Forces of Secularity in the Modern World: Volume 2(14 Washington College Studies in Religion, Politics, and Cultur)

Stephen Strehle continues his detailed analysis of the secular forces that shape the modern world in this second and final volume to the study, offering a fresh perspective and solid philosophical, theological, and historical conclusions from his years of research. He continues to find forces of secularity embodied in social or political institutions, cultural dispositions or interests, and new or disturbing intellectual realities that challenge former religious perspectives. The present work starts out examining two powerful institutions of culture, the American university and Hollywood, and explains their place in promoting the secular mentality. The study then shows the secular mentality permeating society as the culture starts to accent the materialistic concerns of technology and divorce religion from the practical and social concerns of everyday life. The study completes the analysis with a discussion of intellectual problems that confront the old-time religion or even the very possibility of faith in the modern world, particularly pointing to the rise of biblical criticism and the rejection of all God-talk among critical philosophers. Like the first volume, the present work is accessible to most upper-level and graduate students in a wide-variety of disciplines, keeping technical and foreign words to a minimum and leaving scholarly details or debates to its extensive notes.

About the Author :
Stephen Strehle has doctoral degrees from the Universität Basel and Dallas Theological Seminary in Church History and Systematic Theology. He is Professor of Philosophy and Religion at Christopher Newport University, director of its Program in Judeo-Christian Studies, and author of many books and articles on the Reformation and church/state issues.

Review :
"In Forces of Secularity in the Modern World Stephen Strehle gives an excellent account of how our current culture has come to reject the Christian worldview and embrace radical secularization. Strehle masterfully shows how the industries of entertainment, academia, journalism, and technology have led us to a point where secularism is exalted, and religion is treated as profane."--Shannon Holzer, Editor, Routledge Handbook of Church and State "Professor Strehle's latest book is as important as his previous scholarly contributions to disputes around Christianity and secularism. This volume takes his work to new heights, adding existential and moral urgency to debates which are more than about religion in the public square. Drawing on powerful prophetic sources, Professor Strehle provides convincing evidence of what is at stake here: not merely the state of the nation but perhaps even the salvation of souls."--Liam Gearon, Senior Research Fellow, Harris Manchester College, University of Oxford; Author, On Holy Ground: The Theory and Practice of Religious Education