Zero confidence
Banks collapsing, homes repossessed, jobs disappearing . . . no wonder the world is in despair. Steven Lukes turns to Durkheim to make sense of the real depression
Ideas
Bolus of nonsense
In the third part of our their exchange, AC Grayling responds to Steve Fuller’s defence of his book Dissent over Descent
Against the faith
In a world where Neo-Darwinism is the new dogma, Intelligent Design is right to challenge orthodoxy – sociologist Steve Fuller responds to AC Grayling
The Secular Conscience: Why Belief Belongs in Public Life by Austin Dacey
Jenny Bunker is at ease with a secular conscience
What lies beneath
Even godless humanism needs a sense of the spiritual, says Paul Heelas
Without illusions
Doug Ireland welcomes a passionate and practical approach to secularism
Nobility of Spirit: A Forgotten Ideal by Rob Riemen
Jenny Bunker sips the spirit of nobility
On neutral ground
We have already invented a way for the devout and the godless to get along in public, says Paul Kelly. We just have to believe in it
Torch bearers
Politics, religion and money may be wrestling to control the Olympics. But, argues Paul Sims, they’ll never be a match for the sheer drama
ID: The Quest for Identity in the 21st Century by Susan Greenfield
Bill Thompson has mixed feelings about Susan Greenfield