-476: Is described as " scientific atheism ". In studies of religion, modern democracies are generally recognized as secular. This is due to the near-complete freedom of religion (religious beliefs generally are not subject to legal or social sanctions), and the lack of authority of religious leaders over political decisions. Nevertheless, it has been claimed that surveys done by Pew Research Center show Americans as generally being more comfortable with religion playing

1480-460: Is more common, such as in Western Europe, demographics of secularists are closer to even. How a society considers what is secular may also change, where nominally spiritual beliefs become part of public or private life without being recognized as religious. As secularists are a minority in most communities, secularism is often stigmatized. Proponents of religious society challenge secular society on

1554-411: Is not one singular secular culture, as different people identify as secularists for different reasons and under different belief systems. Secularism is typically associated with progressivism and social liberalism . In democratic countries, middle and upper class white urban males with high education are more likely to identify as secularist than any other demographic group. In societies where secularism

SECTION 20

#1732916716853

1628-564: Is often associated with non-religious individuals such as atheists. Political secularism encompasses the schools of thought in secularism that consider the regulation of religion by a secular state . Religious minorities and non-religious citizens in a country tend to support political secularism while members of the majority religion tend to oppose it. Secular nationalists are people that support political secularism within their own state . Scholars identify several variations of political secularism in society. The strictest form, associated with

1702-418: Is reflective and critical, publicly intelligible and rational, as a secular argument; [...], Nevertheless, a central feature of political liberalism is that it views all such arguments the same way it views religious ones, and therefore these secular philosophical doctrines do not provide public reasons. Secular concepts and reasoning of this kind belong to first philosophy and moral doctrine , and fall outside

1776-480: Is the nature of morality in a material universe. Secular ethics and secular morality describe systems of right and wrong that do not depend on religious or supernatural concepts. Much of the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche is developed in response to this issue. Under secular ethics, good is typically defined as that which contributes to "human flourishing and justice" rather than an abstract or idealized conception of good. Secular ethics are often considered within

1850-487: Is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on naturalistic considerations, uninvolved with religion . It is most commonly thought of as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state and may be broadened to a similar position seeking to remove or to minimize the role of religion in any public sphere. Secularism may encapsulate anti-clericalism , atheism , naturalism , non-sectarianism , neutrality on topics of religion, or antireligion . As

1924-437: The 1880 general election . Denounced as a Tory by William Ewart Gladstone , Hyndman gained very limited support from the electorate and withdrew from the contest, facing certain defeat. Soon after the election, Hyndman read a novel based on the life of Ferdinand Lassalle . He became fascinated with Lassalle and decided to research this romantic hero who had been killed in a duel in 1864. Discovering that Lassalle had been

1998-514: The American Revolution , Thomas Jefferson and James Madison incorporated the ideas of John Locke into the government of the United States, including his secularism, though a true secular state was not achieved until the 20th century. French secularism in the Age of Enlightenment was based on Gallicanism , which emphasised state supremacy, as well as anti-clericalism and materialism . Revolutionary France opposed Catholic influence in

2072-553: The Athenians counted all who were not Greeks as barbarians . I was a thorough-going Radical and Republican in those days—theoretically ... with a great admiration for John Stuart Mill , and later, I remember, I regarded John Morley as the coming man. After his graduation in 1865, Hyndman studied law for two years before deciding to become a journalist. As a first-class cricketer , he represented Cambridge University , Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and Sussex in thirteen matches as

2146-478: The British Empire and criticised those advocating for Irish Home Rule . Hyndman was also very opposed to politics of the United States . Hyndman married Matilda Ware (c. 1846–1913) in 1876 and then Rosalind Travers (c. 1875–1923) in 1914. Hyndman decided on a career in politics. Unable to find a party that he could fully support, he decided to stand as an independent for the constituency of Marylebone in

2220-469: The Center for Inquiry . Religious fundamentalists often oppose a secular form of government, arguing that it contradicts the character of historically religious nations, or infringes on their rights to express themselves in the public sphere. In the United States, for example, the word "secularism" became equivalent to "anti-religion" due to such efforts. Religious minorities, however, often support secularism as

2294-473: The United States Constitution as supporting this system during the 20th century, based on the ideas of John Locke and Thomas Jefferson. Laïcité is a secularist framework developed and used in France. Under this system, the state has legal supremacy over religion and enforces the restriction of religion in the public sphere. It was established by a 1905 law , and subsequent laws have restricted

