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Religion and National Identity in America and Europe

  • Symposium: International Obligations
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Abstract

America and Europe have had very different religious experiences, and these differences have continuing consequences. In America, the preponderance of Reform Protestantism gave rise to religious and political pluralism, a religious marketplace, and the continuing vitality of the churches. In Europe, the dominance of state churches gave rise to the eventual rejection of these churches and religions when the traditional political and social authorities were rejected, particularly by the Generation of 1968. However, Europe’s extreme secularization has rendered it confused and ineffective in dealing with the new religious challenge posed by Muslim immigrant communities.

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Further Reading

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Claude Smith Professor of Political Science, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA, USA

    James Kurth

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  1. James Kurth
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Correspondence to James Kurth.

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Kurth, J. Religion and National Identity in America and Europe. Soc 44, 120–125 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12115-007-9020-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12115-007-9020-1

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