A history of the position of (the christian) God in Dutch society, with an emphasis on the diminishing role of god as a source for morals. Written by a former journalist, which shows in style and the way the subject is dealt with: lots of irony, and anecdotical evidence.
My main problem with the book is that the ironical style of the writer suffocates the interesting story he is trying to tell. He also makes an error many others make: the application to the whole of society of arguments which for me are only valid in a small elitist layer of society. A prime example is his use of the holocaust as a cause for the diminished role of god in society, and the loss of credibility of religion as a source of morality. In the first place the role of god started to slide long before the advent of Hitler, in the second place I fear that for most Dutch people the fate of the Jews and other prosecuted groups wasn't a heavy burden on their consciences: for a short moment they felt pity, then they went on with their daily life, happy to have escaped themselves alive.
One point he makes about christian religion I find rather interesting. From the 16th century onwards protestant theologians have been battling about redemption: can we redeem ourselves (by doing good in our lives), or does god already decides before birth if we go to heaven or hell. He shows that the first position - most popular nowadays, even with people who are only marginally religious - degrades charity in a way: it becomes something you do to get something: you strike a deal with god, bribe him with good deeds. While the second position enables you to do good in a disinterested way, just for the doing of good things itself.
Another quite intersting point he makes is that although religion seems on the rise in current Dutch society, it is a kind of cherry-picking variant which he calls 'ietsism' (best translated as: 'there-must-be-something'). People want to believe something, but only nice things: everybody goes to heaven, there is no hell. The idea that a belief in god also brings duties - for instance conforming to rules or morality - is less popular than ever. ( )