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AbstractThis article aims to move beyond media discourse about "new atheism" by mapping and explaining anti-religious zeal among the public at large in 14 Western European countries. We analyze data from the International Social Survey Program, Religion III, 2008, to test two theories about how country-level religiousness affects anti-religiosity and its social bases: a theory of rationalization and a theory of deprivatization of disbelief. Hypotheses derived from the former are contradicted, whereas those derived from the latter are largely confirmed. Anti-religiosity is strongest among disbelievers and among the higher educated in the most religious countries and among the older generations in today's most secularized countries.

Using the 2005 and 2006 AsiaBarometer surveys I analyze religiosity and secularization in Asia. I find that, in South Asia, identification with a particular religion is the norm and most people pray every day but, in East Asia, religious identification and religious practice are both much less common. Even in secular East Asia, however, the demand for religious services is high and belief in a spiritual world is common. I conclude that secularization does not necessarily produce uniformly secular societies. Turning to the causes and consequences of religiosity, I find surprisingly few significant relationships, results that echo similar analyses in Western Europe. I then discuss the implications of these non-findings.

What is the effect of religiosity on public opinion? Islamist religiosity in particular has been linked to a variety of outcomes, including authoritarianism and violence. Nevertheless, many scholars have countered that there is in fact no relationship between religiosity in the Arab world and adverse political outcomes. Thus the debate remains unresolved to some degree. To adjudicate this debate, we use the Arab Opinion Index's 2016 data to examine the effect of individual religiosity on public opinion and political behavior. We find that there is no link between increased religiosity and negative views of democracy; in fact, the opposite is the case. There is also no link between religiosity and political participation. Finally, there is a positive correlation between religiosity and political tolerance.

IT SEEMS TO BE THE SOCIAL SCIENCE ORTHODOXY THAT, WHATEVER THE NORTHERN IRELAND CONFLICT IS ABOUT, IT IS NOT ABOUT RELIGION. DESPITE THE FREQUENTLY REPEATED ASSERTION BY UNIONISTS THAT THEIR MAIN REASON FOR NOT WANTING TO BECOME PART OF A UNITED IRELAND IS THE POWER OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, THE MAJORITY OF COMMENTATORS AND MOST BRITISH PEOPLE REFUSE TO BELIEVE THEM. IT IS PERHAPS NOT SURPRISING THAT MEMBERS OF A LARGELY SECULAR CULTURE SHOULD FIND IT DIFFICULT TO BELIEVE THAT SOME PEOPLE TAKE RELIGION SERIOUSLY ENOUGH TO LET IT AFFECT THEIR LIVES. BUT IT IS WORTH CONSIDERING THE IMPLICATION OF THE APPARENT WILLINGNESS OF MANY LOYALISTS TO PREFER THE ECONOMIC DISASTER OF AN INDEPENDENT ULSTER TO A FUTURE IN A UNITED IRELAND. IN THIS PAPER, INFORMATION ABOUT THE RELIGIOUS AFFILIATIONS OF ACTIVE MEMBERS OF IAN PAISLEY'S DEMOCRATIC UNIONIST PARTY (DUP) WILL BE PRESENTED WHICH DEFIES EXPLANATION UNLESS ONE RECOGNIZES THE CENTRAL PART PLAYED IN LOYALIST POLITICS BY RELIGIOUS BELIEFS AND ATTITUDES. EVEN THOSE PROTESTANTS WHO DO NOT PERSONALLY SUBSCRIBE TO THE EVANGELICAL RELIGION OF PAISLEY, WRIGHT AND OTHERS, RECOGNIZE IN IT THE CORE OF WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A PROTESTANT IN NORTHERN IRELAND.

A question asked by some of the great scholars of religion, including Emile Durkheim, Marcel Mauss, & Sigmund Freud, is "What is the nature of religion?" This study presents two linked arguments; in fact, one is generated from the other. First, it is assumed that in addition to the institutionalized conventional type of religion, there exists another type of religiosity in contemporary Western democracies -- alternative religiosity. The second argument concerns the question of relationships between religious meaning systems & political belief systems. One of the most long-standing findings in the study of politics is that the more religious people become, the stronger their objections to the democratic way of thinking. Religiosity in many societies (for example, Israel & the US) delegates believers to the spheres of the political Right. Although we have had much research on conventional religions & political attitudes, this is not the case for alternative religions. It would be reasonable to assume that those belief systems that developed as alternatives to the formal religions would be characterized differently; however, their implications for political attitudes are similar. Adapted from the source document.

Objectives Schools serve as the primary social organizations for adolescents, structuring their lives and conveying a variety of skills, norms, and values, but relatively little is known about how schools influence the development of religious belief, attitudes, and behavior during adolescence. We explore how schools' religious norms, coupled with adolescents' pursuit of social status through conformity, affect public and private religiosity. Methods Employing data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), we use multilevel modeling to examine the impact of school context on adolescents' public and private religiosity. Results We find that school norms are influential in shaping both public religious expressions and private devotional activities, but pursuit of social status is a motivation for change across religious contexts only of public religious activity. The effect of social status as a motivator of religious change was moderated by the strength of the adolescent's identification with the school, especially for private religiosity. Conclusions Schools play a key role in the social development of adolescents, and students' religious beliefs and behaviors are influenced systematically and observably by the type of religious climate within the school. Adapted from the source document.

China's rise is currently reconfiguring the established global order. Recently, Beijing has been reviving ancient Chinese religious traditions to present a more curated, softer image of the PRC to the world at large. This book examines the resurging influence of the ancient Chinese sacred ethos, exploring how a rejuvenated Confucian-Daoist-Buddhist moral enterprise may shape the evolving character of modern China. It covers subjects ranging from social-political reform to inter-civilizations engagement, and from bioethical issues to environmental concerns. The book also argues for a stronger affirmation of the traditional Chinese ideals of universalism, pluralism, and moderation, as prescriptions to remedy the ills afflicting contemporary China. More broadly, this philosophical and religious studies-based research will serve to deepen the reader's comprehension of the extraordinary changes taking place in China today.

Objectives. Schools serve as the primary social organizations for adolescents, structuring their lives and conveying a variety of skills, norms, and values, but relatively little is known about how schools influence the development of religious belief, attitudes, and behavior during adolescence. We explore how schools' religious norms, coupled with adolescents' pursuit of social status through conformity, affect public and private religiosity.Methods. Employing data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), we use multilevel modeling to examine the impact of school context on adolescents' public and private religiosity.Results. We find that school norms are influential in shaping both public religious expressions and private devotional activities, but pursuit of social status is a motivation for change across religious contexts only of public religious activity. The effect of social status as a motivator of religious change was moderated by the strength of the adolescent's identification with the school, especially for private religiosity.Conclusions. Schools play a key role in the social development of adolescents, and students' religious beliefs and behaviors are influenced systematically and observably by the type of religious climate within the school.