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Product Description
Europe is a relatively secular part of the world in global terms. Why is this so? And why is the situation in Europe so different from that in the United States? These are the key questions considered in this book; key questions (the theme) clearly articulated in the first chapter.Subsequent chapters explore the nature of Eurosecularity in more detail (the variations on the theme) - paying attention to its historical, philosophical and institutional dimensions. They also ask how the question of Eurosecularity is related to social difference (class, ethnicity etc.). In each chapter, the similarities and differences with the American case will be carefully examined. The final chapter explores the ways in which these features translate into policy on both sides of the Atlantic. This book is highly topical and relates very directly to the tensions between Europe and America in the present period.
About the Author
Peter Berger is University Professor of Sociology and Theology at Boston University, he is known all over the world for his work in sociology, including the sociology of religion. He has taught at the New School for Social Research, at Rutgers University, and at Boston College. Grace Davie holds a personal chair in the Sociology of Religion at the University of Exeter. Effie Fokas gained her Ph D from the London School of Economics in 2004. She is currently working as a research assistant at the University of Exeter.
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3 reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Sociology of Religion made fascinating, relevant and readable
21 Nov 2008
Format:Paperback
This book tackles a very important question: why does religion flourish in America, but languish in western and central Europe? Why are some issues about religion and public life here incomprehensible to Europeans (i.e. the use of religious language in political campaigns), and vice-versa (French controversies over head-scarves)? This book looks at history, institutions, and the intellectual ethos of the 2 areas. Its authors stress that although the title is indeed accurate, there is a lot more to be said. They also remind us that "Europe" is not a unity, and that each nation has its own history, institutions and ways to handle problems. One does not need a lot of sociological background to read and enjoy this book. And it illuminates an important set of issues that are not likely to go away.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
A Profound Analysis of the Differences Between America & Europe
2 Jan 2012
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Here is one of the most fascinating books I have read in quite a while. As an American having spent almost thirty years of my life in Europe, this book has caused me to think again about the prevalent religiosity of the US and the prevalent secularity of Europe.
The book seeks to answer to question, "Why is America so religious and Europe so secular?" After an introductory chapter, the second chapter touches on the question in a general way by discussing what is different and what is similar. Then chapters three to six deal with the causes for the differences. They are: 1) different histories, 2) different intellectual approaches; 3) what is called "institutional carriers" namely church-state, judicial and educational carriers and their influence; and 4) differences in religion and class.
The final chapter entitled "So What? Policy Implications" moves the analysis of the difference into the arena of practicality.
This book has made a profound difference in my thinking about the differences between the US and Europe in the domain of religion and has both answered some of my questions and at the same time has given me more to think through. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
The book seeks to answer to question, "Why is America so religious and Europe so secular?" After an introductory chapter, the second chapter touches on the question in a general way by discussing what is different and what is similar. Then chapters three to six deal with the causes for the differences. They are: 1) different histories, 2) different intellectual approaches; 3) what is called "institutional carriers" namely church-state, judicial and educational carriers and their influence; and 4) differences in religion and class.
The final chapter entitled "So What? Policy Implications" moves the analysis of the difference into the arena of practicality.
This book has made a profound difference in my thinking about the differences between the US and Europe in the domain of religion and has both answered some of my questions and at the same time has given me more to think through. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
2 of 5 people found the following review helpful
A Must Read!!!!
19 Dec 2010
Format:Paperback
I am definitely buying and adding this book to my library! After a friend lend it to me for further reading based on an interesting conversation we had on this issue, I profoundly believe that authors Berger, Davie and Fokas hit the nail right on the head! And judging from my annual trips to Spain every year to visit family and friends, I can actually vouch for their opinions provided in this excellent work. Mentioning God's name in the street, restaurant, mall, tavern or other public gathering will generate scowls and mean looks from locals, and may even get you labelled a "fascist". Church attendance is relatively low; the few people that attend mass are no younger than 60 years old! I am secular myself, even though I am first generation American (my parents were Spanish immigrants), so I don't have a problem with it; in fact, most members of my family along with my numerous friends and acquaintances never once mention religion in any of our conversations, intellectual or otherwise. Many people there coin the U.S. as "puritanically backward" or "one-dimensional"; one of my cousins, a college professor, commented that "America may be in the 21st Century technologically and militarily, yet socially and politically, it pathetically reasons with a 17th Century state of mind". I couldn't agree more! It's no big mystery as to why Spain in particular is distancing itself further away from religious concepts; the Church was an integral part of the triad under the Franco dictatorship (1939-1975), along with the government and the Army. It played no small part in overthrowing the democratically-elected Spanish Republican government, which was proclaimed in 1931. The Spanish Civil War which followed, causing 500,000 deaths, is still deeply wedged in the minds of many a Spaniard today....and then of course, the Church ruled most of Europe during medieval times, with its injustices, superstitions and resistance to all that was progressive and scientifically truthful (look what they did to poor Galileo when he desperately tried to persuade the religious imbeciles of the Italian hierarchy that the world was actually round). Europeans in general perceive religion to represent a major obstruction to education, progress and the will to move forward and improve the nature of Humanity. It is nothing short of archaic, and at the same time, an awfully shameful blemish from the past which the Old Continent would gladly prefer to bury forever and move on to a more modern "Age of Reason" as Thomas Paine, our most radical (and my favorite) American Founding Father, would put it. When I receive this book, I will read it ONCE AGAIN, this time in its entirety. Excellent work!!
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