The common media and scholarly story—especially with the rise of people who don’t identify with any religion—suggests that religion in America is in serious decline. In Death of Religion?: Nones, Others, and the Flourishing of Faith, Byron R. Johnson and Tommy Kidd strongly challenge this view.
In this work, they argue that the idea of religion’s decline has been greatly exaggerated and that survey data can often be misleading or incomplete. Their approach is to show that faith is actually healthier and more active than many believe, and that it continues to play a vital role in a thriving society. To support this claim, Johnson and Kidd use recent data from the Global Flourishing Study. This research provides valuable insights into patterns of religious commitment both nationally and worldwide, helping readers understand that faith remains an important factor in human well-being and societal flourishing.
Introduction
Part 1: Faith and Flourishing: Introducing the Global Flourishing Study
Chapter 1 Flourishing in America: What’s Faith (and Church) Got to Do with It?
Chapter 2 Is the World Becoming Less Religious? Implications for Human Flourishing
Chapter 3 The Halo Effect: Estimating the Social and Economic Impacts of Religion
Part 2: Predicting Religious Decline: A Longtime American Tradition
Chapter 4 Nothingarians and the Fear of the Unchurched in Early America
Chapter 5 Indifferentism: Religious Apathy, the Catholic Menace, and Preserving a Christian Nation
Chapter 6 “No Religion” and the Demise of the Mainline Denominations
Part 3: Nones, Others, and the Flourishing of Faith
Chapter 7 Are the Nones Really Irreligious?
Chapter 8 From the Nones to the Others: The Missing Believers and Churches in Religion Surveys
Conclusion
General Index
The common media and scholarly story—especially with the rise of people who don’t identify with any religion—suggests that religion in America is in serious decline. In Death of Religion?: Nones, Others, and the Flourishing of Faith, Byron R. Johnson and Tommy Kidd strongly challenge this view.
In this work, they argue that the idea of religion’s decline has been greatly exaggerated and that survey data can often be misleading or incomplete. Their approach is to show that faith is actually healthier and more active than many believe, and that it continues to play a vital role in a thriving society. To support this claim, Johnson and Kidd use recent data from the Global Flourishing Study. This research provides valuable insights into patterns of religious commitment both nationally and worldwide, helping readers understand that faith remains an important factor in human well-being and societal flourishing.
Introduction
Part 1: Faith and Flourishing: Introducing the Global Flourishing Study
Chapter 1 Flourishing in America: What’s Faith (and Church) Got to Do with It?
Chapter 2 Is the World Becoming Less Religious? Implications for Human Flourishing
Chapter 3 The Halo Effect: Estimating the Social and Economic Impacts of Religion
Part 2: Predicting Religious Decline: A Longtime American Tradition
Chapter 4 Nothingarians and the Fear of the Unchurched in Early America
Chapter 5 Indifferentism: Religious Apathy, the Catholic Menace, and Preserving a Christian Nation
Chapter 6 “No Religion” and the Demise of the Mainline Denominations
Part 3: Nones, Others, and the Flourishing of Faith
Chapter 7 Are the Nones Really Irreligious?
Chapter 8 From the Nones to the Others: The Missing Believers and Churches in Religion Surveys
Conclusion
General Index
