Society without God, Second Edition: What the Least Religious Nations Can Tell Us about Contentment

Phil Zuckerman

Published by New York University Press 2020

Society without God, Second Edition

What the Least Religious Nations Can Tell Us about Contentment

Phil Zuckerman

https://doi.org/10.18574/nyu/9781479851119.001.0001

Overview
Contents

About this book

An updated edition showcasing the social health of the least religious nations in the world

Religious conservatives around the world often claim that a society without a strong foundation of faith would necessarily be an immoral one, bereft of ethics, values, and meaning. Indeed, the Christian Right in the United States has argued that a society without God would be hell on earth.

In Society without God, Second Edition sociologist Phil Zuckerman challenges these claims. Drawing on fieldwork and interviews with more than 150 citizens of Denmark and Sweden, among the least religious countries in the world, he shows that, far from being inhumane, crime-infested, and dysfunctional, highly secular societies are healthier, safer, greener, less violent, and more democratic and egalitarian than highly religious ones.

Society without God provides a rich portrait of life in a secular society, exploring how a culture without faith copes with death, grapples with the meaning of life, and remains content through everyday ups and downs. This updated edition incorporates new data from recent studies, updated statistics, and a revised Introduction, as well as framing around the now more highly developed field of secular studies. It addresses the dramatic surge of irreligion in the United States and the rise of the “nones,” and adds data on societal health in specific US states, along with fascinating context regarding which are the most religious and which the most secular.

Author / Editor information

Zuckerman Phil :

Phil Zuckerman is Professor of Sociology at Pitzer College, and the founding chair of the nation’s first Secular Studies Program. He is the author of several books, including What It Means to be Moral, The Nonreligious, Living the Secular Life, Faith No More, and Society Without God, and the editor of several volumes, including The Oxford Handbook of Secularism and The Social Theory of W.E.B. Du Bois.Phil Zuckerman is Professor of Sociology at Pitzer College, and the founding chair of the nation’s first Secular Studies Program. He is the author of several books, including What It Means to be Moral, The Nonreligious, Living the Secular Life, Faith No More, and Society Without God, and the editor of several volumes, including The Oxford Handbook of Secularism and The Social Theory of W.E.B. Du Bois.

Reviews

Stephen Bullivant, Professor of Theology and the Sociology of Religion, St Mary's University, UK:
Zuckerman has been at the forefront of the growing field of Secular Studies for the best part of two decades. From Society Without God, it's easy to see why: beautifully written and engaging, drawing on both deep scholarship and an insightful mind. This is classic Zuckerman.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Preface to the Second Edition Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
1 Society without God Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	23
2 Jens, Anne, and Christian Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	47
3 Fear of Death and the Meaning of Life Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	74
4 Lene, Sonny, and Gitte Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	94
5 Being Secular Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	121
6 Why? Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	140
7 Dorthe, Laura, and Johanne Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	161
8 Cultural Religion Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	187
9 Back to the United States Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	206
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	229
Appendix: Sample Characteristics and Methodology Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	231
Notes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	235
Bibliography Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	247
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	263
About the Author Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	277