RELIGION

RELIGION

1. Religion in a global context

   • Religion and economic development
     • Webb et al- globalisation= rationality= less religion
     • Religion and economic growth are compatable
       • Nanda- UltraNationalism in India and Hinduism
       • Redding- The spirit of Chinese Capitalism
       • Berger- Pentecostalism in Latin America
       • Lehmann- global and local impact of Pentecostalism
   • Religious Fundamentalism
     • Giddens- Cosmopolitanism
     • Castells- 2 types of Fundamentalists- reject and project identity
     • Bruce- Monotheism and Fundamentalism
     • Evaluation
       • (A02)- Haynes; shouldn't narrowly focus on Islamic Fundamentalism
       • (A02)- Beckford
         • 1. distinguish too sharply between Cosmapolitanism and Fundamentalists.
         • 2. 'fixated Fundamnetalism'
         • 3. Lumps all types of Fudamentalism together
   • Cultural Defence
     • Bruce- examples of Poland and Iran
   • Religion and the clash of civilisations
     • Huntongton- sees global conflicts as intensified by the collapse of communism
       • (A02)- Jackson; Huntington's work is based on Orientalism- stereotypes
       • (A02)- Horrie and Chipingdale- generalises too much
       • (A02)- Inglehart and Norris- sexuality is the main cause of cultural divide

2. Theories of religion

   • Definitions
     • Substantive (Weber), Functional (Durkheim) and Social Constructionist (Aldridge)
   • Functionalists
     • (A01) Durkheim- collective conscience, sacred and profane and totemism
     • (A02) Worsley Durkheim is overly positive
     • Other functions- (A01)
       • Parsons- values and meaning
       • Mauss- conceptualisation and categorisation
       • Malinowski- psychological funtions
       • Bellah- civil religions
   • Marxists
     • Karl Marx (A01)- Mechanism of social control
     • Bruce- (A02- positive) New Christian Right
     • (A02) Criticisms
       • Althusser- alienation/ view is unscientific and romantic
       • Hamilton- only gives uses of religion- no specific defintion
   • Feminists
     • (A01) Means of oppression
       • Religious organisations-Armstrong
       • Sacred Texts
       • Religious Laws and Customs- Woodhead
       • Places of Worship- Holm
       • (A01) Other Feminist resarch
         • Woodhead- Muslim veil as a symbol of liberaion in the public and private sphere
         • Watson- interviews with 3 Muslim women
         • El Saadawi- male interpretation and female genital mutilation
     • (A02) evaluation
       • Marxists- conservative, oppressive force upon WC- class not gender focused
       • Functionalists- consensus theory
       • Different Feminist views- Radical Feminists; Daly
       • Post Modernism- change is possible eg: ordination of women

3. Religion and Social change

   • Religion a a conservative force
     • Functionalists, Marxists and Feminists
   • Weber- religion as a souce for change
     • (A01)- Asceticism, this worldly orientation, capitalism
     • (A02)
       • Kautsky- overestimates the role of ideas & underestimates economic factors
       • Tawney-Technological factors
       • Marshall- Switzerland & lack of investment
   • Religion and social protest
     • Bruce- The Civil Rights Movement
     • (A02)- New Christian Right
   • Marxism, religion and change
     • Maduro- Liberation Theology
     • Engels & Bloch- Religion's dual character
     • Gramsci- Hegemony

4. Secularisation

   • Secularisation in Britain
     • Church attendance figures- Davie; believing without belonging
   • Explanations of secularisation
     • Functionalism
       • Durkheim- growth of individualism undermines CC
     • Marxism
       • Introduction of socialism=SEC.
     • Weber- rationalisation and disenchantment
     • Parsons- Structural Differentiation
     • Bruce- technologcal Worldview
     • Bruce- social and cultural diversity
       • (A02)- Aldridge; Pentecostalists
     • Berger- religious diversity
       • (A02)- Beckford- diversity doesnt inevitably lead to SEC.
   • Secularisation in America
     • Wilson- 45% churchgoers in 1965
     • Bruce- 3 examples
   • Evaluation of Secularisation
     • Church attendance figures
     • Lyon- Re-enchantment of the world
     • Bruce- cultural defence and transition
     • Heelas and Woodhead- Kendal project & spiritual revolution
     • Fundamentalism- Kepel and Islam

5. Religion, renewal and choice

   • Post Modernity and Religion
     • Davie- beliveing without belonging
       • (A02)- Bibby; Canadian survey
       • (A02)- Voas and Crockett- reject
       • (A02)- Bruce; support
     • Hervieu- Leger- Cultural Amnesia and Spiritual Shopping
     • Lyon
       • 1. The relocation of religion
       • 2. Religious Consumerism- 'pick and mix' & hyperreality
       • 3. Re-Enchantment of the world
         • (A02)- Lyon;s research isnt extensive
         • (A02)- Bruce supports
   • Existential security Theory
     • Norris and Inglehart
       • (A02) Gill and Lundegaarde- support
       • (A02)- Vasquez- criticises quantitative data
   • Religious market theory
     • Stark and Bainbridge- SEC= constant cycle of revival and renewal
       • (A02)- Beckford; unsociable as it assumes people are religious

6. Ideology and Science

   • Science as a belief system
     • (A01)- Comte; chronological stages of belief
       • 1. The theological stage 2. the metaphysical stage 3. The Positive stage
     • Popper- Falsification
     • Merton- CUDOS norms
     • Horton- closed belief systems
       • support- Pritchard; Azande tribe
       • Kuhn- closed belief systems- science is socially constructed
       • Woolgar-science is subjective
   • Ideology
     • (Marxism) Mannheim- Ideological throught and Utopian thought
       • Gramsci- Working class ideology will overthrow Capitalism and end hegemony
         • (A02)- Marxism assumes people are passive
     • Ideology and Feminism
       • Marks- female exclusion from education
       • (A02)- Feminism itself is an ideology

7. Organisations, movements and members

   • Types of religious organisations
     • Wallis- 3 types of NRMs
       • (A02)- Stark and Bainbridge
   • Explaining the growth of religious movements
     • 3 main reasons for the trend in NRMs
       • 1. Marginality- Troeltsh/Weber/Wallis
       • 2. Relative deprivation- Glock and Stark
       • 3. Social Change- Wilson, Bellah, Bruce
         • ALSO- disenchantment of the world (Weber), status frustration, Wallis
     • Reasons NRMs are short lived- Barker/Aldridge
     • Post Modernity & New Age
       • Drane- answers away from meta-narratives
       • Heelas and Woodhead- Kendal Project
       • Bruce- argues New Age is late stage of modernity not PM
         • Heelas- sees the New Age and Modern society linked in 4 ways
     • The growth and Characteristics of the New Age
       • Heelas- 2 common themes; self-spirituality and detraditionalisation
       • Other Explanations
         • Aldridge- sects can become denominations
         • Wilson- denomination or death of a sect is not only option
         • Stark and Bainbridge- The Sectarian cycle
   • Religiosity and social groups
     • Gender
       • Bruce- twice as many women in sects
         • Miller and Hoffman- socialisation and gender role
         • Stark and Bainbridge- compensation for deprivation
         • Brown- New Age responds to female's want for autonomy
       • Heelas and Woodhead- women of the New Age; 80% women in Holistic Milieu
     • Ethnicity
       • Bruce/ Bird- cultural defence
       • Herberg/Modood- cultural transition
       • Johal- social identity
     • Age
       • Lynch- expanded spiritual marketplace
       • Davie- the privatisation of religion
       • 2 main explanations- Ageing and the generational effect
         • Gill- religion not longer taught