This article argues that British historiography's secularization debate is largely misconceived, being enmeshed in secular ideological assumptions inherited from the West's secular revolution of the 1960s. It therefore introduces an alternative, postsecular paradigm for understanding British secularization, which conceptualizes secularity as an ideological culture in its own right, religion as secularity's othering category, and secularization as the positive dissemination and enactment of secularity. British Christianity declined gradually from around 1900, but widespread secularization in this positive sense could only happen once British public discussion had embraced secularity's ideological framework, which it did in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Before the mid-1950s, British discussion had routinely adhered to a “Christian civilization” metanarrative, which insisted that “religion” is essential to long-term social stability, such that “secularization” is a regrettable step backward in human development. Yet in the late 1950s and early 1960s British discussion abruptly embraced secularity's rival metanarrative, which states that “religion” is a primordial condition unnecessary in “advanced” societies, such that “secularization” is an irreversible step forward in human development. This conceptual revolution was contingent, culturally specific, and importantly influenced by radical rereadings of Christian eschatology. Nonetheless, it created both the secular revolution of the 1960s, and the ideological framework within which the British secularization debate continues to be conducted today.

中文翻译：

---

现代英国世俗化的后世俗历史笔记

本文认为，英国史学的世俗化辩论在很大程度上是被误解的，它陷入了继承自 1960 年代西方世俗革命的世俗意识形态假设中。因此，它引入了一种替代的后世俗范式来理解英国的世俗化，它将概念化世俗性作为一种意识形态文化，宗教作为世俗的他者类别，和世俗化作为世俗性的积极传播和制定。英国基督教从 1900 年左右开始逐渐衰落，但这种积极意义上的广泛世俗化只有在英国公众讨论接受世俗主义的意识形态框架后才会发生，它在 1950 年代末和 1960 年代初就这样做了。1950年代中期之前，英国的讨论习惯性地坚持“基督教文明”的元叙事，坚持“宗教”对社会的长期稳定至关重要，因此“世俗化”是令人遗憾的一步落后在人类发展中。然而，在 1950 年代末和 1960 年代初，英国的讨论突然接受了与世俗主义竞争的元叙事，它指出“宗教”是“先进”社会中不必要的原始条件，因此“世俗化”是不可逆转的一步向前在人类发展中。这场概念革命是偶然的，在文化上是特定的，并且受到对基督教末世论的激进重读的重要影响。尽管如此，它既创造了 1960 年代的世俗革命，也创造了今天英国世俗化辩论继续进行的意识形态框架。