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beliefs in society - Coggle Diagram
beliefs in society
marxist theories
religion as ideology - MARX - ideology = a belief system that distorts peoples perception of reality in ways that serve the interests of the ruling class
- religion is an ideological weapon used by the ruling class to legitimate the suffering of the poor as something inevitable and god given
misleads - favoured in afterlife e.g christianity: easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
- LENIN - spiritual gin - intoxicant doled out to the masses by the ruling class to confuse them and keep them in their place - mystical fog
- divine right of kings - idea that theyre gods representative on earth and are owed obedience - legitimates power and privilege
evaluation : + shows how religion may be a form of oppression that masks exploitation and creates false consciousness
- ignores positives such as psychological adjustment to misfortune
- neo marxists - religion assists, not hinders, the development of class consciousness
- ALTHUSSER - reject the concept of alienation as unscientific
- does not function effectively as an ideology to control the population eg christianity in pre capitalist society had a limited impact on peasantry (abercrombie, hill and turner)
caste and the legitimation of inequality - system of social stratification based on ascribed status - doctine of karma teaches if you behave well by accepting these rules you will be reincarnated into a higher caste - maintain inequality by assuring those at the bottom of the caste system that their obedience will be rewared.
religion and alienation - MARX - alienation = becoming separated from or losing control over something one has produced or created - detailed division of labour in capitalist society - do not own what they produce
- opium of the people because it masks the pain - offers no earthly solution to misery - illusory happiness that distracts them from suffering
functionalist theories
civil religion - BELLAH - a belief system that attaches sacred qualities to society itself - the american way of life - integrates society in ways church cannot - sacralises the american way of life
psychological functions - MALINOWSKI - religion promotes solidarity by performing psychological functions for individuals, helping them cope with emotional stress that would undermine social solidarity - happens when :
- outcome is important but is uncontrollable and thus uncertain e.g lagoon fishing = safe and predictable, no ritual e.g ocean fishing - dangerous and uncertain, accompanied by canoe magic, rituals to ensure a safe and successful expedition, gives sense of control and eases tension
- at times of life crises
value and meaning - PARSONS - helps individuals cope with unforeseen events and uncontrollable parsons - agreeing with malinowski - also
- creates and legitimates society's central values
- is the primary source of meaning
e.g protestantism has sacralised the core american values of individualism, meritocracy and self-discipline - serves to promote value consensus and therefore social stabiliy
e.g answers ultimate questions that defy our sense of justice and make life appear meaningless, maintaining stability
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feminist theories
evidence of patriarchy - religious organisations : male dominated - catholicism forbids women priests - ARMSTRONG sees exclusion from the priesthood as evidence of womens marginalisation
- places of worships - taboos that regard menstruation - islam - being sat behind men - HOLM describes this devaluation of women in religion
- sacred texts - largely male gods - written and interpreted by men - reflect anti female stereotypes such as the judaeo christian story of genesis - eve caused humanity's fall from grace
- religious laws and customs - give women fewer rights than men - dress - genital mutilation - influences on norms
not always been the case - ARMSTRONG - early religions placed women at the centre e.g mother goddesses and fertility cults and female priesthoods were found until 6000 years ago
EL SAADAWI - not the direct cause of their subordination - result of patriarchal forms of society coming into existence in the last few thousand years - influenced and reshaped religion that favoured men and now contributes to womens oppression
religious forms of feminism - WOODHEAD criticises some female explanations - not true of all religion - argues there are religious forms of feminism, in which women use religion to gain greater freedom and respect e.g hijab - western feminists see it as oppressive and to the wearer it may be a means of liberation - use status and respect for their roles within the private sphere of home and family - e.g pentecostals - strongly held belief that men should respect women - gives women the power to influence mens behaviour by making sure that they practice what they preach and refrain from macho behaviour - e.g unitarians = 1/3 ministers are female
new forms of religion
while some aspects of traditional religion are in decline, new forms are emerging, often as a result of changes in wider society such as greater individualism, choice and consumerism
