Secularism - Sigmund Freud
Religious Studies: OCR A Level, topic 3.11.1
The Rise of Secularism: Sigmund Freud
Freud (1856-1939) was an atheist psychoanalyst. He believed that religion was a great hindrance to society and so set out to prove that it is merely a product of the mind, an illusion.
Religion is a human construct
- He offered both a psychological and a historical explanation for the origins of religion to prove that it was a construct set up by humans, rather than based on objective reality.
- Religion is wish-fulfilment because it is a reflection of our subconscious projecting into our conscious minds. Freud argues that the main characteristic of an illusion is that it is “derived from human wishes.”
Importance of wishes
- There is no real proof or evidence for religion, and yet sensible men and women continue to believe.
- For Freud, this suggests that religion persists because it “contains within it the wishes of those men and women which are so important to them that they cancel out any doubts they may have about the truth of the religion itself.”
Illusion based on wish fulfilment
- Freud believed that religion was an illusion based on wish fulfilment.
- He believed that in certain circumstances, the human mind will create beliefs and images to satisfy its most basic longings and desires.
Reasons for religion
- Religion is created by the mind to help us overcome:
- The external forces of nature.
- The internal forces of nature.
- The need for a father figure.
Test yourself on Secularism - Sigmund Freud
What did Freud think the human mind wanted to overcome by creating religion?