organisations, movements and members Flashcards
outline Troeltsch’s distinguishment of religious organisations
- Troeltsch was the first (1912) to attempt to identify the features of different religious organisations
- he distinguishes between 2 main types of religious organisations - the church and the sect
outline denomination and cult
- in addition to churches + sects, sociologists have identified other types of religious organisations
- Niebuhr: describes denominations, e.g. Methodism, as lying midway between churches + sects
outline Troeltsch’s view churches
churches:
- large organisations, often with millions of members - e.g. Catholic Church
- run by bureaucratic hierarchy of professional priests
- claims monopoly of truth
- are universalistic + aims to include all of society although tends to attract more higher classes due to their conservative ideologies + links to state
- e.g. the British sovereign is head of both the state + Church of England
outline Troeltsch’s view of sects
sects:
- sects are small, exclusive groups
- are hostile to wider society + expects a high level of commitment
- gains their members from the poor + oppressed
- led by a charismatic leader
- has a monopoly of religious truth
outline Niebuhr’s view of denominations
denominations:
- membership is less exclusive than a sect, but they don’t appeal to the whole of society like a church
- they broadly accept society’s values, but aren’t linked to the state
- imposes minor restrictions on members, e.g. forbidding alcohol
- they are tolerant of other religious organisations + doesn’t claim a monopoly of the truth
outline Wallis’ 2 similarities + differences between religious organisations
- Wallis: highlights 2 characteristics;
1) how they see themselves: churches + sects claims that their interpretation of the faith is the only true one. denominations + cults accept that there can be many valid interpretations
2) views from wider society: churches + denominations are seen as respectable and legitimate, whereas sects + cults are seen as deviant
outline Niebuhr’s view of cults
cults:
- highly individualistic, loose-knit + usually small grouping around some shared themes + interests, but lack a sharply defined + exclusive belief system
- cults are usually led by ‘practitioners’ or ‘therapists’ who claim special knowledge
- tolerant of other organisations + their beliefs
- doesn’t demand strong commitment from followers, of whom may have little involvement in the cult once they have acquired the beliefs/ techniques it offers
- many cults are world-affirming, claiming to improve life in this world
outline from cathedrals to cults
- sociologists argue that descriptions from Troeltsch + Niebuhr of R organisations are outdated;
- e.g. Bruce: Troeltsch’s idea of a church as having a R monopoly only applied to the Catholic church before the 16thC Protestant Reformation - when it had complete control
- since then, sects + cults have grown, and R diversity has become the norm
- today, churches are no longer truly churches in Troeltsch’s sense as they have lost their monopoly + reduced to the status of denominations competing with the rest
name some examples of world-rejecting NRMs
- Moonies - to a lesser extent
- the Manson family
- Children of God
- the People’s Temple
outline new religious movements
- since the 60s, the number of new Rs + organisations has grown - e.g. the Unification Churches/ Moonies, Children of God, Transcendental Meditation etc
- Wallis: categorises these new religious movements (NRMs) into 3 groups based on their relationship with the outside world; if they reject the world, accommodate to it, or affirm it
outline world-accommodating NRMs
- these are often breakaways from existing mainstream churches/ denominations - e.g. neo-Pentecostalists who split from Catholicism
- they neither accept nor reject the world + they focus on R rather than worldly matters, seeking to restore the spiritual purity of R
- e.g. neo-Pentecostalists believe other Christian Rs have lost the Holy Spirit
- members tend to lead conventional lives
outline world-rejecting NRMs
- world-rejecting NRMs are similar to Troeltsch’s sects
- varies greatly in size, from a handful of members to hundreds of thousands - they have several characteristics;
- clearly R organisations w/ a clear notion of God
- highly critical of the outside world + expect/ seek radical change
- members must leave former life behind + live communally w/ restricted contact to outside world - all aspects of members’ lives are controlled - often accused of ‘brainwashing’
- have conservative moral codes
outline world-affirming NRMs
- these groups differ from other R groups + lacks some conventional features of R, e.g. collective worship, some aren’t highly organised
- like Rs, they offer followers access to spiritual/ supernatural powers
- they accept the world as it is + are optimistic + promises followers success in mainstream goals + values, e.g. careers + personal relationships
- are inclusive + tolerant of other Rs, but claim to offer additional special knowledge/ techniques that enable followers to unlock their own spiritual powers + achieve success/ overcome issues such as illness (‘psychologising religions)
- most are cults, whose followers are often customers rather than members + entry is through training - few demands placed on them + can continue normal lives
