This religiosity is not that of the black gospel church, not that of ecstasy and rapture.

Thanks (again) dude. Now I just have to sort out my singulars and plurals

Ah - I thanked you too soon, dude. According to the Oxford dictionary, religiosity is an excessive belief. This doesn't fit here. They're all quite the opposite of excessive. You learn something every day on this site.

This is not the religion of the black gospel church, not the religion of ecstasy or rapt absorption.

Please note: "Entrückt sein" means being detached. Not being down-to-earth. Please do not mix it up with "entzückt".

Cheers,

Thanks, Helmi.

I'm going for:

This is not the religion of the black gospel church, not the religion of ecstasy or rapt absorption. The Cades' faith, the faith of Eric Easter and the faith of the Obamas is cooler than that, is more rational and thought through. Which doesn't make it any less genuine.

Unless anyone wants to make any improvements - always welcome!

@Mini: so then what's the difference between Religiosität and Religion?

@t0nda: I don't see any problem with "rapture." Have you ever been to a black gospel church?

@ dude
The German "Religiosität" is (according to the Oxford German-English dictionary) (1984) "religiousness"
Interestingly, the same dictionary has no entry for "Religiosity".

But:
My Collins English-English dictionary (1992) has "religiosity" as a synonym for "religiousness"

Now the plot thickens:
The Oxford American Dictionary installed on my computer (2008) defines "religiosity" as "excessive religiousness"

To be on the safe side, I'm avoiding it altogether.

But isn't it interesting? Well I think it is.

Yes, it is, but as a translator, I would primarily be interested in the precise meaning of the German word "Religiosität" and then translate accordingly. Forget about what dictionaries say for a minute and look at the German word first.

Here are some English definitions:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religiosity
Religiosity, in its broadest sense, is a comprehensive sociological term used to refer to the numerous aspects of religious activity, dedication, and belief (religious doctrine). Another term that would work equally well, though is less often used, is religiousness. ...

www.csa.com/discoveryguides/religion/gloss.php
Simply, the condition of being religious. No pejorative connotation is present in sociological use of this term. ...

Thanks, dude. You do have some good points.
I have a meeting with the author next week, so I'll find out exactly what he meant.

Re|li|gi|o|si|tät, die; - [(frz. religiosité <) spätlat. religiositas = Frömmigkeit] (bildungsspr.): das Religiössein, religiöse (2) Haltung.<br/>© 2000 Dudenverlag

: religious; especially : excessively, obtrusively, or sentimentally religious http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rel...

New SOED
religiosity /rIlIdZI"QsIti/ n.LME. [L religiositas, f. religiosus RELIGIOUS: see -ITY.]
1 Religious feeling or belief. LME.
2 Affected or excessive religiousness. L18.

Religiosity
The extent of importance of religion, religious beliefs and feelings in people’s lives. http://www.polity.co.uk/browne/students/gloss... (sociology resource)

Religiosity. A sociological concept referring to the importance of religion in individuals lives. http://academics.triton.edu/faculty/mbotterwe...

Would appear that "religiosity", as well as not being pejorative in sociology, also means something slightly different to sociologists than it does in normal use.