After Atheism, Part 3: William Cavanaugh

The founders of the American republic were frank about the religious character they wanted to give to their new state. Ben Franklin called for "a cult" of the nation. Thomas Jefferson suggested preserving mementos that would function, he said, "like the relics of the saints." They would "help nourish devotion to this holy body of the union." A few years later the leaders of the French Revolution would try to deify reason, with temples and festivals dedicated to this new god. These are examples of what William Cavanaugh calls Migrations of the Holy. That's the title of a new book in which he argues that what we now call religion is often just a distraction from the real objects of our devotion, and the ends for which we're really prepared to make sacrifices. William Cavanaugh takes up these issues in this episode of After Atheism.

Listen to the podcast: