Secularization European Mind 19C (Canto original series)

Owen Chadwick's 'The Secularization of the European Mind in the Nineteenth Century' originated as the Gifford Lectures in 1973-4. Although Chadwick is a prominent historian of Christianity the depth of his knowledge and the quality of his argument prevents the book from becoming an apologetic. He notes 'this is a subject infested by the doctrinaire' in which secularization is often presented as a concomitant of a decline in religious observance. The presentation of the nineteenth century as 'the age par excellence of secularization' is unsustainable as it assumes a pre-existing religious society which did not exist. French upper-class society before the end of the reign of Louis X1V was full of atheists many of whom were formal Catholics having a remote connection with the gospel.Traditional historians such as Lecky, Bury and Robertson referred to rationalism, progress and free thought in the context of the Enlightenment, whereas the sociologist Durkheim examined, 'religion in the context of a social pattern of order, of the self-preservation of society as society.' In so doing Durkheim changed the way religion itself was studied showing 'how the religious ideas of a society were related to their ultimate social values.' This theme underlay Marx's critique of capitalism in which religion became 'the opium of the people', an idea articulated in 1767 by the French materialist d'Holbach and used by Hess and Bauer before Marx. As historians are shaped by their immediate context it was no coincidence the British Opium War ended in 1842, the year before Marx's comment.While intellectual and social elites adopted atheistic or agnostic positions they made sure the lower classes did not. While this was possible during the eighteenth century a century later the lower classes had benefited from the spread of literacy. Did social change lead to the rise of non-belief, or non-belief change social values? Christianity had dealt with changes in belief in the past, such as when Valla proved the Donation of Constantine was a forgery, by adapting to new knowledge and restating the Christian faith. Hence Christian adaptation is not the same as secularization. On the other hand the impact of ideas could not fail to challenge Christian beliefs based on authority as they denied the validity of that authority.Authority in the Christian tradition combined doctrine and organsiation. The Papacy was political in essence and its practices financial in motive. The consequence of Luther's resistence to the latter led to new political States and the emergence of tolerance as a method of managing the co-existence of different traditions within them. Christian conscience was the force which made Europe 'secular'. By establishing the freedom to worship it also established the freedom not to worship. Liberalism was the philosophical and political expression of tolerance particularly in limiting the power of the State to interfere in an individual's activites. Whereas Hegel viewed enlightened despotism as the fulfilment of the Christian ideal through the State, liberalism sought to dismantle it. It was not the consensus about religion which changed by 1860 but the constitution which once protected it.As Chadwick notes, 'Liberty to attack religion rose less from decline of religion than from love of liberty'. John Stuart Mill asserted 'the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilised society against his will, is to prevent harm to others.' Mill's attack on the religious consensus was meant to destroy it, while disassociating liberalism from the excesses of the French Revolution. Chadwick interprets Mill as seeking truth from the interplay of free minds, others see him as resurrecting the philosopher-king. By advocating scepticism Mill assumed the masses would think as he did. In practice the expansion of the press did more to undermine religious attachment than Mill's abstract ideas.The French Revolution was led by a curious combination of deists and atheists. In destroying the old they undermined the new. As Madame Roland proclaimed, 'Oh Liberty, what crimes are committed in thy name!' Hegel argued that religion and rational philosophy were of the same essence. The Young Hegelians sought to 'integrate a Protestant Christianity into their understanding of the world's progress'. However, the German intellectual context of the early nineteenth century was anti-Christian. Feuerbach's 'The Essence of Christianity' presented Christianity as an anthropological phenomenon, attributing to God man's own inherent qualities. Bauer thought secularizing the State would throttle religion, Marx advocated reconstituting society without religion which he rejected as socially undesirable. His theory of alienation was lifted from Christian vocabulary, the difference being the heavenly expectation of Christians and Marx's attempt to produce heaven on earth.Chadwick shows the attitudes of British workers were not as atheistic as Engels claimed in his 'Condition of the Working Classes in England in 1844'. Atheism was confined to small minorities while the urban working class were outside the purview of the Church which failed to extend into the sprawling towns. Chadwick demonstrates the error of suggesting Christianity was a method of social control. The working-man 'was somewhere between unconscious secularist and unconscious Christian.' Anti-clericalism was confined to Europe owing to the weakness of the Catholic Church, the growth of democracy and Papal opposition to liberalism. In France 'God' and 'anti-God' were political slogans. In 1848 the Italians rose up against their Austrian rulers but turned to anti-clericalism when Pius 1X refused to support attacking another Catholic country.Chadwick's treatment of 'science and religion' demolishes Draper's 'History of the Conflict between Religion and Science' which created the myth of inevitable conflict still prevalent in some scientific circles. The adoption of vulgar Darwinism by opinion-forming circles led to Darwin becoming a symbol of scientific materialism. Scholars such as Haeckel became evangelists for anti-Christian scientific religion addressing the masses rather than the salons as in the previous century. Comte set up a secular religion of humanity, Christian Socialism challenged the inherent atheism of Marxism while the latter proved to be the enemy of liberty. This five star book should be read by everyone.

