Secular Christian Worldview

Secular Christian Humanism Worldview
Prior to taking a course that explores the Christian worldview I would have stated that I had a Christian worldview and would have been confident in this declaration. However, I find myself anticipating the completion of this course and I am a bit confused about the true nature of my worldview. There are many things that are exactly the same, slightly similar, and drastically different from a traditional Christian worldview. According to Cosgrove in order to determine an individual’s worldview you must pay attention to their beliefs about reality (Is there a God?), knowledge (Where do we learn about what we believe?), human nature (What makes up a human being?), human problems (What cause human problems?),
solutions to human problems (How are human problems solved?), human value (Are human beings more important than other creatures?), human purpose (Why are we here?), ethics (what is right and what is wrong?), suffering (What purpose does suffering serve?), meaning of life (Why are we here?), and human desire (What prompts our desires?). I have taken all of these beliefs in to consideration and have come to the conclusion that my worldview is not entirely Christian. The beliefs that I share with the Christian worldview pertain to reality, human nature, human value, and the meaning of life.
I believe that God exists, that he is part of the Holy Trinity that consists of God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. I believe that a human being is made up of the physical, mental, and spiritual and is unable to function without all three parts equally invested. The value of Human life is massive in my worldview, it is to be cherished and protected. The meaning of life is all geared towards living a good life and being a good supportive human being to our fellow brothers and sisters. We are all striving to reach heaven and our foretold, euphoric ever after beside our Holy Father. These four beliefs are held strongly in a Christian worldview and are strong beliefs in my own
worldview. Some of the beliefs that are similar but not exact are in regards to knowledge, human problems, solutions to human problems, human purpose, ethics, and suffering.
I was raised believing that the Bible was fact and was to be treated as such. That the individuals that wrote the Bible were in fact guided by God and therefore speaking the truth. I, however, find myself believing that the Bible is a very well written story depicting the behavior that the authors thought was appropriate for society during that time. I have difficulty believing that there was divine intervention in the writing of the Bible. The Christian worldview states that human problems are due to the fall of man in the Garden of Eden and have basically continued since that time. My belief is more that human problems stem from biological, mental, and physical complications and again have very little to do with a divine event. The solutions to human problems can only be fixed because of a change in the biological, mental, and physical world. I have little faith that believing in God and praying to him is all that is required to fix problems. I think more human, not divine, involvement is necessary to see real change. The Christian worldview would have you believe that the human purpose is to worship God, and worship all that he has given you. I think there is more to it than simply worshiping God, I don’t believe that our purpose alone is God. I believe He intended to give us a purpose other than purely
worshiping him. I believe that the ethics that society hold today are based on the commandments of the Bible. I feel that the Bible gives morals and ethics the way fairytales and nursery rhymes give them to children however the age of the Bible makes it more important than any other story written. Suffering in the Chrisitan worldview is all about God and says that we must accept this and now that it is about love, power and purpose. I believe that suffering is made bearable if you believe that there is a reason for it and that there is a purpose that we do not understand yet. I am not sure that God makes us suffer but I do know that believing in him makes suffering less painful. Lastly are the beliefs that I do not share with the Christian worldview which is human desire and sexuality. I believe that human desire is basically our animal instincts and that there is not any divinity involved. I do believe that God often puts temptation in our way to guide us in a certain direction but I do not think that human desire is a desire to be closer to God. When we talk about a desire for truth and morality I can see were that might have something to do with God and Jesus Christ but ultimately I think desire is more closely connected to selfishness and temptation. The Christian worldview believes that sex is an act that takes place between a married man and woman, any other variation is immoral. I have a difficultly with this concept. I do see the advantages to abstaining from sexual intimacy until one is married but the belief that homosexuality is a sin is unacceptable in my worldview. I think that we were each created by God, therefore our sexual preferences are also ordained by God. Society and the church are very caught up with the idea of propriety that I think they’ve overlooked the concept of acceptance and being non-judgmental. I think that love is a beautiful thing no matter the sexual orientation. I am not homosexual myself and I was brought up believing that it was a sin, and would most likely still believe this if I had not learned that this is a biological trait rather than a personal choice. Homo-sexual were born homo-sexual and this makes me believe that it is the way God intended them to be. I find it difficult to accept that a book written approximately 3,500 years ago is valid today. I feel as though we need the Holy Bible 2.0 that would better acknowledge the things that we are going through today. I wonder how Jesus Christ would fair if he returned today as the Messiah. Cosgrove (2006) states that "the worldviews that we encounter in society are not usually exact copies of those we have learned about…(p. 180). (Lecture 7, 2012) I believe that I share enough of the Christian worldview that my worldview variation successfully passes the worldview test. My worldview affects my thoughts and actions every day. I find that I am extremely non-judgmental and find joy where I can. I make things happen myself and do not wait for divine intervention. I have been known to pray to God in times of trouble but I do not think that prayers alone will make a difference. My faith helps me get through the day however I often wonder if it is not just a crutch to get me through the hard times, when I there is no obvious reason for what is taking place. I am a good person and I try to follow the commandments and the rules that have been set forth in the Bible but I believe that you need to acknowledge the rules that society has put in place as well. I fear that my variations on the Christian worldview will cause me issue when it is my time to meet God and this is why I feel that it requires further investigation. I value education and will continue in my search for knowledge in regards to God and the Secular Humanist worldview.
My worldview has fallen somewhere between a Christian and Secular Humanism worldview. At the beginning of the course I took the “What is your Worldview” quiz offered by Grand Canyon University and obtain a solid Christian world view result, having taken it again at the end of this course it determined that I had a Secular Humanism worldview. I do not think that I am fully either view. I am a mixture of these and others. The following quote is from Veith (1994) in regards to the mixture of worldviews; “The next major new religion, however, will probably not be one of the old forms of overt paganism, but rather a [syncretistic] hybrid. (p. 200). (Lecture 7, 2013) This statement is very similar to my beliefs. My belief in God and Jesus Christ makes me a Christian however I have chosen to believe in other aspects of other worldviews. My worldview at this time appears to be a hybrid of the Christian worldview and Secular Humanism.

References
Cosgrove, M. (2006). Foundations of Christian thought: Faith, learning, and the Christian worldview. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel.
Veith, G. (1994). Postmodern times: A Christian guide to contemporary thought and culture. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
Lecture 7. (2013). CWV-101: Christian Worldview. Phoenix, AZ: Grand Canyon University.