Flashcards
Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion
Flashcards do conjunto (42)
- 1Q1: Explain why people challenge the theory that religion is declining. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A1: "Is it declining or changing form?", "Increased diversity + choice does not undermine religions plausibility but increases involvement", "religion is not declining on a global scale, just Europe".
- 2Q2: Explain Grace Davie's "From obligation to consumption". (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A2: In today's late modern society, we are seeing a major change in religion. People are less obliged and have more choice in what to follow.
- 3Q3: Explain what is meant by believing without belonging (Davie). (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A3: Taking a different more privatised form of religion. People are reluctant to belong to organisations.
- 4Q4: What does Davie mean by 'Vicarious religion'? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A4: Religion practised by an active minority (the professional clergy and regular church goers).
- 5Q5: Why does Davie call churches the 'Spiritual Health Service'? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A5: Davie argues the national churches in Europe are as a spiritual health service because they are always there for everyone to use whenever they need such as the NHS only they use rites of passage e.g. baptisms, weddings and funerals.
- 6Q6: In what way does Davie question the assumption of secularisation theory that modernisation affects every society in the same way. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A6: Instead of a single version of modern society, she argues there are multiple modernities but with very different patterns of religion, especially in church attendance - high in America, low in Britain, but accompanied by believing without belonging.
- 7Q7:What is Voas and Crockett's disagreement with Davie? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A7: They don't agree with Davie's claim that there is more believing than belonging. Evidence from 5750 respondents shows that both church attendance and belief in God are declining together. If Davie was right, we would see higher levels of belief.
- 8Q8: What does Bruce say about low church attendance? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A8: Bruce argues that if people are not willing to invest time in going to church, this just reflects the declining strength of their beliefs. When people no longer believe, they no longer wish to belong, and so their involvement in religion diminishes.
- 9Q9: What did Abby Day say most Christians mean when they describe themselves as identifying as christian. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A9: Abby Day found that very few of the 'Christians' she interviewed mentioned God or Christianity. they described themselves as Christian but not religious as a way of saying they belong ' to a 'White English' ethnic group. Day calls it "believe in belonging".
- 10Q10: Hervieu-Leger talks about cultural amnesia; what does she mean by this and what evidence does she provide? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A10: cultural amnesia, also known as loss of collective memory. For centuries, children used to be taught religion in the extended family and parish church. We have largely lost the religion passed for gen. to gen. Children are more likely to decide what to believe for themselves.
- 11Q11: Explain what spiritual shoppers are. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A11: People today now feel they have a choice as consumers of religion to pick and mix what they want to believe.
- 12Q12: What does Hervieu-Leger mean by PILGRIMS? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A12: Pilgrims follow an individual path in search for self discovery, for example exploring New Age spirituality by joining groups, or through individual 'therapy'. The demand is created by today's emphasis on personal development.
- 13Q12: What does Hervieu-Leger mean by CONVERTS? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A12: converts join religious groups that offer a strong sense of belonging, usually based on a shared ethnic background or religious doctrine.
- 14Q13: In what ways does Hervieu-Leger see that religion still has influence over society? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A13: The values of equality and human rights have their roots in religion, she argues. Such values can be a source of shared cultural identity and social solidarity, even for those who are not actively involved in religion.
- 15Q14: David Lyon agrees with Davie about believing without belonging but he believes the cause is due to post modernism. explain it. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A14: post modern society has a number of features that are changing the nature of religion. These include globalisation, increased importance of the media and communications, and the growth of consumerism.
- 16Q15: Describe how globalisation and the media makes religion de-institutionalised. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A15: Media can give us instantaneous access to the ideas and beliefs of previously remote places and religions via e.g. the internet and the 'electronic church' de-institutionalising religion from real local churches.
- 17Q16: Describe what Helland means by RELIGION ONLINE. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A16 : Religion online is a form of top-down communication where a religious organisation uses the internet to address members and potential converts. There is no feedback or dialogue between the parties.
- 18Q17: Describe what online religion is. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A17: online religion is a form of 'cyber-religion' that may have no existence outside the internet. It is a 'many-to-many' form of communication that allows individuals to create non-hierarchical relationships and a sense of community where they can visit virtual worship or meditation spaces, explore shared spiritual interests and provide mutual support.
- 19Q18: What does Hoover say in criticism of post modernists view of online religion? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A18: Hoover et al shows that for most users, it is just a supplement to their church-based activities rather than a substitute for them.
