Terminology Tuesday: Humanism

Humanism (secular humanism): In general, humanism is any movement or ideology that focuses on the worth of the human being. Christian humanism emphasizes the fact that humans are create in God's image and as such are creatures of worth or value. Secular humanism, on the other hand, attempts to see the worth of humans apart from any appeal to God. Thus humanists often suggest that value is completely intrinsic to the individual.1

1. Stanley J. Grenz, David Guretzki & Cherith Fee Nordling, Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1999), p. 61.