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                  <text>SECULAR MORALITY:
WHAT IS IT?
AN EXPOSITION AND A DEFENCE.

CHARLES

WATTS.

PRICE TWOPENCE.

LONDON:

WATTS &amp; CO., 84, FLEET STREET, E.C.

��SECULAR MORALITY.

Among the systems of moral philosophy that have
been promulgated as guides for human conduct, Utili­
tarianism occupies the foremost place. It appears to Secu­
larists as more definite and satisfactory than any other,
and certainly at the present time it is more generally
accepted by thinkers and that class of men whose views
mould the intellectual opinions of the age. The principle
of Utilitarianism has a regard solely to the uses of things ;
hence ail actions by it are to be judged of by their use
to society, and the morality of an action will consequently
depend upon its utility. An important question here
suggests itself: What is Utility, and how is it to be judged
of and tested ? What, it is urged, may appear useful to
one man, another may regard as altogether useless ; who,
therefore, is to decide resoecting the utility of an act? The
answer will be found in the greatest-happiness principle,
which is of itself a modern development of the doctrine,
and somewhat in opposition to the first form of Utili
tarianism. “ Usefulness,” observes David Hume, “is
agreeable, and engages our approbation.
This is a
matter of fact, confirmed by daily observation. But
useful? Tor what? For somebody’s interest, surely.
Whose interest, then? Not our own only, for our ap­
probation frequently extends farther. It must, therefore,
be the interest of those who are served by the characters
or action approved of; and these we may conclude, how­
ever remote, are not totally indifferent to us. But, open­
ing up this principle, we shall discover one great source
of moral distinction.” Here it is clear that with Hume
the doctrine of utility was intimately associated with

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SECULAR MORALITY.

approbation—in fact, the two were inseparably con­
nected.
The greatest-happiness principle, as will be
seen, grew very naturally out of this, but is a much more
recent development.
The utility of acts and objects have doubtless had
much to do with the estimation in which these are held
in society, whether the fact be recognised or not. Hume
says : “ It seems so natural a thought to ascribe to their
utility the praise which we bestow on the social virtues
that one would expect to meet with this principle every­
where in moral writers, as the chief foundation of their
reasoning and inquiry. In common life we may ob­
serve that the circumstance of utility is always appealed
to ; nor is it supposed that a greater eulogy can be given
to any man than to display his usefulness to the public,
and enumerate the services which he has performed to
mankind and to society. What praise, even of an in­
animate form, if the regularity and elegance of its parts
destroy not its fitness for any useful purpose ! And how
satisfactory an apology for any disproportion or seeming
deformity if we can show the necessity of that particular
construction for the use intended. A ship appears more
beautiful to an artist, or one moderately skilled in naviga­
tion, where its prow is wide and swelling beyond its
poop, than if it were framed with a precise geometrical
regularity in contradiction to all the laws of mechanics.
A building whose doors and windows were exact squares
would meet the eye, by that very proportion, as ill
adapted to the figure of a human creature for whose
service the fabric was intended. What wonder, then,
that a man whose habits and conduct are hurtful to
society, and dangerous and pernicious to every one who
has intercourse with him, should on that account be an
object of disapprobation, and communicate to every
spectator the strongest sentiment of disgust and hatred ?”
That this is so there cannot be the slightest doubt. Nor
is this principle a purely selfish one, as some have con­
tended, since the uses of arts refer not simply to their
operation upon ourselves individually, but upon society
at large. Self-love is no doubt involved here, as, in fact,
st is in everything we do. But self-love is not the ruling

�SECULAR MORALITY.

