Humanism has had an awesome corrosive impact on the basic morality of our country. While America has more Christians than any other nation, the United States has become one of the most immoral nations on earth. Humanism, like Satan is subtle and is often undetected by the unwary- especially children and young people.
What is humanism? Please do not confuse humanism with humanitarianism. All of us should be humanitarians-showing Christ-like compassion for others. Humanism is the exact opposite of humanitarianism. A humanist believes in himself (not God) and is more concerned about his own self-preservation than he is about the needs of others. Humanism is not new. It is the ancient struggle of self-centeredness- man’s will versus God’s will. Children are easy targets for humanistic indoctrination. Humanistic thought reaches them from a wide variety of sources – public school, all forms of news and entertainment media, friends, much of our present day Sunday School materials, and sometimes even family members. Humanism impacts youngsters and young people in varying degrees in the following ways:
1. Disrespect for authority: Students in many secular schools are made to believe that they are not accountable to God, parents, pastors, teachers, or civil authorities. They are told that “anybody’s values are as good as anybody else’s,” and “whatever you choose will be right for you because you chose it.” This, of course, is the humanistic doctrine of situation ethics. The destructive spin-off of situation ethics is awesome in its impact in many lives.
2. Decline in discipline at home and at school: When youngsters believe they are their own authority they “do their own thing.” They ignore the leadership of teachers, preachers, and parents. This can result in increased resentment, confrontation, chaos; and rebellion. The rapid decline in discipline is the direct result of the rapid rise of humanistic teaching in secular schools.
3. Decline in academics: When discipline goes down, learning goes down. Teachers must have the attention of youngsters to impart learning. The “do your own thing” philosophy has led to a steady academic decline of public education over the past fifty years. Consequently, the United states is no longer the academic pacesetter of the world. It is alarming to realize that the small emerging country of South Korea has a higher literacy level than the United States!
4. Self-centeredness: The heart of humanism is the idea that man is supreme over God. It is shocking to some to learn that John Dewey, the father of”progressive education” was an atheist. He was the founder and first president of the American Humanist Association. He said, “There is no God, and there is no soul.” The American Humanist Manifesto reads, “As nontheists, we begin with humans not God, nature not deity. No deity will save us; we must save ourselves.” The “man-centeredness” of humanism leads to self-centeredness, selfishness, and self-preservation. “What’s in it for me,” becomes the cry. Youngsters are taught to look out for “number one” – namely themselves. In contrast the apostle Paul wrote, “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others” (Philippians 2:4).
5. Total academic freedom: Humanists believe that children should have the right to read anything under the guise of academic freedom- anything, that is, except the Bible. Speaking of God and the Bible, a humanist said, “It is immoral to indoctrinate children with such beliefs.”
6. Total sexual freedom: Our children are going straight from babyhood to puberty as full sexual beings with no intermission. Dr. Sam Jones, in an issue of the Los Angeles Times, calls our age of sexual freedom the “death of innocence.” Humanist thinkers want to “liberate” our children from sexual inhibitions.
The answer to all of this, as far as your children are concerned, is to avoid humanistic training. True Bible-centered schools and churches, plus the all important influence of a godly family, are the best possible options for the next generation.