Decline of the Secular University

Sommerville argues that a secular world view is propagated not just through American higher education, but public education, the media, and the courts despite their professed commitment to neutrality. The triumph of postmodern multiculturalism and the demise of Western Civilization courses, he says, have left students unable to make sense of the world in which they live. Moreover the secular university, again despite professed neutrality, demonstrates the most condescending type of moralizing without nurturing ethical reflection. Sommerville considers how religiously-informed scholarship might enrich various academic disciplines. He examines the market forces that have created what he calls the post-secularist university but may also have opened the door for theologians to challenge the prevailing nihilism. Finally, he invites the reader to imagine a university where religion is not ruled out but rather welcomed at least as one legitimate voice among others. Sommervilles bracing and provocative argument is sure to provoke controversy and stimulate discussion both inside and outside the academy.