5

principle any further than that it is identical with the love
of humanity. The great fact of mutual sympathy here
comes in. The reciprocal feeling of joy or sorrow has
been experienced probably by every person. The plea­
sures arid pains of our fellows affect us largely, whether
we will or no. There is no man so selfish but he finds his
joys increased when they are shared by others, and his
griefs lessened when he sorrows in company. This fact
Hume has worked out at great length, with a view to
show why it is that utility pleases. Viewing Utilitarian­
ism, therefore, as simply a question of utility in the
lowest sense of that word, it is yet a most potent agent in
society, and has much more to do with forming our con­
clusions as to the morality of certain acts than is usually
imagined. The man of use is the man whom society
delights to honour; and very properly, for he is the real
benefactor of his species. To say that a thing is useful
is to bestow upon it a high degree of praise, while no
greater condemnation can be passed upon any piece of
work than to say that it is useless. Even the supposed gods
have been estimated by their utility • for Cicero charges
the»deities of the Epicureans with being useless and in­
active, and declares that the Egyptians never consecrated
any animal except for its utility.
The principle of Utilitarianism as a moral system
cannot be said to have received a definite shape until it
was advocated by Jeremy Bentham. Even with him it
did not appear in that clear and explicit form which John
Stuart Mill has since imparted to it. In his writings we
have for the first time something like philosophicprecision.
Pleasure and pain are shown to form the basis of utility,
and to furnish us with the means of judging of what is
useful and what is not.
To speak of pain and pleasure to ordinary persons
conveys no idea as to the welfare or otherwise of society,
but leads the mind to revert to its own individual good
or evil, and then to impart a selfish basis to the whole
thing. This was not what was meant by Bentham, as the
following passage from his work will show : “ By utility
is meant that property in any object whereby it tends to
produce benefit, advantage, pleasure, good, or happiness

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SECULAR MORALITY.

(all this, in the present case, comes to the same thing);
or (what comes again to the same thing) to prevent the
happening of mischief, pain, evil, or unhappiness to the
party whose interest is considered : if that party be the
community in general, then the happiness of the com­
munity ; if a particular individual, then the happiness of
that individual.” Bentham takes great pains to show
that the community is a “ fictitious body composed of
the individual persons who are considered as constitut­
ing, as it were, its members.” and that therefore the inte­
rest of the community is simply “ the sum of the interests
of the several members who compose it.” He then goes
on to affirm that “ an action maybe said to be conform­
able to the principle of utility, or, for shortness’ sake, to
utility (meaning with respect to the community at large),
when the tendency it has to augment the happiness of
the community is greater than any it has to diminish it,”
which is really another way of saying the greatest happi­
ness of the greatest number, or, to use a far more prefer­
able phrase, the greatest amount of happiness for all.
“ The words ought and right and wrong, and others
of that stamp,” take their meaning from this principle.
This philosophy was full of the practical spirit of the age
which gave it birth, and it exhibited an utter disregard
for the unproductive theories of the past. The idea of
happiness very largely took the place of the old idea of
duty, wherein was seen a powerful reaction against the
sentimental ethics that had prevailed so long. Its
attempt was to base virtue on moral legislation, rather
than on feeling, and to construct an ethical code out of
the most matter-of-fact materials. Thus self sacrifice,
which, of course, is one of the highest and noblest duties
of man, is in no way incompatible with Utilitarianism
and the pursuit of happiness; since, whatever pleasures
he who practises self-denial may voluntarily forego, it is
always with a view of procuring, if not for himseif, yet
tor his fellows, some greater good. The martyr at the
stake, the patriot in the field of battle, the physician
penetrating into the midst of the death-breathing miasma
with a view to alleviate pain, each feels a sense of
satisfaction in the act, which is really the intensest kind

�SECULAR MORALITY.

