Barbarity and Rational Fallacies of Secular Ideologies
✍ A Critical Review of Secularism and Its Intellectual Claims
✦ Objection of Secular Thought Against Religion
Secularists, liberals, and anti-religious individuals often raise the objection that religion is a source of conflict in society and the state. According to them:
➤ Religion cannot establish peace in society due to unresolvable doctrinal differences.
➤ It is impossible to determine what God’s will truly is.
➤ Believing in religious truth as absolute (Al-Haqq) leads to a moral obligation to convey this truth to others — a mindset that, they argue, eventually results in Jihad or “divine vigilantism.”
Hence, they argue that religion must be abandoned in favor of establishing society and governance on rational foundations.
✦ The Historical Atrocities of Secularism: A Reality
The three-century-long history of secularism proves that:
✔ Ideologies crafted in the name of reason brought about unimaginable suffering for humanity.
✔ Entire nations were subjected to genocide, weaker nations were subjugated, and moral values were trampled.
✔ Exploitation, plunder, and continental destruction stand as some of the darkest chapters in human history.
This raises a crucial question: Is there any intellectual foundation for the barbarity and aggression committed by secular circles?
✦ Justification of Secular Conduct
Secular proponents typically offer the simplistic justification:
“These atrocities were not caused by secular ideology itself, but by human weaknesses like selfish interests or emotional pressures.”
However, this stance reflects a double standard:
➤ Religious conflicts are attributed to religious doctrine.
➤ But secular atrocities are blamed on individual human flaws.
This is a weak and self-serving argument, which anyone can use for their defense. It fails to meet any genuine standard of intellectual consistency.
✦ Conflicts Rooted in Secular Ideologies
❖ The Debate Between Reason and Freedom
Secularism claims to be based on reason rather than religion. However:
➤ Secular intellectuals themselves fail to agree on the definition of human freedom.
➤ This has led to internal factionalism within secular circles.
➤ Each faction considers its perspective universally true, trying to impose it on others.
❖ Ideological Jihad
Whether it is Communist Russia, racially supremacist Germany, or human rights champion America — all have launched their own version of ideological jihad in the name of “benefiting humanity.”
Every rationalist ideology considers dissenters as irrational. For example:
➤ Those who reject “human rights” are seen by liberals as ignorant or barbaric.
➤ Consequently, secularists tend to view all others as inferior to themselves.
✦ Justifying Violence Through “Preservation of Reason”
❖ The Philosophy of Rational Protection
Secular rationalist ideologies permit the suppression of those considered irrational, perceiving their existence as a threat to reason and humanity.
For example, the genocide of Native Americans was justified on this basis:
➤ John Locke referred to them as “buffaloes.”
➤ Thomas Jefferson likened them to “wolves.”
❖ Objective Rationality Is a Myth
There is no universal or objective standard of reason. Therefore, conflicting rational ideologies inevitably lead to persistent discord.
This conflict cannot be resolved within the secular or rationalist framework, and thus takes the shape of an unending war.
✦ Ethics and Secular Brutality
A rationalist is not answerable to anyone, as he views ethics as a subjective construct.
He reserves the right to pardon himself for violating his own principles.
As the famous philosopher Richard Rorty said:
“We did wrong to the Native Americans, and we regret it. But since we are sovereign, we reserve the right to forgive ourselves.”
✦ Atrocities of Modern Atheistic Civilization
The modern atheistic civilization has committed the most systematic genocides in human history.
➤ Entire continents were looted.
➤ Devastating weapons were developed.
➤ Millions were annihilated in moments.
This represents not only a moral failure but an indictment of the rational ideologies under which such destruction was carried out.
❖ Conclusion
The claim that abandoning religion in favor of reason leads to peace and human progress is a myth. The secular world, under the pretense of rationality and freedom, has systematically violated ethics, erased civilizations, and justified its barbarity using intellectual pretenses.
In contrast, religious doctrines, despite being subject to misinterpretation, provide accountability, ethical grounding, and a moral compass — something secular rationality has failed to deliver.
