Becoming Atheist: Humanism and the Secular WestThe Western World is becoming atheist. In the space of three generations churchgoing and religious belief have become alien to millions. We are in the midst of one of humankind's great cultural changes. How has this happened? Becoming Atheist explores how people of the sixties' generation have come to live their lives as if there is no God. It tells the life narratives of those from Britain, Western Europe, the United States and Canada who came from Christian, Jewish and other backgrounds to be without faith. Based on interviews with 85 people born in 18 countries, Callum Brown shows how gender, ethnicity and childhood shape how individuals lose religion. This book moves from statistical and broad cultural analysis to use frank, humorous and sometimes harrowing personal testimony. Becoming Atheist exposes people's role in renegotiating their own identities, and fashioning a secular and humanist culture for the Western world. |
Contents
| 1 | |
| 20 | |
3 The Atheist Child | 43 |
4 The Silent and Indifferent Atheist | 66 |
5 Women Feminism and Becoming Faithless | 87 |
6 Men Reason and Radicalism | 113 |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
African American agnostic American Atheists amongst asked atheism and humanism attending became become believe born British British Humanist Association Brown Canada Catholic cent childhood culture David decades Demographic described discourse England Ernest ethical evangelical faith feminism feminist Frank O’Hara historian History Theory humanist condition humanists and atheists Ibid identity individual intellectual Jehovah’s Witnesses Jewish Jews Kenneth Matthews Khushi liberal lives London losing religion loss of religion Maria Berger marriage moral mother movement Muslim narration narrative nations Nigel Bruce non-believers non-religious normative oral history Oral History Archives organized Oxford parents Pat Duffy position pseud question radical reading recalled religious reported respondents Robin Wood Scotland secular secularist sense sexual sixties social society spiritual spoke started story Sunday school Terry Martin testimony there’s things told transcript trauma twentieth century unbelief United University Press Vancouver Western whilst woman women