Jesse M. Smith – författare

This book surveys the growing field of secularity and non-religion, focussing on the North American context. The introductory overview article explains that the field encompasses a wide and disparate set of people and processes. These include the religious nones and unaffiliated, atheists and agnostics, secular humanists and secular activists, and many other kinds of the “traditionally nonreligious” along with novel forms of secular identities, organizations, and worldviews.Chapters highlight the key topics, findings, arguments, and controversies from the past 20 years of research, including issues of secular and nonreligious identity, health, organization, family, inequality, discrimination. The book is illustrated throughout with over 60 images and each chapter includes guidance on further reading. A glossary of key terms and concepts is included. This is a much-needed resource for teaching secularity and non-religion, as well as the sociology of religion.The chapters in this book were first published in the digital collection Bloomsbury Religion in North America. Covering North America's diverse religious traditions, this digital collection provides reliable and peer-reviewed articles and ebooks for students and instructors. Learn more and get access for your library at www.theologyandreligiononline.com/bloomsbury-religion-in-north-america

This book surveys the growing field of secularity and non-religion, focussing on the North American context. The introductory overview article explains that the field encompasses a wide and disparate set of people and processes. These include the religious nones and unaffiliated, atheists and agnostics, secular humanists and secular activists, and many other kinds of the “traditionally nonreligious” along with novel forms of secular identities, organizations, and worldviews.Chapters highlight the key topics, findings, arguments, and controversies from the past 20 years of research, including issues of secular and nonreligious identity, health, organization, family, inequality, discrimination. The book is illustrated throughout with over 60 images and each chapter includes guidance on further reading. A glossary of key terms and concepts is included. This is a much-needed resource for teaching secularity and non-religion, as well as the sociology of religion.The chapters in this book were first published in the digital collection Bloomsbury Religion in North America. Covering North America's diverse religious traditions, this digital collection provides reliable and peer-reviewed articles and ebooks for students and instructors. Learn more and get access for your library at www.theologyandreligiononline.com/bloomsbury-religion-in-north-america

Examines why so many are leaving religion, and what that means for American society One of the largest changes in American culture over the last fifty years has been the increase in people exiting religion. Goodbye Religion explores why there has been such an upswing among those who identify as nonreligious, and what the societal implications are of this move towards less religiosity. Utilizing nationally representative data and more than a hundred in-depth interviews with people who leave their religion behind, Ryan T. Cragun and Jesse M. Smith examine the variety of social, psychological, and environmental conditions behind the exiting process, as well as what people do with the time they used to devote to religious observance. They show that for most people who leave, abandoning religion is not a crisis, and does not generally disrupt their health, charitable giving, or volunteering. Drawing on the data, Cragun and Smith argue that the fears among some that massive religious exit will result in a decline in family values or less civic engagement are unfounded, and that those who become nonreligious remain engaged in society and continue to strive to make the world a better place. At a time where more and more individuals are questioning the implications of our increasingly secular society, Goodbye Religion offers an engaging and fascinating analysis into what religious exiting—and secularization broadly—means for American society.