Save on pre-loved laptops
You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Choosing Our Religion: The Spiritual Lives of America's Nones 1st Edition, Kindle Edition


To the dismay of religious leaders, study after study has shown a steady decline in affiliation and identification with traditional religions in America. By 2014, more than twenty percent of adults identified as unaffiliated--up more than seven percent just since 2007. Even more startling, more than thirty percent of those under the age of thirty now identify as "Nones"--answering "none" when queried about their religious affiliation. Is America losing its religion? Or, as more and more Americans choose different spiritual paths, are they changing what it means to be religious in the United States today?

In
Choosing Our Religion, Elizabeth Drescherexplores the diverse, complex spiritual lives of Nones across generations and across categories of self-identification such as "Spiritual-But-Not-Religious," "Atheist," "Agnostic," "Humanist," "just Spiritual," and more. Drawing on more than one hundred interviews conducted across the United States, Drescher opens a window into the lives of a broad cross-section of Nones, diverse with respect to age, gender, race, sexual orientation, and prior religious background. She allows Nones to speak eloquently for themselves, illuminating the processes by which they became None, the sources of information and inspiration that enrich their spiritual lives, the practices they find spiritually meaningful, how prayer functions in spiritual lives not centered on doctrinal belief, how morals and values are shaped outside of institutional religions, and how Nones approach the spiritual development of their own children.

These compelling stories are deeply revealing about how religion is changing in America--both for Nones and for the religiously affiliated family, friends, and neighbors with whom their lives remain intertwined.
This title is only available on select devices and the latest version of the Kindle app. Please refer to the supported device list before purchase. Available on these devices

See all supported devices

Kindle E-Readers

  • Kindle Paperwhite
  • Kindle Paperwhite (5th Generation)
  • Kindle Voyage
  • Kindle Oasis (9th Generation)
  • Kindle Oasis
  • All new Kindle paperwhite
  • Kindle
  • All New Kindle E-reader
  • Kindle Paperwhite (10th Generation)
  • Kindle Paperwhite (12th Generation)
  • Kindle (11th Generation, 2024 Release)
  • All New Kindle E-reader (11th Generation)
  • Kindle Paperwhite (11th Generation)
  • Kindle Scribe (1st Generation)
  • Kindle (10th Generation)
  • Kindle Scribe, 1st generation (2024 release)
  • Kindle Oasis (10th Generation)
  • Kindle Touch

Fire Tablets

  • Fire HD 8 (8th Generation)
  • Fire 7 (9th Generation)
  • Fire HD 10 (9th Generation)
  • Fire HD 10 (11th Generation)
  • Fire HD 10 Plus
  • Fire 7 (12th Generation)
  • Fire HD 8 (10th Generation)
  • Fire HD 8 (12th Generation)
  • Fire HD 8 Plus

Free Kindle Reading Apps

  • Kindle for Android Phones
  • Kindle for Android Tablets
  • Kindle for iPhone
  • Kindle for iPad
  • Kindle for PC
  • Kindle for Web
  • Kindle for Mac

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

"The 'Nones'--the religiously unaffiliated--popped into public consciousness a decade ago, and have attracted attention ever since. Yet they remain largely unknown and misunderstood, especially when viewed as indifferent to, if not hostile toward, religion. Drescher's research focuses not on who they aren't but on who they are--and she finds them a remarkably diverse and fluid segment of our society, some, of course, negative toward organized religion, but most trying to find meaning in life experience: by holding on to a strand of belief picked up from somewhere or self-constructed; in conversations with family members and others; by cultivating spirituality in ways that work for them; reading books on metaphysics and biographies; coping with the questions that children ask; and like all of us by contending with and being overwhelmed by the joys of life and the ultimate challenges of aging, illness, and death. A good and informative read."--Wade Clark Roof, J.F. Rowny Professor of Religion and Society Emeritus, University of California at Santa Barbara

Product details

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Elizabeth Drescher
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Elizabeth Drescher, PhD is a scholar, researcher, writer, and speaker on religious and spiritual practice in everyday life. She is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Santa Clara University and a consulting scholar at the BTS Center, a think tank on 21st century ministry. Her work on everyday religion and spirituality has been published in numerous outlets including America, Salon, Sojourners, and The Washington Post. She is the author most recently of Choosing Our Religion: The Spiritual Lives of America's Nones (Oxford 2016), as well as Tweet If You ♥ Jesus: Practicing Church in the Digital Reformation (Morehouse, 2011) and, with Keith Anderson, Click 2 Save: Reboot (Morehouse 2018), a new, expanded edition of Click 2 Save: The Digital Ministry Bible (Morehouse, 2012).

She holds a doctorate from the Graduate Theological Union in Christian spirituality and a masters in systematic theology from Duquesne University. Dr. Drescher is a popular speaker and workshop leader at conferences, colleges, seminaries, and universities. Follow her on Twitter @edrescherphd.

Report an issue


Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?