She Sells Sanctuary Seminar

I picked up a leaflet on Dialogue Ireland's "Cracking Cults" series of seminars yesterday. 'Cracking Cults' is a little ambigious as a title but it turns out the series is not actually about the best, most fun cults to join. On the contrary, the leaflet doesn't appear to take a very benevolent view of them at all, beginning:-

The 1978 'Jonestown' massacre began a series of cult explosions which culminated in the September 11 suicide missions.

What caught my eye was the 9th seminar: "Secularism As New Cultist Movement" to be given on March 5th by journalist David Quinn (formerly editor of the Irish Catholic). The title of the seminar is admirably transparent and precise. This is not a seminar about 'secular cults' - cults built around some non-religious idea. It is about 'secularism' as a cult and not in the "having a small group of devotees" meaning of the word. 'Cultist Movement' is pretty clear - we're talking a Moonies or a Heaven's Gate type of thing. Based on securalism.

I presume that it is not the "separation of religion from state affairs" meaning of secularism that the seminar is concerned with. Instead I presume that it is secularism in its "belief that human activities and decisions should be based on evidence and fact, and not superstitious beliefs" sense of meaning. Or something similar.

Hmm. A cult built on rationality? It's kind of an oxymoron isn't it? I'm not sure how that would work but if I find Richard Dawkins inviting me to a weekend retreat at a country manor and then trying boink the wife, I'll know there is something up.

The seminar sounds fascinating. I might even stump up the €30 and attend.