Where Everybody Knows Your Name: Organizing Atheist Church in Minneapolis/St.Paul

• In Event: 262 - Section on Sociology of Religion Roundtables (one-hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 02. Secularism, Syncretism, and New Age

Abstract

Religious involvement is one of the most common gateways into other forms of civic and community involvement in America, with the church being both a physical and ideological anchor around which community and citizenship are built. As younger cohorts associate with organized religion less and less, many fear that America is in a “crisis of community” in which an increase in individualism and a decrease in religious affiliation has led to a decline in group membership and social networks, which in turn has led to a decline in reciprocity and trust among Americans. However, instead of retreating from community involvement, a large portion of these “nones” are instead forming their own voluntary associations, even churches, in response to a lack of secular outlets for community and civic engagement. This research is an ethnographic exploration of one of these communities - The Sunday Assembly. Founded in 2013 and dubbed an “atheist church” by the media, this organization has grown to a network of 60 chapters globally. Through in-depth interviews with organizers and members of the Minneapolis/St. Paul chapter, as well as participant observation at their gatherings and organizing meetings, I explore how and why this group is replicating and re-molding the church model in order to build a secular community. I will detail findings from the first nine months of observations and interviews, fleshing out how members are managing their nonbelief identities, both individually and collectively, in an attempt to create an emotionally and socially engaged community without religion.

Author

• Jacqui Frost, University of Minnesota