Ties That Bind

Abstract

Many assume that atheists and atheist scientists rarely interact with religious individuals. Yet, a large subset of atheist scientists—29 percent in the U.S. and 21 percent in the U.K.—have sustained patterns of interaction with religious individuals and organizations, making them the most unlike the New Atheists. This group includes scientists raised within religious traditions such as Judaism, Catholicism, and Islam who now belong without believing, an orientation that often involves secular participation in religious services and practices. Others participate in services or send their children to religious schools as a way to cultivate cultural capital and social standing. Another dimension of culturally religious atheism involves partnering with or marrying someone who is religious.