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SECULARISATION DEBATE Name:_____________ Date:______________ 1 INTRODUCTION In this booklet we look at the arguments and evidence about the extent in which religion has declined. Secularisation refers to the decline in the importance of religion. There is much debate over whether and how far religion has declined. We shall consider: 1. The arguments put forward by sociologists 2. Look at how secularisation theory has been applied to both the USA and UK 3. Examine the claim a spiritual revolution is taking place, contrary to the downward trend in religion predicted by secularisation. 2 SECLUARISATION IN BRITAIN The 1851 Census indicates that 40% or more of the population attended church on Sunday. (Crocket 1998). This is significantly higher than attendance figures today. Some sociologists therefore claim that the 19th century was a golden age of religiosity. (The extent to which people hold religious beliefs). Whether this is true is open to debate, but there have definitely been some major changes in religion which include: A decline in church attendance e.g. from 40% in the 19th century to 10-15% by 1960. Average age of church goers has risen. Fewer baptisms and church weddings. A decline in Christian beliefs. Greater religious diversity. Wilson (1966) suggests this is evidence that there has been a long term decline in religion. He defines secularisation as: “The process whereby religious beliefs, practices and institutions lose social significance”. CHURCH ATTENDANCE TODAY. The trends Wilson identified have continued: 2005, 6.3% of the population attend church. The English Church Census (2006) indicates both membership and attendance of large religious organisations has declined, bur small organisations have increased. HOWEVER this does not make up for the decline in large ones. 1971, 60% of weddings were in a church by 2006 this had dropped to 33%. Baptisms fell from 55% to 41% in 2005. 3 AO2- HOWEVER, some researchers suggest that it is wrong to assume going to church is an indicator of religiosity. In the past higher church attendance could have been an expression of community and little to do with religion. Today with the break up of close-knit communities’ collective worship may be an expression of faith not part of social life. RELIGIOUS BELIEFS TODAY. Opinion polls and attitude surveys over the past 60 years show that: More people claim to hold Christian beliefs than go to church. Religious belief is declining in line with membership and attendance. E.g. Gill (1998) reviewed 100 national surveys from 1939 to 1996. In 1950 only 23% of participants claimed not to belong to a religion and by 1996 this had increased to 43%. AO2 HOWEVER- Davie (1994) has made a distinction between believing and belonging. Some forms of religious belief still appear widespread. E.g. European Values survey 2000 indicates 60% of Europeans describe themselves as a religious person. 50% claim God has a significant role in their lives but is not expressed in an institution. A minority of people practice religion on behalf of the majority. Davies calls this V____________ R_____________ RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS TODAY It is also argued that not only has religious belief and practice declined but so has the influence of religion as a social institution. The church still does have some influence on public life (26 Church of England bishops sit in the House of Lords), 4 but the Churches influence has declined in other aspects of society. E.g. State now controls education in which state funded schools have to follow the National curriculum, and although there is a legal requirement for schools to provide daily worship of a broadly Christian character a BBC survey 2005 found that over half of schools do not conform to this. There has also been a decline in the number of clergy, 45000 in 1900 to 34000 in 2000. If this had kept pace with the growing population we would expect to see 80,000 clergy. This decline means the church has less influence in people’s day to day lives. AO2- Can you think of any events which will contradict the view that religion is declining in the UK? ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 1. Suggest and explain two supportive comments which provide evidence for secularisation. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 2. What evidence can be used to reject the view that secularisation is occurring? ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 5 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… EXPLANATIONS OF SECULARISATION There are a variety of theories and explanations for secularisation and a common theme has been Modernisation; decline in tradition and the growth of scientific ideas undermines religion Social change; Industrialisation breaks up small communities. The growth of religious and social diversity; undermines the credibility of religious beliefs. Max Weber: Rationalisation The protestant reformation in the 16th century started the process of rationalisation in the West. Before the reformation the Catholic view dominated Europe and the world was seen as ‘Gods magical garden’. God was believed to be present in the world changing the course of events. Humans could influence God through prayer and pilgrimages. Disenchantment. The Protestant reformation brought a new world view, God was now seen as transcendent existing outside the world and he did not intervene in it but left it to run its own course. This meant that the world was no longer explained as unpredictable acts of the supernatural. All that was needed to understand it was