[Ads-l] Nones (2005)

[dave at WILTON.NET]

I'm looking for early examples of "nones" or "none" used to refer to people with no formal religious affiliation/identity (includes atheists, agnostics, and "spiritual" people).

The earliest I've found is this from 2005:

Bibby, Reginald and Stuart MacDonald. “Restless expert sees church growth.” The Presbyterian Record, 129.4, Apr 2005, 46.

“Indeed, if it was included in his list of major religious groups in Restless Churches (Table 2.7) the 'religious nones' would rank as the second largest denomination in Canada.”

Bibby wrote a 2004 book "Restless Churches." I'll check that out of the library tomorrow to see if he uses it there. But I'm wondering if anyone has a line on earlier uses. "None" is a devilishly difficult word to search for.

--Dave Wilton

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