Humanism in Conflict Between Humanities, Religiosity and Ideology

Abstract

The following treats humanism and its problematical relation to humanity, religiosity and its ideological meanings, against this ideological illusion that humanism is the replacement of God by human being, that which is considered as the anthropocentrical foundation of humanities. It specifies humanism firstly as the historical phenomena in Italian at the beginning of modern time. Secondly, its literary signification as "human" and "humanity", will be debated, that which is used in countless usages. It includes the third ideological meaning as in Enlightenment, that centralizes the mankind place in the world in opposite to God.Humanities, nevertheless, emerge from Humanism as historical phenomena, i.e. from studia humanitatis and its different synonyms as unofficial pedagogic program that was widespread in Europe. It would be factually forgotten with making the termini "Humanism" and "Renaissance" in 19th century, in so-called "the age of Ideology". Thus, it would be opened up with countless ideological meanings of humanism in future, including its secular or religious meaning.Heidegger's Letter on Humanism as a Reference Text will be first discussed as certification for European common historical understanding of Humanism until middle of 20th century, thereupon as the philosophically most important critique on humanism.Also, humanism is in no way the anthropocentrical foundation of humanities, but they are only historically intertwined. Moreover, Humanities hasn't developed in contrary to natural sciences since the middle of 19th century unlike to common belief.