Secular Beats Spiritual: The Westernization of the Easternization of the West by Steve Bruce

Abstract

Reviewed by: Secular Beats Spiritual: The Westernization of the Easternization of the West by Steve Bruce Nathan Garcia (bio) Secular Beats Spiritual: The Westernization of the Easternization of the West. By Steve Bruce. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017. 203pp. $34.95 Steve Bruce is a leading figure in secularization theory. His most recent work Secular Beats Spiritual: The Westernization of the Easternization of the West straight-forwardly responds to a common critique of secularization theory which promulgates a "not-decline-just-change" (14) attitude. Simply, this attitude declares that Western spirituality is not waning so much as it is experimentally separating from traditional Christianity and flirting with various New Age and Eastern spiritual practices and beliefs. Bruce comes armed with his extensive research to emphatically declare, "False!" Bruce employs ample evidence, ranging from the anecdotal to years-long quantitative studies, to gauge the trajectory and nuances of new spiritual movements. His critics must surely commend his research if not his conclusions. However, as with any important social analysis, definitions and scope are key. In this respect Bruce's own secular inclinations are most evident. He distinguishes between reli gion and spirituality with a nifty separation of exteriority and interiority, respec tively. Secularism, furthermore, is merely the absence of the religious and spiri tual (16). His definitions undoubtedly facilitate his case. Moreover, while Bruce commonly uses the term West he almost-exclusively focuses his analyses on the United Kingdom, while only occasionally mentioning the United States and entirely ignoring continental Europe. His rationale is that the UK is largely a secular state and therefore a better site for his analyses of religion's fate. Second, the UK is small enough to more accurately measure trends and "degrees of penetration" (vii). His presumption that the UK is a forerunner to the rest of the West allows him to avoid the demographic and religious nuances of other complex Western societies. After establishing his analytical framework, Bruce begins by exploring popular New Age movements in the UK in chapter two, primarily from the 1960's and 70's. He concludes that the popular movements belied a loyal community of adherents. [End Page 274] Movements either exaggerated their membership, participation was half-hearted, or their large membership quickly dropped off. The few that have survived have done so by incorporating secular ideas and have been made amenable for individual alteration. Chapters 4–6 examine Eastern religious traditions in the UK. Chapter 4 explores Hinduism's presence, influence, and communities in the UK. Bruce focuses particularly on meditation and yoga as Hindu practices having achieved mainstream popularity. Nevertheless, these practices have been largely stripped of their religious origins, while analogously the Hindu-inspired communities achieved enduring success because "the movements require the least sacrifice and that can most readily be fitted into a secular life" (79). Chapter 5 explores Buddhist communities and practices. Bruce sketches a history of Buddhism in the UK, concluding that while more successful in converting native Britons, it has not come close to filling the Christian gap. He focuses on mindfulness as the primary Buddhist contribution, recognizing that it too has become a largely "secular psychotherapy" (103). Curiously, he spends the least amount of time on Islamic influence in the UK. In ten pages, Bruce observes that Islam is the largest of these Eastern religions in the UK, but its participants are not converts or natural-born British. He concludes that Islam nevertheless remains a miniscule portion of the overall population, and further, its dogmatic and monotheistic similarities to Christianity prevent it from entering mainstream secular culture. Islam's exponential rise in continental Europe and the Christian response go unmentioned. Bruce flexes his analytical muscles in chapter 7. He reviews numerous studies and statistics gauging spiritual commitment within spiritual communities and across the whole British population. The most comprehensive spiritual studies confirm two truths: 1) they exaggerate the importance of spiritual communities, and 2) the numbers reveal a small number of spiritual consumers. In short, all evidence indicates a decline in those identified as religious and spiritual, with no reason to expect change in the future. The final chapter summarizes his thesis and main arguments, while providing a commentary on what Bruce...