Secular by Design: A Philosophy of Noahide Laws and Observances

by Alan Cecil

Based on Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch's philosophy of Torah im Derech Eretz, this work explores the corrosive mores and values from Greek and Roman thought, the influence of these destructive ideas on modern intellectualism, and gives critical insight into the theoretical and practical application of Noahide Law in our society.

552 pages, Paperback

First published July 15, 2011

Reviews

[Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, illuminating and challenging. Undertakes a radical reappraisal of widely (and misguidedly) held, insidiously pervasive perspectives on law, society, and philosophy. A cutting critique of fashionable secularism. The book also provides a capsule history of the birth of the modern State of Israel, which should be compulsory reading. "On November 29, 1947, when the enormity of the Holocaust had shamed even the most jaded Christian, the United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution 181, dividing the Land of Israel (after nearly 80% of what Britain had promised to the Jews was taken away to create "Jordan") into separate Jewish and Arab homelands, with Jerusalem as an "international city." This proposition was accepted by the Jews but rejected by the Arabs. The day after Israel declared its independence on May 14th, 1948, the larger and better equipped Arab armies invaded Israel , aiming to "drive the Jews into the sea." After Israel defeated the Arabs , the West Bank was controlled by Jordan and the Gaza by Egypt. No attempt or even dialogue was made to take these areas away from Jordan and Egypt to create a "Palestinian Homeland," a fact too often overlooked by intellectuals today."

[Petronius Jablonski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alan Cecil's magnum opus explains why you've never heard of Noahides, why history has been afflicted with idolatry and unbelief, and why Gentiles are not supposed to practice "religion."

It's impossible to overstate the importance of this book. At it's best moments it's like looking at some existential map: after not existing for eternity you're HERE and you're lost and this tells you where you are and why.

A free download is available from his website.

Alan W. Cecil has been a Noahide for over twenty years. A religion major in college, Alan studied ancient Greek, Church history, theology, philosophy, and ethics. In addition, he studied Torah at the Atlanta Kollel (a kollel is a yeshiva for married men) under the direction of Rabbi Menachem Deutsch and Rabbi Yaacov Schwartz.