Sacred vs. Secular

There are certain hallmarks which define the modern world. These are the result of profound changes in thought which brought the Ancient-Medieval worldview to an end and thus became the defining elements of modernity. It is worth noting that while there are differences, the Ancient and Medieval worlds had a great deal of continuity. That continuity ended with the advent of the Modern Era. This means that in many ways, modernity is unique in history. It is a distinct break with almost everything that went before.

One of these defining hallmarks is Secularism. Secularism is often defined as merely the separation of Church and State, the idea that political and religious institutions should not interfere with each other. This is a bit like defining marriage as two people getting a joint checking account. Sure, it might be something most married people do, but it doesn’t really get at the heart of the issue, and you don’t even really have to be married to do it.

Secularism, in truth, is the deliberate exclusion of the sacred from our understanding and interpretation of life and the nature of the world. It should be noted that this exclusion is not based on reasoned argument or logical process. It amounts to simply a preference of belief. The circular argument of modernity is that we assume only those things which are verifiable by physical means are valid, and conclude as a result that there is nothing beyond the physical world.

By contrast, the mainstream of Ancient-Medieval philosophy asked the question “how can the physical world, as we know it, exist?” By application of logic and reason they came to the conclusion that the physical world cannot explain itself. In order for the physical world to exist, there must be another reality that transcends the physical world. In other words, reason lead the ancients to the knowledge that in order for our material world to exist, there must be a non-material reality outside of the material world that gave rise to the world we see. The Secularism of modernity begins by assuming that no such transcendent reality exists, concludes that their assumption was correct, and then congratulates itself on its ‘rational’ rejection of old ‘superstitions’.

Over the centuries Secularism has seeped into every aspect of our life and culture. It has redefined politics, economics, sociology, psychology, and even religion itself. At the level of the individual, Secularism has meant the exclusion of sacredness from the daily business of living. That this is true for the non-religious masses of modern society is certainly not surprising. It may be more surprising that it is also true for most of those who claim to be people of Faith.

Secularization has banished the idea of sacredness from every area of life, and the secularization of religion has created religious communities which pride themselves on holding nothing sacred. For many it has become an article of faith and a point of pride that their religion is not religious.

We are so mired in the ubiquitous, insidious, grasp of Secularism that it is difficult to even realize how dramatic and all-encompassing this shift of focus has been. In the ancient-medieval world all of life was oriented towards the sacred. Sacredness entered into everything and permeated every aspect of life and culture. Today, if we spend two or three hours a week thinking about God, or devoted to sacred things, we are doing pretty well. In reality, just like everyone else, we have divided life into distinct compartments. One of those compartments is labeled “Faith” and we think we’re doing pretty well because our Faith compartment is a little bigger than most.

This issue is all about what we put at the center of our lives and what we ultimately believe the purpose (Telos) of our life really is. It is easy to mentally give the answer that we know we ought to give, but what answer does your life give?

What do you really believe about the nature of the world and life?

At its very heart the world is a sacred drama. It is a courtly dance in which the princes of the heavens, resplendent in panoply of stars with planets in their train, step and turn with measured grace before the Eternal Throne. From the lowest created thing to the highest Celestial Powers, all are called to forget themselves in obedience to the ceremony and bask in the reflected glory of their Divine Creator.

Each thing, whether exalted or lowly, has a place within this drama, a role to play, a telos to become. The dignity of all things is found within the pomp and circumstance of the Dance. Within its myriad movements and plays are found the quiet of solemn ritual and hilarity of joke and jest. The jest is no less a solemnity than the ritual and the ritual no less joyful than the jest.

Because all things are made for the dance, by obedience to the dance, each thing is free to be itself. By truly being itself, each thing serves all others.

Does your life have a place for things like pomp, ceremony, and solemnity? Or have those things been banished from your worldview?

Secularism has taught us to view things like pomp, ceremony, and solemnity with a certain degree of contempt. We are told that such things are old fashioned, too formal, and even undemocratic. They cannot be accepted because they single times, places, and things out as somehow more than common.

The sacred is by definition, that which is not common. It is not every-day. The word itself means “set apart”, something which is only meant for special occasions, and special purposes. You cannot have any real concept of sanctity without words like awe, reverence, and veneration. The degree to which those things are lost to us is the degree to which we can no longer enter into the sacred.

In the Ancient-Medieval world life was organized by sacred times, it revolved around sacred places and sacred things. People took on sacred roles and everyone participated in sacred activities. In every aspect of life and culture there were constant reminders that the world was more than just common daily life. Everything pointed to the fact that there was a sacred drama playing out at the heart of the world and there were many ways in which the people could participate.

This elevation of times, places, things and activities above the common-place is depicted by modern secularism as unfair, elitist, aristocratic, and of course, superstitious. Yet the real point of all the sacred emphasis of the ancient-medieval culture was to point to the truth that everything is sacred. All of life participates in the Divine romance and as a result all of life is sacred.

The singling out of times, places, and things is meant to point us to the deeper truth and constantly remind us that there is something more and higher. The things we single out are those times and places where the divine drama most clearly and directly intersects our visible world. They serve as the sign-posts by which we may orient our lives towards Sanctity. The ultimate goal is that we will eventually see all things as they are in their highest and truest self, playing their role in the dance.

Refusing to admit such sacred sign-posts does not elevate all things, rather it denigrates all things. It does not extend sanctity to all of creation; it drags all of creation down to the level of the common and the profane.

Let us set up the sign-posts of the sacred once again. Let us recapture once more the joy and solemnity of the Cosmic Dance. Remember that you, along with every star in the heavens and every leaf fluttering under the sun, are invited to the courtly dance of the divine King of eternity. Behind the veil of the visible the Divine Drama awaits.