Fading Faith

A historic transition is occurring, barely noticed. Slowly, quietly, imperceptibly, religion is shriveling in America, as it has done in Europe, Canada, Australia, Japan and other advanced societies. Supernatural faith increasingly belongs to the Third World. The First World is entering the long-predicted Secular Age, when science and knowledge dominate. The change promises to be another shift of civilization, like past departures of the era of kings, the time of slavery, the Agricultural Age, the epoch of colonialism, and the like. Such cultural transformations are partly invisible to contemporary people, but become obvious in retrospect. Read on…

The Allure of Religious Violence

On the 21st of February, soldiers disposing of tools used by Afghan prisoners to exchange messages dumped a large volume of papers and books into a garbage pit to be burned. Amongst the texts were a number of Qurans. A superior, noticing the incredible error, doused the fires to retrieve what remained. But too late. Passing Afghan workers had spotted the thoughtless gesture, and within the day riots had spread across the capital. Over the past weeks protests have erupted … Read on…