religion and social change

Question 1

religion as a conservative force

Answer 1

conservative in the sense of ‘traditional’ e.g. defending traditional customs, institutions, moral views

conservative because it functions to conserve of preserve things as they are, maintaining the status quo

Question 2

religion’s conservative beliefs

Answer 2

most religions have traditional conservative beliefs about moral issues and oppose changes allowing individuals more freedom e.g. Catholic Church forbids divorce, abortion and artificial contraception

most religions uphold ‘family values’, supporting a traditional patriarchal domestic division of labour e.g. Hinduism endorses practice of arranged marriage

Question 3

religion’s conservative functions

Answer 3

functions to conserve things, this view is held by functionalists, marxists and feminists, religion contributes to social stability

Question 4

functionalist belief of religion as a conservative force

Answer 4

maintains social stability and prevents disintegration e.g. promoting social solidarity by creating value consensus and helping individuals deal with disruptive stresses

Question 5

marxist belief of religion as a conservative force

Answer 5

conservative ideology preventing social change, by legitimating or disguising inequality, it creates false consciousness in the working class and prevents revolution, thereby maintaining capitalist society

Question 6

feminist belief of religion as a conservative force

Answer 6

conservative force because it legitimates patriarchal power and maintains women subordination in the family and society

Question 7

what did Weber write?

Answer 7

the protestant ethic and the spirit of Calvinism

Question 8

what does weber say?

Answer 8

religious beliefs of Calvinism helped to bring about major social change, the emergence of modern capitalism in Northern Europe

modern capitalism is based on the systematic, efficient, rational pursuit of profit for its own sake, rather than for spending on luxuries (spirit of capitalism)

this spirit had unconsciously similarity to the Calvinists beliefs and attitudes

Question 9

Calvinist beliefs

Answer 9

predestination - god predetermines who will be saved ‘the elect’ and individuals can do nothing to change this

divine transcendence - god is so far above and beyond this world that no human being could possibly claim to know how his will creating ‘salvation panic’

asceticism - abstinence, self-discipline and self-denial (no luxury)

the idea of vocation - calling to serve god in the everyday world of work, constant, methodical work in an occupation

Question 10

Calvinist lifestyle

Answer 10

led as ascetic life, shunning all luxury, working long hours and practicising rigorous self-discipline, as a result:

1. driven by their work ethic, they systematically accumulated wealth but didn’t spend it on luxuries, instead reinvesting it in their businesses to produce further profit
2. they prospered and came to see this as a sign of god’s favour and their salvation

Question 11

hinduism and confucianism

Answer 11

weber said Calvinist beliefs were only one of capitalisms causes, there have been other societies with some of the factors necessary for capitalism but it didn’t take off due to the lack of a religious belief system

hinduism: in ancient India was an ascetic religion, but was other-worldly, directing followers away from material world, towards the spiritual world
confucianism: in ancient china, this-worldly religion that directed its followers towards the material world, it was not ascetic

Question 12

evaluation of Weber

Answer 12

Tawney says technological change, not religious ideas, first led to capitalism, the bourgeoisie then adopted Calvinist beliefs to legitimate their pursuit of economic gain

‘debate with Marx’s ghost’, marx saw economic or material factors as the driving force of change, weber argues that alone is not enough ti bring about capitalism,. it needed specific cultural factors

Question 13

the American civil rights movement

Answer 13

attempted to end racial segregation as blacks were denied legal and political rights in many southern states

direct action through protest marches, boycotts and demonstrations followed until segregation was outlawed in 1964

Question 14

the role of the black clergy

Answer 14

the black clergy led by Martin Luther king were the backbone of the movement, giving support and moral legitimacy to activists, shames whites into changing the law by appealing to their shared christian values of equality

Question 15

what does Bruce say about the American civil rights movement?

Answer 15

religion is an ideological resource, religious organisations are well equipped to support protests and contribute to change e.g by:

• taking the moral high ground: pointing out hypocrisy of white clergy who supported racial segregation
• channelling dissent: e.g. Martin Luther king’s funeral was a rallying point for the civil rights cause
• acting as an honest broker: respected by both sides in a conflict and seen as standing above ‘mere politics’
• mobilising public opinion: by campaigning for support

Question 16

the new Christian Right

Answer 16

NCR is a politically and morally conservative, protestant fundamentalist movement

the NCR’s aims are to make abortion, homosexuality and divorce illegal and take the USA ‘back to god’, before liberalisation of American society

believes in traditional family and gender roles, and wants to ban sex education in schools

uses televangelism, church owned TV stations raise funds and broadcast programmes aimed at making converts

Question 17

what does Bruce say about the new Christian Right?

Answer 17

it has been largely unsuccessful because it never had the support of more than 15% of the population at most, the democratic values of American society means most Americans are comfortable with legalising activities such as abortion and homosexuality

Question 18

the principle of hope

Answer 18

Ernst Bloch is a marxists who sees religion as having a dual character, he accepts that religion often inhibits change, but argues that it can also inspire protest and rebellion.

religion is an expression of the ‘principle of hope’ - dreams of a better life containing images of utopia

images of utopia can sometimes deceive people e.g. promises of rewards in heaven, but they may also help to create a vision of a better world and strive for social change

Question 19

liberation theology

Answer 19

a movement that emerged within the Catholic Church in Latin America in the 1960s, with a strong commitment to the poor and opposition to the military dictatorships that rules most of the continent

emerged because of the growth of rural poverty and urban slums throughout Latin America, and human rights abuses following military take-overs

emphasised ‘praxis’, practical action, guided by theory e.g. priests leading literacy programmes and raising political awareness, helping workers and peasant to fight oppression under the protection of the church

Question 20

what caused the decline of liberation theology

Answer 20

in the 1980s the church’s official attitude changes, the conservative pope John Paul II condemning LT as being akin to marxism and instructed priests to concentrate on pastoral activities, not political struggle

however, LT played an important part in resisting dictatorship and bringing about democracy in Latin America

Question 21

significance of liberation theology

Answer 21

shows how the same religious organisation can be both conservative and a force for social change, both traditional conservative catholicism and LT based their actions on the same religious text

(use to criticise traditional marxist views)

Question 22

marxists on religion as a conservative force

Answer 22

religion not an entirely conservative ideology, religious ideas can have relative autonomy, they can be partly independent of the capitalist economic base of society

thus religion can have a dual character, sometimes being a force for change as well as stability

Question 23

the Pentecostal challenge

Answer 23

LT now faces competition from pentecostalism, which has made big inroads among the poor

LT offers a radical solution, collective improvement through political action, pentecostalism’s solution is conservative, individuals must pull themselves out of poverty by changing their personal behaviour

Question 24

criticisms of liberation theology

Answer 24

used to criticise traditional marxist views, Neo-marxists argues that LT shows religion can be a revolutionary force, however although it helped bring about democracy, it did not threaten capitalism

Question 25

criticisms of liberation theology

Answer 25

used to criticise traditional marxist views, Neo-marxists argues that LT shows religion can be a revolutionary force, however although it helped bring about democracy, it did not threaten capitalism

Question 26

religion and hegemony

Answer 26

Gramsci shows how the ruling class maintain their control over society through ideas rather that simply through coercion

hegemony (ideological domination) is the way the ruling class are Abel to use religion to maintain control e.g. in Italy in the 1920s the conservative ideological power of the Catholic Church helped to win support for the fascist regime

in some circumstances religion can challenge the ruling class e.g. it may help the working class to se through the ruling class hegemony

(dual character)