This article argues for study of the decline of religion in western countries, not merely
in terms of loss and negative consequences for (predominantly) Christianity, but in positive terms for the individuals who have taken the decision to forsake organised religion.
It puts forward the need to consider ways of examining secularisation which grant respect
to categories of secularity selected by respondents. After contextualising an examination
of the category of ›no religion‹ (also known as ›none‹) from state censuses and surveys,
the article compares the growth in the numbers of people adopting these labels in Canada,
Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, the United States and the four countries of the United
Kingdom (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland). This shows ultra-low levels
prior to 1960, followed by a common pattern of rapid change in the late 1960s; however
the rates of change, and the destiny of the change, differ thereafter. The article concludes
by examining demographic information as to who ›no-religionists‹ were in terms of age,
gender and race, and explores some economic and religious-heritage determinants of
growth. It posits a key linkage between feminism and ›no-religionism‹, but acknowledges
the need for a vast increase in research
