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Growth of New Religious Movements
Growth of New Religious Movements:
New religious movements include cults, sects and denominations of established religious organisations
Gradual drift away from established organisations to denominations of established religious organisations to denominations from the Protestant Reformation
Expansion of new religious movements in the mid to late 20th century
Explanations for the growth of NRMs:
Social changes in society have led individuals to find alternatives to established religions:
Marginalisation
Deprivation
Social changes
Supply of NRMs
Marginalisation Weber (1922):
He argued that NRMs developed as a response to the marginalisation of individuals
Sought out explanations for their disadvantages in society - 'theodicy of disprivilege'
Often linked to rapid social changes and attitudes in society - e.g., the civil rights movement
Marginalisation Wallis (1984):
He explains the higher levels of young people in NRMS
Changing norms, values and attitudes of youth clash with established ideas of mainstream society
1960s counter-cultural movements saw increased membership of NRMs
Marginality Troelsch:
•Sects tend to draw members from the poor and oppressed
•Weber – Sects offer a solution to the problem of poverty by offering them a theodicy of disprivilege – an explanation and justification for suffering
•Example: Nation of Islam recruited from impoverished and disadvantaged blacks from America
Deprivation Wallis (1984):
He argued that deprivation in society had led to individuals looking to NRMs for spiritual enrichment
Reaction to a materialistic view of capitalist society
The sense of community offered by NRMs provides individuals with fulfilment that they cannot obtain through materialism
Deprivation:
McGuire (2002): Deprivation creates the conditions for individuals to turn to NRMs for explanations
Stark and Bainbridge (1985) argue that schisms form between members of established churches based on status
Lower-status people leave and form their own religious movements
Relative Deprivation:
Impoverished or lower-class individuals seek ‘compensators’ that they need to justify their lack of success in world-rejecting sects
The rich tend to be attracted to world-accepting churches and do not tend to be involved in NRMs
Social Change:
Wilson (1970) argues growth of NRMs is a result of changing social norms
Individuals form NRMs when traditional religion fails to fulfil the needs of its members
Bruce (2011) argues failings of traditional religion to adapt to modern society led to people moving to NRMs
Social change – Wilson (Functionalist):
Periods of rapid change (fragmentation - changes in technology and value systems) produce anomie (normlessness) and cause people to form sects in protest
Example: Dislocation caused by the Industrial Revolution gave birth to Methodism
Wallis (1984) argued social changes would lead to the inevitable growth of NRMs:
Increased levels of education
Extension of youth
Technological advancements
Radical political ideologies
Supply of NRMs:
Stark and Bainbridge (1985) take an economic view of the growth of NRMs
Increased demand for NRMs will increase the supply of NRMs
Lead to more alternatives for individuals to explore - increasing demand further
The Dynamics of NRMs:
Niebuhr – Churches have staying power and last a very long time whereas sects tend to reflect the protests of a generation and tend only to last through one generation
If they last for more than one generation, they normally turn into denominations
Niebuhr- Denomination or Death (1929):
The second generation – lack the commitment and fervour of their parents
The protestant ethic effect – sects that practice asceticism tend to become prosperous, which means that some members will be tempted to compromise with the world
Death of a leader – sects with charismatic leaders lack direction after his/her death
Established Sects:
Wilson – ‘not all sects follow the sectarian cycle’:
Conversionist sects such as evangelicals convert large number of people grow into denomination
Adventist (millenials) sects (such as seventh day adventists or Jehova’s witnesses) await the second coming of Christ and hold themselves separate from corrupt world around them also become a denomination
Evaluations:
Rapid social changes of the mid to late 20th century saw growth in NRMs
Economic deprivation can lead to the reaffirmation of traditional religious practices
Social changes brought about by globalisation saw the reaffirmation of traditional religions globally
The Meaning of the Growth of the New Age:
The New Age refers to beliefs and activities that have been widespread since the 1980s
Include
Westernised examples of ancient Eastern religion
Belief in crystals, energies and the occult
Spiritualism
Belief in UFOs
All focus on God within
Heelas (2008):
Two common themes characterise the new age:
Self-spirituality: Turned away from traditional ‘external’ religions and instead, looked inside themselves to find it
Detraditionalisation: Rejects the spiritual authority of priests or sacred texts – we can discover the truth for ourselves and within ourselves
Postmodernity and the New Age:
John Drane (1999) argues that the appeal of the New Age is part of a shift towards a postmodern society
Bruce (1995):
A source of identity: In modern society, the individual has many different roles (at work, in the family, with friends etc) but there is little overlap between them, resulting in a fragmented identity. New Age beliefs offer a source of 'authentic' identity.