7

of happiness to himself, and, what is more important, he
is procuring happiness on a large scale for his fellow
creatures. It is not individual, but general, happiness
that the Utilitarian has to keep before, his eye as the
motive of all his actions.
In any moral system it is essential that not only should
the code laid down be clear, but the motive to obey it
should also be made apparent. In other words, what is
termed the sanction of the principle must be pointed out.
It would be of little value to have a perfect method in
morals unless the sanctions were such as were likely to
influence mankind. Now, Mr. Mill has not overlooked
this fact in connection with Utilitarianism, but has
devoted considerable space to its consideration. He
seems to think, however, that no new sanctions are
needed for Utilitarianism, since in time—and in an im­
proved state of society—it will have at command all the
old ones. He says : “ The principle of utility either
has, or there is no reason why it might not have, all the
sanctions which belong to any other system of morals.
These sanctions are either external or internal.” He then
enlarges upon these with a view to show that the greater
number of them belong as much to Utilitarianism as to
any other ethical code. The sanction of duty, upon
which so much stress is laid by the opponents of Utili­
tarianism, becomes as clear and as powerful under the new
system as under the old. Whatever may be the standard
of duty, and whatever the process by which the idea has
been attained, the feeling will in all cases be very much
the same. The pain occasioned by a violation of what
is called the moral law, constituting what is usually
termed conscience, will be felt quite as keenly when the
law has been arrived at by a Utilitarian process of
reasoning, and when the moral nature has been built
up upon Utilitarian principles, as in any other case. The
ultimate sanction of all morality is very much the same
—a subjective feeling in our own minds, resulting from
physical conditions, country, and education.
This, then, is briefly the Utilitarianism which we hold
to constitute a sufficient guide in morals, and to be worthy
to supplant the old and erroneous systems that now pre­

�8

•SECULAR MORALITY.

vail. As Secularists, we are content to be judged by
this standard. This system we accept as the ethical
code by which we profess to regulate our conduct. There
can hardly be conceived a higher aim than happiness,
especially the happiness of the race.
That perfect
happiness is not attainable we, of course, admit; but
neither is anything else in perfection. Nothing, however,
can be more certain than the fact that very many of the
present causes of unhappiness could be removed by welldirected effort on the part of society, and the result be a
state of things of which, at the present time, we can
hardly form any conception. The duty of each of us is
to do as much as possible towards bringing this about.
In Mr. Mill’s work upon “Utilitarianism” the fol­
lowing passage occurs : “ The creed which accepts as the
foundation of morals utility, or the greatest-happiness
principle, holds that actions are right in proportion as
they tend to promote happiness ; wrong as they tend to
produce the reverse of happiness. By happiness is in­
tended pleasure and the absence of pain ; by unhappi­
ness, pain and the privation of pleasure. To give a clear
view of the moral standard set up by this theory, much
more requires to be said ; in particular, what things it in­
cludes in the ideas of pain and pleasure; and to what
extent this is left an open question. But these supple­
mentary explanations do not affect the theory of life of
which this theory of morality is grounded—namely, that
pleasure and freedom from pain are the only things
desirable as ends, and that all desirable things (which
are as numerous in the utilitarian as in any other scheme)
are desirable either for the pleasure inherent in them­
selves, or as a means to the promotion of pleasure and
the prevention of pain.” It must be understood that
the word pleasure here is used in its very highest sense,
and includes, consequently, such enjoyments as arise
from the culture of the intellect, the development of the
sentiments, the use of the imagination, and the action of
the emotions. One of the errors into which the opponents
of utilitarian happiness frequently fall is that of confound­
ing pleasure with the mere gratification of the animal
propensities. If this were so, the whole system would be

�SECULAR MORALITY.

a most despicable one, and unworthy the attention of
men of intelligence and moral worth. But it is not; and
he who brings this as a charge against it does so either
in gross ignorance, or with a view to pervert the truth.
Perhaps it was not wise to use the words pleasure and
happiness as synonymous, seeing that they are usually
employed to mean two very different things ; but the ex­
planation having been given that they are so used, no
one can plead this use as an excuse for falling into error
on the subject.
Secular morality is based upon the principle that
happiness is the chief end and aim of mankind. And
although there are, doubtless, persons who would warmly
dispute this fundamental principle, it is very question­
able whether their objection is not more verbal than any­
thing else. That all men desire happiness is certain.
The doctrine enunciated in the well-known line of Pope
is frequently quoted, and generally with approval:
il Oh, happiness ! our being’s end and aim.”