rationality- the power of reason. Using science and reason humans could discover the laws of nature and control it through technology. The Protestant reformation begins the ‘disenchantment’ of the world. This enables science to thrive create more technological 6 advances, more control over nature which in turn undermines religion even more. Technological worldview. Bruce develops Weber’s ideas arguing technology has replaced religious explanations for of why things happen. E.g. Plane crashes are not Gods will but due to technological faults. Religion only survives in areas which can not be explained by technology. E.g. praying when somebody has an illness which science has no cure for. Structural Differentiation- ‘the process of specialisation which occurs with industrialisation’. Parsons (1951) argues that with industrialisation specialist institutions develop to carry out functions that were normally performed a single institution. E.g. education was performed by the church it is now a specialist institution. Structural differentiation leads to disengagement of religionit exerts less power over the other institutions such as politics, social welfare and the law. Even when religion continues to perform educational function it must conform to the secular state. E.g. teachers in faith schools must hold recognised qualifications. 7 AO2- Bruce agrees that religion has lost significance at a societal level, but it is now more privatised confined to the private sphere of house and home. Religious belief is now a matter of personal choice. Explain how Davie and Bruce are similar. …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… Social and cultural diversity. Wilson argues that in pre-industrial communities, shared values were expressed through collective religious rituals that integrated individuals and regulated behaviour. When these communities fragmented with industrialisation religion began to lose its significance. Social and geographical mobility not only breaks communities up but brings together people of many different backgrounds. Bruce goes on to argue that even when people continue to hold religious beliefs they cannot avoid knowing that many of those around them hold different views. AO2- How does Bellahs civil religion contradict Bruce? ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 8 Bruce also argues that increased individualism undermines religion because religion requires a practicing community to keep it alive. AO2 However Bellah (1987) argues that whilst institutional religion has declined other aspects of religion continue. Individuation is the idea of religion being used to find oneself and embarking on spiritual journeys. Aldridge also points out that a religious community doe not have to be in a particular area. Religions can be a source of identity on a worldwide scale; some communities are imagined communities and interact through the global media. Pentecostal and other religious groups flourish in impersonal urban areas. Religious Diversity. According to Berger (1969) religious diversity is one of the main causes of secularisation. In the middle ages the Catholic Church had an absolute monopoly over religion in Europe. Therefore the Church’s version of the truth would go unquestioned. This all changed after the Protestant reformation and sects broke away from the Catholic Church. This has continued and the number and variety of religious organisations has continued to grow. No church can claim a monopoly on the truth. Religious diversity creates a plurality of life worlds (peoples perceptions of the world vary where there are different interpretations of the truth. 9 Religious belief becomes relative and this erodes the certainties of religion. AO2- Berger (1999) has changed his mind!! He now argues that diversity and choice stimulate interest and participation in religion and cites the growth of evangelicalism in Latin America and the influence of the Christian New Right in the USA. Cultural Defence and transition Bruce identifies two counter trends that appear to go against secularisation theory as both as associated with higher levels of participation. Cultural defence; - religion provides a focal point for the defence of national, ethnic or local identity. E.g. the popularity of Catholicism before the fall of communism in Poland and the resurgence of Islam in Iran prior to the 1979 revolution. Cultural Transition; - religion provides a sense of community and support for migrants moving from one country to another. AO2 (ANALYSIS). Bruce argues religion only survives in these situations because of focus on group identity; therefore religion only survives when it performs other functions. E.g. church going declined in Poland after the fall of communism AO2- Beckford suggests opposing religious views can have the effect of strengthening a religious commitment to its existing beliefs not undermine them. 10 Marxist explanations. Marx argued that capitalism contained the seeds of secularisation. It presented a materialist view of the world- its aim was to produce goods and make profits. The social order was seen to be based on contracts rather than being ordained by God. Marx saw the death of religion as inevitable when the economic inequalities that made religion “necessary”. Postmodernist views on secularisation. Lyotard claimed that postmodern society is characterised by a loss of confidence in metanarratives- the big stories provided by science, religion and politics. As a result traditional institutional religion has been undermined and is in decline. AO2- However postmodernists argue that new religions and new expressions of religiosity