Nathan G. Alexander is a lecturer in history at the University of Ottawa, Canada, and project manager of the Nonreligion in a Complex Future Project. He is also the author of Race in a Godless World: Atheism, Race, and Civilization, 1850-1914 (NYU Press).

Much research in the field of secular studies understandably focuses on secular people. But more and more scholars are beginning to ask: What about the non-seculars? Who are they, and what do they believe?

It is true that the number of non-seculars is shrinking in many societies, but they are far from unimportant. In fact, they still make up a significant percentage – and in some cases even the majority – of western countries. In Canada, for example, non-seculars make up an eye-popping 65% of the population, according to the 2021 census.

Yet for too long, these non-seculars have escaped scholarly notice. This is a call for secular studies scholars to pay attention to the non-seculars and to devise a research program that will begin to investigate this “strange” group who has long been hiding in the shadows. Here I will lay out some of the critical questions such a research program might address.

There is a crisis of meaning in western societies. A research program would ask how non-seculars make meaning in their lives. (Of course, this is assuming that they can indeed have meaning in their lives, something far from certain.) Scholars have long known that secular people find meaning through a variety of methods, like being part of a community, pursuing hobbies, and engaging in creative pursuits, but it is less clear how non-seculars find meaning. Do non-seculars also pursue these common activities, or do they find meaning through uncommon practices, like reciting ancient texts, or gathering together at the same building at weekly intervals?

On the question of meaning – or lack thereof – for non-seculars, one hypothesis is that they yearn for secularity. They may even experience secular alienation: the state of being estranged from the place of secular fulfillment.[1] If this is so, researchers may seek to understand how this secular alienation can be overcome. Are non-seculars unhappy because they are not secular, and, for example, are they more likely to become alcoholics for this reason? We do not have answers to these questions yet, but they should be investigated through careful empirical study.

At a more fundamental level, research about non-seculars would seek to understand why non-seculars are the way they are. That is, why do they not become secular like so many of their fellow citizens? What psychological mechanisms explain why some remain non-secular or even convert to non-secularity if they were raised secular? In short, is there something different about the brains of non-seculars? Perhaps there is even a “secular spot” located in the brain that non-seculars lack. MRI scans of the brains of non-seculars may well yield valuable clues to these questions.

What do non-seculars believe? How do they make sense of the world outside the usual secular frameworks? Do they believe in science and naturalism, or do they believe in something else (angels, demons, deities, etc.)? Do they share commonly-held beliefs that death represents the end of life, for example, or do they have other beliefs (heaven, hell, ghosts, etc.)?

There is great diversity among non-seculars and already scholars have identified different ways of categorizing them.[2] Some, for example, are non-secular in name only. That is, while some activities they pursue may lead them to be classified as non-secular, in actual fact, their beliefs and behaviours closely align with secular people, making them almost indistinguishable. Some non-seculars, meanwhile, are simply done with secularity and have embraced a life of permanent non-secularity. They will never be won over to the secular fold, apparently content to remain non-seculars forever, with no hope of persuasion. Another subsection, the zealous non-seculars, actually seek to convert secular people to non-secularity, for example through door-knocking campaigns or by speaking through megaphones on busy streets. These non-seculars are often the most well-known given their public visibility, though they do not represent the majority of non-seculars.

Readers who have made it this far may object to the labelling of these curious people as “non-seculars.” Does this not create a negative label for this group, or frame them only in relation to the default category of secular people? These are valuable points, but it is hard to imagine an alternative term to describe this group. Some scholars have proposed terms like “a-seculars” or “un-seculars,” but, despite the nuanced reasonings in favour of such terms, they all contain the same fundamental problem. This remains an ongoing issue in the study of non-seculars.

It is hoped this short note opens the minds of scholars to consider the non-seculars more deeply. A major funding proposal to study the non-seculars is currently in preparation by the author. He is having fun experimenting with a distinctly non-secular practice by praying for its success.

—

The above has obviously been satirical. The point I am hoping to make is to ask us – whether we come from a religious or nonreligious perspective – to reflect on what we consider, even subconsciously, the “default” or “normal” in society, and what is the “unusual” thing that is thus in need of explanation. Using satire to flip these assumptions on their head could allow us to see things in a new way and invite new kinds of questions and answers. As our societies continue to undergo religious shifts, continually asking ourselves what counts as the “normal” state of affairs will be essential.

---

[1] Taking inspiration from the project, “Spiritual Yearning and the Problem of Spiritual Alienation”: https://www.templeton.org/grant/spiritual-yearning-and-the-problem-of-spiritual-alienation

[2] Taking inspiration from The Nones Project: https://www.thenonesproject.com/