Episode 23: Morality and the Decline of Religion, with Dr. Phil Zuckerman

09/10/21 • 56 min

This week’s guest drops some shocking information: not only is religion declining around the globe, but atheists are proving to be more moral than fundamentalist Christians. To discuss how this came to be, we’re joined by Phil Zuckerman, a professor of sociology at Pitzer College in Claremont, California, and the author of several books, including What It Means to be Moral, The Nonreligious, Living the Secular Life, Faith No More, and Society Without God. Among other things, we talk about the evidence for and causes of secularization, the future of religion, and the roots of morality. We also find out, for example, whether a true secular person can have sex outside the holy bonds of marriage or tell their kids about Santa.
In the bonus section, available on Patreon exclusively for subscribers, we talk about Phil’s establishment of the first Secular Studies program in the world at Pitzer College and whether academics are paying enough attention to the massive decline of religion.
For more on Phil and his works: https://philzuckerman.com/
Phil’s latest article in Salon, “Staunch atheists show higher morals than the proudly pious, from the pandemic to climate change”: https://www.salon.com/2021/08/21/staunch-atheists-show-higher-morals-than-the-proudly-pious-from-the-pandemic-to-climate-change/
New edition of Society without God: What the Least Religious Nations Can Tell Us about Contentment: https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.18574/9781479851119/html
Upcoming virtual book launch (September 15th) for the two-volume Cambridge History of Atheism: https://atheismsecularismhumanism.wordpress.com/seminars/
Follow Nathan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NathGAlexander
Nathan’s website: https://www.nathangalexander.com/
If you find the podcast valuable and want to support it, check out our Patreon page, where you will also find bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/beyond_atheism You can also contribute by going to https://anchor.fm/beyond-atheism and clicking the “Support” button. We are grateful for every contribution.

Previous Episode

Episode 22: What’s in a Name? Debating Nonreligious Labels

In this episode, Todd and Nathan talk about the different labels we use to describe ourselves as nonreligious people. Terms like atheist, agnostic, secularist, freethinker, and bright all have specific definitions – but they are also loaded with connotations and carry different social stigmas. What do these terms mean and how should they be understood? We assign a highly scientific, highly objective score out of 10 to each label! We also discuss whether a “true atheist” can lie about their beliefs or use money with a monarch on it.
In the bonus content, available exclusively for Patrons on our Patreon page, Todd describes a recent run-in with the mayor of his town in New Jersey and describes how he used what he learned from previous guests to get his point across to a political leader.
Nathan’s article, “An Atheist with a Tall Hat On: The Forgotten History of Agnosticism”: https://thehumanist.com/magazine/march-april-2019/philosophically-speaking/philosophically-speaking-an-atheist-with-a-tall-hat-on-the-forgotten-history-of-agnosticism/
How Humanist Are You? (Quiz from Humanists UK): https://humanists.uk/humanism/how-humanist-are-you/
On the “Brights”: https://ahsplus.blog/2021/08/23/were-the-brights-really-such-a-bad-idea/
Upcoming virtual book launch (September 15th) for the two-volume Cambridge History of Atheism: https://atheismsecularismhumanism.wordpress.com/seminars/
Follow Nathan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NathGAlexander
Nathan’s website: https://www.nathangalexander.com/
If you find the podcast valuable and want to support it, check out our Patreon page, where you will also find bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/beyond_atheism You can also contribute by going to https://anchor.fm/beyond-atheism and clicking the “Support” button. We are grateful for every contribution.

Next Episode

Episode 24: Atheist Overreach?

In the past, critics contended that atheists were simply wrong. Now, however, we have found a critique saying that atheists have overreached in their claims. So says the Notre Dame professor Christian Smith in his new book, Atheist Overreach: What Atheism Can’t Deliver. In this episode, Todd and Nathan respond to the arguments made in Smith’s book about universal morality, rational cheating, the limits of science, and the importance of ethics. You’ll be shocked to discover how much (or how little) they agree with Smith’s analysis.
Atheist Overreach: What Atheism Can’t Deliver: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/atheist-overreach-9780190880927?cc=us&lang=en
Nathan and Todd interviewed for the AHS+ blog: https://ahsplus.blog/2021/10/19/activism-matters-nathan-alexander-and-todd-tavares/
Follow Nathan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NathGAlexander
Nathan’s website: https://www.nathangalexander.com/
If you find the podcast valuable and want to support it, check out our Patreon page, where you will also find bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/beyond_atheism You can also contribute by going to https://anchor.fm/beyond-atheism and clicking the “Support” button. We are grateful for every contribution.