outline evaluations of new religious movements
- its unclear whether Wallis is categorising the movements according to their teachings, or individual members’ beliefs
- Wallis himself recognises that real NRMs rarely fit neatly into his typology + some may have features of all 3
- Stark + Bainbridge: rejects the construction of typologies altogether - we should distinguish between R organisations using just 1 criterion - the degree of conflict/ tension between the R group + wider society
name some examples of world-affirming NRMs
- Scientology
- Soka Gakkai
- Human Potential
outline Stark + Bainbridge’s distinguishment of religious organisations
- Stark + Bainbridge: identify 2 kinds of organisations that conflict with society - sects + cults;
- sects: results from schisms (splits in existing organisations) - they break away from churches usually due to disagreements about doctrine. they promise ‘other-worldly’ benefits (e.g. heaven) to those suffering econ or ethical deprivation (values conflicting with society)
- cults: are new Rs, e.g. Scientology + Christian Science, or ones new to the particular society that have been imported, e.g. TM. offers ‘this-worldly’ benefits (e.g. good health) to more prosperous individuals who are suffering psychic deprivation (e.g. homelessness) or organismic deprivation (e.g. illness)
outline Stark and Bainbridge’s subdivision of cults
- Stark + Bainbridge sub-divide cults based on how organised they are;
1) audience cults
2) client cults
3) cultic movements - they make useful distinctions between organisations, e.g. their idea of using the degree of conflict within wider society to distinguish them is similar to Troeltsch’s distinction of sect + church - however some examples don’t fit neatly into 1 category
outline Stark and Bainbridge’s ‘audience cults’ subdivision of cults
- audience cults are the least organised + don’t involve formal membership or much commitment
- there is little interaction between members - participation may be through media, e.g. astrology, UFO cults
outline Stark and Bainbridge’s ‘client cults’ subdivision of cults
- client cults are based on the relationship between a consultant + client + provide services to their followers
- in the past, were often purveyors of medical miracles, contact with the dead - but emphasis has shifted to ‘therapies’ promising personal fulfilment + self discovery
outline Stark and Bainbridge’s ‘cultic movements’ subdivision of cults
- cultic movements are the most organised + demand a higher level of commitment than other cults
- movement aims to meet all members’ religious needs + unlike followers of audience or client cults, they are rarely allowed to belong to other religious groups simultaneously
- an e.g. of cultic movements is the Moonies
- some client cults become cultic movements for their most enthusiastic followers, e.g. Scientology, which developed out of the client cult ‘Dianetics’
- some Doomsday cults that predict the end of the world + practise mass suicide are best seen as cultic movements
what is the pattern of growth of sects + cults membership
- since the 1960s, there has been rapid growth in the number of sects + cults, and in the number of members
- e.g. there are an estimated 800 NRMs + over half a million individuals belonging to these + other non-mainstream Christian churches in the UK
what are the 3 main trends for the growth of religious movements
1) marginality
2) relative deprivation
3) social change
outline marginality as an explanation for the growth of religious movements
- Troeltsch: sects tend to draw their members from the poor + oppressed
- Weber: also says how sects arise in the marginalised - such groups may feel that they are disprivileged (not receiving their justified economic rewards or social status)
- Weber: sects offer a solution to their issues by offering their members a ‘theodicy of disprivilege’ (a R explanation + justification for their suffering)
- this explains their misfortune as a test of faith - e.g. holding out the promise of rewards for keeping faithful
- many sects + millenarian movements have recruited from the marginalised poor, but since the 60s, world-rejecting NRMs, e.g. Moonies, have recruited from more affluent, well educated, young, White people
outline an AO3 evaluation for the claim that sects no longer recruit from the marginalised
- Wallis: the idea that sects now recruit from well-educated, MC, young White people doesn’t undermine Weber’s ‘theodicy of privilege’, as many of these individuals had become marginal to society
- despite their MC origins, most were hippies, dropouts and drug users
outline relative deprivation as an explanation for the growth of religious movements
- relative deprivation refers to the subjective sense of being deprived - thus its perfectly possible for someone who is privileged to feel deprived in some way
- thus, although MC people are well off, they may feel spiritually deprived, esp in todays materialistic world of which is perceived as impersonal + lacking moral value + authenticity - Wallis thus argues that they may turn to sects for a sense of community
outline Stark + Bainbridge’s view of relative deprivation as an explanation for the growth of religious movements
