Part I. Outline of the Problem: 1. Towards a social history of religion in modern Britain: secularisation theory, religious change and the fate of Protestant England; 2. Religion in the twilight zone: a narrative of religious decline and religious change in Britain, c.1920–60; Part II. Disclosures of Decline: 3. The 'soul of England' in an 'age of disintegration': Dean Inge and the 'trial of the churches' in the wake of World War I; 4. The strange death of Puritan England; 5. Social science and the discovery of a post-Protestant people: Rowntree's surveys of York and their other legacy; Part III. Resistance, Revival and Resignation: 6. The 1944 Education Act: a church-state perspective; 7. Was there an English religious revival in the 1950s?; 8. Slouching towards a secular society: expert analysis and lay opinion in the early 1960s; Conclusion: the passing of Protestant England.
An important account of the causes, courses and consequences of the secularisation of modern English society.
Review of the hardback: 'A powerful, provocative and pessimistic
account that will compel ecclesiastical historians to revisit some
of their views about the viability of twentieth-century
Protestantism.' Michael Bentley, Professor of Modern History,
University of St Andrews
Review of the hardback: 'In previous work S. J. D. Green has proved
he can master the small detail of religious change. With The
Passing of Protestant England Green shows that he is also the
master of the big argument. With erudition and wit, he brings the
pendulum of historical fashion back to the sensible conclusion that
there has indeed been a considerable secularization of English
society.' Steve Bruce, Professor of Sociology, University of
Aberdeen
Review of the hardback: 'The analysis is impressive, and also
highly evocative …' The Spectator
Review of the hardback: 'A mightily important book … a wonderful
read.' Standpoint
Review of the hardback: 'This is an important study of the
interplay of Protestantism and society in mid-twentieth-century
England. It offers the reader a well-researched and deeply
analytical look at how the English became a secular people and how
pleasure and self-gratification replaced spirituality. Many may
question where English society is headed in the future, but this
book will give them a fine view of how the English got to where
they are.' Michael McCabe, Journal of Church and State
Review of the hardback: '[Green's] book will prove a starting point
for understanding religion in Britain over the past fifty years.'
The Times Literary Supplement
Review of the hardback: '… an immensely sophisticated and rich
contribution to the scholarship.' Jeremy Morris, The Historical
Journal
'Green has produced a rich and detailed work, which, in the sum of
its parts, adds significantly to the historiography of
secularization. This is a book that shows the importance of the
political in shaping and effecting religious change and that the
religious changes that occurred across the twentieth century avoid
easy explanation.' Journal of British Studies
'Green weaves a fascinating narrative, bolstering his brief with a
staggering number of telling case-studies, in the later years
including Seebohm Rowntree's English Life and Leisure (1951), the
1944 Education Act, the debates of the fifties and early sixties,
the changing role of women, sociological models, and 'contemporary
visions of revival [that] proved to be brief delusions' … This is a
rich, scholarly book, incorporating a lifetime's work.' The
Australian Journal of Politics and History
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