Religion After the Gods

Religion After the Gods, Volume 1, provides a rigorous examination of the development of religious humanism in the United States. This historical study explores how this movement emerged from Enlightenment rationality, pragmatism, and the Social Gospel within the American Midwest. The text focuses on the first fifty years of this unique tradition, which applied ritualistic structures to a non-theistic, anthropocentric worldview. By analyzing the intersection of philosophy and social movements, the book details how agnostics and humanitarians shaped a distinct spiritual identity.

Author John S. Haller Jr. highlights the pivotal influence of Edwin H. Wilson and his leadership within the American Humanist Association. This work of history and philosophy tracks the organizational successes and failures that defined the movement's reputation. Through the lens of politics and social sciences, the narrative investigates the tensions between individual aspirations and bureaucratic structures. Religion After the Gods, Volume 1, offers a scholarly look at the democratic heritage and pluralistic values inherent in religious humanism.