Leicester Secular Society - Misplaced Pages Continue

2368-582: The 'red international' of socialism". Hyndman supported the antisemitic Viennese riots of 1885, arguing that they represented a blow against Jewish finance capital. Hyndman repeatedly denounced what he saw as the overwhelming power of "capitalist Jews on the London Press", believing that the "Semitic lords of the press" had created war in South Africa. Hyndman remained committed to conspiracies concerning Jews, remarking that "unless you said that they [Jews] were

2442-754: The Democratic Federation, later known as the Social Democratic Federation , in 1881. Although this body attracted radicals such as William Morris and George Lansbury , Hyndman was generally disliked as an authoritarian who could not unite his party. Nonetheless, Hyndman was the first author to popularise Marx's works in English. The son of a wealthy businessman, Hyndman was born on 7 March 1842 in London. After being educated at home, he entered Trinity College, Cambridge . Hyndman later recalled: I had

2516-1214: The French laique model, advocates a state that is both firmly and officially distanced from all religions and non-religious philosophical convictions in all of its manifestations and official dealings, without exception. A more " humanistic " form is indifferent towards religions per se but also advocates for the states to operate on purely a rational basis of evidence-based policy and a focus on human needs and welfare, entailing non-discrimination between peoples of differing religions and non-religious philosophical convictions throughout society. A third "liberal" or " pillarized " form of secularism holds that governments may in some instances express sympathy to, provide funding to, licence state services to, or otherwise allow unique special treatment of religions (common in German-speaking and Benelux secular states), so long as states nevertheless treat these convictions equally, and are neither hostile nor preferential towards any particular set of religious or non-religious philosophical convictions such as humanists . In these countries, secular humanist organizations typically receive state funding according to

2590-506: The Hall opened a bar selling alcohol and was used by shoe workers to host their annual St Crispin's Day celebrations. The membership began to actively debate socialism versus individualism. As well as William Morris, H.M. Hyndman , John Burns and Prince Kropotkin all spoke in debates and public meetings at the Secular Hall. The Leicester branch of the Socialist League held its meetings at

2664-698: The Hall: several founders were members of the Secular Society. Frederick James Gould was the Secretary to the Leicester Secular Society until 1908. In the period after the Second World War, the society went into a decline. Average weekly attendances dropped from a high of 50 to a low of 20. However, the recent resurgence of religion as a political issue has reinvigorated the membership. As of 2015,

2738-539: The Humanist Heritage website notes, Holyoake provides a definition of secularism "much akin to modern definitions of humanism ... broader than just atheism." More modern definitions of secularism are likely to pertain to separation of church and state rather than personal beliefs. Many Christian countries began to undergo societal secularisation during the 20th century, with levels of belief and practice declining. Sociologists disagree as to whether this represents

2812-455: The Indian tradition of religious and ethnic pluralism. One source of disagreement regarding accommodationism in India is the right of Muslims to live under both the civil code and Sharia simultaneously and the complications that result from this. Accommodationism also has a history in the United States , and the U.S. has increasingly moved toward accommodationism in the 21st century. State atheism

2886-591: The SDF fused with a number of branches of the Independent Labour Party . Hyndman's thought was influenced by John Stuart Mill and his protégé John Morley as well as Charles Dilke , Henry Fawcett and Giuseppe Mazzini , Karl Marx "erstwhile adversary" at the time of the First International . According to Hyndman, "Mazzini's greatness ... was obscured for younger socialists by his 'opposition to Marx in

2960-449: The basis of morality, saying that secularism lacks a meaningful way to incentivize moral behaviour among its members. Secularism is considered in political philosophy and philosophy of religion . As a philosophy, secularism is closely associated with naturalism and materialism, rejecting consideration of immaterial or supernatural substances, such as a soul, in favour of a material universe. This secular materialism and rationalism forms

3034-589: The basis of most modern empirical science. During the Age of Enlightenment, liberal European philosophers such as Baruch Spinoza , John Locke , Montesquieu , Voltaire , David Hume , Adam Smith , and Jean-Jacques Rousseau all proposed various forms of separation of church and state. The work of well known moral philosophers such as Derek Parfit and Peter Singer , and even the whole field of contemporary bioethics, have been described as explicitly secular or non-religious. A major issue considered by secular philosophy

