Is there a "renaissance" of religion in Canada? A critical look at Bibby and beyond

Dados Bibliográficos

ID3941990
AutoresJoel Thiessen (0000-0002-7696-4653, Behavioural Science Department at Ambrose University College, 150 Ambrose Circle S.W., Calgary, AB T3H OL5), Lorne L Dawson (0000-0002-1580-5800, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1)
Ano2008
Volume37
Fascículo3-4
Páginas389-415
Data de publicação2008-09-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoStudies in Religion/Sciences Religieuses (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0008-4298 • E-ISSN: 2042-0587
EditoraSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/000842980803700301
OpenAlexW2068725017
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas12
Referências citadas17

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

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