Module 5-Modernization and Religion.pdf

Sociology of the Religion (SOCI 377) Dr Gbenga Adejare Religion and Modernity THE SECULARIZATION & DE-SECULARIZATION THESIS AND SOCIAL CHANGE Preamble Previously, ▪ We looked at important sociological concepts and theories Today, ▪ We shall delve into the interface of religion and modernity – Note:...

Sociology of the Religion (SOCI 377) Dr Gbenga Adejare Religion and Modernity THE SECULARIZATION & DE-SECULARIZATION THESIS AND SOCIAL CHANGE Preamble Previously, ▪ We looked at important sociological concepts and theories Today, ▪ We shall delve into the interface of religion and modernity – Note: Modernity revolves around secularization or de-sacralization (and a return to sacralization in some respects). Ambivalence: Data from British Social Attitudes Please visit this link: https://bsa.natcen.ac.uk/media /39293/1_bsa36_religion.pdf A Scholarly Assessment: José Casanova on Secularization (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOs8J2758_s) Key Concepts ▪ Modernization: The process by which societies are transformed from traditional, rural, agrarian to urbanized secular and industrialized spaces. ▪ Secularization: The process whereby religious thinking, practises and institutions lose social significance. – It is a process of De-sacrilization. ▪ Rationalization: rational thinking in the form of science has replaced religious influence in our lives. Key Concepts cont'd ▪ Disengagement: separation of the church from wider society; no longer involved in politics etc. ▪ Religious Pluralism: society has fragmented into a marketplace of religions and there is no longer one unifying religious force. ▪ Sacralization: This is an opposite of secularization. In the work of Durkheim, it is the process of deifying things. ▪ De-secularization: A shift away from secularism or a return to religion. This process is synonymous with Re-sacralization. Secularization Thesis ▪ The birth of sociology as a discipline coincided with the nascence of industrialization. ▪ It was assumed that the processes of modernization had a negative effect on the significance of religion in society (Pollack, 2015). ▪ Nineteenth-century theorists economic industrialization provided the early theories of secularization. foundations of of Secularization Thesis cont'd ▪ The birth of sociology as a discipline coincided with the nascence of industrialization. ▪ The French Revolution was a significant catalyst that stimulated manifest secularization - 'laicisation' in French. – Dismantling of the monopoly of Catholic Church. ▪ The wave of rebellion against the Church authority experience in Belgium after independence in 1830. The trend was pervasive in all of Europe. ▪ Urban lifestyles are generally individualistic; people no longer live a communal lifestyle but rather an isolated lifestyle. Secularization Thesis cont'd ▪ It was assumed that rural spaces transitioned to urban centres destruction of the social and moral basis for the Church’s authority over society. – Ferdinand Tonnies: Gemeinschaft to Gesellschaft, with the growth of industrial capitalis m. ▪ As society progresses loses its authority. toward modernization, religion ▪ It also assumes a strong negative relationship between religion and human development (Dhima & Golder, 2021). Secularization Thesis cont'd ▪ This process is accompanied by a growing separation between secular and religious activities in the society (Church-State) ▪ This also goes with the public/private divide, and religion is thus privatized ▪ Secularization is also a functional process, where politics, economics and science, aesthetics, and legal spheres are seen as autonomous from the religious one Secularization Thesis cont'd ▪ For writers like Claude Saint-Simon, the ‘feudal-theological system’ was gradually being replaced by a new social order based upon the industrial classes and positivistic science. ▪ In the industrial-scientific system, the government of human beings would be transformed into the administration of things. He predicted the rise of a new religion based on humanism and science that he called the New Christianity. Secularization Thesis cont'd ▪ For Auguste Comte, in his positivistic and humanist philosophy, medieval society, which was characterized by the dominance of the Catholic Church and by militarism, would be replaced by a new social system in which scientists and industrialists would occupy the dominant social roles. ▪ Disengagement is seen as an important component of secularization. ▪ Religion no longer influences human behaviour. Secularization Thesis cont'd ▪ For Auguste Comte, in his positivistic and humanist philosophy, medieval society, which was characterized by the dominance of the Catholic Church and by militarism, would be replaced by a new social system in which scientists and industrialists would occupy the dominant social roles. ▪ Disengagement is seen as an important component of secularization. ▪ Religion no longer influences human behaviour. Peter Berger on Secularization ▪ The secularization thesis was almost culmination during the sixties background. a dogma, ▪ Decline of vast theories (no- falsifiability of Marxism or Freud’s theory by Popper) ▪ His most famous expression was “The sacred canopy” (Berger, 1967), unchallenged till the 80s Peter Berger on Secularization cont'd ▪ He wrote “The social construction of reality”, 1966, with Luckman, essential for theory of knowledge ▪ The Sacred Canopy (1967) achieved a near-canonical status in the training of graduate students in sociological theory in many departments of sociology and religious studies (Ukah & Wilks, 2017) – It was a critical element of the general sociological theory then (paradigm) Criticisms of the Secularization Thesis ▪ Golden age (that held to conservatism) during sixties mainly in Québec and Western Europe ▪ Post-war against communism (approach of religion more favourable to Weber vs Marx) ▪ All those theories share a very Eurocentric vision ▪ Secularization theories got it wrong for religion has not disappeared ▪ Religion is even a growing factor of explication to understand the world today (E.g., governance..) Criticisms of the Secularization Thesis ▪ Golden age ( that held to conservatism) during sixties mainly in Québec and Western Europe ▪ Post-war against communism (approach of religion more favourable to Weber vs Marx) ▪ All those theories share a very Eurocentric vision ▪ Secularization theories got it wrong for religion has not disappeared ▪ Religion is even a growing factor of explication to understand the world today (E.g., governance..) After Berger's Sacred Canopy: Desecularization ▪ Ab initio, the tapestry of sociology reflected agnosticism and much ambivalence towards religion. ▪ Had to eat humble pie and wrote about “desecularization” in 1999 ▪ From 1994, strong criticism from José Casanova, role of Public religion ▪ Influence of religion in the world is reappreciated After Berger's Sacred Canopy: Desecularization cont'd ▪ Religious programming is still very popular – Songs of Praise attracts around 7-8 million viewers. ▪ Decline in membership reflects a more general decline, not just in religion (politics etc). ▪ Grace Davie 1997): vicarious religion or ‘believing without belonging’ – People practising privately or by proxy After Berger's Sacred Canopy: Desecularization cont'd ▪ People still allude to religious explanations for life events. – For example, the concept of luck/fate shows how gambling has increased. ▪ Peter L. Berger (1999): the world is more religious than it ever has been. – His later submission After Berger's Sacred Canopy: Desecularization cont'd ▪ Paul Heelas (2000): ‘holistic milieu’ is a rejection of science and modernity where people want spirituality, as shown by New Age Movements. Conclussion: Some Thoughts About Sociology Of Religion ▪ Sociology has to provide tools for change (policy making, development) ▪ It is important to understand the way a lot of people see the world to be able to reach out to them ▪ One must understand what is believed and be able to offer criticisms ▪ Marxism: materialism is blind to the spirituality of life ▪ Functionalism is only focused on utility, and some things are free ▪ Weberian approach offers in this end a justification of colonization ▪ Social change is affecting all social institutions including religion