BBC: The US may be one of the most religious countries in the West but is it undergoing a period of doubt.
“A few days ago, I attended a memorial service for a friend who died far too young, of throat cancer. The service was held at a history museum, and it was packed - standing room only.
What was curious, initially, was the lack of any reference to religion. My friend had left a final set of instructions: he wanted to be remembered first as a husband to his wife of more than 20 years, and second as a citizen of his city, and third as a lover of history.
During the tributes, there were many references to how the past can inform our decisions in the present. There were nods to reason and friendship and love.
The closest anyone came to mentioning God or spirituality was when someone told the widow, as an aside, that you often visit the deceased through dreams - when they can appear at no particular prompting.
Even if the formal religion was absent, the habit of expressing a hope for spiritual optimism remains. The secular funeral is still somewhat of a novelty, at least to me.
But it may be something that we see more and more of in the future - particularly on the West Coast, the most unchurched part of the United States.
It may be daring to say it but America seems to be experiencing an atheist moment. Although "In God We Trust" was declared the national motto by an act of Congress more than 50 years ago and has been stamped on the currency for longer than that, some considerable doubt has developed of late. Keeping the faith: A point of view (more)
Mark Alexander
