Why the Secular Academy Needs Cross-Cultural Religious Literacy

Abstract

I make the empirical argument that most of humankind and much of the academy practices one form of religion and/or spiritual practice. And yet, in public life, secularity is assumed and regularized as rational and life giving. Recent science shows the power of spirituality and religion for human flourishing. And yet, many secularists diminish religion and assume the worst about it without evidence. I argue that cross-cultural religious literacy (CCRL) is and can be an essential tool toward greater public understanding and a more productive dialogue between religionists and secularists in the academy and beyond.