Consumer culture: It creates dissatisfaction because it never delivers the perfection that it promises (e.g. in advertising). The New Age offers an alternative way to achieve perfection.
Rapid social change: In modern society disrupts established norms and values, resulting in anomie. The New Age provides a sense of certainty and truth in the same way as sects.
The decline of organised religion: Modernity leads to secularisation, thereby removing the traditional alternatives to New Age beliefs. For example, in the USA, the New Age is strongest where lowest, in California.
Religiosity and Social Groups- Gender:
Priesthoods of most religions are male
Miller and Hoffman (1995) – women express greater interest in religion and attend church
Reasons for differences:
Socialisation and gender role
Women and the New Age
Compensation and deprivation
Recent trends
Socialisation and Gender Role:
Miller and Hoffman:
Women are more religious because they are socialised to be passive, obedient and caring – most religions value these traits
Women are more likely to work part-time or be housewives and have more time and scope to attend church
Greeley (1992)
Taking care of other family members increases female religiosity because it involves responsibility for their ultimate welfare as well as their everyday needs
Davie (1994)
Women’s proximity to birth and death brings them closer to ‘ultimate questions’ on the meaning of life
Women and The New Age:
Women are more associated with nature (childbirth) and healing – which makes them identify with the New Age
Heelas and Woodhead – 80% of participants are women
Bruce – Women are less aggressive and goal-oriented than men and this fits in with new-age ideals – Men wish to achieve and women wish to feel
Callum Brown (2001)
New age focus on the self gives women a focus so that they can emphasise subjective experiences rather than external authority associated with patriarchy – women can express themselves autonomously in a male-dominated society
Some women may be attracted to fundamentalism because it embodies traditional prescribed female gender roles
Compensation for deprivation:
Glock and Stark (1969) and Stark and Bambridge (1985) – women participate in religion because of:
Organismic deprivation – more likely to suffer from ill physical and mental health problems and thus seek healing through religion
Ethical deprivation – Women tend to be more morally conservative and, thus, attracted to sects
Social deprivation – more likely to be poor and seek compensation in religion
Recent Trends:
Women are leaving the church at a faster rate than men – Brierley (2005): Women aged 30 – 45 dropped 16.4% between 1990 and 2005
This could be because of the pressures of juggling all of the roles that they must play in modern society
Callum Brown (2001) – since the 1960s women have begun to reject traditional gender roles and, thus, traditional religion
Postmodernity and Religion:
Grace Davie (2007) argues against secularisation theory – it is not declining but taking a different, more privatised form – believing without belonging
Vicarious religion – Davie also found that a small number of clergy practice religion on behalf of a large number of people who still believe but don’t attend church other than during rites of passage
Reginald Bibby found similar results in his 1993 study in Canada – 25% attended church but 80% said they had religious views
Modern society has fragmented and people have more choices – multiple modernities exist for example, US and the UK have different attitudes to religion but both are ‘modern societies’.
Criticisms:
Voas and Crocket (2005) reject that there is more to believing than belonging.
Evidence from British Social Attitudes surveys between 1983 and 2000 shows that both church attendance and belief in God is declining
Bruce adds that the fact people are unwilling to spend time going to church shows that they no longer care to belong – demonstrates a change in attitude
Voas and Crocket (2005) reject that there is more to believing than belonging.
Evidence from British Social Attitudes surveys between 1983 and 2000 shows that both church attendance and belief in God is declining
Bruce adds that the fact people are unwilling to spend time going to church shows that they no longer care to belong – demonstrates a change in attitude
Spiritual Shopping:
Danielle Hervieu-Leger (2000; 2006) continues the theme of personal choice and believing without belonging
She says that cultural amnesia has occurred – the formalised church has lost its power and people no longer hand religion down to the next generation
Religion is now individualised and consumerist – people are spiritual shoppers
Religion has become a personal spiritual journey and, as a result, Hervieu-Leger argues that two new religious types are emerging:
Pilgrims - follow an individual path on a spiritual journey of New Age spirituality by joining groups or through individual 'therapy'
Converts - Join religious groups that offer a strong sense of belonging. Evangelical Christian groups are examples of this
