In Faith and Doubt: How Religious Believers and Nonbelievers Can Create Strong Marriages and Loving Families

McGowan (Parenting Beyond Belief) presents a clear and engaging guide to marriage between a religious (Christian, Jewish, Hindu, etc.) partner, and one who is atheist, agnostic, or secular humanist. Debunking the fallacy that such relationships are doomed to failure, he contends this perception is not an objective assessment of the failure rate of such marriages, but rather derives from the religious bias in favor of in-faith marriage (and against intimate association with unbelievers, generally). Analyzing the data, he finds the chances for the success of such a mixed marriage are encouraging, and the odds in favor—despite the challenges—are maximized by open and respectful communication and negotiation, and an emphasis on common values. Many useful examples of the possible pitfalls for, and successful negotiations between, religious/nonreligious couples are provided. Particularly likely to be helpful to couples where the religious partner belongs to a strongly faith-based religion (such as certain Christian groups), the book addresses not only faith vs. unbelief, but also issues that arise from the divergence between religious vs. atheistic identity, culture, and practice. Agent: Uwe Stender, TriadaUS. (Aug.)