The rise in the numbers of religious "nones" is an almost universal phenomenon across the Western world.

This book examines the nearly one-quarter of American and Canadian adults who say they have no religion. Who are they? Why, and where, has this population grown? How do religious nones in the United States and Canada compare? What are the dynamics of being a religious none in contemporary America and Canada, and how does this willful distance from organized religion impact other aspects of daily and social life? This book turns to survey and interview data to answer these questions against the backdrop of three theoretical frameworks in the sociology of religion: stages of decline, individualization and spiritualization, and polarization. The central claim is that there is a gradual religious decline happening in stages across time and generations and at different rates in various social, cultural, and regional contexts, leading to the rise of religious nones. Yet, this form of decline does not imply the disappearance of all things religious and spiritual, as a diversity of spiritual beliefs and practices along with nonbelief and secular attitudes coexist and are constantly evolving. The decline of organized religion among large segments of the American and Canadian populations also does not mean that religion is necessarily less relevant for everyday interactions and social life. If anything, that there are now large groups of religious and nonreligious individuals coexisting in both countries could mean there is a greater social divide and distance in moral and political values and behaviors along religious/nonreligious lines, as well as in interactions and attitudes between the religious and nonreligious.

Research suggests Canada is a largely secular nation. Yet Reginald Bibby (2002) has recently proposed, surprisingly, that Canada is experiencing a religious renaissance. While "private spirituality" abounds in Canada, Bibby says his claim rests on increased levels of involvement in "organized religion." We have our doubts about Bibby's new optimism, and there are two sources of our scepticism. First, the cumulative weight of his own evidence is still more indicative of a continued preference for the consumption of religious fragments, a notion first popularized by Bibby (1987), than a renaissance of organized religion. Second, the credibility of his proposal is undermined by some nagging problems with the way he sorts, reports and interprets his data. To grasp whether something new is happening in Canada we need more precise and relevant data, and we make four methodological suggestions for acquiring the kinds of information needed. Résumé : Des recherches suggerent que le Canada est majoritairement une nation laique. Par contre, Reginald Bibby (2002) a récemment avancé, étonnamment, que le Canada vit présentement un renouveau sur le plan religieux. Pendant qu'au Canada la « spiritualité privée » abonde, ce que declare Bibby s'appuie sur l'augmentation du niveau d'implication au niveau de la « religion organisée». Nous avons nos doutes sur l'optimisme nouveau que présente Bibby, et deux sources soutiennent ce scepticisme. Premièrement, le poids cumulé de sa propre evidence indique beaucoup plus une preference continue vers la consommation de fragments de la religion, une notion premierement popula-risée par Bibby (1987), plutôt qu'une renaissance de la religion organisée. Deuxièmement, la crédibilité de son énoncé est ébranlée at PURDUE UNIV LIBRARY TSS on May 29, 2015 sir.sagepub.com Downloaded from 390 par quelques problèmes dans la façon de classer, de reporter, et d'in-terpréter ses données. Pour comprendre si quelque chose de nouveau se produit au Canada, nous avons besoin de données plus précises et pertinentes, nous avançonsdonc quatre suggestions méthodiques afin d'acquérir le type d'information nécessaire. 6 This distinction between religious material and religious scriptures is an important one that we think most researchers confound in their survey questions and analysis. As is empirically supported by Bibby (1987), most people do not actually read their religious scriptures on a regular basis, although many may read religious material (e.g., magazines, books, etc.). This is simply a matter of precision, for the sake of improved analyses.

Dans cette document, j'utilise les données des entrevues avec vingt et un filiales religieuse au Canada qui assistent aux offices religieux surtout pour des fêtes religieuses et les rites de passage, en demandent pourquoi ils ont cessé de fréquenter sur une base régulière, pourquoi ils continuent à fréquenter une ou deux fois par année, et expriment‐ils tout intérêt à être plus impliqués dans leur groupe religieux, et si oui, quels facteurs pourraient conduire à une implication accrue. Contrairement à Reginald Bibby, et d'autres sources qui expliquent les modèles d'implication aux églises par insistant sur le côté de l'offre du marché religieux, je soutiens que nous devrions nous concentrer d'avantage sur le côté de la demande.

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