Secularization and Religious Innovation in the North Atlantic World

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Sociology, Marriage & Family, Religion & Spirituality
Cover of the book Secularization and Religious Innovation in the North Atlantic World by , OUP Oxford
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: ISBN: 9780192519030
Publisher: OUP Oxford Publication: May 12, 2017
Imprint: OUP Oxford Language: English
Author:
ISBN: 9780192519030
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Publication: May 12, 2017
Imprint: OUP Oxford
Language: English

In the early twenty-first century it had become a cliché that there was a 'God Gap' between a more religious United States and a more secular Europe. The apparent religious differences between the United States and western Europe continue to be a focus of intense and sometimes bitter debate between three of the main schools in the sociology of religion. According to the influential 'Secularization Thesis', secularization has been an integral part of the processes of modernisation in the Western world since around 1800. For proponents of this thesis, the United States appears as an anomaly and they accordingly give considerable attention to explaining why it is different. For other sociologists, however, the apparently high level of religiosity in the USA provides a major argument in their attempts to refute the Thesis. Secularization and Religious Innovation in the Atlantic World provides a systematic comparison between the religious histories of the United States and western European countries from the eighteenth to the late twentieth century, noting parallels as well as divergences, examining their causes and especially highlighting change over time. This is achieved by a series of themes which seem especially relevant to this agenda, and in each case the theme is considered by two scholars. The volume examines whether American Christians have been more innovative, and if so how far this explains the apparent 'God Gap'. It goes beyond the simple American/European binary to ask what is 'American' or 'European' in the Christianity of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and in what ways national or regional differences outweigh these commonalities.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In the early twenty-first century it had become a cliché that there was a 'God Gap' between a more religious United States and a more secular Europe. The apparent religious differences between the United States and western Europe continue to be a focus of intense and sometimes bitter debate between three of the main schools in the sociology of religion. According to the influential 'Secularization Thesis', secularization has been an integral part of the processes of modernisation in the Western world since around 1800. For proponents of this thesis, the United States appears as an anomaly and they accordingly give considerable attention to explaining why it is different. For other sociologists, however, the apparently high level of religiosity in the USA provides a major argument in their attempts to refute the Thesis. Secularization and Religious Innovation in the Atlantic World provides a systematic comparison between the religious histories of the United States and western European countries from the eighteenth to the late twentieth century, noting parallels as well as divergences, examining their causes and especially highlighting change over time. This is achieved by a series of themes which seem especially relevant to this agenda, and in each case the theme is considered by two scholars. The volume examines whether American Christians have been more innovative, and if so how far this explains the apparent 'God Gap'. It goes beyond the simple American/European binary to ask what is 'American' or 'European' in the Christianity of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and in what ways national or regional differences outweigh these commonalities.

More books from OUP Oxford

Cover of the book The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities by
Cover of the book Oxford Handbook of Medical Statistics by
Cover of the book Baby-Making by
Cover of the book Europe's Growth Champion by
Cover of the book Treatise on International Criminal Law by
Cover of the book Scenes of Clerical Life by
Cover of the book The Oxford Handbook of Public Accountability by
Cover of the book Collisions and Collaboration by
Cover of the book The Origins of the English Parliament, 924-1327 by
Cover of the book The Origins of Adversary Criminal Trial by
Cover of the book Gothic Tales by
Cover of the book Oxford World's Classics: Two on a Tower by
Cover of the book The Governance Report 2014 by
Cover of the book Post-Conflict Peacebuilding by
Cover of the book Shakespeare and Biography by
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy