Phil_Zuckerman-Society_Without_GodÔÇ£SilverÔÇØ Winner of the 2008┬áForeword Magazine┬áBook 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 ÔÇ£getting religionÔÇØÔÇöpraising deities, performing holy rites, and soberly defending the world from sin. But most residents of Denmark and Sweden, he found, donÔÇÖt worship any god at all, donÔÇÖt pray, and donÔÇÖt 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 ÔÇ£happiness indexÔÇØ 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 ÔÇ£society without God is not only possible, but it can be quite civil and pleasant.ÔÇØ

REVIEW

ÔÇ£His reporting of previously published material is invaluable to persons not previously familiar with such information.ÔÇØ
–Humanism Ireland

ÔÇ£In an anecdotal and eminently readable manner, Zuckerman offers a novel idea within the study of religious sociology.ÔÇØ
–Library Journal

ÔÇ£For those interested in the burgeoning field of secular studiesÔÇÖ or for those curious about a world much different from the devout U.S.ÔÇöthis book will offer some compelling reading.ÔÇØ
–Publishers Weekly

“Society Without God” offers a unique perspective on the active debate regarding the necessity of religion . . . By turning to one of the most secular societies in the world, Scandanavia, Phil Zuckerman offers an empirically grounded account of a successful society where people are happy and content and help their neighbors without believing in God. The book is fluently written and highly illuminating. It offers an accessible entry to important questions in the study of religion and secularism.”
-Michael Pagis,Journal of the American Academy of Religion

ÔÇ£Much that he found will surprise many people, as it did him.ÔÇØ
–The New York Times

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Phil Zuckerman is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Pitzer College in Claremont, California. He is the author of Invitation to the Sociology of Religion and Strife in the Sanctuary: Religious Schism in a Jewish Community.