Beliefs 2 - Different Versions

Question 1

Ernst Troeltsch (1931) church characteristics and organisation?

Answer 1

‘Church’ is a large, formal religious organisation
Has an official hierarchy (CofE Archbishop of Canterbury) and believes it is the only one that’s right and doesn’t like challenges E.g the inquisition, usually national, wants to be more
It’s also a business with people doing non-religious functions (education, welfare, charity, investment banking, etc.) and is very wealthy (CofE £8.3bn 2022)
Usually monolithic

Question 2

Church hierarchy?

Answer 2

All have leaders (CofE Archbishop of Canterbury, Catholic Pope, etc.)
Self-selecting recruitment
Professional salaried clergy (promotions, pensions, etc.)
Catholic: deacon, priest, bishop, archbishop, cardinal, pope

Question 3

Church membership?

Answer 3

Individuals may not have to constantly prove their faith or have to do anything particular to join (some faiths different e.g Islam)
People are born into it (baptism and christening is not the persons choice)
Churches don’t withdraw people from society and people come from all classes but they appeal to upper class because it is ideologically conservative

Question 4

Church Ideology (orientation)?

Answer 4

Troeltsch (1931) “stabilises and determines the political order”
Church is close to state and has conservative viewpoint so appeal to upper class
Monopoly on truth

Question 5

How is what Troeltsch said true?

Answer 5

-Some countries have retained strong churches (Wallis and Bruce (1986) Catholic Church in Ireland, Spain, Portugal, etc. acts as a universal church, and claims authority over society)
-Ireland bishops receive state support for teaching Catholicism
-1983 they were allowed to denounce an established Pentecostal Protestant group as a dangerous cult
-‘Church’ maybe more appropriate to religion in non-Christian society e.g. Iran exerts church as a Islamic state

Question 6

Troeltsch’s other criticisms of church categorisation?

Answer 6

-Bruce: churches are historical and can describe premodern Christian society but cannot continue in modern society
-Robertson (1987) churches are further away from the state (Catholic Church opposed Polish communism, Coptic Christian’s in Egypt, etc.) as they are transnational organisations

Question 7

Church ideology criticisms?

Answer 7

-Nowadays the church has devolved into sects (Lutheran church in 1547, Calvinism, Methodism) so the church can’t just support a single set of beliefs reinforced by all in society
-Dame Butler-Sloss (2015, commission on religion and belief in british public life) the church may not be revelvant because of the sects, increase in atheism, and new religions practiced
-Many churches tolerate other beliefs and don’t say they are completely right
-CofE clashed with Tory government 1980s and 1990s. Davie (1989) growing gap in CofE between lay members (conservative) and senior members (radical)

Question 8

Examples of ideology criticisms?

Answer 8

2015, Commission on Religion and Belief in British Public Life:
Schools had no legal requirement to provide daily Christian worship
Next coronation should reflect religious pluralism
CofE bishops in House of Lords should be reduced
Nick Clegg (2014 Lib Dems) recommended the disestablishment (separating church and state) of CofE

Question 9

Church lifespan?

Answer 9

Long (Christianity)

Question 10

How are denominations like churches?

Answer 10

Large membership from all strata (under 1 million Pentecostals in uk)
Formal bureaucracies and hierarchy’s
Can chose or be born into it
Not exclusive, no membership tests
Conservative beliefs with less involvement from members

Question 11

Evaluation of denomination?

Answer 11

Profound differences in belief and practice in each denomination (170 types of Pentecostalism in Uk, 400 globally)
People recognise denominations differently (Mormons are a church in Utah, but denomination in rest of USA)
Older denominations different from newer ones (Methodist is very white and sober, Pentecostalism have a large black congregation and worship is more energetic)
Secularisation means people aren’t joining so they’re shrinking to sects (Methodism in the next 30 years)

Question 12

How are denominations unlike a church?

Answer 12

Separate from state but accept wider society
Less upper class involvement
Less universal appeal (2000 UK Methodists: 384, 527, Baptist: 21, 243 (Brierley 2001)
Do not claim monopoly on the truth (Pentecostals see only them as being saved by god at the end of time)
Looser hierarchies (rarely have bishops)

Question 13

Examples of denominations?

Answer 13

Methodism, started by Wesley in 1739 (salvation means believing Jesus died for the sins of everyone and to have faith in god)
Became separate from church
Bruce (1995) 1767: 23,000 Methodists, 1900: 800,000

Question 14

What is a denomination?

Answer 14

Niebuhr (1929) sects that to middle classes have become respectable. Membership is Democratic and all have a say in its running, clergy don’t claim to be supernatural, between a church and sect
Stark and Bainbridge (1985) share some but not all features of a church

Question 15

Sect organisation?

Answer 15

Smaller and more strongly integrated than other religious organisation

Question 16

Sect hierarchy?

Answer 16

No hierarchy of paid officials
Authority rests with charismatic leader (claims supernatural relationship with god)
Often imitated by women (Seventh Day Adventists, Ellen Day, Christian Science Mary Baker Eddy)

Question 17

Sect membership?

Answer 17

Deeply committed to beliefs
Small
Have to consciously join (can’t be born into it)
Mostly from working classes (e.g Black Muslims in America)
Some from middle classes (e.g Moonies)
Some form of testing to join
Highly committed and integrated
Bruce (1995) women more involved (2:1)

Question 18

Sect lifespan?

