Religious Secularization Has Been Increasingly

¶ … religious secularization has been increasingly brought to the forefront. This is when there is a transformation in the morals and values of society, away from religious ideology towards non-religious beliefs. In many cases, these kinds of shifts have caused social scientists to predict the end of organized religion as we know it. Yet, as time goes by many of these religions will continue to have a tremendous following. This is showing how the beliefs of social scientists have overstated the scope of these changes occurring. (Stark, n.d., pp. 96 -- 108)

Instead, there has been an emphasis on allowing organized religion to influence public affairs. However, the role that they are playing has been considerably reduced in comparison with the past. This is significant, in illustrating how the secularism is creating select changes in social customs and norms. To fully understand what is taking place requires comparing the ideas of secularism from Jose Casanova's and Rodney Stark's analysis of these issues. Together, the combination of these factors will show the role of secularism in understanding social customs. (Stark, n.d., pp. 96 -- 108)

Public Religions in the Modern World by Jose Casanova

In the article titled Public Religions in the Modern World, Casanova (n.d.) is talking about how secularism is having an impact on religious philosophy. The way that this is accomplished is through discussing the ideas of secularism and religious ideology. According to Casanova, he found that there are several conflicts. As secularism is moving everyone away from practicing and thinking about a host of religious ideas. While at the same time, religious ideology is discussing specific beliefs and how they can influence social norms. The combination of these elements is creating a situation where there will be conflicting morals and values. (Casanova, n.d., pp. 10 -- 26)

Evidence of this can be seen with Casanova saying, "This structure division of this world into two separate spheres, the religious and secular has been distinguished and kept separate from another division: that between this world and the other world. To a large extent, it is the failure to keep these two worlds separate that is the source of misunderstandings in discussions of secularization." (Casanova, n.d., pg. 10) This is showing how there are competing forces inside religious organizations and society that are having an impact on everyone. As a result, these differing viewpoints, are leading to heated debates surrounding the role of religion in society. (Casanova, n.d., pp. 10 -- 26)

At the same time, many different religious scholars have been attempting to utilize some kind of theory in understanding these events. This is because many individuals will not blindly follow the instructions of the church. Instead, they want seek out some type of doctrine that is based on logic. As a result, there have been a host of historical secularization related events in the past ranging from: the Protestant Reformation to new religions developing from specific ideas. (Casanova, n.d., pp. 10 -- 26)

This has caused social scientists to claim, that organized religion is slowly dying (which is leading to a transformation in values and principles). What they are not telling everyone is that there has been a rise in religious traditions since the end of World War II. In particular, many of the former communist countries are quickly adopting religious ideas as a part of their belief systems. The main reason is many different societies will often accept a host of religious beliefs as fact. This is because there is no need to seek out any kind of alternative explanations for these ideas. Over the course of time, this has led to various organized religions seeing an increase in support for their activities (despite a rise in secularism). (Casanova, n.d., pp. 10 -- 26)

The Secularization by Rodney Stark

In the article titled Secularization, Stark (1999) is discussing how secularization is having a dramatic impact upon the society. This is because organized religion has not offered any kind of new or creative ideas in over two hundred years (which are leading to its decline). Moreover, many of the more mystical religions are experiencing similar decreases. The combination of these factors are important, in showing how there has been fundamental shift in morals and values. (Stark, 1999, pp. 249 -- 273)

Evidence of this can be seen with observations from Stark who said, "The day will come when religion has been relegated to memory and museums. This will not have been caused by modernization, and the demise of faith will bear no resemblance to the process postulated by the secular doctrine." (Stark, 1999, pg. 269) This is illustrating how modern religion is going through a period of slow decline. As a result, Stark believes that many of these ideas will be looked at from a historical perspective (in understanding how these concepts influenced individual thinking). This is when scholars can show how the morals and values of society evolved with these beliefs. (Stark, 1999, pp. 249 -- 273)

What elements do these critiques have in common?

The basic elements that secularization has in common with other ideas are that it is openly questioning modern religious philosophy. This is leading to a transformation in how ideas are discussed and what specific morals are applied socially. Over the course of time, this is shifting the way various concepts are understood and interpreted (which leads to changes in different viewpoints). (Stark, 1999, pp. 249 -- 273) (Casanova, n.d., pp. 10 -- 26)

In what ways do these sociologists' views on the secularization thesis differ from each other?

The way that these ideas differ from one another is the lasting impact of secularism in society. As Casanova believes, that religion is still continuing to remain a dominant force because of secularism. The reason why, is because he thinks that these changes lead to new ideas and philosophies about religious doctrine. This is when new sects emerge, which will create alternative ideas and interpretations. Once this happens, is when there will be an increase in how these concepts are embraced by society (with them becoming more dominant). (Stark, 1999, pp. 249 -- 273) (Casanova, n.d., pp. 10 -- 26)