Godless Religion: A Spiritual Yearning Research Initiative Project

This planning grant explores the phenomenon of religious “nones” and those who identify as “spiritual but not religious,” (SBNR) through the lens of Godless Religion. We approach this exploration from two distinct perspectives within the Christian tradition. The first group are those who maintain a belief in theism but have left institutional religion. They are “godless” in their religion in the sense that they would typically be regarded as having abandoned the faith by those within Christian churches. Unlike the “nones,” the second group remains within the structures of institutional religion but opts instead for revisionist ways of understanding their faith. Members of this second group are “godless” because they reject traditional theological realism while remaining within ecclesiastical structures. Our area of inquiry focuses on these two growing movements. We believe that understanding these two groups is crucial for comprehending the complexity of godless religion and developing effective strategies to address the challenges these groups face. As such, we are primarily interested in the ways in which “godless religion,” is conceptually and sociologically cashed out. This will provide the foundational material for our larger research questions about the theological viability of Christian “nones” and Christian SBNRs. Our big question is whether either group represents a stable religious alternative to traditional, institutional Christian religious faith. The major outputs are: gathering an interdisciplinary team of theologians, philosophers of religion, and social scientists for an online workshop in the Spring and a smaller in-person workshop in the Fall; a published article in a top-tier philosophy journal concerning anti-realist Christian SNBRs; and a white paper on the sociological and empirical research done on the Christian “nones,” all of which will feed into in the planning application for the large grant on Godless Religion.