- Stark + Bainbridge argue that it’s the relatively deprived who break away from churches to form sects
- when MC members of a church seek to compromise its beliefs to fit in with society, deprived members are likely to break away to form sects that safeguard the original message of the organisation
outline an example of relative deprivation as an explanation for the growth of religious movements
- e.g. the deprived may stress Christ’s claim that it is harder for a rich man to enter heaven than for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle - a message that the MC want to suppress
- in contrast, the deprived may want to emphasise Christ’s message that ‘the meek shall inherit earth’
- Stark + Bainbridge: world-rejecting sects offer the deprived the compensators needed for the rewards they’re denied in this world
- they are attracted to world-accepting churches that express their status + bring them further success
outline social change as an explanation for the growth of religious movements
- Wilson: periods of social change disrupts + undermines established norms + values, producing anomie
- in response to the uncertainty + insecurity created, those most affected turn to sects as a solution
- e.g. the dislocation created by the industrial revolution in late 18thC Britain led to Methodism, which offered a sense of community, warmth + fellowship - it recruited large numbers of the new industrial WC
- Bruce: also sees the growth of NRMs as a response to social change from modernisation + secularisation - society is now secularised, so people are less attracted to trad churches + strict sects as they demand too much commitment - people are now more attracted to cults which are less demanding + require fewer sacrifices
outline the explanation for the growth of world-rejecting NRMs
- Wallis: social changes in the 60s impacted younger people, e.g. inc time spent in education
- this gave youth freedom from adult responsible + enabled a counter culture to develop
- the growth of radical political movements offered alternative ideas about the future
- world-rejecting NRMs were attractive in this context as they offered young people a more idealistic way of life
- Bruce: it was the failure of counter-culture to change the world that led to disillusioned youth turning to R to change society
outline the explanation for the growth of world-affirming NRMs
- Bruce: the growth of world-affirming NRMs is a response to modernity, esp to the rationalisation of work
- work no longer provides meaning/ source of identity, unlike the past, when the Protestant Ethic gave work R meaning
- simultaneously, achievement is expected, even though we may lack opportunities to succeed
- these organisations provide both a sense of identity + techniques that promise success in the world
- movements of the ‘middle ground’ have attracted disillusioned former members of the world-rejecting NRMs (which have been less successful) as they are a step back to a more conventional lifestyle
outline the dynamics of sects + NRMs
- while churches, e.g. the Catholic church + Church of England have had a history lasting over many centuries, sects are often short-lived, frequently lasting only a single gen or less
- sociologists therefore are interested to understand the dynamics of sect development + their longevity
outline denomination or death
- Niebuhr: sects are world-rejecting organisations that come into existence because of a schism
- N argues that sects are short lived, and within a generation, they will either die out, or compromise with the world by abandoning extreme ideas to become a denomination
- there are 3 main reasons for this: the second generation born into the sect, the Protestant ethic effect, death of a leader
outline the 3 reasons for the death/ shift to denomination of sects
1) 2nd generation, who are born into the sect, lack the commitment of their parents, who consciously rejected the world + joined voluntarily
2) Protestant ethic effect: sects that practice asceticism tend to become more prosperous, e.g. with Methodists in 19thC, of which such members may want to compromise with the world, so will either leave or the sect will abandon its world-rejecting beliefs
3) death of leader: sects w/ a charismatic leader either collapse from leader’s death, or a more formal bureaucratic leadership takes over, making it a denomination
outline the sectarian cycle
- Stark + Bainbridge: sees R organisations as moving through a cycle;
- 1st stage: in ‘schism’, there is tension between the needs of deprived + privileged members of church. deprived members break away to found a world-rejecting sect
- 2nd stage: in this ‘initial fervour’, there is a charismatic leader + tension between the sects beliefs + wider society
- 3rd stage: in ‘denominationalism’, the Protestant ethic effect + the coolness of the 2nd generation distinguishes the fervour
- 4th stage: in ‘establishment’, the sect becomes more world-accepting + tension w/ society reduces
- 5th stage: ‘further schisms’ result when more zealous/ less privileged members break away to found new sects true to the original message
outline established sects
- Wilson: not all sects follow a pattern like S+B’s sectarian cycle - whether they do/don’t depends how they answer ‘what shall we do to be saved?’
