"Silver" Winner of the 2008 Foreword Magazine Book of the Year
Award, Religion Category Before he began his recent travels, it
seemed to Phil Zuckerman as if humans all over the globe were
"getting religion"-praising deities, performing holy rites, and
soberly defending the world from sin. But most residents of Denmark
and Sweden, he found, don't worship any god at all, don't pray, and
don't give much credence to religious dogma of any kind. Instead of
being bastions of sin and corruption, however, as the Christian
Right has suggested a godless society would be, these countries are
filled with residents who score at the very top of the "happiness
index" and enjoy their healthy societies, which boast some of the
lowest rates of violent crime in the world (along with some of the
lowest levels of corruption), excellent educational systems, strong
economies, well-supported arts, free health care, egalitarian
social policies, outstanding bike paths, and great beer. Zuckerman
formally interviewed nearly 150 Danes and Swedes of all ages and
educational backgrounds over the course of fourteen months. He was
particularly interested in the worldviews of people who live their
lives without religious orientation. How do they think about and
cope with death? Are they worried about an afterlife? What he found
is that nearly all of his interviewees live their lives without
much fear of the Grim Reaper or worries about the hereafter. This
led him to wonder how and why it is that certain societies are
non-religious in a world that seems to be marked by increasing
religiosity. Drawing on prominent sociological theories and his own
extensive research, Zuckerman ventures some interesting answers.
This fascinating approach directly counters the claims of
outspoken, conservative American Christians who argue that a
society without God would be hell on earth. It is crucial,
Zuckerman believes, for Americans to know that "society without God
is not only possible, but it can be quite civil and pleasant."
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