Answer 18

Niebuhr (1929) Short (leaders die, next generation aren’t as committed or (Bruce, 1996) become denominations)

Question 19

Orientation of sects?

Answer 19

Anti-state
Reject and isolate from society
But sometimes can want to see wider change within society

Question 20

Sect ideology?

Answer 20

Monopoly on truth
Wilson (1966/1970; 2003) Conversionist sect - convert large groups, more likely to become denominations
Adventist sects - await salvation, become separate from world and doesn’t become denomination (e.g. Amish)

Question 21

Examples of sects?

Answer 21

Moonies
People’s Temple (1970s, set up by Reverend Jim Jones. In 1978 entire membership died after taking cyanide)

Question 22

Criticisms of sects (as an organisation tool)?

Answer 22

-Very few share the same beliefs (Wilson and Wallis criticised for categorising sects BUT claim their categories help sociologists)
-Unfair of media to call them dangerous (Barrett (2008) all unusual religious movements are stigmatised against, vs Beckford (2010) stereotypes used against them all found in mainstream religion too

Question 23

New Age Movement background?

Answer 23

New range of ideas such as meditations, clairvoyance, psychotherapy, astrology, witchcraft, contacting aliens, etc. some from Eastern cultures that have become popular
-Drane (1999) postmodernity (modern society hasn’t improved life so turn to this)
-Bruce (1996) and Heelas (1995) could only be achieved in a globalised society

Question 24

New Age Movement membership?

Answer 24

Difficult to say, some wider acceptance (more about self-spirituality)
E.g:
• the annual Mind, Body and Spirit Convention, which has been held in London since 1977
- Transcendental Meditation now has its own University of Management in the Netherlands
Women more attracted to it because its not ran by men
People who have been through trauma are also more likely to believe in it as a healing process
Bruce (1996) university educated middle class in expressive professions (actors, counsellors, teachers, etc.)
Drane (1999) those who are disillusioned with society

Question 25

New Age Movement orientation?

Answer 25

Sometimes promotes Capitalism (Gurus, online courses, crystals and meditations often sold, encourages freedom of speech and independence) sometimes dislikes parts of it
Bruce (1995) says it is less radical than some new religions
Can be world affirming (Transcendental Meditation now has its own University of Management in the Netherlands) or world rejecting but most offer both

Question 26

New Age ideology?

Answer 26

Less about monopoly of the truth (too many working parts to make it work) but each one will claim that it can help
Paul Heelas (1996) more about self-spirituality and salvation comes from healing and helping yourself which could come from a range of other things (see background slide)
Sees individuals and their sense of who they are as the only genuine source of truth or understanding
No doctrine that must be rigidly followed but eastern influences (e.g TM is Hindu)
Drane (1999) monistic (oneness of the universe, truth found in everything) or dualistic (external intervention for salvation)

Question 27

New Age Lifespan?

Answer 27

Unclear e.g meditation, astrology, etc. has existed for centuries, but contacting aliens is a fairly new concept

Question 28

New Age hierarchy?

Answer 28

Gurus claim they can help but no real hierarchy

Question 29

New Age organisation?

Answer 29

Lots of people who claim they can help but no condensed organisation or bureaucracy

Question 30

Heelas 4 ways modernity links to new ageism?

Answer 30

1. Modernity gives people a ‘multiplicity of roles’ so people have a fragmented identity so offers an identity
2. Offers a new way to perfection (not diet, make-up, clothes, etc.)
3. Periods of rapid social change lead people to seek security in spiritual beliefs
4. The decline of mainstream religions lead people to find alternative spiritual ideas

Question 31

Sect categories (Wilson 1970)?

Answer 31

Introversionist - cut themselves off from society, viewed as threatening
Conversionist - seek to convert and ‘save’ as many people as possible (e.g Mormons)
Reformist - improve society through their teachings (e.g. Quakers)
Manipulationist - promote discipline and asceticism (e.g Opus Dei)
Millenarian - divine intervention is imminent and judgement day will occur (e.g Jehovah’s Witnesses)

Question 32

Different types of cults Stark and Bainbridge (1975)?

Answer 32

Audience cult (passive, might buy a book or listen to a talk)
Client cults (works like a patient/doctor relationship)
Cultic movement (looks to fulfil all the spiritual needs of their customers and becomes more like a church with people identifying as it)

Question 33

Examples of cults?

Answer 33

Scientology (started as a audience cult, became a client cult and then a cultic movement)
Heaven’s Gate

Question 34

Organisation and hierarchy of cults?

Answer 34

Loose structure
No professional clergy

Question 35

Membership of cults?

Answer 35

Small memberships and clientele that buy into a service offered
Consist of people who use the service but don’t meet as a group
Varies considerably with the persons experiences and interpretations
No formal joining mechanism
Members rarely retained over a long period of time (lack formal socialising mechanisms, once they’ve learnt the knowledge they don’t want to be a formal member)

Question 36

Lifespan of cults?

Answer 36

Varies with market demand
Not usually long

Question 37

Ideology of cults?

Answer 37

Not associated with supernatural power
Rarely demand strong commitment
Tolerant of other beliefs (vague so no concept of heresy, ‘Scientology is not a dogmatic religion in which one is asked to accept anything on faith alone’ - Scientology website
Lack clearly defined doctrine
Some can be word-affirming or world-rejecting

Question 38

Heelas (1996) types of modernity?

Answer 38

Utilitarian individualism - maximise happiness and material success
Expressive individualism - importance of being yourself