- conversionist sects: e.g. Evangelicals, who aim to convert large numbers of people, are likely to grow into more formal, large denominations
- adventist sects: e.g. Jehovah’s Witnesses, believe that to be saved, they must be separate from the corrupt world, preventing members from compromising + becoming a denomination
- Wilson: some sects have survived many generations, e.g. Pentecostalists, Amish, Mormons, Quakers - instead of becoming denominations they become established sects from which parents successfully socialise the next gen into a high level of commitment
outline Wilson’s view of the effect of globalisation for established sects
- Wilson argues that globalisation will make it harder for sects to stay separate from the outside world
- but, globalisation will also make it easier to recruit in developing countries, where there are large numbers of deprived people of whom are attracted to the message of sects
- this is exemplified in the success of Pentecostalism
outline Heelas’ view of the New Age
- Heelas says there are 2 common themes that characterise the New Age;
1) self-spirituality: New Agers seeking spirituality have turned away from traditional ‘external’ Rs, e.g. church, instead look inside themselves to find it
2) detraditionalisation: the New Age rejects the spiritual authority of external traditional sources, e.g. priests, sacred texts - instead it values personal experience + belief that we can discover the truth for + within ourselves
outline the growth of the New Age
- New Age: refers to a range of beliefs + activities that have been widespread since the 80s
- Heelas: estimated there are about 2,000 such activities + 145,000 practitioners in the UK
- many are loosely organised + eclectic (combining unconnected ideas)
- they include belief in UFOs/ aliens, astrology, tarot, crystals, alternative medicine, meditation, psychotherapy etc
- New Age beliefs vary, e.g. can include world-affirming aspects which help people succeed in everyday world, as well as world-rejecting aspects that allows inds to be enlightened in their inner world - Heelas argues most New Age beliefs offer both
outline Heelas’ first 2 ways that the New Age + Modernity are linked
1) source of identity: in Mod society, an ind has many roles (work, family, friends) but there is little overlap between them, resulting in a fragmented identity - New Age beliefs offer an ‘authentic’ identity
2) consumer culture: creates dissatisfaction because it never delivers the perfection promised (e.g. in advertising) - NA offers an alternative way to achieve perfection
outline postmodernity and the New Age
- several explanations for the popularity of the New Age have been proposed;
- e.g. Drane: its appeal is due to a shift into postmodern society, in which there is a new loss of faith in meta-narratives
- science promised progress for a better world, but has given us war, genocide, environmental destruction, global warming - thus, people have lost faith in professionals, e.g. scientists + doctors, and are now disillusioned with the churches’ failure to meet their spiritual needs
- thus, they turn to New Age beliefs in which inds can find the truth from within
outline the New Age and modernity
- Bruce: growth of the New Age is a feature of modern society - not postmodernity
- modern society values individualism, which is a key element of NA beliefs, as well as of those in ‘expressive professions’, e.g. artists, community workers, of whom largely make up the NA
- B notes how NA beliefs are often softer versions of more demanding/ self-disciplined trad East religions, e.g. Buddhism, which are watered down for Westerners
- this explains why NA activities are audience or client cults, as they make fewer demands for their followers
- B sees the NA eclecticism/ ‘pick n mix spiritual shopping’ as typical of R in capitalist/ consumerist modern society
name Heelas’ 4 ways that the New Age + Modernity are linked
1) a source of identity
2) consumer culture
3) rapid social change
4) decline of organised religion
outline Heelas’ last 2 ways that the New Age + Modernity are linked
3) rapid social change: …in Mod society disrupts est norms + values, resulting in anomie - NA provides sense of certainty + truth as sects do
4) decline of organised religion: Modernity leads to secularisation, which removes trad alternatives to NA beliefs - e.g. in the USA, NA is strongest where churchgoing is lowest, e.g. in California
what is the difference between being atheist + agnostic
- atheists believe that there is no God, whereas agnostics believe its impossible to know whether God exists or not
outline gender differences in religiosity
- Davie: there are gender differences in terms of R practices, beliefs, self-identification, prayer etc, e.g;
- most churchgoers are female + more likely to attend church regularly - F churchgoers outnumber males by almost 500,000