This wide-ranging treatise on the project of the secularisation of Western culture took me longer to read than I had anticipated, but this was largely because I found myself appreciating Chadwick's wry, economical prose, and going back to re-read sections, in order to ensure that I had extracted the marrow of it. The book consists of ten chapters which are broadly equivalent to set of lectures he gave:(1) Introduction(2) On liberalism(3) Karl Marx(4) The attitudes of the worker(5) The rise of anticlericalism(6) Voltaire in the nineteenth century(7) Science and religion(8) History and the secular(9) The moral nature of man(10) On a sense of providenceChadwick was a churchman, so you should not expect a sweeping sympathy with the fruit of the Enlightenment, and the various political and philosophical polemics which drove the process of secularisation. But he is also liberal in his views, so he evinces little sympathy for the more conservative forms of religious belief which were swept aside by secularisers. As other reviewers have said, Chadwick does not go into huge detail regarding the key thinkers, but there are a wealth of references to follow up, if you wish. He did, however, provide very useful introductions to Ernest Renan, Hippolyte Taine and Brunetiere - whose writings usefully encompass the dialectic between the anti-supernaturalist demands of secularism, and the growing void at the heart of Western culture which resulted.Chadwick's book raises plenty of interesting themes for further study, not least the nature of history, who is entitled to write it, and what may or may not be included within it. He does very ably lay to rest the popular misconception that 'science' in and of itself provided the nemesis for religion - showing, rather, that this had more to do with militant naturalism, opportunistically using the respectable clothing supplied by Darwinism for its own purposes. Overall, a very good read, and a most helpful catalyst for further exploration.

hard work but good

This is a rich text, which offers a number of perspectives on the growth of 'secularization' in modern west. The term 'secularization' is not taken uncritically. Chadwick's first task is to subject it to scrutiny and to establish what he means by it.It would be difficult to offer an adequate summary of the book's many chapters. There is an overall lightness of style - the author is a master of the polished phrase. This lightness is manifest also in the fact that the book does not attempt any detailed exegesis of particular texts, ideas or contexts, but contents itself rather to talk in a more detached way about big, sweeping themes. This is in itself unsurprising, given that the book originated in a series of lectures.Perhaps the best chapters are those on 'science and religion' and on 'history and religion' which indicate some of the ways in which the popular consciousness was permeated by developments in the arcane worlds of university academia. The author is particularly adept at showing how the perspectives of those within universities could be refracted and altered by those who assumed the responsibility of conveying them to a wider public. For example, many university academics saw in Darwinian theory a coherence which matched their theological outlooks; but some of the most popular exponents of Darwinian theory in the public domain marginalised this insight and instead focused upon setting up and antithesis between 'religion' and 'science'.The themes covered by the volume are huge in substance, and the author recognises he can only hope to contribute a limited few insights. As an erudite introduction to the process of secularization and into the workings of Victorian minds, however, the work is an invaluable starting point and an engaging read. It is therefore to be highly recommended.

