Secularisation

What is it?

• Secularisation is seen as part of modernity's movement towards more rational and scientific thinking.

• Religious influence has declined in Western Europe since the
  Industrial Revolution.

• Not all sociologists agree that society is becoming more secular and this forms a debate in sociology.

Theories of Secularisation:

• A number of sociologists have argued that the process of secularisation has occurred:

  • Weber - movement towards rational and scientific thinking.

  • Wilson - decline in the influence of the church.

  • Parsons - the role of structural differentiation.

  • Bruce - individualism and changing worldview.

Weber- Rationalisation:

• Changes in wider society have led to religion having less significance in society.

• The process of rationalisation in modern society clashes with faith-based belief systems of religions.

• Greater scientific understanding reduces reliance upon religion for answers.

Weber- Disenchantment:

• Weber suggested that Protestantism removed the mystical qualities of religion.

• Non-intervention by Gods removes the belief in the supernatural and leaves rationality to provide answers.

• Science becomes the dominant source of knowledge, replacing religion.

Wilson:

• Declining influence of the church in the UK in guiding the moral principles of individuals.

• Identified declining trend in church attendance and participation in rituals in the post-war era in the UK.

• The superficial nature of religion in the USA - lacked meaning.

• According to Wilson (1966), four social changes encouraged rationalisation and disenchantment: the growth of:

  1. Ascetic Protestantism

  2. The Rational Organisation of Society (schools etc.)

  3. Scientific Knowledge

  4. Political Ideologies such as Marxism.

Ascetic Protestantism:

• Following the theory outlined by Weber in his Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Wilson argued that protestant varieties of Christianity encouraged a rational approach to worshipping God – your ‘faith’ was essentially measured by your productivity.

The Rational Organisation of Society:

• The establishment of schools, workplaces, and governments all imposed systematic ways of acting on people.

A Greater Scientific Knowledge of the Social and Natural World:

• Wilson argued that science provided more satisfactory explanations of many social and natural phenomena than religious ones, and could better help people tackle such problems.

The Development of Rational Ideologies:

• Such as Marxism which offered more immediate solutions to our problems in this life further challenged and undermined religion.

Parsons- Structural Differentiation:

• Changing the structure of society leads to other institutions fulfilling the functions religion would perform.

• Declining influence in politics, education and welfare.

• Religion becomes disengaged from wider society, having the sole function of fulfilling spiritual needs.

Bruce- Changing Worldview and Individualism:

• The decline of close-knit communities weakens the ties that religion has to the community.

• Increased individualism leads to the privatisation of religion, practised at home rather than in public.

• Increased knowledge of science and technology has reduced the influence of religion.

How many people are religious as of 2021?

• Christianity has gone down by 4.2 million

• Muslims have increased by 1.2 million

• No religion has gone up by 400,000

Criticisms of Secularisation:

• Voas and Crocket (2005) reject the idea 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 the change in attitude​

Evaluations of Secularisation Theories:

• Declining attendance in religious ceremonies and rituals

• Growth of alternative views of spirituality - decline in religion or movement to other forms?

• Globalisation and technology have seen a renewal in some religious practices, while the ability to practice religion has moved into different forms of worship