Against secularisation 2 Flashcards
The religious practice of ethnic minorities shows that religion remains important in society
An increase in the number of ethnic minorities in the UK has also increased both membership and attendance of religious organisations. London has an increasing churchgoing population due to the rise in immigrants from Africa
According to Huntington, Ethnic minorities have helped to inspire the ‘unsecularisation’ of society. He says the world is experiencing a religious revival as religious identity is becoming more important as a way of people distinguishing themselves from others in a multicultural society.
The process of globalisation has increased contact between different ethnic groups, but this has not led to greater social unity; instead groups have become more aware of their differences to others in society and this difference has been emphasised through religious identity.
He said Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus use their religion as a way of declaring their ethnic and cultural differences from other groups in society, and these religious differences can develop into an “us” versus “them” relationship.
The religious practice of ethnic minorities shows that religion remains important in society A03
Pro-secularists dismiss the idea that ethnic minorities have revived religion in the UK. They view the increase of ethnic minority religious practice as a temporary phenomenon and they claim immigrants will eventually lose their religious identity as they become assimilated into the host country.
The rise of NRM’s is evidence of a spiritual revolution
They claim there are areas of religious vitality amongst NRM’s. The newer religious forms tend to have a more privatised idea of religious practice , with a focus on developing ‘inner spirituality’. This also means that the religious practice of NRM’s is different to churches and cannot be measured in the same way.
Greely sees NRM’s as evidence of what can be termed “resacralisation”. That is, the growth and diversity of new religious movements as evidence of the renewal and vitality of religious beliefs in modern societies. Although there have been falls in traditional religious practice, at the same time there has been a spiritual revolution as people are attracted to New Age They are more informal and often require less commitment than conventional religion.
Lyon says people today have more choice as consumers of religion – they are spiritual shoppers. Religion is now individualised as people choose the elements they want to explore. Lyon also suggests that religion has been disembedded, for example the electronic churches relocate onto the internet, allowing people to express their faith without physically attending church
The rise of NRM’s is evidence of a spiritual revolution A03
The impact of NRM’s and NAM’s on religious practice is insignificant. Although there has been a growth in these organisations over the past 50 years, such as Scientology and the Moonies, these are proportionately very small in number. It is also difficult to establish membership numbers and participation rates because these are difficult to measure and the organisations tend to inflate their membership numbers to present themselves as rather more established than their size would warrant.
Religion still has a huge influence on society’s moral values
Although people may not follow the religious commandments, (1, 2 and 3) the moral Commandments are values that most individuals will support without necessarily having any religious belief as they are considered to be the core of society’s values.
The values that were originally created through religious teachings have come to serve as a “design for living” for society. Therefore, Parsons argues that religious values persist in society today and have become embedded in the “overall moral framework” of how people are expected to behave.
Religion still has a huge influence on society’s moral values A03
However, moral values (“mores”) have become separated from their religious origins, such that there is no-longer a clear connection between moral values such as “Thou shalt not kill” and a necessary belief in “God”. In this respect, people can easily adopt the moral values originally developed through religious institutions and organisation without necessarily having to buy-into the institutions themselves
