Mighty Baal: Essays in Honor of Mark S. Smith

Abstract

giously observant region of the country. Obviously, migration to the capital from outside the UK has been an important factor in this development, but other explanations are also significant, including the tendency of the metropolis to attract gifted and energetic religious leaders. Field’s evidence further indicates the need to recognize geographical diversity and specificity within the overall trend that he documents. For example, in 1881 the index of attendance – that is the total attendance at church services expressed as a percentage of population – ranged from 91.3 in Dysart (Fife) to 16.5 in Widnes (then Lancashire). These were the extreme figures, but Field’s tables show extensive variation within the 20 to 80 range, suggesting that the periodization of secularization looks significantly different in different communities. Moreover, such variation cannot be explained by simplistic generalizations about the size of towns or broad regional differences. A full understanding is likely to require close attention to the specifics of local economy and geography alongside human and spiritual factors, such as the positive or negative impact of particular religious leaders. Hence, despite Field’s herculean efforts, there remains much to be done. This book, however, is an important landmark in the study of secularization in Britain, bringing evidential rigour and balanced nuanced analysis to a scholarly inquiry in which such essential qualities have sometimes been lacking.