spiritual but not religious

They’re my students and colleagues. I want to talk with them, not about them.

Peer-led discussions among young Muslims, Christian experiments in communal living, and pop-up Shabbat meals embody common yearnings.

A fast-growing number of people do not have a religious first language. And many churches don't seem eager to connect with them.

Publishers see SBNRs as a key market, while preachers either court them or put them down. As for Nancy Ammerman, she isn’t sure SBNRs exist.

Many current meanings of spirituality have nothing to do with the spiritual or the spirit, but Lucy Bregman doesn't write them off. Instead, she wants to find out what "makes spirituality so appealing."

Lillian Daniel's book is a feast of words—funny, ribald, tiptoeing to the edge of sarcasm, yet full of love and unflinching hope.

We hear a lot about the "nones" these days: Americans who claim no connection to any particular faith. We'll hear a lot more too, as recent studies document this ever-expanding slice of the American demographic pie. We hear less, however, about the nones as individuals. But like any pastor, I’ve known more than a few in my time. At 20 percent of society, they are literally everybody's friends and neighbors.

The possibly-spiritual-but-definitely-not-religious are growing in ranks, says the Pew Forum, and the resulting Nones On the Bus blogo-tour is as usual drawing good crowds.

Paul Waldman highlights one interesting subpoint: the Nones are growing not just more plentiful but also more Democratic. He credits Republican hostility to nonbelievers.

It’s tempting to dismiss SBNRs as salad-bar spiritualists concerned primarily with themselves. But many assumptions about this group are off target.