Reasons for Secularisation
- Created by: Emily Gover
- Created on: 16-01-12 11:41
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- Rationalisation- WEBER= refers to the lack of influence of religion and an upcoming belief in science and rationality. Western society has been under this process since the protestant reformation (16th century) whereby catholicism was up against protestantism. Catholicism is described as an enchanted garden whereby God is still in control of us so if we do things the right way we will be saved etc. Whilst protestants see religion as something to help us get on in life. God has decided our fate before birth so there is no point in trying to change this. For example, that baby dying was not the will of God it just died of natural causes or that plane crashed due to technological malfunctions. Overall this enables science to thrive as rational thinking is put in and magical thinking is pushed out.
- A Technological View of the World- BRUCE= argues that the growth of technology has replaced the supernatural and religious views on why things happen e.g. plane crash is due to technological faults not God or evil spirits. It is then concluded that religion only thrives in situations where technology is failing and vice versa. For example, in times of no medical cure for cancer, we often pray. BRUCE argues that although technology hasn't directly affected religion it has minimised the scope for which we think about things that are out of this world. This consequently leads to people taking religion less seriously than we once did.
- Structural Differentiation- PARSONS= defines it as process of specialisation that occurs when a development of industrial society separates special institutions developing to carry out functions that were previously performed by a single institution. According to PARSONS, this leads to the disengagement of religion. If functions are transferred to other institutions such as the state for example, the educational institution gets moved from the church's responsibilty to the state's supervision. BRUCE agrees that religion has become from wider society and has lost many of its former functions. It has become privatised, it is now largely a matter of personal choice rather than something as a community. This then means that its overall influence has declined
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