"The Secular Conscience" by Austin Dacey presents a sophisticated meditation on secularism and its importance to us today. Mr. Dacey seeks to shake secular liberalism from its complacency lest the Enlightenment project of an open society becomes run over by fundamentalist Christians and totalitarian Islam. Thanks to Mr. Dacey's elegant, mature and well-informed analysis, we gain the courage we need to assert our right to freedom of conscience and to challenge ideologies of belief in the public sphere.

Mr. Dacey recounts the historical process by which the West broke with the Church and separated religion from government. Today, faith has come to be marketed to believers as their own private property and seeks to avoid accountability in political debate even as it exerts considerable influence over policy. Mr. Dacey submits that secularists must drop their predisposition to moral relativism and demand that Christians justify their positions on issues such as stem cell research and evolution based on reasonable standards of evidence and scientific inquiry.

On the other hand, Mr. Dacey explains that Islam has not undergone a process of separation from the state; the Islamic state is more accurately defined as a political form of religion. Mr. Dacey brings attention to courageous individuals who are challenging the blasphemy laws that preclude the free expression of the individual in Islamic society. The author castigates the Western media, feminists and others for their tolerance of intolerance and failing to recognize the threat that Islamic totalitarianism poses to our values; he goes on to implore us to support the youth in Iran and other Islamic states who yearn for a free, secular future.

Throughout the book, Mr. Dacey explores related ethical and philosophical themes and ideas that bring a remarkable depth of meaning to the text. We come to appreciate that the secular conscience is a moral conscience that is based on collective inquiry, reflection and consensus; this kind of dialogue is needed now more than ever if we wish to achieve lasting peace and justice for humankind.

I thank William Podmore for bringing my attention to this outstanding book and highly recommend it to everyone.

Austin Dacey is an American philosopher and a representative at the United Nations of the Center for Inquiry, which promotes the secular, scientific outlook. He is also on the editorial staff of Skeptical Inquirer and Free Inquiry.
In this brilliant and original book, Dacey advocates a public, objective and secular ethics. He argues that matters of conscience are fit subjects for public discussion guided by shared evaluative standards, evidence and experience.

Conscience must be free from coercion, but not free from judgement. Conscience is protected so that we can pursue the vital questions of meaning, truth and value in public dialogue and forums.

But the Roman Catholic Church has decreed, "Freedom of thought or expression ... cannot imply a right to offend the religious sentiments of believers." But this would end freedom of expression, because any criticism of religious doctrines could `offend the religious sentiments of believers'.

The assertion, `I'm right, you're wrong' is not intolerant; it is the nature of thought, as is then moving forward to saying, `and these are the reasons why you should change your mind'. This is not imposing one's opinion on others: persuasion is the opposite of coercion.

To defend one's point of view by saying, "I'm entitled to my opinion" is to refuse debate. The only opinions worth respect are those derived from investigation and debate.

The basis of ethics is independence of mind, with which we can evaluate all ideas and ideologies in the light of reason. Dacey argues that "the secular conscience stands prior to and independent of all religions." Religion is unnecessary to ethics: if God approves an act because it is good, then God is superfluous: if an act is good because God approves it, then there is no ethics, just assertion of authority.

As Dacey writes, "The real sceptics about ethics are those who think that human beings are incapable of fairness, responsibility, care, and compassion without divine enforcement." These sceptics privilege religion at the expense of ethics, faith at the expense of reason, and dogma at the expense of people.

If you have a good brain, and like to use it, this book is for you. There is intellectual interest on every page. This is a work that requires, and deserves, I believe, a measured and thoughtful read. Dacey has written a challenging and rewarding book with a unique point of view. Read properly, "The Secular Conscience" should stimulate those of us interested in social justice to apply its progressive ideas in as many fruitful ways as possible.

This book has changed the way I talk to people about what was formerly lumped into "religion and politics". When we begin to talk about our individual values and how they might affect or effect the "common good", an intense conversation develops. And without the use of buzzwords, such as "god", "atheist", "democrat", "republican", we realize more clearly who we are personally and as a nation. For me, this is an important book for change at a basic level. By re-forming into today's terms, the great truths of yesteryear, Dacey has done us a real service. However, I gave it a 3 because Dacey's strangely arrogant and dismissive attitude toward those who do not accept GMO, American seed, or indeed, the premise that 'science' will feed the world, was so unlike the remainder of his book that it had to be written with an agenda in mind. The relentless push for control of the world's food supply with a monopoly on seed by Monsanto and others is well-documented so I can only conclude that Dacey is persuaded somehow (by his vegetarianism?) to be less than rigorous in his scholarship in this matter. With that caveat, I am recommending the book to everyone I know.

THE SECULAR CONSCIENCE: WHY BELIEF BELONGS IN PUBLIC LIFE comes from a philosopher who calls for a rethinking of the nature of conscience and its role in public life. Philosophers and secularism issues can be traced to Spinoza and early hallmarks of rigid thought patterns: this book creates a dialogue useful for college-level students of philosophy, ethics, spiritual studies and social issues alike.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Excellent book. Great read. Perhaps one of the all time great works of non fiction as it relates to Religion and the public conscience.

It has long bothered me that some people refuse to categorically reject horrors like the Holocaust, because they believe everything is subjective, and all cultures and approaches have their virtues. Common sense indicates there should be some objective perspective that can help us to understand why Holocaust-like atrocities and tyrannical societies and governments are bad. Austin Dacey's powerful "Secular Conscience" explains how such objective standards can be formed. In a stroke of brilliant creativity, he uses the same types of ideas that have helped spearhead open source software approaches to operating systems.

I believe this to be one of the most important books that liberals--and anyone who cares about human rights--could possibly read. If you've wondered how to combat the ultimately pernicious ideas of cultural relativism that can be used to justify virtually any atrocity, this is the book.

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R3M8SGP3QIYUQH This is an excerpt from the interview Austin Dacey gave to Point of Inquiry. I purchased the book after listening to the program. I highly recommend "Secular Conscience" to everyone interested in the topic.