Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
BELIEFS - MARXIST VIEW OF RELIGION - Coggle Diagram
BELIEFS - MARXIST VIEW OF RELIGION
the main function of religion is to help maintain the ruling classes power
ENGLES
- socialism and Christianity have similar features. e.g. they are both ideologies that target the poor and offer a better life
the key difference is that Christianity offers salvation in an after life whereas socialism offers it in this life
religion as a product of alienation
alienation
= the lack of power, control and fulfilment experimented by workers in capitalist societies which the means of producing goods are privately owned and controlled
suffering as a test of faith
religion makes a virtue out of suffering - making it appear as if the poor are more "Godly" than the rich
one of the best illustrations of this is the line in the bible - 'it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven'
existential security
religion can offer hope of supernatural intervention to solve problems on earth - this makes it pointless for humans to try to do anything significant to help improve their current conditions
promises of an after life
the promise of an afterlife gives people something to look forward to. it is easier to put up with misery now if you believe you have a life of 'eternal bliss' to look forward to after death
religion as the opium of the masses
MARX
- meant that religion dulls the pain or the oppression they face by offering a temporary high through poises of a better afterlife in order to distract them from their exploitation, in a similar way to drug opium
3 ways religion is like opium
1) dulls the pain of exploitation rather than dealing with the cause of the exploitation just like opium dulls the pain of an injury rather than healing the injury itself
2) religion gives a distorted world view
it can offer no solutions to earthly misery but can offer the promise of an afterlife
just as opium can create hallucination and distort the takers perceptions
3) the temporary high that the followers feeling whilst taking part in the rituals mimics the temporary high achieved by taking opium
EVALUATION
ignores the positive functions of religion as set out by functionalists
neo-marxists see certain forms of religion as assisting not hindering the development of class consciousness
ALTHUSSER
- rejects the idea of alienation as being unscientific and more of a romantic notion of people having a true self
this would make it an inadequate concept to base a theory of religion on
ABERCROMBIE, HILL AND TURNER
- religion doesnt necessarily function as an ideology to control the population
in pre-industrial society, Christianity was a major element of the ruling class ideology but had very little impact in the peasantry
NEO-MARXIST VIEW OF RELIGION
religion is a source of social change
they agree with Marxists that religion can exploit the poor
criticises Marxism for failing to see how religion can be a cause of social change and develop class consciousness
dual nature of religion
BLOCH
religion has both a positive and negative influence on society
in many ways it can act as a conservative force on society and help to maintain social inequality and the status quo but it can also act as a force of social change as it can offer the 'principle of hope' to its followers
this principle of hope can, in extreme consequences, lead to revolution
GRAMSCI
agreed that the church does play its part in maintaining cultural hegemony that benefits the ruling class class, it could also produce its own set of ideas that could inspire
this most often occurs when members of the clergy and lower members of the church hierarchy believe they can make a difference in their community, rather than persisting with official messages from the church
this
individual autonomy
could in some cases override the ruling class ideology that is promoted by the religion as a whole
religion as a force for social change
MADURO
- in societies where protests were against law (usually dictatorships) the church could act as a safe outlet for frustration for the proletariat
additionally, religious leaders could act as the charismatic leaders that inspire their congregation to achieve and seek social change
religious leaders would also be seen as untouchable in these dictatorships because they are seen as sacred by their followers, so if they came to any harm that could be the catalyst to begin the revolution
LIBERATION THEORY
radical movement that grew up in South America as a response to the poverty and the ill-treatment of ordinary people
it was a response to the failure of the Vatican to help its followers with the poverty and exploitation that they faced
the priests encouraged people to enforce change upon society even to use violence if necessary, in order to overthrow the dictators who were oppressing them
the movement was successful in Nicaragua, however the priests involved were excommunicated by the Catholic Church for their role in the Sandinista revolution
CASE STUDY -
Father Camillo Torres
a colombian socialist, Roman catholic priest, a predecessor of liberation theology and a member of the National Liberation Army guerrilla organisation
during his life he tried to reconcile revolutionary Marxism and Catholicism
he helped to organise student political protests
EVALUATION
see religion as being socially significant in modern society, despite the evidence of secularisation
pope John Paul II rejected the liberation theory and told priests to focus on their religious responsibilities