religious renewal

Question 1

Are modern societies experiencing religious renewal ?

Answer 1

• Religious pluralism is seen as a sign of more people embracing spirituality and religion
• Evidence to suggest that organised religion continues to thrive

Question 2

The nature of religion is changing not declining

Answer 2

1. People tend to practice their religion in a private way
2. People are turning in to spiritual shoppers
3. Religion is adapting to the development of postmodern society
4. Society is undergoing a spiritual revolution

Question 3

People tend to practice their religion in a private way

Answer 3

• Davie
• Older religions are still significant but people now believe without belonging meaning although fewer people attend church, it doesn’t mean they are less religious
• Active minority who attend church on behalf of the majority (Vicarious religion)
• People prefer to worship privately and individually
• In the past people were obliged to attend church regardless of whether they believed in it
• Today it is about personal choice as to whether to believe and how to express it
• In the UK the practice of vicarious religion has become a norm (Active minority on the inactive majority)
• The church has become a spiritual health service in which people will access it when they need rather than feel obligated
• Eg few people attend church every week but there is a surge in attendance to collective worship during Easter and Christmas
• People still use churches for services such as baptising children, getting married and hosting funerals

Question 4

Evaluation of people tend to practice their religion in a private way

Answer 4

• Bruce if people aren’t willing to invest time going to church, this reflects the declining strength of their beliefs
• Vaos and Crockett found from 5750 respondents that Church attendance and belief in God are declining together

Question 5

People are turning into spiritual shoppers

Answer 5

• Some sociologists argue that a spiritual revolution is taking place and Christianity is giving way to a holistic spirituality (new age beliefs and practices that emphasise personal development)
• Increased interest in spirituality (growth in the spiritual market with an explosion in the number of books about self help and spirituality and courses etc
• This is connected to individualism whereby people prefer to carve out their own identity rather than having it dictated by wider social forces
• Hervieu-Leger argues society has undergone cultural amnesia (loss of collective memory of religion) eg no longer passed down each generation
• Parents don’t automatically expect their children to engage in traditional religious practice
• She claims that we are spiritual shoppers who browse the range of services on offer
• There are two types of shopper :
  1. Pilgrims who are on a journey of self discovery eg Yoga and healing therapy. (Comes at a financial cost)
  2. Converts who tend to gravitate towards more traditional faith groups eg Evangelism who are born again Christians

Question 6

Evaluation of people are spiritual shoppers in a spiritual marketplace

Answer 6

• Some sociologists argue that new age spiritual movements have very little influence in society eg not embedded in to the culture
• Pilgrims who pay for spiritual services are often not as committed to as people who engage in collective/traditional worship

Question 7

Society is undergoing a spiritual revolution

Answer 7

• Heelas and Woodhead
• Religion is becoming more individual but there is a growing marketplace of new spiritual activities
• Researched the Kendall project (There has been a growth in spiritual practices which meet the needs of mind’s, bodies and souls)
• People now regard traditional religion as stuffy and outdated so want to follow newer organisations like evangelism or a spiritual approach
• They are more lively when it comes to worship eg song and dance and there is less obedience to the higher power
• There is a greater emphasis on self discovery and personal development eg meditation and therapy
• People prefer the characteristics of spiritual movements as they prefer self satisfaction and find new religions more relatable

Question 8

Evaluation of society is undergoing a spiritual revolution

Answer 8

• New age movements aren’t as significant eg the scale is not as significant
• Socialisation - not passed through generations
• Commitment - people aren’t as committed as they were to traditional religions
• Structural weakness - lack of authority in society

Question 9

Organised religion still thrives in some countries (stats and theories)

Answer 9

• Only 2% of the world’s population is outright atheist
• The number of muslims has increased by 2% in the last ten years

1. Christianity is still significant in America (Religious market theory)
2. Religion provides vulnerable people with existential security

Question 10

Evaluation of religious market theory

Answer 10

• No evidence that diversity increases the demand for religion
• In some societies where there is a religious monopoly, participation is high

Question 11

Evaluation of religion provides vulnerable people with existential security

Answer 11

• It fails to see the positive meaning which religion can have for people, they only see it as a negative reaction to deprivation
• Quantitative data is used to develop their theories - they need to do further research to find out about people’s experience of existential security

Question 12

Religion provides vulnerable people with existential security

Answer 12

• Norris and Inglehart argue that religion continues to thrive in some parts but this is down to how secure people feel their existence
• People whose lives are comfortable and face few threats are less likely to be religious
• People who live with poverty, danger and uncertainty are more likely to be religious as religion offers them salvation in the afterlife and compensates for their hardships
• This explains why religion is more practiced in developing nations or those with natural disasters
• Explains why religiosity is higher in the USA than EU due to free healthcare and state welfare being more widely available so removing the need to turn to religion as a source of comfort

Question 13

Christianity is still significant in America (religious market theory)

Answer 13

• Stark and Bainbridge
• Most secularisation theories are Eurocentric and they make two key assumptions about people :
  1. Most people are naturally spiritual
  2. Humans weigh up the costs and rewards of being part of a religious / spiritual movement
• Although EU nations have seen a decline in traditional Christian values, in USA this isn’t the case for 4 reasons :
  1. USA people see religion as a compensator which makes up for unachievable rewards in life as they are unable to access life via the American Dream so throw themselves at their faith
  2. Religion has undergone a cycle of renewal eg when Christian groups find their support is dwindling, they get creative and rebrand (connected to the consumerist culture of American society where businesses have to rebrand and churches compete with each other for membership)
  3. Religion in the USA is supply led (churches must adapt what they supply to their congregation in order to keep up with demand eg TV introduction has lead to televangilism)
  4. In the USA no one religion has had a monopoly over others (EU had Catholicism) but in the USA there have been multiple denominations none of which have been dominant
• Th competitive nature has allowed religion and churches to stay relevant