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Religion Theorists:
Topic 1: Theories of religion
Functionalist

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Malinowsky: religion provides social functions by providing psychological support in
times of life crisis (e
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Birth/death) and in unpredictable events (e
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fishing in deep
waters instead of the safe lagoons, ‘canoe magic’), performed ethnographic study in
the Trobriand Islands
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Durkheim: sacred Vs
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g
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// materialist
Engles (See topic 2)
Althusser: Criticise Marx; reject alienation as unscientific and based on a 'romantic'
idea that humans have a 'true self'
Abercrombie and Turner: Criticise Marx; in pre-capital society Christianity only had
limited impact on the peasantry
Lenin: ‘spiritual gin’ - intoxicant given to the masses to numb pain / confuse the
working class

Feminist

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Armstrong: Evidence of patriarchy: segregated texts, restricted participation for
women e
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menstruation; sacred texts, laws and customs etc
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)
Woodhead: exclusion from catholic priesthood is evidence of church's unease about
emancipation
Holm: public/private divide between gender roles + inequality in world religions e
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Islam, Christianity
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g
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Bryson: Criticised feminist ideology for simply using the word ‘patriarchy’ to describe
rather than explain gender inequality
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Calvinism involves pre-destination, God's calling,
Asceticism and divine transcendence // idealist
Kautsky: Criticises Weber's theory of Calvinism arguing that capitalism existed
before Calvinism, without the material goods needed for capitalism, no amount of
ideas will make it happen
Tawney: Criticises Weber's theory of Calvinism: technological change caused
capitalism, not Calvinism- places like Scotland were Calvinist but were slow to
develop capitalism
Marshall: Criticise Tawney: Scotland was slow to develop capitalism because of lack
of investment and skilled labour- Weber merely claims Calvinism was a big cultural
influence
Bruce: American Civil Rights Movement: religion acted as motivational
support/ideological resource; churches offered gathering places, rituals provided
unity: "love thy neighbor"
...

Nelson: South African Apartheid: Archbishop tutu supported abolition-he organised
peaceful marches against apartheid
New Christian Right perspective: a politically and morally conservative, protestant,
fundamentalist movement that made change but were however largely unsuccessful
in meeting aims
Bruce: The New Christian right didn't achieve aims because only 15% of population
as most supported it + participants found it hard to cope with other groups, even on
same issues
Engles: Marxist: religion can unite oppressed groups by providing set of beliefs that
bind the group e
...
Christian sects rising against Roman rule; religion can be the
basis of future action: without being bound by common beliefs the Christian sects
may not have won
Marx: Dual Character- believes religion can humanise a dehumanised world, even if
the comfort is illusionary
Ernst Bloch: Neo-Marxist: religion is expression of 'the principle of hope' religion
provides this, when matched with effective political organisation change can be made
Maduro: Neo-Marxist: Liberation Theology, Latin America: priests started resisting
state terror in the 70s giving support in the form of 'base communities’' to the poor
...
g
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g
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)
Armstrong: Non-religious factors causing conflict- West vs
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Bruce: Palestinian-Israeli conflict due to ethnicity and nationality (control of territory)

Topic 3: Secularisation
STATS:
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Crockett: UK: 1851 40% of adults attended church on Sundays, in 2005 this figure
was 6
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In a week in 2000, 7
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6% took part in New
Age, fewer people in New Age but it's still growing
Wilson: USA: in 1962 45% attended church on Sundays but this is more an
expression of the USA way of life
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Todd et al: percentage of Muslims worldwide has increased from 12
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5% in 2010
Brierly: Christianity has increased in Asia, Africa and Latin America, but UK
attendance of orthodox, untied reformed and Anglican churches has decline by 50%
attendance of free churches is down by 25%

Bruce: 'There is a steady unremitting decline': religion now in the private sphere +
the state has taken over many functions of the church // Technological worldview:
we've replaced religious explanations of why things happen, religion suffers when
technology thrives // beliefs are matter of personal choice and traditional symbols
have lost meaning e
...
when religion is involved in teaching and welfare it has to
conform to secular controls // Industrialisation creates large, impersonal , loose-knit
urban centers with diverse beliefs // Counter-trends against secularisation: cultural
Defence and cultural transition // Secularisation from within: religion has become
'psychologized', a form of therapy // Strong religion is being replaced by weak religion
// Amount of disengagement is larger than amount of people joining New Religious

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movements BUT most influential new religious movements have only a few members
and little influence on members' lives
Wilson: Western societies have been undergoing long process of secularisation as
beliefs practices and institutions have lost social significance // In pre-industrial
society local communities shared religious rituals = shared values but industrialised
societies have destroyed stable communities + religious base// USA church
attendance more an expression of way of life // smaller religious movements are
irrelevant to wider society, they live in isolated conditions with small membership and
a short life span
Weber: Rationalisation: rational ways of thinking are replacing religious ones e
...

