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Original Essays | June 11, 2013
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This title in other editionsHow to Be Secular: A Call to Arms for Religious Freedomby Jacques Berlinerblau
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:“Berlinerblau mounts a careful, judicious, and compelling argument that America needs more secularists—not only among nonbelievers but among believers as well. It will change the way we think and talk about religious freedom.” —Randall Balmer, author of Thy Kingdom Come: How the Religious Right Distorts Faith and Threatens America Weary of religious conservatives urging “defense of marriage” and atheist polemicists decrying the crimes of religion? Sick of pundits who want only to recast American life in their own image? Americans are stuck in an all-or-nothing landscape for religion in public life. What are reasonable citizens to do? Seen as godless by the religious and weak by the atheists, secularism mostly has been misunderstood. In How to Be Secular, Berlinerblau argues for a return to America’s hard-won secular tradition; the best way to protect religious diversity and freedom lies in keeping an eye on the encroachment of each into the other. Berlinerblau passionately defends the virtues of secularism, reminds us what it is and what it can protect, and urges us to mobilize around its cause, which is for all Americans to continue to enjoy freedom for—and from—religion. This is an urgent wake-up call for progressives in and out of all faiths. Synopsis:Equally tired of faith tests for politicians and atheist polemics about the crimes of religion? In HOW TO BE SECULAR, Jacques Berlinerblau issues a rousing defense of America's secular roots as our nation's best way of protecting religious freedom for all About the AuthorJacques Berlinerblau, professor at Georgetown University and director of the Program for Jewish Civilization, is the author of four books. He has appeared on radio, television, and print, including NPR, CNN, Al-Jazeera, The Economist, The Jerusalem Post, U.S. News and World Report and the Washington Post. He is the host of the webcast "Faith Complex," which appears on The Huffington Post and elsewhere. Table of ContentsPreface xi
Introduction: Is Secularism Dead? xv What Secularism Is and Isnt What Is Secularism? (The Basic Package) 3 Were the Founders Secular? 20 Does Secularism Equal Total Separation of Church and State? 35 Does Secularism Equal Atheism? 53 How Not to Be Secular 69 The Very Peculiar “Rise” and Fall of American Secularism The Rise of American Secularism and the “Secularish” 85 The Fall of American Secularism 103 Are Democrats Secularists? 120 The Christian Nation and the GOP 137 Reviving American Secularism Who Could Be a Secularist? 155 How to Be Secularish (In Praise of “Secular Jews” and “Cafeteria Catholics”) 171 Tough Love for American Secularism 190 Acknowledgments 211 Notes 212 Index 289 What Our Readers Are SayingBe the first to add a comment for a chance to win!Product Details
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