develop but these are tailored by individuals to fit their particular identities, rather than being imposed by others. This is the rise of New religious movements. Lyon (2000) suggests we have become spiritual shoppers as religion has relocated to the sphere of consumption. He used the example of a Christian rally in Disneyland to show the blurring of boundaries. Lyon calls this Dedifferentiation-(popular culture merging with religion). Postmodernists call this a ‘spiritual revolution’ 11 Heelas and Woodhead’s study in Kendal reached different conclusions. They indicated that 7.9% of the population attended church and 1.6% took part in the holistic milieu. Traditional churches were in decline but evangelical churches were maintaining support. Although the holistic milieu was smaller it was growing. They offered three explanations: 1. New age spirituality has grown because of a massive subjective turn in today’s culture. This involves a shift away from the idea of doing your duty and obeying an external authority, to exploring your inner self by following a spiritual path. 2. As a result traditional religions, which demand duty and obedience, are declining. 3. Evangelical churches are more successful than traditional churches. They both demand discipline and duty, but evangelicals also emphasise the importance of spiritual healing and personal growth through the experience of being ‘born again’. Heelas and Woodhead argue that despite the growth of the Holistic milieu a spiritual revolution has not taken place. They conclude that secularisation is occurring in Britain and the subjective turn has undermined traditional religion. 1. Why do postmodernists suggest traditional religion is declining? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 2. How have Heelas and Woodhead contradicted the postmodernist view? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 12 SECULARISATION IN THE USA. In 1962 Wilson found that 45% of Americans attended church, however he argued that this was not due to a high level of religiosity but attending church was part of the American way of life. Religion was superficial and the USA was a secular society. Bruce 2002 agrees and provides three sources of evidence to support his claim that USA in becoming increasingly secular. DECLINING CHURCH ATTENANCE: Opinion poll research suggests that 40% of the population attend church, however Hadaway (1993) states that is this was the case the churches would be full. Hadaway’s own research found that church goers over estimated how often they attended church by 83%. This trend is a relatively recent trend as until the 1970’s estimates and actual attendances matched. Bruce argues that the attendance gap has emerged because attending church is still socially desirable. SECULARISATION FROM WITHIN: Bruce argues that the way religion in the USA has adapted to the modern world amounts to secularisation from within. Christian beliefs and glorifying God has declined and religion has become a form of therapy. Religion has remained popular by becoming less religious. Religion has changed from seeking salvation in Heaven to seeking personal improvement in this world. 13 RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY: Bruce indentifies a trend towards practical relativism (involving acceptance of the view that others are entitled to beliefs that are different to their own) among American Christians. The counterpart to practical relativism is the erosion of absolutism (people in society hold views that are completely different to one another which undermines our assumption that our own views are absolutely true. AO2- secularisation theory has been criticised in several ways. Some of which are discussed in the postmodernist section in the theories booklet. Religion is not declining but changing form. Secularisation focuses on decline in religion and not religious revivals. Falling church attendance ignores believing without belonging. Religion may have declined in the USA and UK but not globally. Far from causing a decline religious diversity creates choice. People make use of religion in all sorts of different ways. 14 SUMMARY Secularisation refers to the decline of religion. Statistics show church attendance in the UK is falling. The number of baptisms and church weddings has declined. Meanwhile opinion polls show that religious belief is declining. Reasons include rationalisation, social and structural differentiation, social and religious diversity. Counter trends are cultural transition and defence; for example where religion may be a focal point for preserving an ethnic minorities culture. The Kendal project found growing interest in spirituality, including the New Age, but it does not compensate for the large numbers leaving traditional religion. Secularisation theorists argue that religion is also declining in America. Although church attendance is comparatively high, nevertheless it is declining. American religion is also experiencing secularisation from within; becoming less strict and having to accept religious diversity. Question: Evaluate the view that the world is becoming more secular (33 marks) Begin by defining secularisation and then present a range of evidence on the decline of beliefs, practices and institutions. You need to explanation the trends by using such concepts as rationalisation, structural differentiation and social and religious diversity. You then need to refer to alternative views and to counter-evidence in your evaluation. Remember the question is referring to the ‘world’ view so you need to include some evaluation with regard to secularisation in the USA and globally. 15