Explanations of Secularisation

WEBER:

• Rational ways of thinking and acting replace religious ones.
• Protestant Reformation begun by Martin Luther (16thC) started process of rationalisation.
• Undermined religious world view of the Middle Ages and replaced it with scientific outlook.
• Medieval Catholic worldview saw world as an enchanted garden controlled by spiritual beings.
• Humans could try to influence these beings through prayers and spells.

Disenchantment

• Protestantism saw God as transcendent rather than immanent.
• Events explained as workings of natural forces rather than supernatural.
• Allowed science to thrive.

Technological Worldview

• Bruce - technological worldview has replaced religious explanations for tragedies etc.
• This worldview encourages people to take religion less seriously.

PARSONS:

• Structural differentiation is the process of specialisation in industrial development.
• Specialised institutions now carry out functions previously performed but a single institution.
• Industrialisation led to religion being replace by smaller more specialised institutions.
• Structural differentiation leads to disengagement of religion.
  • Funtions are transfered to other institutions.
  • Religion becomes disconnected from wider society.

BRUCE:

• Religion has become more privatised.
• Now confined to private sphere of home and family.
• Religion has become more of a personal choice .
• Religious institutions have lost influence on society.
• Tradition symbols and rituals have lost meaning.
• Even where religion continues to perform functions it must conform to state regulations.
  • e.g. Education, Social welfare.

WILSON:

• Pre-industrial communities shared values through collective ritual.
• Now religion has lost basis in stable local communities and thus its hold over individuals.

BRUCE:

• Industrialisation undermines consensus of religious belief.
• Small close-knit rural communities give way to large loose-knit urban ones with diverse values.
• Social and geographical mobility breaks apart communities and creates more diversity.
• Diversity of culture and lifestyles undermines plausibility of religious beliefs.
  • Plausibility relies on the practicing community of believers.

Criticisms

• Relgion can be a source of identity on a worldwide scale.
• Some religious communities are imagined though global media.
• Pentecostal and other groups often flourish in impersonal urban areas.

BERGER:

• Trend towards religious diversity has caused secularisation.
• In the Middle Ages the Catholic Church held absolute monopoly.
  • Everyone lived under a single sacred canopy.
  • No challengers gave beliefs more plausibility.
• Since Protestant Reformation variety of religious organisations has continued to grow.
  • Each organisation has a different version of the truth.
  • No church can now claim an unchallenged monopoly of truth.
  • Society is no longer unified under single belief system.
  • Plurality means people's interpretation of the truth varies.
• This creates a crisis of credibility,.
• Diversity undermines religion's plausibility structure.
• With choice people are likely to question all religions.
• Belief becomes relative rather than absolute.
• Creates the possibility of opting out of religion all together.

BRUCE:

• Two counter trends appear to go against secularisation theory.
• Cultural defence - religion provides a focal point for defense of national or ethnic identity.
  • e.g. Catholocism in Poland
• Cultural transition - religion provides support and a sense of community for ethnic groups.
  • e.g. Irish, African Caribbean, Muslim migrants to the UK.
• This does not disprove secularisation but shows that religion only survives where it performs functions for groups.

Criticism

• Berger - changed his view and argues diversity and choice can stimulate interest in religion.
  • e.g. Growth of Evangelicalism in Latin America.
• Beckford - opposing vies can strengthen a group's committment rather than undermining.

• Traditional Christianity is giving way to holistic spirituality.
• Interest in spiritual market is evident through number of self-help and spirituality books sold.

HEELAS AND WOODHEAD:

Kendal Project

• Distinguished between congregational domain and holistic milieu.
• Found 7.9% attended church and 1.6% took part in holistic milieu.
• In congregation domain traditional churches lost support while Evangelical thrived.
• Fewer involved in holistic milieu but it was growing.
• New Age appeals to subjective turn in today's culture away from obeying external authority.
• Traditional religions that demand obedience are declining.
• Evangelical churches are more successful as they emphasise the importance of spiritual healing through being born again.
• In the spiritual market place those who appeal to personal experience thrive.
• Although holisitc milieu has grown it has not compensated for decline of religion.
• Therefore secularisation is occurring rather than a spiritual revolution.