Photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash

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Jane: I'm not religious and I'm not spiritual. I garden.
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Friend: No, but you're really spiritual. Gardening is your practice.
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Jane: No, I'm really not all that spiritual. Let me define myself. I believe in God but not in a religious way. What's important to me is life. 

Friend: So you have a secular approach to God?

​Jane: Yes, that's right. 

Not Religious, Not Spiritual 

Whitehead on the Need to Secularize the Concept of God

The secularization of the concept of God's functions in the world is at least as urgent a requisite of thought as is the secularization of other elements in experience. The concept of God is certainly one essential element in religious feeling. But the converse is not true; the concept of religious feeling is not an essential element in the concept of God's function in the universe. In this respect religious literature has been sadly misleading to philosophic theory, partly by attraction and partly by repulsion.

Whitehead, Alfred North. Process and Reality (Gifford Lectures Delivered in the University of Edinburgh During the Session 1927-28) (p. 207). Free Press. Kindle Edition. 

​Commentary

In the passage above, Whitehead points out that, for philosophical purposes, it is important to separate the concept of God from religious feelings. A philosopher can find the concept of God helpful and perhaps necessary in understanding the dynamics of the universe, without associating it with religious feelings such as awe, wonder, faith, love, or devotion. Likewise, the concept should not be linked to negative emotions like zeal, sectarianism, hatred of others, or a sense of entitlement. The concept can function in the philosopher's mind in a secular manner, detached from religious feelings.

However, this does not imply that the philosopher is devoid of all emotion when considering and advocating the concept. The philosopher may indeed experience a sense of clarity regarding the workings of the world, a feeling of potentiality inherent in the divine existence, or a perception that all things are interconnected by divine threads. The philosopher may even sense that the divine reality seeks and enables beauty in the universe. Nevertheless, these emotions are not religious in nature for the philosopher in question. They do not inspire the philosopher to go to war for God or, for that matter, go to church. God is one among many concepts that the philosopher finds important.

Truth be told, as more and more people become alienated from religion, there may now be many individuals who embrace what Whitehead refers to as a "secular" approach to God. This includes scientists, artists, farmers, and accountants. If they experience religious-like feelings such as awe and wonder, those sentiments may be attached to their perception of the universe, the beauty of music, or the moral courage of a loving soul. They do not gravitate toward the concept of God in order to explain or understand these feelings. They believe in God, but not in a religious sense.

I believe that Whitehead would approve of this approach. He acknowledges that the concept of God can function religiously, stating, "The concept of God is certainly one essential element in religious feeling." However, he also recognizes that the concept is not necessarily tied to religion, as he states, "The concept of religious feeling is not an essential element in the concept of God's function in the universe." His focus is on how the concept of God can function in philosophical theory, but he allows for people who, for various reasons, are not deeply religious in their own minds.

Are these non-religious believers in God spiritual? The dichotomy between religion and spirituality was not operative in Whitehead's time. He believed in the emotional side of life and was a fervent champion of love, beauty, adventure, and peace. Indeed, Whitehead believes that something like emotion and feeling is present throughout the entirety of the universe, hence his idea of prehensions (feelings) and subjective forms (emotions). However, he did not associate this side of life with something called spirituality.

I have a friend who considers herself neither religious nor spiritual but finds Whitehead's understanding of God helpful in understanding herself and the universe. It is one among many ideas in Whitehead's philosophy that she appreciates, but this idea does not take priority over others. Deep down, I suspect that life itself is her spiritual center. She is a member of a local adult Sunday School class I attend, where she goes for community but not for religion as she understands it. Her approach can be seen as a variation of what Whitehead would call a "secular" approach to God: an attenuated theism.
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I borrow the phrase "attenuated theism" from Huston Smith, who used it in his classic work "The World's Religions" to describe the Confucian sensibility. It is a theism that does not focus so much on heaven that it loses sight of the earth and humanity. It sees heaven as in service to the earth and humanity, not the other way around. Arguably, Whitehead's theism is attenuated in just this sense. The many entities of the universe have intrinsic value (self-enjoyment), with or without God. What is interesting is that, for Whitehead, God is real but not necessarily the subject of devotion. Who knows, perhaps that is exactly where God desires to be, if, as Whitehead believes, God is on the side of life and its vitality. Secularizing the concept of God may be, in an ironic way, the very thing God desires most.


- Jay McDaniel