Leicester Secular Society - Misplaced Pages Continue

3108-659: The beneficence of the 'great democracies of the English speaking peoples'" were inspired not by Benjamin Disraeli as historians such as Mark Bevir have argued, but rather by Dilke and Mill, whom Hyndman combined their ideas "on the unique character of 'the Angloe-Saxon race' with Mazzini's cosmopolitan patriotism, thus constructing a nationalism fully compatible with 'a good internationalism'. In his two volume autobiography, Hyndman spoke at length about Mazzini, even comparing him to Marx. For Vladimir Lenin , "that Hyndman should do so

3182-602: The country, and it briefly replaced Christianity with the deistic Cult of Reason . The first to use the already-extant word "secularism" in a modern sense, was the British agnostic writer George Holyoake , in 1851. Finding " atheism " too aggravating, he sought a term that would describe a stance advocating to conduct life based on naturalistic (secular) considerations only, but without necessarily rejecting religion, thus enabling cooperation with believers. Holyoake's definition of secularism differs from its usage by later writers. As

3256-713: The democratic to the authoritarian, such governments share a concern to limit the religious side in the relationship. Each state may find its own unique policy prescriptions. These may include separation, careful monitoring and regulation of organized religion such as in France, Turkey, India and others. In accord with the belief in the separation of church and state, secularists tend to prefer that politicians make decisions for secular rather than religious reasons. In this respect, policy decisions pertaining to topics like abortion , contraception , embryonic stem cell research, same-sex marriage , and sex education are prominently focused upon by American secularist organizations such as

3330-399: The difference between bourgeois democratic and a socialist'. For the difference was, often, not clear-cut; many socialists, including Marx, accepted the representative state. The 'association between Marx and a 'Marxist' language of revolution' was, in the main, a twentieth-century invention, which Lenin in no small part helped to create. And Marx himself, moreover, allayed Hyndman's fears about

3404-691: The domain of the political. Still, Rawl's theory is akin to Holyoake's vision of a tolerant democracy that treats all life stance groups alike. Rawl's idea it that it is in everybody's own interest to endorse "a reasonable constitutional democracy" with "principles of toleration". His work has been highly influential on scholars in political philosophy and his term, overlapping consensus , seems to have for many parts replaced secularism among them. In textbooks on modern political philosophy, like Colin Farrelly's, An Introduction to Contemporary Political Theory , and Will Kymlicka's, Contemporary Political Philosophy ,

3478-619: The early days of the 'International,' and his vigorous condemnation a little later of the Paris Commune ", insisting that "'Mazzini's conception of the conduct of human life' had been 'a high and noble one'", praising the "No duties without rights" mention in the "General Rules" that Marx composed and passed as "a concession Marx made to Mazzini's followers within the organisation". Friedrich Engels , Marx's collaborator, "censured Hyndman's Mazzinian moralism" and also accused Hyndman of "jingo aspiration". Seamus Flaherty argues that "Hyndman's views on

3552-399: The five busts on the front of the building. These depict Robert Owen , Thomas Paine , Voltaire , Socrates and, most controversially, Jesus . After Gimson's death in 1883, one of his sons, Sidney Gimson, became the mainstay of the society until shortly before his death in 1938. He was assisted by F. J. Gould as secretary from 1899 to 1908. Another son, Ernest Gimson , became famous as

3626-552: The frame of humanism. It can be seen by many of the organizations (NGOs) for secularism that they prefer to define secularism as the common ground for all life stance groups, religious or atheistic, to thrive in a society that honours freedom of speech and conscience. An example of that is the National Secular Society in the UK. This is a common understanding of what secularism stands for among many of its activists throughout

3700-436: The government can enforce how people act but not what they believe. Similarly, freedom of thought is supported by secularism. Order is supported by secularists, specifically in that one's beliefs should not be permitted to disturb the civil peace. Religious tolerance is supported both for people of other religions and for a lack of piety demonstrated by members of one's own religion. Political secularism also supports reason as

3774-463: The journalist Henry Hyde Champion . Many members of the SDF questioned Hyndman's leadership qualities. He was extremely authoritarian and tried to restrict internal debate about party policy. At an SDF meeting on 27 December 1884, the executive voted by a majority of two (10–8) that it had no confidence in Hyndman. When he refused to resign, some members, including William Morris and Eleanor Marx, left

