There are six broad categories of worldviews, including Christianity, Islam, Secular Humanism, Marxism-Leninism, Cosmic Humanism (or New Age), and Post-Modernism. A worldview is the framework of basic beliefs we have, consciously or sub-consciously, that shapes our view of and for the world. Everyone has a worldview. Each worldview is comprised of different views on Theology, Philosophy, Ethics, Biology, Psychology, Sociology, Law, Politics, Economics, and History. Each worldview derives its morals and beliefs from a different source, i.e. the Bible, the Qur’an, the writings of Shirley MacLaine, the Humanist Manifesto, etc. The four very broad Worldview categories are Naturalism, Transcendentalism, Theism, and Post-Modernism.

Naturalists believe that nothing is real except nature. Matter is all that exists. Carl Sagan, a Naturalist, said, “The Cosmos is all there is, all there ever was and all there ever will be.” The universe is self-created, and science is the key to truth. Each person determines his/her own purpose. Naturalism is expressed through Atheism, Agnosticism, Scientific Naturalism, Secularism, Darwinism, Hedonism, Existentialism, and some Modern Psychology. Two main Naturalistic Worldviews are Secular Humanism and Marxism. It advocates taking things at face value, as we see them.

Another worldview type is Transcendentalism. Cosmic Humanism is tied into Transcendentalism to some extent. Transcendentalists believe that nothing is real, that nature is God. Everything is God; each person is a part of the greater “One”. Truth is not rational, and it is in each person. Each person determines his or her own purpose through “looking within”. Transcendentalism can be linked to Yoga, Meditation, Astrology, and many other more subtle expressions. Radical Environmentalism stems from Transcendentalism.

Theists believe that God is real, and actively involved, and that he took at least some part in the creation of nature, physical and spiritual. They believe that God exists, and we are a special creation directly created by God. Truth comes from reason, revelation, and experience. Morality stems from obedience of God’s will and instruction. Islam, Judaism, and Christianity are all Theistic Worldviews. We can’t prove that God exists, but we can provide evidence with Cosmological, Teleological, Ontological, Religious Experience, Human Consciousness, and Moral reasoning. Augustine said, “From nothing, nothing comes” meaning that something or someone was involved in the creation and foundation of the earth. Theism when expressed through Christianity is very different from that expressed by Islam and Judaism. In Judaism, God has revealed Himself as just and merciful, and the Messiah has not come, but his return is imminent. Islamic belief states that God has revealed Himself as just and vengeful, and the judgment is coming. Christians believe that God is just and merciful, as revealed by His Son and by history, and He is going to return.

Postmodernism is rapidly growing in popularity, in fact, nobody knows how many Postmodernists there are at this time. Postmodernists can also fall into the Cosmic and Secular Humanist categories, so it is hard to categorize them. Postmodernism belief states that the ultimate questions (i.e. origin, morality, destiny, etc.) are unknowable. Life is random and chaotic, nothing is sacred, everything is questioned, there is no progress, no moral absolutes with morality based on situation and choice, people have no fixed identity, traditional institutions (home, Church, state) are broken, reality is socially constructed and is still being constructed. Postmodernists operate from a “life has let me down”, “you can’t judge me because you don’t know me” perspective. With this Worldview, the belief is that since all worldviews are valid, none are true. Postmodernism is expressed through anti-realism, deconstruction, anti-metanarrative revision, multiculturalism, political correctness, and through Dada and Pop-nihilistic art.

H.G. Wells said, “If there is no God, nothing matters. If there is a God, nothing else matters.” Understanding the worldviews of others is helpful in relating to people. Also, it becomes easier to understand the turns made in culture, and explains reasoning behind decisions that are made. For example, Naturalists would see nothing wrong with abortion, because, following their reasoning, if people are evolved by random chance, humans have little or no value. Since Transcendentalists believe that nature is God, radical environmentalism becomes a big issue in their mind. In destroying nature, you are destroying God. Worldviews are a large part of the world today, and although very few people realize it, worldviews shape our culture in many ways.

Ok, that's it. I was afraid that when I was put on the spot with questions, that the answers would fly right out of my head, so I wrote some notes. I'll incude my notes on the topic below, since I'm not here to explain the -isms and the bigger words. You may already know what they mean, but it's here if you need it.