Chadwick takes the major intellectual revolutions of the 19th Century and shows how secularization is informed by the sacred and vice versa. Chadwick nails a difficult subject.

Arrived in good shape, as advertised

I read this book for a church history class in seminary. The six students all had negative reactions to reading it not because of the subject or thesis but due to the writing style of Chadwick. We all found it to be written in an inaccessible style that proved difficult to read and follow. Despite that shared sentiment, the book offers some valuable insights that reward readers who trudge through it.Chadwick is undoubtedly a master of the data touched on in this book. He assumes a sophisticated knowledge of the subject among his readers. He makes many unexplained references to people, places and events. He meanders through history, culture, politics and trends. At first glance, the writing seems unorganized and off-track; however, he seems to approach a subject from all angles as he makes his points.Each chapter seems to stand alone. Some are more direct than others. Chadwick paints liberalism as an ideal presented by rational thinkers hoping to initiate a society of responsible social living in which all individuals shared the opportunity for liberty within a moral and just system. Society should be programmed to promote and foster individuality in behavior and expression. He asserts that Christian conscience was the initial force that began to make Europe "secular" by invoking the liberty and tolerance in society that would allow people to worship according to their consciences without fear of impeachment. Liberal thinkers believed people needed "far more room to act and think than they were allowed by established laws and conventions in European society." (22)Liberal theology was emboldened by the emphasis on the mind which among liberals led to an equation of religion with philosophy rather than something unique and supernatural. Chadwick suggests that once religion was considered as an intellectual field rather than otherworldly, it became subject to skeptics. As science gained the spotlight through scientists like Darwin, religion was then subjected to the methods of the scientists who based truth on evidence and on what could be proven.Chadwick discusses the scientists Vogt who in the mid-nineteenth century taught that science had disproved religion. Others like Buchner taught that since science and Darwin had disproved God they have also proven that the universe has no purpose and religious people were deceived and deceivers.Chadwick devotes a chapter to Marx that is probably the most comprehensible chapter and offers a somewhat sympathetic perspective of Marx. The discussion of Marx' thoughts on religion and human needs is interesting and enlightening.Chadwick shows that the problem with the liberal-rationalist-Marx view is that religion did not go away. The people did not reject God or faith. As Chadwick asserts, Christianity contains a gospel of hope for humans that is built not upon reason or experience but upon teaching received as revelation. He writes that on justification by faith "was founded the redemption of man, an optimism that, despite chains which bound him to hell, God could raise him up, to mount towards heaven as the eagles fly, to run and not be weary." (36) Liberalism which was based on principles of toleration and liberty was faced with the challenge to tolerate the church or turn against itself.Chadwick shows how liberalism is constantly challenged by reality itself. Liberalism, by its nature, must allow men the liberty to determine the truths behind the universe and humanity. I think it was this conflict between sentimentalism and reality, provable or unprovable, natural or supernatural, that characterizes the theology of this period as theologians, philosophers, and scientists all tried to define what constituted truth.Chadwick points out that during this period it was in vogue among secularists not to discover the truth but to criticize what was commonly held to be true. This included the criticism of the historicity of the Biblical narrative, including the life of Jesus portrayed in the gospels. Renan characterizes the age with his writing of the non-supernatural life of Jesus. Jesus becomes the ideal man, someone any person could admire and seek to imitate. Jesus is humanity, and so rather than a God being worshipped, humanity itself is worshipped and glorified. Human progress through science and thought will take responsibility for progress and advancement.Craig Stephans, author of Shakespeare On Spirituality: Life-Changing Wisdom from Shakespeare's Plays

If you are a history buff, this book is a wealth of information. Owen Chadwick is an easy read, but very informative.

was pleased