- more W say they are R (54% vs 41%)
- more W say R is important to them + more describe themselves as spiritual
- fewer W are agnostic or atheist
name 5 explanations for women’s higher participation in religion
- risk
- socialisation
- roles
- paid work
what do Miller and Hoffman say about gender differences in religiosity
Miller + Hoffman: there are 3 main reasons for W’s higher religiosity;
1) risk-taking
2) socialisation
3) gender roles
outline Miller + Hoffman’s idea of risk as an explanation for gender differences in religiosity
1) gender differences in risk-taking are a reason for R differences; by not being religious, people are risking the possibility of R being true + going to Hell
- as men are more risk-taking than W, they are more likely to take the risk of not being R
- Davie: with the decline in danger of childbirth, W are becoming less R as they face fewer risks
outline Miller + Hoffman’s idea of socialisation as an explanation for gender differences in religiosity
2) W are more religious because they’re socialised to be more passive, obedient, + caring
- these are qualities valued by most Rs, so it follows that W are more likely than men to be attracted to R
- men who have these effeminate qualities are more likely to be religious
outline Miller + Hoffman’s idea of gender roles as an explanation for gender differences in religiosity
3) M+H note that W’s gender roles means they’re more likely than M to work part-time or be full time carers, so will have more time to participate in R activities
- W are also more likely to be attracted to the church as a source of gender identity
- Greely: W’s role in caring for other family members inc W’s religiosity as it involves responsibility for their ultimate welfare as well as their everyday needs
what does Davie argue about gender differences in religiosity
- Davie: W are closer to birth + death (through child bearing + caring for elderly, sick, or dying relatives) which brings them closer to ‘ultimate’ questions about the meaning of life that R is concerned with
- this also fits with differences in the way M + W see God - M are more likely to see a God of power + control, while W tend to see a God of love + forgiveness
outline Bruce’s view of paid work as an explanation of gender differences in religiosity
- Bruce: W’s religiosity is a result of lower levels of involvement in paid work
- B links this to secularisation processes, e.g. rationalisation
- over the last 2 centuries, this has gradually driven R out of the male public sphere of work, confining it to the private family/ personal life sphere - of which W are more concerned with
-as R has become privatised, M’s religiosity has declined more rapidly than W’s
outline Brown’s view of paid work as an explanation of gender differences in religiosity
- Brown outlines ‘the decline of female piety’, in which from the 1960s, W too have been withdrawing from R due to W taking on secular, masculine roles in the paid work sphere
outline the 2 reasons why R remains more attractive to W than M
1) R has a strong affinity with values, e.g. caring for others. W continue to have a primary role in caring, both in the private family sphere + in the paid work they do
2) M’s withdrawal from R in the last 2 centuries meant that churches gradually became feminised spaces that emphasise W’s concerns, e.g. caring + relationships. Woodhead: this continues to make R more attractive to W - the introduction of W priests + bishops in 1994 + 2015 may have reinforced this
outline women and the New Age
- Heelas + Woodhead: found that 80% of participants in the holistic milieu in Kendal were F - may be due to the fact that W are more involved with ‘nature’ + natural processes, e.g. through childbirth, and a healing role
- NA movements often celebrate natural processes + involve cults of healing, giving W a higher status + sense of self-worth
- another attractive element of the NA, is its emphasis of the importance of being ‘authentic’ rather than merely acting out roles, e.g. gender roles - this is attractive to W as they’re more likely to perceive their roles as restrictive
outline Bruce’s view of women and the New Age
- Bruce: W’s experience of child-rearing makes them less aggressive + goal-oriented and more cooperative + caring - where M wish to achieve, W wish to feel, which fits the expressive emphasis of the New Age
outline Brown’s view of the individual sphere of women + the New Age
- Brown: the NA ‘self-religions’ - those that emphasise experience rather than external authority attract W as they appeal to W’s wish for autonomy
- on the other hand, some W are attracted to fundamentalism because of the certainties of a traditional gender role prescribed to them
outline the individual sphere of women + the New Age
- W in paid work may experience a role conflict between their masculinised, instrumental role in the public sphere of work, and their traditional expressive feminine role in the private family sphere
