The Culture of Disbelief How American Law and Politics Trivialize Religious Devotion

by CARTER, STEPHEN L.

• ISBN13: 9780385474986
• ISBN10: 0385474989
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1994-09-01
• Publisher: Anchor

Summary

The Culture Of Disbeliefhas been the subject of an enormous amount of media attention from the first moment it was published. Hugely successful in hardcover, the Anchor paperback is sure to find a large audience as the ever-increasing, enduring debate about the relationship of church and state in America continues. InThe Culture Of Disbelief, Stephen Carter explains how we can preserve the vital separation of church and state while embracing rather than trivializing the faith of millions of citizens or treating religious believers with disdain. What makes Carter's work so intriguing is that he uses liberal means to arrive at what are often considered conservative ends. Explaining how preserving a special role for religious communities can strengthen our democracy,The Culture Of Disbelief recovers the long tradition of liberal religious witness (for example, the antislavery, antisegregation, and Vietnam-era antiwar movements). Carter argues that the problem with the 1992 Republican convention was not thefactof open religious advocacy, but thepolitical positionsbeing advocated.

Author Biography

Stephen L. Carter is the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law at Yale, where he has taught for more than 30 years. He is also the author of seven acclaimed works of nonfiction and five bestselling novels. Among his titles are The Emperor of Ocean Park, The Impeachment of Abraham Lincoln, Back Channel, The Culture of Disbelief, Jericho's Fall, and New England White. At Yale, Carter teaches courses on law and religion, intellectual property, contracts, professional responsibility, lying and secrets, and the ethics of warfare. He has published dozens of articles in law reviews, and many op-ed columns in the nation’s leading newspapers. He appears frequently on radio and television.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
The Separation of Faith and Self
The Culture of Disbelief	p. 3
God as a Hobby	p. 23
From Civil Religion to Civil Exclusion	p. 44
Political Preaching	p. 67
The "Christian Nation" and Other Horrors	p. 83
The First Subject of the First Amendment
The Separation of Church and State	p. 105
The Accommodation of Religion	p. 124
Religious Autonomy in the Welfare State	p. 136
In the Beginning	p. 156
God: A Course of Study	p. 183
The Clothed Public Square
(Dis)Believing in Faith	p. 213
Matters of Life and Death	p. 233
Religious Fascism	p. 263
Postscript	p. 275
Notes	p. 279
Index	p. 319
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