Religion and social change Flashcards
What does Weber argue in his study of ‘The Protestant Ethic and Spirit of Capitalism’?
- argues that religion is not always a conservative force but can also be a major driver of social change
- religious beliefs, particularly Calvinism played a key role in the emergence of modern capitalism in Northern Europe during the 16th & 17 centuries > spirit of capitalism has an unconscious similarity to Calvinist beliefs
What is the first & second Calvinist belief that encouraged the development of capitalism and how did it do this?
- predestination > God had predetermined which souls would be saved & nothing could change this decision
- Divine transcendence > God was far above & beyond no human could know his will
- this led to a psychological state of ‘salvation panic’ where they constantly sought signs that they were among the elect
- began to see material success as a possible sign of God’s favor, encouraging them to work hard & accumulate wealth
What is the 3rd Calvinist belief that encouraged the development of Calvinism and how did it do this?
- Ascetism > whereby Calvinists followed a strict lifestyle of self-discipline, hard work & avoidance of luxury
- they viewed excessive spending as sinful but saw reinvesting profit into their business as a moral duty > led to a systematic accumulation of wealth which fueled capitalist growth
What is the final Calvinist belief that led to the development of capitalism and how did it do this?
- The idea of a calling (vocation) > Calvinists believed that working hard was a divine calling seen as a way to serve God > encouraging capitalist values of efficiency & discipline
What did Weber contrast Calvinism with and explain?
- Hinduism & Confucianism > argue that these belief systems lacked the values necessary for capitalism to develop
- Saw Hinduism as otherworldly focusing on spiritual matters (e.g. caste system kept people in fixed positions discouraging economic ambition) than material success
- While Confucianism did not promote ascetic self denial > both lacked drive to accumulate wealth
Evaluation of Weber’s argument
- Marxist Kautsky > argued that economic factors created capitalism, not Calvinism e.g. trade, colonization & technological advancements
- reinforced by Tawney > argued that early capitalists adopted Calvinism’s to support & justify their economic behavior instead of religion causing capitalism
What did Bruce examine?
- the relationship between religion and social change by analysing two cases studies > the American CRM and the NCR
How does Bruce describe the CRM?
- aimed to end racial segregation in the US > black churches particularly those led by figures like MLK Jr play a key role by giving moral support & moral legitimacy to civil rights activists e.g. providing meeting spaces & sanctuary from the threat white violence
Why did Bruce see the CRM as an ideological resource and why did this work?
- By taking the moral high ground> e.g.. pointing out hypocrisy of white clergy who preached love they neighbor but supported racial segregation
- channeling dissent
- mobilizing public opinion
- churches acting as honest brokers between activists & political authorities
- movement achieved its aims because its values aligned with those of wider society
What is the black civil right movement of the 1960s an example of?
religiously motivated change
What is the black civil right movement of the 1960s an example of?
religiously motivated change
What does Bruce describe the Black clergy as?
The backbone of the movement, giving moral legitimacy to civil rights activists
What did the black churches provide?
-The churches provided a meeting place and sanctuary from the threat of white violence, and prayer and hymns singing helped white poeple in the face of oppression
- The black clergy were able to shame white people into changing the law by appealing to shared christian values of equality
- This thus is an example of religion becoming involved in a secular struggle and helping to bring about social change
What was the NCR?
A protestant fundamentalist movement.
What was the aims of the NCR?
seeked to take America ‘back to God’ and aimed to make abortion, homosexuality, gay marriage and divorce illegal
Where did the NCR aims stem from?
Their believes in traditional gender roles and the family
Where did the NCR aims stem from?
Their believes in traditional gender roles and the family
What did the NCR use to publicize themselves?
The NCR used televangelism in order to make concerts and recruit new members
Why did Bruce argue the NCR were unsuccessful in creating such change?
-Due to lack of widespread support and the democratic values of most of American society
-Therefore unable to bring about change as their religious beliefs did not connect with mainstream beliefs about equality and democracy which the CRM did
Evaluating Bruce CRM VS NCR
However, the CRM aimed to achieve racial equality which are fundamentally different objectives from the NCRs focus on promoting conservative christian values. This differences in goals makes it difficult to draw parallel conclusions
What does Engles say about religion having dual character?
Marxists such as Engels argues that although religion inhibits change by disguisng inequality, it can also challenge the status quo
How does Bloch support Engels?
- believes that religion is an expression of ‘the principle of hope’- our dreams of a better life that contain images of utopia
- religion thus may help people see what needs to be changed
An example of religion having a dual character?
libertarian theology, a movement that emerged in the late 1960s
What did liveration theology set out to do?
They set out to change age society, for example priests helped the poor to establish support groups called ‘base communities’ and took lead in developing literacy programmes, educating the poor about their situation and raising support.
What does Maduro argue?
that religious ideas radicalized the Catholic clergy in defence of peasants and the poor making them see that serving the poor was part of the christian duty
- Thus this shows religiously inspired social change
Eval of liberation theology
While neo-marxists like maduro acknowledge the positive influence religion can have on social change.
Reliance’s on religious institutions can be problematic. Gramsci argues that religions role in promoting ideology has led to hegemony (domination of the ruling class). A famous example of this is the ideological power of the catholic church in helping to win support for Mussolini’s Facist regime. This implies that institutions can be co-opted by the very systems they seek to challenge inhibiting social change.
