Christianity and secularisation Flashcards
Outline the rise of secularisation
Reformation: The reformation allowed for a more individualised approach to religion, enabling people to access their own personal relationship with scripture without the need of mediation by religious authority. As society became less reliant on religious authority for their source of information.
Post World Wars - Two world wars saw a decline in faith as it became increasingly difficult for people to believe in an omnibenevolent God.
Enlightenment - The enlightenment era saw people favour empirical methods as ways of gaining new knowledge. Society shifted to the scientific method and use of reason was encouraged. Kant advocated for a world view based on scientific enquiry rather than religious dogma.
Industrialisation and urbanisation:
The industrial revolution led to urban migration meaning society became more diverse and pluralistic. New world views and ideologies emerged meaning Christianity began to lose some dominance and power over public concession.
Separation of Church and State - the establishment of the welfare state in the UK meant the Church’s role in social care diminished as the state took a more prominent role. Similarly, a growth in liberal attitudes conflicted with traditional religious views; civil rights movements advocated for a more secular approach to governance to ensure equity for all citizens.
Religion also began less necessary as a an authoritative source for morality. Enlightenment thinkers argued reason alone could be the source for moral and societal values. Secular morality often is rooted in religious traditions such as beliefs in the sanctity of life, however these attitudes are now widely accepted on a rational basis rather than religious. This contrasted previous theistic values; Despite his value in reason and believing it could discern some truths, Aquinas argued divine revelation through scripture was required for a complete understanding.
Outline critics of religion
Feuerbach: Religion is man-made and a projection of humanities desires and wishes. God allows us to cultivate a sense of self in a way which is distinctively human and thus finding peace with God is a matter of becoming at one with one’s true nature.
Freud - saw religion as an “illusion” and belief in God as a form of neurosis. Humanity craved a paternal figure to cope with the uncertainty and troubles of the world, this desire was projected onto belief in a fatherly God.
Dawkins - author of the God Delusion, Dawkins believes that society needs to outgrow religion. He argues the God of Christianity is “bloodthirsty ethical cleanser” and religion is the source of discrimination and conflict. Promoting religion he sees as a form of brainwashing. The God of the Gaps argument is outlined by Dawkins, suggesting religion allows us to be satisfied with not understanding the world and that is contrary to good science.
Karl Marx - Marx viewed religion as the “opium of the people” used as a tool by the bourgeoise to keep the exploited workers enslaved and sedated; religion thereby serves as a false sense of comfort by promising a better future in the afterlife. This distracts the working classes and prevents them fighting for real social change and addressing economic issues.
Discuss McGrath’s response to Dawkins
McGrath argues science can be compatible with religion, describing them as a “partially overlapping magisteria” he sttaes they are just different but equally valid ways of interpreting the world.
Moreover, he criticises Dawkins of a straw argument by misrepresenting the diversity in ranges of religious thought by only referring to extreme and literalist viewpoints. This shows how Dawkins’ position is critically flawed as he is demonstrating a confirmation bias by not addressing the nuances in religious belief by reducing them to simplistic and easily refutable positions. In doing so, Dawkins shows the same fundamentalism he so strongly critics Christianity of.
Outline materialism
As religious belief has declined, valuing material possessions and values has gained more importance than spiritual belief.
The industrial revolution further enforced capitalism and value in wealth.
Materialism serves as a potential threat to Christianity as an excessive focus on wealth and possessions could could serve as a distraction from spirituality and lead to a neglect of God.
Outline Jesus’ response to materialism
Materialism is grounded in modern society with many equating monetary success to personal value.
Like today society in the early biblical period valued wealth and saw it as a favour from God.
However, Jesus discouraged this view and of placing too much value on material assets, asserting that spiritual wealth should outweigh material success.
“it is easier for a camel to get through the eye of needle than for someone who is rich to get into the Kingdom of God”
The Parable of the rich man and Lazarus teaches that wealth has no value in the afterlife and teaches the moral imperative to care for those less fortunate and positioning charity as fundamental to Christian values.
St Paul says how “the love of money is the root of all evil.”
Outline Christian views towards materialism a
The prosperity gospel believe that wealth is a sign of God’s favour and argue that those who are faithful and give generously to evangelist causes will be rewarded with prosperity.
Televangelist Joel Osteen advocates for this view arguing “it is God’s will for you to live in prosperity instead of poverty”
In contrast the Bruderhof are a branch of Christianity which live simple lives by sharing their possessions and rejecting modern secular materialistic ideals.
Christian ideals and materialistic ones have been shown to be mutually compatible. For example, the Cadbury brothers were both Quakers who showed a strong sense of social responsibility motivated by their Christian beliefs. Eg: making steps to improving the living conditions of the working class, they built Bournville village for their wage earners, providing affordable yet pleasant housing.
Outline Christian responses to the rise in secularisation
Fresh Expressions works alongside the Church to meet people where they are and from within their own context rather than drawing them into tradition Christian practices.
They aim to listen to people’s relative experiences and see how the life and attitudes of Jesus can be applied to them in their contemporary life. Initiatives such as fresh expressions have influenced and reshaped the traditional denominational model of the Church, offering new ways of engaging in faith.
The House of Church movement believe the rise in secularisation has caused great hostility towards Christianity, arguing the religion faces the same persecution it did in the first centuries of its existence when it faced opposition from society and persecutory authorities.
The House of Church movement aim to respond to this rise in secularisation by returning to earlier the practices of the early Church. This includes meeting in private houses and often adopting a fundamentalist approach to scripture such as gospel and glossolalia, thus moving away from conventional Church practices.
Outline liberation theology
Emerging from 1970s Latin America, liberation theology argues in order to carry out Jesus’ mission of liberating the oppressed, Christianity must address the societal inequalities and exploitative economic structures.
Liberation theologian Oscar Romeo advocated for the army to not follow the orders of the exploitive government.
Therefore they suggest orthopraxy should precede orthodoxy and so action should be prescribed first by addressing the structural causes of economic injustice and then the theology should be figured out later. This approach mirrors Marxist influences and suggests if Marx’s analysis of our economic situation is accurate, then a Christian should accept that helping the poor requires not merely easing the symptoms of poverty through charity but addressing its actual causes through structural change to our economy and society.
This contrasts a traditional Christian approach which prescribes orthodoxy first which could be seen as arguably disconnected with the practical reality of what actually works in the contemporary world to fulfil Jesus’ message of helping the poor.
Outline responses to liberation theology
Pope John Paul II argues liberation theology is too political and anthropocentric by focussing too much on human socio-economic problems can lead to a lack of spirituality.