- 20Q19: What do postmodernists say about consumerism and religion? (Hervieu-leger, Ammerman, Berger). (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A19:Hervieu-leger: we act as spiritual shoppers choosing religious beliefs and practices to suit our needs
Ammerman:
Berger - 21Q20: What does postmodernist Lyon say about self-religion and individualism? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A20: New age spirituality rejects the idea of obligation and obedience to external authority found in traditional religions. Instead it emphasises the idea of life as a journey of discovery, personal development, autonomy and connecting with one's 'inner self'. Individualism is the notion that every individual is free to decide what is true for him or her, e.g. by engaging in spiritual shopping, picking and mixing ideas found online and so on.
- 22Q21: How does Lyon criticise Weber's view of disenchantment? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A21: Lyon argues that we are now in a period of re-enchantment with the growth of unconventional beliefs and practices and spirituality.
- 23Q22: Why do some sociologists argue that a spiritual revolution is taking place today? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A22: The argue Christianity is giving way to 'holistic spirituality' or New Age spiritual beliefs and practices that emphasise personal development and subjective experience. Increased interest in spirituality can be seen in the growth of a "spiritual market"m with an explosion in the number of books about self-help and spirituality, and the many practitioners who offer consultations, courses and therapies, ranging from meditation to crystal healing.
- 24Q23: Outline the study by Heelas and Woodhead (2005) , including their aims, methods, findings and conclusion. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A23:
aims: to see if religion has declined & how far the growth of spirituality is compensating for this.
methods: N/A
findings: In 2000 in a typical week, 7.9% of the population attended church and 1.6% took part in the activities of the holistic milieu.
conclusion: they distinguish between two groups: The congregational domain of traditional and evangelical Christianity. & The holistic milieu of spirituality and the New age . Spirituality has grown, religions which demand duty and obedience are declining, Evangelical churches are more successful than the traditional churches. Both demand discipline and duty, but the evangelicals emphasise the importance of spiritual healing and personal growth through the experience of being 'born again'. - 25Q24: Bruce makes alternative arguments to "religion is not declining but changing". Explain "The problem of scale". (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A24: Even if the New age forms of individualised religion are springing up, this would have to be much larger scale if it is to fill the gap left by the decline of traditionalised religions. E.g. In Kendal in 1851, about 38% of the population attended church every Sunday. To match that today there would need to be 14,500 churchgoers, instead of the 3000 who would actually attend church. The 270 people involved in the holistic milieu in a town come no where near making up the shortfall.
- 26Q25: Bruce makes alternative arguments to "religion is not declining but changing". Explain "socialisation of the next generation". (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A25: For a belief system to survive it must be passed down to the next generation. However, in Kendal, only 32% of parents who were involved in the new age said their children shared their spiritual interests. Yet to maintain the same number of believers in the generation, atypical couple with two children would have to socialise both of them into New Age views.
- 27Q26: Bruce makes alternative arguments to "religion is not declining but changing". Explain "weak commitment". (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A26: Glendinning and Bruce (2006) found that although many people dabbled in meditation, alternative medicine, astrology, horoscopes and so on, serious commitment to New Age beliefs and practices was very rare, even among those who described themselves as 'spiritual', very few said that such practices were important in their lives. Bruce (2011) notes that most people in every demographic category show no interest in alternative spirituality.
- 28Q26: Bruce makes alternative arguments to "religion is not declining but changing". Explain "Structural weakness". (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A26:New age spirituality is itself a cause of secularisation because of its subjective, individualistic nature - it is based on the idea that there is no higher authority than the self. This means that, unlike traditional religion, the New Age:
lacks external power, cannot achieve achieve consensus about its beliefs because everyone is free to believe whatever they wish and cannot evangelise (persuade others of the truth) - 29Q27: Religious market theory: Outline the main views of Stark and Bainbridge that criticise secularisation theory. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A27: They are very critical of secularisation theory, which they see as Eurocentric - it focuses on the decline of religion in Europe and fails to explain its continuing vitality in America and else where. In their view, it also puts forward a distorted view of the past and future. Stark and Bainbridge argue that there was no 'golden age' of religion in the past.
- 30Q28:What are the two assumptions Stark and Bainbridge say is the basis for religious market theory? (2) (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A28: they claim secularisation theory is based on two assumptions:
people are naturally religious and religion meets humans needs. Therefore the overall demand for religion remains constant, even though the demand for particular types of religion may vary.
and it is human nature to seek rewards and avoid costs. When people make choices, they weigh up the costs and benefits of the different options available. - 31Q29: What are compensators? (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A29: Stark and Bainbridge say religion is attractive because it provides us with compensators. When real rewards are scarce or unobtainable, religion compensates by promising super natural ones. For example, immortality is unobtainable but religion compensates by promising life after death.
