Trigger Warning: If you are offended by discussion of religious ideas or atheism you may not want to read this. I had to explain a lot of things for this proposal to make sense, but my intention is not to proselytize for/against any religion or spiritual ideology. If this scares you, then consider it a work of fiction.
spoiler
A big issue with getting everyone to agree on scientific government is that people weaponize religion to make people believe the things they want them to. Prosperity gospel is an obvious example where people are told wealth is a result of faith, inadvertently putting an implied blame on the poor for being faithless. Other issues such as lifestyles that deviate from those organized religion deems acceptable are also made into huge issues. I believe that organized religion in the current developed world is a net negative for human progress.
So I am proposing an esoteric/occult branch. It’s not to promote any religious or spiritual ideology but actually to promote atheism. It may seem like nonsense or it may seem like an oxymoron, but as someone that has personally experienced paranormal events I actually feel closer to atheism and logic as a result, because I come to the conclusion that modern religion cannot provide satisfactory explanations for the things that happen mor these things that (apparently?) exist. The Scientific method applied to the supernatural also stops fanaticism and idolization of things that humanity simply cannot fully understand. Once people experience encounters with supernatural beings and/or anomalies and the process loses its mystique, I believe that fanaticism will die.
By making scientific deductions about the occult, you can only say for sure that anomalous beings exist and for the person who is deeply devoted to them, they show up once in a blue moon. Instead of having it validate whatever beliefs people have about the supernatural, you can come to the opposite conclusion and think that religion exists because primitive humans encountered these things at some point. Some people may feel strongly that we can interact with these things in certain ways and get desired results most of the time, but I find that it’s not incompatible with secularism or atheism since that understanding does not create fanaticism for those who are experienced with it.
I will admit I do realize the huge irony in proposing an esoteric branch is created to promote atheism and secularism, but I believe some people will not take theocratic ideas and faith-based thinking off of a pedestal without this information. I am also confident that the effects of such a movement on society would be profound.