Religion of Humanity

Religion of Humanity (from French Religion de l'Humanité or église positiviste) is a secular religion created by Auguste Comte (1798–1857), the founder of positivist philosophy. Adherents of this religion have built chapels of Humanity in France and Brazil. Religion of Humanity (from French Religion de l'Humanité or église positiviste) is a secular religion created by Auguste Comte (1798–1857), the founder of positivist philosophy. Adherents of this religion have built chapels of Humanity in France and Brazil. In the United States and Europe, Comte's ideas influenced others, and contributed to the emergence of ethical societies and 'ethical churches', which led to the development of Ethical culture, congregational humanist, and secular humanist organisations. Comte developed the religion of humanity for positivist societies in order to fulfill the cohesive function once held by traditional worship. The religion was developed after Comte's passionate platonic relationship with Clotilde de Vaux, whom he idealised after her death. He became convinced that feminine values embodied the triumph of sentiment and morality. In a future science-based Positivist society there should also be a religion that would have power by virtue of moral force alone. In 1849, he proposed a calendar reform called the 'positivist calendar', in which months were named after history's greatest leaders, thinkers, and artists, and arranged in chronological order. Each day was dedicated to a thinker. According to Tony Davies, Comte's secular and positive religion was 'a complete system of belief and ritual, with liturgy and sacraments, priesthood and pontiff, all organized around the public veneration of Humanity', referred to as the Nouveau Grand-Être Suprême (New Supreme Great Being). 'This was later to be supplemented in a positivist trinity by the Grand Fétish (the Earth) and the Grand Milieu (Cosmic Space)'. In Système de politique positive (1851–1854) Comte stated that the pillars of the religion are: In Catéchisme positiviste (1851), Comte defined the Church of Humanity's seven sacraments: The Religion of Humanity was described by Thomas Huxley as 'Catholicism minus Christianity'. In addition to a holy trinity of Humanity, the Earth and Destiny, it had a priesthood. Priests were required to be married, because of the ennobling influence of womanhood. They would conduct services, including Positivist prayer, which was 'a solemn out-pouring, whether in private or in public, of men's nobler feelings, inspiring them with larger and more comprehensive thoughts.' The purpose of the religion was to increase altruism, so that believers acted always in the best interests of humanity as a whole. The priests would be international ambassadors of altruism, teaching, arbitrating in industrial and political disputes, and directing public opinion. They should be scholars, physicians, poets and artists. Indeed all the arts, including dancing and singing should be practiced by them, like bards in ancient societies. This required long training. They began training from the age of twenty-eight, studying in positivist schools. From thirty-five to forty-two a priest served in an apprentice position as teacher and ritualist. Only at the age of forty-two could he become a full priest. They earned no money and could not hold offices outside the priesthood. In this way their influence was purely spiritual and moral. The High Priest of Humanity was to live in Paris, which would replace Rome as the centre of religion. Davies argues that Comte's austere and 'slightly dispiriting' philosophy of humanity - viewed as alone in an indifferent universe (which can only be explained by 'positive' science) - 'was even more influential in Victorian England than the theories of Charles Darwin or Karl Marx'.