Religion

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Chapter 14

• Religion

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Probably the central theme that has dominated the
sociology of religion.

• Secularization process by which a society or an
  institution becomes more worldly and the
  supernatural becomes less important
• Secularization Theorists argue religion dying
• Functionalists focus on the role of religion in
  providing answers to lifes ultimate questions
• Challenge secularization theorists
• Substantive definitions of religion (what
  religion is) vs. functional definitions (what
  religion does)

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Defining Religion A substantive definition

• ultimate meaning and answer ultimate questions
• Socially organized patterns of belief and
  practices that concern ultimate meaning and
  assume the existence of the supernatural.
• The belief in the supernatural sets religion
  apart from other aspects of social life.

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Secularization is a real process

• Darwin did influence view of creation
• Important to distinguish between societal and
  institutional
• Institutions do tend to become for secularized
  over time
• But they are replaced by less secularized
  institutions
• Perrin and Stark are

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Distinguishing Sect from Church A church is

• Formal, accepted, well established
• Intellectualize religious teaching trained
  clergy
• Bureaucratic
• Officials ordained
• Culture affirming
• More this-worldly in focus
• Born into
• less emotional, less spontaneous (read prayers),
  orderly worship
• Middle-class

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A sect is

• less formalized, less accepted and
  well-established, more fringe
• Emphasize personal experience and emotion
• Hostile to surrounding society
• Converted into
• Charismatic leader less formalized training
• Lay involvement everyone is a minister
• More otherworldly in focus (rewards come in
  afterlife)
• More likely to believe we have the whole truth
• Lower-class
• Conservative theology

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Church-like vs. Sect-like

• We typically discuss differences as ideal types
  that do not actually exist in pure form
• Examples of sect-like include Jehovahs
  Witnesses, Vineyard, Calvary Chapel, and C of C
  to some degree
• Example of church-like include United
  Methodist, Presbyterian, Episcopalian
• Single best distinction between church and sect
  according to Benton Johnson?

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Church-sect Theory

• Religions tend to become more secularized over
  time
• That is, as they grow and flourish, these sects
  are transformed into churches
• The conditions that prompted the original sect
  formation are re-created, a split occurs, and a
  new sect is formed.
• Sect is a revival attempt to return to ideal

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Why does sect tend to become church?

• Weber success bureaucracy
• Charismatic leadership becomes bureaucratic
  leadership
• Success means church buildings, and budgets, and
  committee meetings, and fundraisers
• Richard Neibuhr sect tends to be lower-class,
  radically otherworldly
• Rich men and needles, first and last, suffering
  in this world, rewarded in afterlife, meek shall
  inherit, etc. etc.
• Success growth higher of MC more
  this-worldly focus (M-C may not want to hear
  about separation from evils of this world)

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Cult Formation

• Sociologists use cult to distinguish new
  religions from sects arising out of old
  religions.
• All religions begin as cult movements.
• Cult is innovation
• Cult especially dependent on charismatic
• Sociologist uses world cult without prejudice

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Secularization and revival

• Old institutions may weaken (secularize) and
  will be replaced by new
• New might come in the form of sects (revival)
  or cults (innovation)
• Cults will arise where churches and sects weakest
• Irreligious more likely to join cults

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The American Religious Economy

• More than 1,500 separate denominations exist in
  the United States.
• 22 American denominations enroll more than 1
  million members each.
• In any given week, about 40 of Americans attend
  services.
• Some have questioned this number
• About 63 are official members of a local
  congregation or parish.

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Which American Institutions more or less
secularized?

• Churches more likely to be secularized
• E.g., Literal interpretation of the Bible

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American Denominations and Literal Faith in the
Bible
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American Denominations and Literal Faith in the
Bible
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Which American Institutions growing?

• Theory predicts that otherworldly, less
  secularized will grow
• Dean Kelley Why the Conservative Churches are
  Growing
• People drawn by the commitment of others
• Who is and is not convinced about answers to
  ultimate questions
• Which churches costs the most answers come
  cheaply?

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Declining American Denominations
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Some Growing American Denominations
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What is Rational Choice Theory?

• Within the limits of their information and
  understanding, restricted by available options,
  guided by their preferences and tastes, humans
  attempt to make rational choices
• Rationality the subjective weighing of
  anticipated rewards and costs when making choices

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Religious behavior rational behavior?

• Troubling to many
• Sacrifice, denying oneself, etc. questioned
• But if religious behavior is not rational, what
  is it? Irrational?
• Bible certainly talks of rewards
• Bible teaches us to seek rewards i.e., in
  heaven and in meeting the needs of others

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Reward anything we willing pay to attain 2
broad categories of religious rewards?

• This-worldly, direct rewards
• Friendship, happiness, social status and material
  rewards
• Otherworldly, ultimate rewards

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Institutional Implications

• Religion in the business of providing ultimate
  meaning/rewards
• But answering other-worldly questions risky
  business empiricism cannot verify ultimate
  answers

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Certainty found in commitment and convictions
of others

• Berger plausibility structure
• Dean Kelley Why the Conservative Churches are
  Growing
• Demanding, costly, otherworldly grow
• Costs make free-riding difficult
• Shift from otherworldly to this-worldly weakens
  churches

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Effects of this-worldly reward structure? R-C
theory predicts

• Tainted witness
• When a witness has much to lose, or at least
  little to gain, his/her assurances powerful.
• Powerful witness of early Christians, who
  followed at great cost
• Stark Affluent clergy are never a match for lay
  preachers and impoverished ascetics in
  head-to-head credibility contests.
• Dilution effect
• Religious meanings produced collectively
• Presence of those who seek this-worldly brings
  down the overall level commitment

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Rational Choice Conclusion

• Religious behavior, like all human behavior,
  tends toward rationality. People will choose
  religious commitment only if they perceive that
  the rewards outweigh the costs.
• Rewards, which can come in many forms, can be
  reduced to two broad categories this-worldly and
  otherworldly.
• The primary purpose of religion is to provide
  otherworldly rewards, which can be produced only
  with the help of the supernatural.

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Rational Choice Conclusion

• Because supernatural explanations are
  unverifiable, they are risky. Humans will thus
  seek assurances in the commitment of others.
• The employment of a this-worldly reward structure
  reduces the percentage of people in a church who
  are intensely seeking otherworldly answers.
• Because religious meaning is produced
  collectively, a reduced level of religious
  commitment makes it more difficult for a church
  to provide otherworldly rewards. A shift from an
  otherworldly to a this-worldly reward structure
  thus weakens a church.

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Interesting Issues in the Soc of Religion

• Gender and religion
• Brainwashing debate
• Satanism scare

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Gender and Religiousness in Selected Nations
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Gender and Religiousness in Selected Nations
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Gender and Religiousness in Selected Nations
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Why are women more religious?

• Gender trends essentially universal
• Women socialized to care for family/religious
  needs of family?
• Pascals wager non-belief is risky behavior
• But belief does involved costs deny oneself
  look to rewards in heaven
• Men engage in more risky behavior, less willing
  to delay gratification

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Why is the US more religious?

• No easy answer in many ways US is unique in
  industrialized world
• Science and empiricism has been hard on religion

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Brainwashing?

• 1960s and 1970s new religions grow
• Brainwashing coercive persuasion mind control
• Deprogrammers become big in 1980s and 1990s
• Sociologists tend to defend new religions
• Radical conversion, yes
• Brainwashing, no

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Satanism Scare

• Proctor and Gamble
• Gloria Vanderbilt
• Conspiracy theories become more and more popular
• Satanic Ritual Abuse
• Abuse of children
• Repressed memories