In recent posts I’ve been hinting at new developments at The American Interest Online; I’m happy to share the first of these with you today.
Peter Berger, a renowned sociologist, widely considered the world’s leading scholar on the role of religion in the contemporary world and one of the great socially engaged intellectuals of our time, is launching a blog on our site. It will be called “Religion and Other Curiosities;” Peter will write about developments in the world of religion as only he can, but warns us that he intends to range as far abroad as his curiosity drives him. A true Weberian, Peter doesn’t like being limited by a narrow specialization. Peter’s first post appears today; at this point he plans to post twice a week, though this may change. I first came across Peter’s work as an undergraduate taking introductory sociology; even then he was seen as a towering figure in the field, one of a handful of thinkers who were keeping alive the tradition of deep social reflection across a wide range of issues. Since then, his reputation has only grown.
Peter was once known chiefly for his work on the ‘social construction of reality;’ these days he is also and increasingly known for his groundbreaking reconsideration of the role of religion in modern society. Thirty years ago, when I was in college and the world was young, virtually all thoughtful observers believed that religion was doomed to fade away with the approach of ‘modernity’. The European experience in which secularization seemed to go hand in hand with modernization was the normal course of human development; religion was a byproduct of human ignorance and powerlessness and as the sun of enlightenment arose, the shadows of religion would fade away.
Peter began his career as a firm believer in what was then the established scholarly consensus; over the years, however, he could not help but notice that in many developing countries as in the United States, religion was not fading away. Indeed, it many countries it was precisely among modernizing elites that new religious movements were gaining ground. Peter was also one of the first important thinkers to take the global Pentecostal movement seriously and has argued that the rise of Pentecostalism in many developing countries offers new hope for economic and social progress.
Frank Fukuyama, the chairman of the editorial board of The American Interest, suggested to Peter recently that he consider blogging on our site, and since then Peter and I have had several conversations and email exchanges about it. Peter sees blogging very much as I do: as an opportunity to engage more directly and informally with an audience on a wide range of topics. It is an elastic medium that allows for anything from the equivalent of a formal lecture to a fireside chat. It was made for Peter: someone with a vast stock of learning and experience, a universal curiosity, and an engaging personal style.
This is big news for The American Interest Online, but it is much more than that. It represents a significant step in American letters. One of the great public intellectuals and thinkers of our time is going to try his hand at an exciting new way of reaching the public. Over time I hope The American Interest Online can build a community of established and emerging voices and host a range of blogs that cover many different subjects from different points of view. For half a century, Peter Berger has been one of the most vital and engaging scholars and intellectuals in the world; it is with immense happiness and pride that I welcome him as a colleague on our site.
But don’t just read Mead on Berger; read Berger on the world and follow this link to Peter’s first post.