The Faith in Humanity and International Criminal Law

International criminal law is at times taken to manifest fundamental consensual boundaries against violence and destruction of the human species. The faith in law is celebrated in a cult with rituals, symbols, and mythologies where law is saving humans from evil. This chapter takes issue with the transcendental reference in ‘humanity’ by situating it within discussions on religion, the non-deist religions in particular. Three French thinkers: Henri Saint-Simon, Auguste Comte, and Emile Durkheim are stimulating intellectual figures—often neglected or caricatured. They developed new visions for society as religions–creating dogmas, symbolism, and ritual practices. Yet they declared the transcendental divinities dead. The human individual and ‘humanity’ were further elevated yet declared ‘positive’, victorious over superstition. Their religions aimed to capture the best of two worlds: secular and religious, rational and affective. But what difference does it make to see ideas, beliefs, faith, or commitment as religious or as something else, such as politics or ideology?