- Woodhead: for these W, NA beliefs are attractive as they appeal to the 3rd sphere - the individual sphere
- this sphere is concerned with individual autonomy + personal growth
outline the organismic, ethical and social deprivation which sects can compensate for
- organismic deprivation: stems from physical + mental health problems - W are more likely to suffer ill health, so seek the healing that sects offer
- ethical deprivation: W tend to be more morally conservative - they thus are more likely to regard the world as being in moral decline + be attracted to sects, who often share this view
- social deprivation: sects attract poorer groups + W are more likely to be poor
outline class differences in relation to women + the New Age
- Bruce: there are class differences in the types of R that appeal to women
- while NA beliefs + practices that emphasise personal autonomy, control + self-development appeal to some MC W, WC W are more attracted to ideas that give them a passive role, e.g. belief in an all-powerful God, or fatalistic ideas, e.g. horoscopes, lucky charms
- Bruce: these differences fit in with other class differences, e.g. in education, where the MC believe in the ability of inds to control their own destiny contrasts with fatalistic WC attitudes
outline women, compensators and sects
- Bruce: there are 2x as many W than M involved in sects
- religious market theorists, Stark + Bainbridge, argue that people may participate in sects as they offer compensators for organismic, ethical and social deprivation
- these forms of deprivation are more common among W, which explains their higher rate of sect membership
in Latin America, about _% of the population are members of _ churches
- in Latin America, about 20% of the population are members of Pentecostal churches
outline the Pentecostal gender paradox
- since the 70s, Pentecostalism has grown rapidly in many parts of the world, esp among the poor, e.g. in Latin America
- P is generally regarded as a patriarchal R; M are seen as both heads of the household + heads of the church (all clergy are male)
- despite this, P has proved attractive for W, Martin: describes this as ‘Pentecostal gender paradox’ - why would a conservative patriarchal R be attractive to W?
outline Brusco’s study of Pentecostals in Colombia
- in Brusco’s study of Pentecostals in Colombia, the answer to the Pentecostal gender paradox lies in the fact that P demands its followers to adopt an ascetic lifestyle, which resembles the personal discipline of 16thC Calvinists
- P also insists on trad gender division of labour which requires M to provide for their family
outline Pentecostalism’s lack of Western-style female liberation
- Pentecostalism doesn’t offer Western-style women’s liberation; M retain their leadership in the family + church
- but as Brusco shows, Latin American W can + do use P as a means of improving their position
- Drogus: although P doctrine is that M should have authority over W, church magazines + educational materials often encourage more equal relations within marriage
outline the answer to the Pentecostal gender paradox
- Pentecostal women can use the ascetic ideas of the R to combat a widespread culture of machismo in Latin America, where M often spend 40% of the household’s income on alcohol, tobacco, gambling + prostitutes
- P men are pressured by their church community to change their ways, act responsibly + redirect their income back to the household, which raises their standard of living
- thus, although P is patriarchal, its critique of sexual irresponsibility + wastefulness of machismo culture makes it popular among LA W
outline recent trends of gender differences in religiosity
- although W remain more likely to be R than M, their has been a decline in their participation in R activities
- possible reasons could be; movement of W into paid work, or their rejection of traditional subordinate gender roles
- because trad Rs tend to be closely tied to trad gender roles, W’s rejection of subordination has led them to reject trad R simultaneously
- although some W are now attracted to New Age beliefs + practices, their numbers are relatively modest
name 2 explanations for reasons for ethnic differences in relgiosity
- cultural defence
- cultural transition
outline ethnicity and religiosity
- the UK today is a multi-ethnic, multi-religious society
- although the biggest R group are Christians (63% of population), there are significant numbers of Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs, almost all belonging to EM groups from the Indian subcontinent, while many Christians are of Black African/ Caribbean origin
- for R participation, there are higher than avg rates for most EM groups - e.g. in London, Black people are 2x likely to attend church as White people
