Grace Without God: The Search for Meaning, Purpose, and Belonging in a Secular Age - Hardcover

Ozment, Katherine

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0062305115 ISBN 13: 9780062305114

Publisher: Harper, 2016

Synopsis

Publishers Weekly “Best Books of 2016”

Spirituality & Health Magazine Best Book of 2016

Nautilus Gold Award Winner 2016: Religion and Spirituality of Other Traditions

Religion News Association, First Place: Excellence in Nonfiction Religion Books

Meet “the Nones”—In this thought-provoking exploration of secular America, celebrated journalist Katherine Ozment takes readers on a quest to understand the trends and ramifications of a nation in flight from organized religion.

Studies show that religion makes us happier, healthier and more giving, connecting us to our past and creating tight communal bonds. Most Americans are raised in a religious tradition, but in recent decades many have begun to leave religion, and with it their ancient rituals, mythic narratives, and sense of belonging.

So how do the nonreligious fill the need for ritual, story, community, and, above all, purpose and meaning without the one-stop shop of religion? What do they do with the space left after religion? With Nones swelling to one-fourth of American adults, and more than one-third of those under thirty, these questions have never been more urgent.

Writer, journalist, and secular mother of three Katherine Ozment came face-to-face with the fundamental issue of the Nones when her son asked her the simplest of questions: “what are we?” Unsettled by her reply—“Nothing”—she set out on a journey to find a better answer. She traversed the frontier of American secular life, sought guidance in science and the humanities, talked with noted scholars, and wrestled with her own family’s attempts to find meaning and connection after religion.

Insightful, surprising, and compelling, Grace Without God is both a personal and critical exploration of the many ways nonreligious Americans create their own meaning and purpose in an increasingly secular age.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

How do you live a meaningful life without religion?

Meet the “Nones,” a rapidly growing group of the religiously unaffiliated in America (so-called because they check the box that reads, essentially, “none of the above” when asked about their faith). While many Americans are raised in a religious tradition, recent decades have seen large numbers of families drift from their churches and synagogues, temples and mosques, and abandon faith-based practices. But what is lost with this exodus from organized religion?

Religion gives us a moral grounding and a sense of identity by connecting us to our past and creating tight communal bonds. It also makes us happier, healthier, and more giving. But without the one-stop shop of religion, how do the nonreligious fill the need for ritual, story, community, and, above all, purpose and meaning? With a quarter of Americans identifying as religiously unaffiliated, these questions have never been more urgent.

Katherine Ozment—writer, journalist, and mother of three—comes face-to-face with the fundamental issue of the Nones when her son asks her the simplest of questions: “What are we?” Unsettled by the only reply she could summon—“Nothing”—she sets out on a journey across the changing landscape of America to find a better answer.

Ozment visits diverse congregations, from an atheist church to a storytelling gathering to a nature-based coming-of-age ritual. She turns to science and the humanities, seeking guidance from noted scholars in a wide range of disciplines. She interviews community leaders and parents, and searches for meaning on mountaintops and in her own front yard. Along the way she shares how her family finds purpose and connection without the organizing principle of religion.

Grace Without God is both a personal and critical exploration of the many ways nonreligious Americans create their own traditions and communities in an increasingly secular age. Insightful, surprising, and compelling, Ozment’s journey reveals how to find your own way forward to a meaningful life.

About the Author:

Katherine Ozment is an award-winning journalist and former senior editor at National Geographic. Her essays and articles have been widely published in such venues as the New York Times, National Geographic, and Salon. She lives in Chicago with her husband and children.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 0062305115
• ISBN 13: 9780062305114
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 320