Alain de Botton, author of Religion for Atheists, discusses the need for secular rituals

Alain de Botton on The Need for Secular Rituals

Alain de Botton on The Need for Secular Rituals

Conversations With Fascinating People.
March 25 2012 10:15 AM

Alain de Botton: Imagining a Bar Mitzvah for Atheists

Alain de Botton, author of The Consolations of Philosophy and other bestsellers, has a new book out called Religion for Atheists. It encourages atheists to appreciate things religions do well--ranging from fostering community to orchestrating rites of passage--and make use of them, except without the belief-in-God part. I asked him how, exactly, the atheist’s equivalent of a bar mitzvah or a Catholic confirmation would work:

You can watch the whole conversation here.