- Muslims, Hindus + Black Christians are also considerably more likely than White Christians to see R as important + to attend a place of worship weekly
- among Christians, Bl people are more likely than Whites to be part of Pentecostal churches, where they make up 40%
- however, Modood: found a decline in the importance of R for all ethnic groups, esp among the 2nd gen
outline reasons for ethnic differences in religiosity
- one explanation is that most EM groups originate from poorer countries with trad cultures, both of which produce higher levels of R belief + practice - from which in arrival to the UK, they + their children maintain their R beliefs
- however, this disregards the impact of their experiences as immigrants + as minorities in new society, and how this may give R a new role as cultural defence + cultural transition, as Bruce argues
outline religion as a cultural defence
- Bruce: in situations of uncertainty or hostility, R offers support + a sense of cultural identity
- Bird: R among EMs can be a basis for communal solidarity to preserve one’s culture + language, + a way of coping with oppression in a racist society
- e.g. with Black African or Caribbean Christians, many found that White churches in the UK didn’t welcome them, which led to creation of Black-led churches, esp Pentecostal churches
- Brierly: shows a significant growth of new churches in London catering for specific language + nationalities as a result of recent immigration
outline religion as cultural transition
- Herberg: R can also be a means of easing the transition into a new culture by providing support + a sense of community for EM groups in their new environment
- this explains high level of participation of 1st gen immigrants in the US, of which Bruce sees reflected in the UK for Irish, African Caribbean, Muslim, etc communities
outline Pryce’s study in relation to religion as cultural transition + defence
- Pryce’s study of the African Caribbean community in Bristol shows how both cultural defence + transition are important
- Pentecostalism is a highly adaptive ‘religion of the oppressed’ that provided migrants with values appropriate to their new world
- P helped African Caribbeans to adapt to British society, playing a ‘Protestant ethic’ role in helping its members succeed by encouraging self-reliance + resourcefulness
- it gave people mutual support + hope of improving their situation
what are Voas + Crockett’s 3 reasons for the age differences in religiosity
- Voas + Crockett suggest 3 explanations for age differences; 1) the ageing effect, 2) the period or cohort effect, 3) secularisation
- ## V+C found little evidence for the first 2 explanations, so argue secularisation is the main reason for why young people are less R
it is predicted that by _, _-_yr olds will make up only _% of all churchgoers
- it is predicted that by 2030, 15-19yr olds will make up only 2% of all churchgoers
outline age and religious participation
- the general pattern of R participation is that the older a person is, the more likely they are to attend R services
- but there is 1 exception to this - under 15yrs are generally more likely to attend church than those older than them - this may be because they have less choice + are made to go by their parents
- for any age group apart from those 65yrs+, there is a continuous fall in church attendance + the fall is sharpest among the young
outline the period or cohort effect as Voas + Crockett’s explanation for age differences in religiosity
- people born during a particular period may be more or less likely to be R because of the particular events they lived through, e.g. war or rapid social changes
outline the ageing effect as Voas + Crockett’s explanation for age differences in religiosity
- the ageing effect is the view that people turn to R as they get older
- e.g. in the Kendal Project, Heelas demonstrated how people become more interested in spirituality with age
- as we approach death, we ‘naturally’ become more concerned about spiritual matters, the afterlife, repentance of past misdeeds, etc
- thus, we’re more likely to attend church
what is Arweck + Beckford’s explanation for the secularisation of R beliefs generationally
- Arweck + Beckford: the reason for young people being less R is due to the ‘virtual collapse of religious socialisation’ after the 1960s
- e.g. the traditional Sunday schools, which in the 50s enrolled 1/3 of all 14yr olds have all disappeared
- Voas: even parents who share the same faith, have only a 50% chance of raising their child to be a churchgoer as an adult - when they are of different faiths, this falls to 25%
outline secularisation as Voas + Crockett’s explanation for age differences in religiosity
- as R declines in importance, each generation becomes less religious than the one before
- Voas + Crockett: in each succeeding generation, only 1/2 as many people are R compared with the generation before