from obligation to consumption - DAVIE - late modern society, major change, away from obligation and towards consumption or choice - religion is mo longer inherited or imposed, but a matter of personal choice e.g baptism seen as an obligatory rite of passage, but now only a minority of babies are baptised
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vicarious religion : the spiritual health service - DAVIE - religion practised by an active minority (the clergy and regular church goers) on behalf on the greater majority, who thus experience religion at second hand - typical of britian and northern europe where, despite low attendance, many people still identify with the churchesin europe, the major national churches are seen as public utilities, or a sort of spiritual health service, that is there for everyone to use whenever they need to e.g weddings, funerals, baptisms
- evidence of believing without belonging - tip of the icebreg - what appears to be a small committment, lies a much wider commitment
secularisation theory assumes that modernaisation affects every society in the same way, causing the decline of religion - she argues there are multiple modernities e.g britian and america both modern but have very different patterns of religion
neither believing nor belonging - VOAS AND CROCKETT - disagree with davies - evidence shows that both church attendance and belief in god are declining together
- BRUCE - if people are not willing to spend as much time in church, this just reflects the declining strength of their beliefs
- 2011 census - 63% christian - supports davie
- DAY - very few christians she interviewed mentions god or christianity - was just a way to say that they belonged to a white english ethnic group
spiritual shopping - LEGER - agrees that there has been a dramatic decline in insitutional religion in europe
- because of what she calls cultural amnesia - for centuries children were taught religion in the extended family and parish church - now, we have largely lost that religion used to be handed down from generation to generation, because few parents now teach their children about religion - let children decide
- trends towards greater social equality - undermined trad power of church to impose relgion on people from above - no longer imposed on young people through socialisation
- religion itself has not dissapeared - has become a personal spiritual journey in which we choose the elements we want to explore - spiritual pick and mix - 2 new religious types are emerging
- pilgrims - follow and individual path in search for self discovery, e.g exploring new age spirituality
- converts - join religious groups that offer a strong sense of belonging, usually based on a shared ethnic background or religious doctrine
as a result, religion no longer acts as the source of collective identity that it once did - LEGER notes it does continue to still have some influence on society's values, e.g the values of equality and human rights - can be related to the idea of late modernity - the notion that in recent decades some of the trends within modern society have begun to accelerate, such as the decline of tradition and increasing individualism
post modern religion : LYON - argues that traditional religious is giving way to a varirty of new religious forms that demonstrate its continuing vigour
- explains in terms of a shift in recent decades from modern to postmodern society.
- post modern society has a number of features that are changing the nature of religion - these include, globalisation, the increased importance of the media and the growth of consumerism
globalisation, the media and religion - globalisation = growing interconnectedness of societies, which has led to greatly increased movements of ideas and beliefs across national boundaries
- due to the media in post modern society, which saturate us with images and messages from around the globe, compressing time and space to give us instantaneous access to the ideas and beliefs of previously remote places and religions
- religious ideas have become dis-embedded e.g electronic church and televangelism dis-embed religion from real, local churches and relocate it on the internet
- result - religion = de-institutionalised - detached from its place in religious institutions, floating in cyber space
online religion and religion online - HELLAND - religion online - a form of top down communication where a religious organisation uses the internet to address members and potential converts - there is no feedback or dialogue between the parties
- online religion - may have no existence outside the internet - allows individuals to create non-hierarchal relationships and a sense of community where they can visit virtual workshop or meditation spaces, explore shared spiritual intersts and provide mutual support
e.g COWAN - pagans gained a sense of self worth from feeling that they belonged to a social network
HOOVER - for most users it is a supplement rather than substitute
religious consumerism - we can pick and mick elements of different faiths to suit our tastes and make them part of our identity - until something more fashionable or attractive comes along
- LYON - religion has relocated to the sphere of consumption
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