Secularism Figures
George Jacob Holyoake
Holyoake gave secularism a public name and framed it as civic life organized without religious tests.
Notable contribution
Popularized the term secularism as a positive social ethic independent of theological authority.
Profile notes
- He distinguished secularism from mere anti-religion by emphasizing this-worldly welfare.
- His activism connected freethought, education, workers' causes, and cooperative organization.
- The word secularism became a durable label for modern debates over public authority and religion.