Unbelievers An Emotional History of Doubt

How did Western societies that were once predominantly Christian become increasingly secular? Alec Ryrie, the award-winning author of Protestants, delves into the feelings and faith of everyday people to provide a groundbreaking history of atheism.

Unbelievers challenges our conventional understanding of faith, exploring how atheism emerged as a distinct belief system instead of merely a fading of religious belief. Ryrie traces the history of Western religion from the Middle Ages, when Christianity was the only acceptable faith, through the Reformation crisis, to the dynamic cultural shifts of recent centuries. This history reveals that the religious journey of the Western world was shaped not only by celebrated philosophers like Machiavelli and Montaigne, but by people from all levels of society whose voices and emotions are brought to life through their diaries, letters, and court records.

By examining the emotional roots of atheism, Ryrie illustrates how our responses to personal and societal turbulence can cause faith to rise and fall. Doubts about religion can be sparked by anger toward corrupt clergy or anxiety in turbulent times, just as powerfully as by intellectual revolution. As Christianity faces increasing challenges and ethical redefinitions become more significant, Unbelievers demonstrates that to truly comprehend how belief is shaped over time, we must look to an emotional history that offers potent lessons for our still anxious and angry age.