The Forgotten Language of Nontheistic Mysticism: Religious Factors in Erich Fromm’s Humanism

Erich Fromm's position of nontheistic mysticism is central to his humanistic ethics, bridging mysticism and organized religion, religion and religiosity, and connecting religion, philosophy, and social psychoanalysis. This position involves negative theology, the x experience, and idolatry, and it relates to Fromm's understanding of human nature, self-realization, and a sane society. Contrary to some scholarly views, Fromm's humanism is not radical atheistic secularism; instead, it internalizes transcendent divinity into the human subject as anthropological-ethical phenomena while warning that atheism risks idolatrous identification of humans with God. Nontheistic mysticism functions as a consciousness mechanism for fine-tuning moral compasses, affected by societal pathologies of normalcy.

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Abstract

In You Shall Be as Gods, Erich Fromm (1900–1980) defines his position as nontheistic mysticism. This research clarifies the term, considers its importance within Fromm’s humanism, and explores its potential origins. The nontheistic mystical position plays a central role in Fromm’s understanding of the relationship between mysticism and organized religion, religion and religiosity, and it clarifies the relationship between religion, philosophy, and social psychoanalysis, whose combination constitutes his humanistic ethics. Nontheistic mysticism relates, as well, to Fromm’s understanding of human nature; it involves the question of the relationship between language, perception, and experience. The nontheistic mystical position is linked to Fromm’s negative theology, the x experience, and idolatry. Hence, the nontheistic mystical position is relevant to Fromm’s understanding of self-realization and his vision of a sane society. Unlike some scholarly opinion, the conclusions of this paper suggest that Fromm’s humanism is not radical, as long as radical is defined as an absolute atheistic secular feature that eliminates the range of religious language and experience. Rather, it is a broad and cautious humanism that, on the one hand, internalizes the transcendent divinity into the human subject and transforms it into anthropological–ethical phenomena, but, on the other, implies that atheism carries the risk of an idolatrous identification of the human being with God. Consequently, this humanism requires a religious–mystical component to adequately portray the spiritual and ethical potentials of humanity and its challenges. Nontheistic mysticism is a consciousness mechanism aimed at the fine-tuning of the individual’s moral compass, which is affected by the pathologies of normalcy that prevail in all societies.