- 32Q30: Describe the cycle of renewal. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A30: As an alternative to secularisation theory, which sees a one-way process of continuous decline, Stark and Bainbridge put forward the concept of a cycle of religious decline, revival and renewal. They describe a perpetual cycle throughout history, with some religions declining and others growing and attracting new members.
- 33Q31: Describe religious competition. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A31: According to Stark and Bainbridge, curches operate like companies selling goos in a market. Where secularisation theory sees competition between different religious organisations as undermining religion, religious market theorists take the opposite view. They argue that competition leads to improvements in the qualities of the religious 'goods' on offer. the churches that make their product attractive will succeed in attracting more 'customers'. Meanwhile churches that are not responsive to the needs of their members will decline.
- 34Q32: Explain Stark and bainbridge's America versus Europe argument. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A32: They believe that religion thrives in america because there has never been a religious monopoly there. The constitution guarantees freedom of religion and the separation of church and state, and there has always been a great variety of denominations to choose from.
- 35Q33: Explain Stark and bainbridge's supply-led religion idea. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A33: Stark and Bainbridge argue that the main factor that shapes the level of religious participation is not the level of demand but rather the amount of supply. So, the more supply there is the more demand it will generate. This is known as the supply led argument.
- 36Q34: criticisms of religious market theory by bruce (2011). (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A34: 1.) Bruce rejects the view that diversity and competition increase the demand for religion. Statistics show that diversity has been accompanied by religious decline in both Europe and America.
2.) Norris and Inglehart show that high levels of religious participation exist in catholic countries where the Church has a near monopoly, such as Ireland and Venezuela by contrast, countries with religious pluralism , such as Holland and Australia, often have low levels of participation. this contradicts Stark and Bainbridge's theory. - 37Q35: Explain the alternative view - Secularisation and security. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A35: Norris and Inglehart (2011) reject religious market theory on the grounds that it only applies to America and fails to explain the variation between different societies. E..g. international studies of religion have found no evidence of the link between religious choice and religious participation that Stark and Bainbridge claim exists.
- 38Q36: Explain existential security theory - Norris and Inglehart. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A36: Norris and Inglehart argue that the reason for the variation between societies is not different degrees of religious choice, but different degrees of existential security. By this, they mean 'the feeling that survival is secure enough that it can be taken for granted'. Religion meets a need for security, and therefore societies where people already feel secure have a low level of demand for religion.
- 39Q37: Explain Europe versus America. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A37: The trend is towards increasing secularisation in Western Europe. Norris and Inglehart argue it isn't suprising as these societies are among the most equal and secure in the world with well developed welfare states offering comprehensive health care, social services and pensions. This reduces poverty and protects those at the bottom from insecurity.
By comparison with Europe, the United States remains much more religious. Norris and Inglehart argue that this is because America is also the most unequal of the rich societies, with an inadequate welfare safety-net and individualistic 'dog eat dog' values. This creates high levels of poverty and insecurity, which creates a greater need for religion. - 40Q38: explain state welfare and religiosity. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A38: Norris and Inglehart's arguement is supported by Gill and Lundegaarde (2004), who found that the more a country spends on welfare, the lower the level of religious participation. Thus European countries, which spend more than the USA, are also more secular than the USA.
- 41Q39: Evaluation of ideas. (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A39: Vasquez (2007) accepts that Norris and Inglehart offer a valuable explanation of the different levels of religious participation not only in Europe and in the USA, but globally. However he makes 2 criticisms:
They use only quantitative data about income levels; they don't examine people's own definitions of 'existential security'. Vasquez argues that qualitative research research is also needed.
Norris and Inglehart only see religion as a negative response to deprivation. they ignore the positive reasons people have religious participation and the appeal that some types of religion have the wealthy. - 42Q40: Summary of ideas (topic summary) (Religion, Renewal and Choice & New forms of religion)A40: some sociologists see religion changing rather than declining, linked to a shift from obligation to consumption.
New forms of religion and spirituality include believing without belonging, vicarious religion, spiritual shopping, online religion and the New Age holistic milieu. Critics argue that these changes are not enough to offset the decline in traditional religion.
Religious market theory argues that demand for religion is constant because it meets human needs by providing supernatural compensators. Religion thrives where there is diversity and choice (USA), but declines where one church as a monopoly (Europe). Rather than secularisation, there is a perpetual cycle of decline, renewal and revival. Existential security theory disagrees, arguing that religion declines in richer societies that are more equal with good welfare provision because people are more secure but is growing in poorer countries where there is greater insecurity.