When we meet with persons who profess to despise
this aspiration, it will be generally found that it is only
some popular conception of happiness of which they are
careless, while they really pursue a happiness of their
own, in their own way, with no less ardour than other
people. A definition of happiness itself is not easy to
give. Each person would, were he asked to define it,
in all probability furnish a somewhat different explana­
tion ; but the true meaning of all would be very much the
same. To refer again to Pope, what truth there is in the
following couplet !—
“Who can define it, say they more or less
Than this, that happiness is happiness ?”
With one it is the culture of the intellect; with another,
the exercise of the emotions ; with a third, the practice of
deeds of philanthropy and charity ; and with yet another
—we regret to say—the gratification of the lower pro­
pensities. In each case it is the following of the pursuit
which most accords with the disposition of the individual.
And wherever this course does not interfere with the

�IO

SECULAR MORALITY.

happiness of others, and is not more’ than counter­
balanced by any results that may arise from it afterwards.,
it is not only legitimate, but moral. Broadly, then, Secu­
lar efforts for the attainment of happiness may be said
to consist in endeavouring to perform those actions
which entail no ill effects upon general society, and
leave no injurious effects upon the actors. Such conduct
as is here intimated involves the practice of truth, self­
discipline, fidelity to conviction, and the avoidance of
knowingly acting unjustly to others.
Mr. Mill points out—and herein he differs from Ben­
tham—that not only must the quantity of the pleasure or
happiness be taken into consideration, but the quality
likewise. He remarks: “ It would be absurd that while,
in estimating all other things, quality is considered as
well as quantity, the estimation of pleasure should be
disposed to depend on quantity alone.” True, it may
not always be easy to estimate the exact respective value
of the different qualities of pleasure ; but this is not neces­
sary. An approximation to it can be obtained without
difficulty. In all those who have had experience both
of the higher and lower kinds of pleasure—that is, of the
culture of the intellect and the gratification of the pas­
sions—a preference is generally shown, at least in theory,
for the higher. And the rest are in no position to fairly
judge. It may be urged that many a man who possesses
the rare wealth of a cultured mind will be found some­
times grovelling in the mire of sensuality, thereby show­
ing a preference for a time for the lowest kind of pleasure,
To this it may be replied that the fact is only temporary,
and cannot, therefore, be set against the experience of
months and years—perhaps of the greatest portion of a
life ; and, secondly, he does not in his own opinion, even
while descending to indulge in the lower pleasure, giv
up his interest in the higher; so that the defection cannot
be looked upon in the light of an exchange. He feels
that he will be able to go back again to his intellectual
pursuits, and enjoy them as before. Ask him to make a
permanent exchange—to give up for ever the higher plea­
sures, on the condition that he shall have a continuance
of the lower to his heart’s content, and probably he will

�SECULAR MORALITY.

II

treat the offer with scorn. “ Few human beings,” ob­
serves Mr. Mill, “ would consent to be changed into any
of the lower animals for a promise of the fullest allow­
ance of a beast’s pleasures; no intelligent human being
would consent to be a fool ; no instructed person would
be an ignoramus; no person of feeling and conscience
would be selfish and base, even though they should be
persuaded that the fool, the dunce, or the rascal is better
satisfied with his lot than they with theirs. They would
not resign what they possess more than he for the most
complete satisfaction of all the desires which they have
in common with him.” Those who neglect their capa­
cities for enjoying the higher pleasures may probably
imagine that their happiness is greatest; but their opinion
on the subject is worthless, because they only know one
side. On this question, therefore, we find a unanimity
—at least, with all who are competent to judge of the
question.
The most important point to be considered in con­
nection with this question of Secular happiness is that it
is not the pleasure of the individual that is considered
paramount, but of the community of which he forms a
part. The principle of the greatest happiness is often
treated in a discussion of this subject as though it meant
the greatest possible pleasure that the individual can
procure for himself by his acts, regardless of the welfare
of his fellow creatures, which would be selfishness in the
extreme. Nothing can be more unselfish than Secular
morality, since the sole object it has in view is the happi­
ness of the community at large. And every act of the
individual must be performed with this in view, and will
be considered moral or not in the proportion in which
this is done. In corroboration of this view, Mr. Mill
truly remarks : “ According to the greatest-happiness
principle, as above explained, the ultimate end with refe­
rence to and for the sake of which all other things are
desirable (whether we are considering our own good or
that of other people), is an existence exempt as far as
possible from pain, and as rich as possible in enjoyments,
both in point of quantity and quality ; the test of quality
and the rule for measuring it against quantity being the

