Is the United States a Counterexample to the Secularization Thesis? — Forthcoming in the American Journal of Sociology, this article says that “the United States should no longer be considered a counterexample to the secularization thesis,” “it is no longer clear that the U.S. is on a qualitatively different religious trajectory than Europe,” and that “Recognizing that the U.S. is not a counterexample clarifies the nature of U.S. religious exceptionalism and helps us to approach American-European religious differences in more constructive ways.” Students can get the gist of the article by reading the Abstract and the Conclusion. E. Porter cites this study in his comment on Donald Trump, religion, and politics.
