Leicester Secular Society is the world's oldest

Secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin ''saeculum'', "worldly" or "of a generation"), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. Anything that does not have an explicit reference to religion, either negativ ...

Society. It meets at its headquarters, the

Leicester Secular Hall Leicester Secular Hall is a Grade II listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environme ...

in the centre of Leicester, England, at 75 Humberstone Gate. Leicester Secular Society

Founding

Founded in 1851, the society is the oldest surviving of numerous Secular Societies formed throughout England in the mid-19th century, largely through the efforts of

George Jacob Holyoake George Jacob Holyoake (13 April 1817 – 22 January 1906) was an English secularist, co-operator and newspaper editor. He coined the terms secularism in 1851 and "jingoism" in 1878. He edited a secularist paper, the ''Reasoner'', from 1846 to J ...

and his supporters. (The

National Secular Society The National Secular Society (NSS) is a British campaigning organisation that promotes secularism and the separation of church and state. It holds that no one should gain advantage or disadvantage because of their religion or lack of it. It was ...

was founded in 1866). The 'Principal Aims' of Leicester Secular Society as stated on current (2012) literature are: 1. Challenging religious privilege and dogma We advocate the separation of religion and state, proper representation of people with no religion, the ending of privileges for religious organisations and the secularisation of 'faith' schools. We challenge religious teachings that divert people away from reality. 2. Defending rationalism and free speech We believe people should be free to express and publish their beliefs, however controversial, without fear of prosecution, persecution or physical harm, as long as they accord the same rights to others. Anyone should be prepared to submit their views to vigorous debate, questioning of their evidence and testing of their conclusions. 3. Working for justice and fairness We believe our efforts should be devoted to the elimination of human misery, injustice, poverty and ignorance in the world as it is here and now. We oppose unfair discrimination, bigotry and coercion based on factors such as beliefs, racial or ethnic origins, disability, sex, age, sexuality or lifestyle. 4. Promoting a morality for life We believe moral values and virtues like fairness, kindness, loyalty and honesty arise from people needing to live together in peace and harmony, not from any religion. Moral rules must be judged by their consequences for people now, not by their appearance in the 'holy' writings of ancient societies.

History

The society owes its survival partly to a long tradition of radical thought in Leicester, going back to the

Lollards Lollardy, also known as Lollardism or the Lollard movement, was a proto-Protestant Christian religious movement that existed from the mid-14th century until the 16th-century English Reformation. It was initially led by John Wycliffe, a Catholic ...

Luddites The Luddites were a secret oath-based organisation of English textile workers in the 19th century who formed a radical faction which destroyed textile machinery. The group is believed to have taken its name from Ned Ludd, a legendary weaver ...

Dissenters A dissenter (from the Latin ''dissentire'', "to disagree") is one who dissents (disagrees) in matters of opinion, belief, etc. Usage in Christianity Dissent from the Anglican church In the social and religious history of England and Wales, an ...

Chartists Chartism was a working-class movement for political reform in the United Kingdom that erupted from 1838 to 1857 and was strongest in 1839, 1842 and 1848. It took its name from the People's Charter of 1838 and was a national protest movement, ...

and the

Cooperative movement The history of the cooperative movement concerns the origins and history of cooperatives across the world. Although cooperative arrangements, such as mutual insurance, and principles of cooperation existed long before, the cooperative movement bega ...

, but also to the building of the

in 1881. This was financed by subscription from the members although the Leicester engineer and councillor Josiah Gimson was the main benefactor. It was Gimson who chose the young and innovative architect, W Larner Sugden, and who engaged the sculptor Ambrose Louis Vago for the five busts on the front of the building which depict Robert Owen,

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In th ...

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his criticism of Christianity—es ...

Socrates Socrates (; ; –399 BC) was a Greek philosopher from Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and among the first moral philosophers of the ethical tradition of thought. An enigmatic figure, Socrates authored no te ...

and, most controversially,

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...

. After Gimson's death in 1883, one of his sons, Sidney Gimson, became the mainstay of the society until shortly before his death in 1938. He was ably assisted by F. J. Gould as secretary from 1899 to 1908. Another son,

Ernest Gimson Ernest William Gimson (; 21 December 1864 – 12 August 1919) was an English furniture designer and architect. Gimson was described by the art critic Nikolaus Pevsner as "the greatest of the English architect-designers". Today his reputati ...

, became famous as a designer in the Arts and Crafts movement of

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...

, whose speech on "Art and Socialism" at the Secular Hall in 1884 marked the beginning of the

Socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

movement in Leicester.Marxist Internet Archive''
/ref> In the period after the Second World War, the society went into a decline. Average weekly attendances dropped from a high of 50 to a low of 20: its members having perhaps thought its battles largely won. However, the recent resurgence of religion as a political issue has reinvigorated the membership.

Current status

As of 2015, the membership stands at around 170 and the mix of membership is gradually changing to better reflect the communities of Leicester. The Society publishes a journal, ''The Leicester Secularist'', which carries reviews of events at the Hall, discussion articles and news regarding secular issues in Leicester. A refurbishment of the ground floor of Secular Hall was completed in 2014. The Society has adopted the strap line "for an inclusive and plural society free from religious privilege, prejudice and discrimination."

References

{{Reflist, 1

External links

Leicester Secular Society
Secularism in England Secularist organizations Organizations established in 1851 Organisations based in Leicestershire 1851 establishments in England

Founding

History

Current status

See also

References

External links