16th century Protestant reformation undermined religious worldview replacing it with
scientific rational ones
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Aldridge: criticises Bruce arguing that communities don't have to be in a particular
locality as religion can be a source of identity worldwide; Jewish/Pentecostal often
flourish in urban areas
Berger: since 16th century protestant reformation = more variety of religious
organisations which undermines 'plausibility structure' // 'Sects are like islands in a
secular sea' strong religions only survive if they separate from wider society // Berger trend towards religious diversity - in the Middle ages the Catholic Church held a monopoly
however we are no longer unified under the ‘sacred canopy’
...
)
 Lyon: Consumption and Globalisation: tech provides better communication and
greater diversity, increased globalisation = more choice; people don't accept authority
of one religion over their lives: consumer culture // People still wish to pick an
appealing narrative e
...
in Canada 75% don't attend church but of this, 80% still hold
religious beliefs
 Casanova: Defining secularisation: decline as social structure (public -private) and to
individuals (decline in participation)

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Durkheim: Move from mechanical solidarity (solidarity maintained by everyone being
similar) to organic solidarity (solidarity created by interdependence
...
g
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g
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)
Lyon: 'Jesus in Disneyland': traditional religion gives way to new forms to continue
its globalisation: Relocation (movement of religious ideas across nations
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g
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Religion becomes de-institutionalised), Consumerism
(we construct our identities through what we consume-spiritual shopping
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People are naturally religious BUT people make rational
choices based on cost/benefits
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g
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g
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Insecurity = demand for religion
explaining why poorer countries have high participation and west = secular
Gill and Lundergaarde: the more a country spends on welfare the lower its levels of
participation
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Topic 5: Religion in a global context
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Nanda: God and globalisation in India: studies how Hinduism legitimated rise of new
Hindu 'ultra-nationalism' and prosperity of the Middle Class // Globalisation in India:
Indians are becoming more educated, especially the urban and educated as a result
of middle class ambivalence about new found wealth- stemmed from tension towards
the idea that Hindus are meant to renounce materialism
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g
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g
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g
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g
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) // Cultural Defence:
Religion is used to protect national identity: Poland (Catholic church = rallying point
for opposition against communism 1945-89 e
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supporting free trade union
movement) Iran (in 60s+70s Islam =focus for resistance of change by pro-Western
regime)
Huntington: Clash of Civilisations: religious global conflicts have intensifies since fall
of communism as globalisation makes contact between civilisations easier increasing
likelihood of old conflicts re-emerging
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// It's the 'us and them' attitude; he predicts growing conflict between
the 'west and the rest'
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g
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g
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g
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g
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g
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deviant (reject the dominant
norms) & Uniquely legitimate (believe they hold the ultimate truth) vs
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g
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g
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g
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g
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g
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It is the relatively deprived that move
towards sects
Weber: Reason for growth in NRMs is due to marginality; NRMs provide the
marginalised with theodicy of dis-privilege which justifies their position and promises
salvation (However relative deprivation theory says the rich can be deprived too
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g
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World affirming
NRMs grew due to response to modernity which brought industrialisation or work,
provided sense of identity
Stark and Bainbridge (2): Religious organisation move through a sectarian cycle
Wilson (2): Criticises Stark and Bainbridge arguing not all religious organisations
follow the sectarian cycle, a key factor affecting the life of sects is belief about how
they will be saved // Life-cycle of sects: conversionist/evangelical (attempts to
recruit/convert as many as possible to expand and become a denomination),
Adventist (restrictive membership remaining small, millenarian beliefs, only members
rewarded in the afterlife, unlikely to become a denomination), established (survives
for many generations e
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Amish)
Wallis: Life cycles of NRMs: rejecting (change stance as time passes, few survive in
long-term), affirming (adapts to suit market e
...
TM adapted in 70s to appeal to
broader audience), accommodating (not affected by external circumstances, long
term)
Heelas: Estimates that audience cults/client cults in the UK cover about 2000
countries + 146,000 practitioners because they're diverse (e
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New Age) (However
NA size is insignificant), rise in self-spirituality and de-traditionalisation
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Age of churchgoer 37 in 1979, 49 in 2005
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)
Davie: women's closer proximity to birth and death brings them closer to the 'ultimate
questions' about life that religion is concerned with
Glock and Stark: Deprivation is more common among women = higher level of sect
membership- Organismic deprivation (health), ethical (women attracted to
conservatism of some sects), social (more likely to be poor
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