Faith No More: Why People Reject Religion

233 Pages·2011·1.33 MB·English

by  Phil Zuckerman

Faith No More
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Faith No More
Why People Reject Religion
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P hil Zuckerman

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Zuckerman, Phil.
Faith no more : why people reject religion / Phil Zuckerman.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-19-974001-7 (acid-free paper)
1. Apostasy—Christianity. 2. Ex-church members—United States. 3. Non-church-affi liated
people—United States. 4. Atheism—United States. 5. United States—Church
history—21st century. 6. Religion and sociology—United States. I. Title.
BR517.Z83 2011
277.3'083—dc22 2011007917
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments vii
Introduction 3
1. Mother Was an Exorcist 14
2. Stopped Making Sense 33
3. Misfortune 4 0
4. To Be Mormon, or Not to Be 5 6
5. Sex and Secularity 74
6. Others 88
7. Jail, Food Stamps, and Atheism 104
8. Th e Apostate Worldview 1 21
9. All in the Family? 139
10. How and Why People Reject Religion 151
Conclusion 170
Appendix: Research Methods and Sample Characteristics 177
Notes 189
References 197
Index 217
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would like to thank Pitzer College for several grants that helped
support the research for this book. I would also like to thank my
graduate research assistant, Kerri Blumenthal, as well as my
undergraduate research assistants: Alexandria A. Bannerman,
Erin Caliri, David R. Casler, Sasha Cohen, Cassandra Cona,
Amanda J. Curtis, Melanie H. Epstein, Maxamilien Fortgang,
Sylvie Froncek, Sophia Galano, Jyoti Gautam, Samuel Greene,
Alejandra Gillette-Teran, Sophie Goodwin, Jerry Johnson,
Rhonda Kruschen, Steven Losco, Korin Nadelle, Morgan Peterkin,
Jonny Robertson, Travis Luke Rooke-Ley, and Brittni Stenmo.
I am also indebted to my colleagues: Ryan Falcioni, Luke Galen,
Sandy Hamilton, Shayne Lee, Peter Nardi, John Norvell, Frank
Pasquale, and James Spickard.
Finally, my earnest gratitude goes out to Th eo Calderara, Dan
Burke, Gary Cienmarcos, Marvin Zuckerman, and Stacy Elliott.
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Faith No More