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SECULAR MUkn.

preference felt by those who, in their opportunities ot
experience, to which must be added their habits of self­
consciousness and self-observation, are best furnished
with the means of comparison. This being, according
to the utilitarian opinion, the end of human action, is
necessarily also the standard of morality; which may
accordingly be defined, the rules and precepts for human
conduct, by the observance of which an existence such
as has been described might be, to the greatest extent
possible, secured to all mankind; and notto them only, but
to the whole sentient creation.” Two facts of great im­
portance are to be noticed in this extract; first, that
happiness is the end of existence, and that all human
effort should be bent as far as possible to the attainment
of this object; and, secondly, that here, and here only,
can the true standard of morality be found. The second
principle flows as a necessary consequence from the first.
All human action must, therefore, be brought to the fest
of how far it is conducive to the promotion of the greatest
happiness of society at large. The consistent perform­
ance of such action will tend to promote the Secular
idea of human happiness and the welfare of mankind.
The question is asked, Why is Secularism regarded by
its adherents as being superior to theological and other
speculative theories of the day? The answer is (i)
because we believe its moral basis to be more definite
and practical than other existing ethical codes; and (2)
because Secular teachings appear to us to be more
reasonable and of greater advantage to general society
than the various theologies of the world, and that of
orthodox Christianity in particular.
First, compare Secular views of morality with the
numerous and conflicting theories that have been put
forward at various times on the important topic of moral
philosophy. From most of those theories it is not easy
to reply satisfactorily to the question, Why is one act
wrong and another right ? There is no difficulty, gener­
ally speaking, in pointing out what acts are vicious and
what others virtuous; but to say why one is immoral
and another moral is a very different matter. Ask for a
definition of virtue, and you receive in reply an illus­

�SECULAR MORALITY.

13

tration. You will be told that it is wrong to lie, to steal,
to murder, etc.—about which there is- no dispute; but
why it is wrong to indulge in these acts, and right to
perform others, is the business of ethical science to
discover. But here again the method that will be re­
sorted to, with a view to reply to this query, will depend
upon the moral code believed in by the person to whom
the question is put. This method it is, in point of fact,
which constitutes what is called ethical science. On look­
ing over the history of moral philosophy, apart from
Secularism, we find such diversified and conflicting
theories advanced on this subject that it is frequently
difficult to arrive at the conclusion that there can be
any certainty in the matter whatever. Some hold, with
Dr. Samuel Clarke, that virtue consists in the fitness of
things; others, with Adam Smith, discover its basis in
sympathy; others, with Dr. Reed, Dr. Thomas Brown,
and Dugald Stewart, contend for a moral sense; another
class, with Miss Cobbe, maintain that there is such a
thing as intuitive morality ; others, with Paley, assert
that virtue consists in doing good to mankind in obedi­
ence to the will of God, and for the sake of everlasting
happiness; others, with Dr. Johnson, are content with
the will of God as a' basis, without adding the motive
introduced by Paley; and yet others, with George
Combe, fancy they have a key to the whole thing in
phrenology. Now, all these theories are resolvable
broadly into three great classes—first, those who regard
the “will of God” as the basis of moral action; secondly,
those who contend that the true guide of man in
morality is something internal to himself—call it con­
science, moral sense, intuition, or any other name that
you please to give it; and, thirdly, those who urge that
moral science is, like other science, to be discovered by
the study of certain external facts. To the latter of these
the Utilitarian or Secular system belongs.
A small section of professing Christians have now
given up the will of God as the groundwork of their
morality. This, however, seems to us inconsistent with
their faith, for the following reasons : 1. If the Bible God
be the father of all, surely to act in accordance with his

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SECULAR MORALITY.

