Religion and social change Flashcards
What are the two ways religion can be seen as a conservative force?
What about moral issues do traditional beliefs hold conservative views?(Use Catholic Church for I.e.)
What do ‘family values’ support? (I.e. Hinduism)
-1. Conservative in the sense of ‘traditional’; e.g. defending traditional customs, institutions, or moral views.
2. Conservative because it functions to conserve or preserve things as they are, maintaining the status quo.
-Most religions have traditional conservative beliefs about moral issues and oppose changes that allow 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 the practice of arranged marriage.
How do functionalists view religion?Marxists and feminists?
-Functionalists see religion as a conservative force maintaining social stability and preventing disintegration, e.g. promoting social solidarity by creating value consensus and helping individuals deal with disruptive stresses.
-Marxists and feminists see religion as an ideology that supports the existing social structure and as a means of social control in the interests of the powerful.
Explain the relationship between religion and capitalism according to Marx? (What does it legitimate/disguise?)
Explain the relationship between religion and patriarchy according to feminists?
-Marx sees religion as a conservative ideology preventing social change. By legitimating or disguising inequality, it creates false class consciousness in the working class and prevents revolution.
-Feminists see religion as a conservative force becuase it legitimates patriarchal power and maintains women’s subordination in the family and society.
According to Weber what did the Spirit of Capitalism and The Protestant Ethic stem from?
Why is Modern capitalism unique in its essence? What does Weber call this?
What does Tawney argue about this explanation? (What actually led to the creation of capitalism.)
-Calvinism- The fuel behind the emergence of modern capitalism in Northern Europe.
-Modern capitalism is unique because it is based on the sytematic, efficient, rational pursuit of profit for its own sake, rather than for spending on luxuries. Weber calls this the spirit of capitalism.
-Tawney argues that technological change, not religious ideas, first led to capitalism. The bourgeoisie then adopted Calvinist beliefs to legitimate their pursuit of economic gain.
What calvinist distinct beliefs does Weber point out led to the creation of modern capitalism? (4)
Detail them!
-Predestination, Divine transcendence, Asceticism, The idea of vocation.
-Predestination; God predetermines who will be saved- ‘the elect’- and individuals can do nothing to change this.
-Divine transcendence; God is so far beyond this world that no human being could possibly claim to know his will - leaving the Calavinists to feel ‘an unprecedented inner loneliness’. This creates what Weber calls a salvation panic among Calvanists.
-Asceticism; Abstinence, self-discipline and self-denial.
-The idea of a vocation; or calling to serve God- bit in the everyday world of work, not in a monastery.
What two things happened as a result of Calvinists living an ascetic lifestyle acccording to Weber?
Why does Kautsky criticise Weber for overestimating the role of ideas? What does Kautsky argue instead regarding the relationship between capitalism and Calvinism?
-1. Driven by their work, they systematically accumulated wealth but did not spend it on luxuries, instead reinvesting in their business to produce further profit.
-2. They prospered and came to see this as a sign of God’s favour and their salvation.
-Kautsky argues Weber over estimates the role of ideas and under estimates economic factors bringing capitalism into being.
-Kautsky argues that capitalism acutally came before rather than after Calvinism.
Does Weber argue Religious beliefs to be the only reason for the creation of modern capitalism?
What else did he argue was necessary?
Why did Capitalism not take off in India despite having an ascetic religion of Hinduism?
Why did Confucianism in China not lead to capitalism?
Who’s is Weber’s work often recognised for being in debate with?
-NO. Weber argued that Calvinist beliefs were only one of capitalism’s causes.
-Weber also argues that certain material or economic factors were necessary, e.g. natural resources, trade, a money economy, legal system etc.
-Hinduism in ancient India was an ascetic religion, but was other-wordly- directing followers towards the spiritual world.
-Confucianism in ancient China, although a this-worldly religion that directed its followers towards the material world, it was not ascetic.
-Weber’s work is often recognised for being in a debate with ‘Marx’s ghost’. Marx saw economic or material factors as the driving force for change, whereas Weber argues material factors alone are not enough. In Weber’s view it also needed specific cultural factors.
What two cases in regards to religion and social change does Bruce focus on?
What does Bruce view the civil rights movement as an example of?
When did the movement begin? How did it challenge Jim Crow?
Who was the black clergy led by?
What does Bruce mean by ideological resource?
What 4 ways did he identify religion is well equipped in supporting protests and contributing to social change ?
-The Civil rights movement & the New Christian Right.
-Bruce sees the civil rights movement as an example of religion becoming involved in secular struggle and helping to bring about change.
-The movement began in 1955 and direct action through protest marches, boycotts and demonstrations followed.
-The black clergy led by MLK were the backbone of the movement, giving support and moral legitimacy to activists. They shamed whites into changing the law by appealing to their shared Christian values of equality.
-Ideologial resource; beliefs that protestors could draw on for motivation and legitimation.