SECTION 50

#1732916716853

3848-447: The landmark work of John Rawls ' A Theory of Justice in 1971 and its following book, Political Liberalism (1993), would rather use the conjoined concept overlapping consensus rather than secularism. In the latter Rawls holds the idea of an overlapping consensus as one of three main ideas of political liberalism . He argues that the term secularism cannot apply; But what is a secular argument? Some think of any argument that

3922-469: The membership stands at around 170. The Society publishes a journal, The Leicester Secularist , which carries reviews of events at the Hall, discussion articles and news regarding secular issues in Leicester. A refurbishment of the ground floor of Secular Hall was completed in 2014. The Society has adopted the strap line "for an inclusive and plural society free from religious privilege, prejudice and discrimination." Secularism Secularism

3996-460: The most capable and brilliant people of the earth, you had the whole of their international agencies against you". Such antisemitism disillusioned erstwhile supporters. Eleanor Marx wrote privately to Wilhelm Liebknecht that "Mr Hyndman whenever he could do with impunity has endeavoured to set English workmen against foreigners". Hyndman had previously attacked Eleanor Marx in antisemitic terms, noting that she had "inherited in her nose and mouth

4070-744: The necessity of revolution in England, stating that he considered 'an English revolution not necessary , but according to historic precedents— possible ' ". Hyndman was an antisemite , voicing antisemitic opinions with regard to the Second Boer War and blaming "Jewish bankers" and " imperialist Judaism" as the cause of the conflict. Hyndman charged " Beit , Barnato and their fellow-Jews" as aiming to create "an Anglo-Hebraic Empire in Africa stretching from Egypt to Cape Colony ". Hyndman believed Jews were central to "a sinister 'gold international' opposed to

4144-451: The ordinary education of a well-to-do boy and young man. I read mathematics hard until I went to Cambridge, where I ought, of course, to have read them harder, and then I gave them up altogether and devoted myself to amusement and general literature. ... Trinity or, for that matter, any other college, is practically a hot-bed of reaction from the social point of view. The young men regard all who are not technically "gentlemen" as "cads," just as

4218-619: The party, forming the Socialist League . In the 1885 general election , Hyndman and Henry Hyde Champion, without consulting their colleagues, accepted £340 from the Conservatives to run parliamentary candidates in Hampstead and Kensington , the objective being to split the Liberal vote and therefore enable the Conservative candidate to win. This ploy failed and the two SDF's candidates won only

4292-457: The past Hyndman had been opposed to socialist ideas, but Hyndman persuaded many that he had genuinely changed his views and those who eventually joined the SDF included William Morris and Karl Marx's daughter Eleanor Marx . However, Friedrich Engels , Marx's long-term collaborator, refused to support Hyndman's venture. Hyndman wrote the first popularisation of the ideas of Karl Marx in the English language with England for All in 1881. The book

4366-523: The predominant lens through which reality was interpreted to providing only an alternative explanatory approach. In 1636, Roger Williams founded the Providence Plantations as a settlement with total freedom of religion, in present-day Rhode Island . Secular ideas were strongly challenged by religious leaders and the Catholic Church in particular, causing a religious culture war . During

4440-536: The same funding formulas used to provide state funding to religious groups. In Indian political discourse, the pejorative term pseudo-secularism is also used to highlight instances where it is believed that while the state purports to be secular, indifferent, or impartial towards religions, its policies in reality favour a particular religion over others. There are many principles that are associated with all forms of political secularism. It typically promotes legal equality between people of different religions, opposing

4514-521: The same rights to others. Anyone should be prepared to submit their views to vigorous debate, questioning of their evidence and testing of their conclusions. 3. Working for justice and fairness We believe our efforts should be devoted to the elimination of human misery, injustice, poverty and ignorance in the world as it is here and now. We oppose unfair discrimination, bigotry and coercion based on factors such as beliefs, racial or ethnic origins, disability, sex, age, sexuality or lifestyle. 4. Promoting

SECTION 60

#1732916716853

4588-464: The separation of church and state. This can refer to reducing ties between a government and a state religion , replacing laws based on scripture (such as Halakha , Dharmaśāstra , and Sharia ) with civil laws , and eliminating discrimination on the basis of religion . This is said to add to democracy by protecting the rights of religious minorities. Separation of church and state is one possible strategy to be deployed by secular governments. From