will should be the best guide in life. 2. Christian morality
is supposed to consist of the teachings of the Bible, the
alleged record of the will of God. 3. If God’s will is
not the basis of Christian ethics, what is, from the Chris­
tian standpoint ? As Secularists, we cannot regulate our
conduct by the Bible records of God's will, inasmuch as
that book is so thoroughly contradictory in its interpre­
tation of the said will. In one passage the killing of
human beings is forbidden by God, and in another
passage special instructions are given by the same bemg.
to commit the prohibited crime. The same conflicting
inju ictions are to be found in the “ inspired word ” in
reference to adultery, lying, retaliation, love, obedience
to parents, forgiveness, individual and general salvation,
and many other acts which form part of the conduct of
human life.
As to the internal guide to morality, nothing can be
more clear than the fact that, even if man possesses a
moral sense with which he is born into this world, and
which is inherent in his nature, its teachings are not very
distinct, and the code of law based upon it is by no means
definite. For not only do the inhabitants of different
countries vary considerably in regard to the dictates of
conscience, according to the nature of their education,
but the people of the same country will be found to be
by no means agreed as to what is right and what wrong,
except in a few well-marked deeds. One man feels a
conscientious objection to doing that which another
man will positively believe to be a praiseworthy act. In
this, as in other matters, education is all-potent over the
mental character. It would indeed be difficult to re­
concile these facts with the existence of any intuitive
moral power.
Recognising the difficulties and drawbacks pertaining
to the above theories, Secularists seek for a solution of
this moral-philosophy problem elsewhere—that is to say,
in the eternal results of the acts themselves upon society,
and in the effects that invariably spring from them when­
ever they are performed. It must be distinctly under­
stood that we do not claim perfection for our moral
code; but we do believe that it is the best known at the

�SECULAR MORALITY.

15

present time, and that it is free from many of the objec­
tionable features which belong to those theories which
we, as Secularists, cannot accept. It may be urged, as an
objection to the external test of the result of action,
that it tends to make morality shifting and dependent
very much upon the circumstances existing at the time.
This is doubtless true ; but it is of no value as an argu­
ment against the doctrine of utility. For is not all that
we have to do with subject to the same law of varia­
tion ? Fashions change, customs alter, and even religions
become considerably modified by external circumstances.
The following stanza in Lord Byron’s “ Childe Harold ”
portrays a great truth :—
“ Son of the morning, rise, approach you here ;
Come, but molest not yon defenceless urn.
Look on this spot, a nation’s sepulchre :
Abode of gods, whose shrines no longer burn.
Even gods must yield, religions take their turn ;
’Twas Jove’s, ’tis Mahomet’s ; and other creeds
Will rise with other years, till man shall learn
Vainly his incense soars, his victim bleeds ;
Poor child of doubt and death, whose hope is built on
reeds 1”

That Secular teachings are superior to those of ortho­
dox Christianity, the following brief contrast will show.
Christian conduct is controlled by the ancient and sup­
posed infallible rules of the Bible; Secular action is
regulated by modern requirements and the scientific and
philosophical discoveries of the practical age in which
we live. Christianity enjoins as an essential duty of life
to prepare to die ; Secularism says, learn howto live
truthfully, honestly, and usefully, and you need not con­
cern yourself with the “ how” to die. Christianity pro­
claims that the world’s redemption can only be achieved
through the teachings of one person ; Secularism avows
that such teachings are too impracticable and limited
in their influence for the attainment of the object claimed,
and that improvement, general and individual, is the re­
sult of the brain-power and physical exertions of the brave
toilers of every country and every age who have laboured

�SECULAR MORALITY.
for human advancement. Christianity threatens punish­
ment in another world for the rejection of speculative
views in this; Secularism teaches that no penalty should
follow the holding of sincere opinions, as uniformity of
belief is impossible. According to Christianity, as taught
in the churches and chapels, the approval of God and
the rewards of heaven are to be secured only through
faith in Jesus of Nazareth; whereas the philosophy of
Secularism enunciates that no merit should be attached
to such faith, but that fidelity to principle and good
service to man should win the right to participate in
any advantages either in this or in any other world.

Printed by

watts

&amp; co., 84,

fleet street,

London,

e.c.

�</text>
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