God doesn’t really come into it.Īlain de Botton starts his book with the declaration that So what do I believe in? I believe in being human, in fallability, in good will, in humility at life’s trajectory, in community, in goodness, in beauty. They seemed to capture my longing for community, time and space to think, social justice, music and reflection in a ritualized setting. I very much enjoyed the more spiritually-attuned Unitarian services that I attended last year in Canada. I heard a radio program about Unitarianism and its long history of trying to balance social justice with reason and commitment, and somehow or other that led to the Unitarian Church in East Melbourne, where I have attended somewhat sporadically ever since.

My interest in Unitarianism was kindled in my fifties with none other than Alexander Downer (of all people) simpering that our treatment of East Timor over oil revenues could be balanced out by foreign aid “because that’s what aid is for”. A dalliance over several years with born-again Christianity in my adolescence petered out into indifference in my mid-twenties. After a childhood of Sunday School and youth group at my local Church of England, I still describe myself as culturally Anglican, with a deep love of the language of the old Book of Common Prayer, stained glass and hymns. I have had a rather varied religious history. I very much identify with de Botton’s motivation in writing this book about reclaiming the rituals and cultural practices of religion, without actually subscribing to its doctrines.

Religion for atheist alain de botton