Main Description
The Culture Of Disbelief has been the subject of an enormous amount of media attention from the first moment it was published. Hugely successful in hardcover, the Anchor paperback is sure to find a large audience as the ever-increasing, enduring debate about the relationship of church and state in America continues. In The Culture Of Disbelief, Stephen Carter explains how we can preserve the vital separation of church and state while embracing rather than trivializing the faith of millions of citizens or treating religious believers with disdain. What makes Carter's work so intriguing is that he uses liberal means to arrive at what are often considered conservative ends. Explaining how preserving a special role for religious communities can strengthen our democracy, The Culture Of Disbelief recovers the long tradition of liberal religious witness (for example, the antislavery, antisegregation, and Vietnam-era antiwar movements). Carter argues that the problem with the 1992 Republican convention was not the fact of open religious advocacy, but the political positions being advocated.Review Quote
"Rational argument rarely seems as warm, as human, as it does in this book...Carter leads the reader to contemplate the embattled constitutional wall between the state and religion, and he does so without furor, without dogma, with only the qualities he envisions in the ideal public square: moderation, restraint, respect." -- The New Yorker.
"The Culture Of Disbelief has been the subject of an enormous amount of media attention from the first moment it was published. Hugely successful in hardcover, the Anchor paperback is sure to find a large audience as the ever-increasing, enduring debate about the relationship of church and state in America continues. In "The Culture Of Disbelief, Stephen Carter explains how we can preserve the vital separation of church and state while embracing rather than trivializing the faith of millions of citizens or treating religious believers with disdain. What makes Carter's work so intriguing is that he uses liberal means to arrive at what are often considered conservative ends. Explaining how preserving a special role for religious communities can strengthen our democracy, "The Culture Of Disbelief recovers the long tradition of liberal religious witness (for example, the antislavery, antisegregation, and Vietnam-era antiwar movements). Carter argues that the problem with the 1992 Republican convention was not the "fact of open religious advocacy, but the "political positions being advocated.Main Description
The Culture Of Disbeliefhas'160;'160;been the subject of an enormous amount of media'160;'160;attention from the first moment it was published.'160;'160;Hugely successful in hardcover, the Anchor paperback'160;'160;is sure to find a large audience as the'160;'160;ever-increasing, enduring debate about the relationship of'160;'160;church and state in America continues. InThe'160;'160;Culture Of Disbelief, Stephen Carter'160;'160;explains how we can preserve the vital separation of'160;'160;church and state while embracing rather than'160;'160;trivializing the faith of millions of citizens or'160;'160;treating religious believers with disdain. What makes'160;'160;Carter's work so intriguing is that he uses liberal'160;'160;means to arrive at what are often considered'160;'160;conservative ends. Explaining how preserving a special'160;'160;role for religious communities can strengthen our'160;'160;democracy,The Culture Of Disbelief'160;'160;recovers the long tradition of liberal religious'160;'160;witness (for example, the antislavery,'160;'160;antisegregation, and Vietnam-era antiwar movements). Carter'160;'160;argues that the problem with the 1992 Republican'160;'160;convention was not thefactof'160;'160;open religious advocacy, but thepolitical'160;'160;positionsbeing advocated.Review Quote
"Rational'160;'160;argument rarely seems as warm, as human, as it'160;'160;does in this book...Carter leads the reader to'160;'160;contemplate the embattled constitutional wall between'160;'160;the state and religion, and he does so without'160;'160;furor, without dogma, with only the qualities he'160;'160;envisions in the ideal public square: moderation,'160;'160;restraint, respect." -- The New'160;'160;Yorker.Review Quote
"Rationalargument rarely seems as warm, as human, as itdoes in this book...Carter leads the reader tocontemplate the embattled constitutional wall betweenthe state and religion, and he does so withoutfuror, without dogma, with only the qualities heenvisions in the ideal public square: moderation,restraint, respect." -- The NewYorker.
Stephen L. Carter was born in Washington, D.C. on October 26, 1954. He received a bachelor's degree in history from Stanford University in 1976 and a law degree from Yale University in 1979. After graduation, he served as a law clerk for Judge Spottswood W. Robinson, III, of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and for Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. In 1982, he joined the Yale University faculty and is currently the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law. He is the author of numerous non-fiction works including Reflections of an Affirmative Action Baby (1991); The Culture of Disbelief: How American Law and Politics Trivialize Religious Devotion (1993); The Confirmation Mess: Cleaning Up the Federal Appointments Process (1994); Integrity (1996); The Dissent of the Governed: A Meditation on Law, Religion, and Loyalty (1998); Civility: Manners, Morals, and the Etiquette of Democracy (1998); and God's Name in Vain: The Wrongs and Rights of Religion in Politics (2000). He has also written several fiction works including The Emperor of Ocean Park and Jericho's Fall. He was the first non-theologian to receive the prestigious Louisville-Grawemeyer Award in religion.