-4 ways religion is well equipped= taking the moral high ground, channelling dissent, acting as honest broker, mobilising public opinion.
In addition to the civil rights movement what other case study did Bruce analyse in regards to religion as a force of social change?
What social change does Bruce argue the NCR is an example of?
What is the NCR politically and morally?
What are its aims in regards to the law?
What family does the NCR advocate for? What does it want from schools?
How does the NCR use televangelism?
What did the Moral majority do?
Does Bruce see the NCR as a successful movement?
-The Christian New Right (NCR)
-The NCR is an example of a religious movement aiming for ‘conservative social change’- changing society back to a previous norm.
-The NCR is politically and morally conservative.
-The NCR’s aims are to make abortion, homosexuality and divorce illegal and take the USA ‘back to God’, turning the clock back to before liberalisation of American society.
-The NCR believes in traditional family and gender roles, campaigns for the teaching of ‘creationism’ and wants to ban sex education in schools.
-The NCR uses televangelism, where church-owned TV stations raise funds and broadcast programmes aimed at making converts.
-The moral majority, a right wing Christian pressure group focused on political campaigning and influenced the Republican party.
-No. Bruce argues that the NCR has been largely unsuccessful it has never had the support of more than 15% of the population. The democratic values of American society mean most Americans are comfortable with legalising abortion etc.
What do Marxists often see religion as being in regards to a social force?
Despite this what do they also recognise about religious ideas?
What is this contrast called?
According to Engels how does religion both inhibit and encourage change?
-Marxists often see religion as being entirely conservative ideology- a set ruling class ideas that legitimate class inequalities.
-However, Marxists recognise that 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/stability.
-Engels argues that although religion inhibits change by disguising inequality, it can also encourage change, e.g. lower ranks within the church hierarchy have sometimes supported popular protest.
What character does Marxist Bloch identify religion having?
What are images of utopia? How can these be deceiving?
-Bloch sees religion as having a dual character. He accepts that religion inhibits change, but argues it can also inspire protest and rebellion.
-Religion is an expression of ‘the principle of hope’ our 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 people to create a vision of a better world and strive for social change.
What is the Liberation theology? What were they committed/in opposition to?
Why did it emerge?
What are ‘praxis’?
By the 1980s was the Catholic church in favour of the LT?
What did the LT play an important part in?
How do Neo-Marxists use this as critique of classical marxist views on religion? (Maduro)
Why is Maduro’s critique criticised?
-The liberation theology is a movement that emerged within the Catholic Church in Latin America 1960s
-A strong commitment to the poor and opposition to the military dictatorship that then ruled most of the continent.
-LT emerged becuase of the growth of rural poverty and urban slums throughout Latin America, and human rights abuses following military take overs.
-LT emphasised ‘praxis’- practical action guided by theory; e.g. priests leading literacy programmes and raising political awareness. Some priests actively resisted state terror.
-NO, 1980s a Conservative Pope John Paul II condemned LT as aking to Marxism.
-The LT played an important part in resisting dictatorship and bringing about democracy in Latin America.
-Maduro argues that LT shows religion can be a revolutionary force.
However, though LT helped bring about democracy it did not threaten capitalism.
What contrast has Lehmann made between the Liberation theology & Pentecostalism’s competition in Latin America?
-Liberation theology 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.
What does Worsley argue Millienarian movements expect regarding world transformation?
Who do they appeal to? Why?
What were cargo cults? What did they feel deprived by?
How did their assertions lead to widespread unrest?
How does this link to being a force for social change?
-Worsley argues that they expect the total and imminent transformation of this world by supernatural means, creating heaven on earth.
-They largely appeal to the poor because they promise immediate improvement, and they often arise in colonial situations. European colonialism shattered the traditional tribal social structures and cultures of colonised peoples.
-Worsley studied the cargo cults- milenarian movements in Melanesia.
-Islanders felt deprived when ‘cargo’(material goods) arrived in the islands for their colonists.
-Cargo cults asserted that the cargo had been meant for the natives but had been diverted by whites for themselves, and that this was about to be overturned. Leading to widespread unrest.
-This links to religion being a force for social change because millenarian movements developed into secular movements that overthrew colonial rule in the 1950s+60s.
What is Gramsci interested in regarding the ruling class?
What is hegemony? How does this apply to religion? (Italy)
Does religion only support the ruling class?
Who can become organic intellectuals?
-Gramsci is interested in how the ruling class maintain their control over society through ideas rather than simply coercion.
-Hegemony- ideological domination or leadership of society- is the way the ruling class are able to use religion to maintain control; e.g. Italy 1930s the conservative ideological power of the Catholic church helped to win support for the fascist regime.
-NO. In some cases religion can challenge the ruling class; e.g. it may help the working to see through the ruling class hegemony and some clergy may act as ‘organic intellectuals’ who can support working class organisations.