4662-425: The separation of church and state. Under this system, the state does not support any religious group and does not enforce religious laws. Challenges facing separationist secularism include how the government should regulate secular activities of religious groups and how to govern separately from religion when citizens, including government employees, are religious. The federal judiciary of the United States interpreted

4736-476: The separation of religion and state, proper representation of people with no religion, the ending of privileges for religious organisations and the secularisation of 'faith' schools. We challenge religious teachings that divert people away from reality. 2. Defending rationalism and free speech We believe people should be free to express and publish their beliefs, however controversial, without fear of prosecution, persecution or physical harm, as long as they accord

4810-431: The term secularism is not even indexed and in the former it can be seen only in one footnote. However, there is no shortage of discussion and coverage of the topic it involves. It is just called overlapping consensus, pluralism , multiculturalism or expressed in some other way. In The Oxford Handbook of Political Theory , there is one chapter called "Political secularism", by Rajeev Bhargava . It covers secularism in

4884-467: The town were in correspondence with Thomas Paine . The first formal secular organisation was Branch 26 of Robert Owen 's Association of All Classes of All Nations . Branch 26 was founded in 1838 and meet in the Commercial Rooms near the market. The first Leicester Secular Society was formed in 1852. It did not take off straight away and had to be re-established in 1867. The early Secular Society

4958-587: The use of religious iconography in public or by children. Kemalist secularism, or laiklik , is an adaptation of laïcité that Mustafa Kemal Atatürk established in Turkey in the 1920s and 1930s. Accommodationism is a system of actively supporting religion in general without favouring a specific religious sect. Under this system, the state applies few restrictions to religion and often provides religious organizations with financial support. India uses this system, incorporating Western ideas of secularism in combination with

5032-446: The world. However, many scholars of Christianity and conservative politicians seem to interpret secularism more often than not, as an antithesis of religion and an attempt to push religion out of society and replace it with atheism or a void of values, nihilism . This dual aspect (as noted above in "Secular ethics") has created difficulties in political discourse on the subject. It seems that most political theorists in philosophy following

5106-690: Was chairman at the International Socialist Congress held in London in 1896. He was pro- Boer during the second Boer War . Hyndman continued to lead the SDF and took part in the negotiations to establish the Labour Representation Committee (LRC) in 1900. However, the SDF left the LRC when it became clear that it was deviating from the objectives he had set out. In 1911, he set up the British Socialist Party (BSP) when

5180-437: Was extremely successful, a fact that stoked Marx's antipathy, given the fact that he had failed to credit Marx by name in the introduction. The work was followed in 1883 by Socialism Made Plain which expounded the policies of what by then had been renamed as the SDF. They included a demand for universal suffrage and the nationalisation of the means of production and distribution. The SDF also published Justice , edited by

5254-587: Was led for many years by Josiah Gimson, an engineer and W.H. Holyoak, a tailor. In this period, the ideas of G.J. Holyoake were influential on Leicester secularists. Some also mixed with Unitarians , an influential social and political group in the town. By the late 1860s, the Leicester Secular Society was meeting regularly and its activities were mainly focused on discussion classes. By 1873, it had meeting rooms in Humberstone Gate. The membership

5328-454: Was limited, and 20th century Turkish secularism was initially modelled after French laïcité . Turkey remains virtually the only Muslim-majority nation with an effective secular government, though secularism remains a controversial ideology in Turkey, and the country's ruling party AKP is more anti-Kemalist than anti-secularist. India became a secular state after it achieved independence in 1947; Mahatma Gandhi supported pluralist secularism as

5402-521: Was now large enough that Gimson proposed the building of a new meeting hall: the Leicester Secular Hall . This was financed by the sale of £5 shares: 80% were owned by four families, including the Gimsons. Land was purchased in Humberstone Gate. It was Gimson who chose the young and innovative architect, W Larner Sugden to design the building. Gimson also engaged the sculptor Ambrose Louis Vago for

5476-434: Was preposterous; more astonishing still was that Hyndman should admire Mazzini". However, Flaherty writes that "when situated within its proper context, Hyndman's 'intellectual republicanism', so far from being unintelligible, is predictable, insofar as it was characteristic of mid-Victorian liberalism. Lenin's view was anachronistic. Similarly anachronistic was Lenin's complaint that Hyndman 'very poorly understood in 1880 ...

#852147