Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book brings together reflection on the paradigm of multiple modernities with recent theorizing on the postsecular and on postsecular society. The empirical perspective chosen for this book is mostly non-Western in the sense that most of the case-studies refer to non-Western experiences but our conceptual starting point lies at the heart of a Western theoretical debate that is characterized by self-reflectivity and the deconstruction of long-held assumptions about the connection between modernity and secularism. The book offers a theoretical and empirical analysis of the relationship between different religious traditions and modernity. The problem Agadjanian addresses in his article with regard to the modernity of multiple modernities can be compared to Ferrara's argument that true democracy' requires a spirit of democracy. Agadjanian is wary of the illusion of the complete originality of various cult.