Spiritual Lives of the Non-Religious

Harvard HDS

How do people who do not participate in or identify with an organized religious tradition continue to lead meaningful, even spiritual, lives? This is the animating question of this course. To answer it, we explore three primary aspects of non-religious lives: beliefs, belonging, and behaviors. We draw on sociological studies, modern psychology, and constructive theological accounts to understand the growing American phenomena of religious un/disaffiliation, which may account for up to half of…