Role of Modernity in Religion

Civil Society Organizations

1) International NGOs, or civil society organizations, play an important role in global governance. Some of these are transnational bodies, comprised of many different nations, that act on behalf of the global community. Many specifically become involved in troubled areas of the world, representing the global community in areas such as conflict resolution.
One of the most important contributions that civil society organizations make in terms of governance is that they bring critical issues to public debate. This public debate will subsequently apply pressure to governments and key decision makers to address the issues at play (R4D.org, 2017). Without these organizations, in many countries it is felt that there would be little transparency regarding the creation and implementation of budgets. CSOs essentially act at watchdogs for governments, providing governance that might not otherwise exist because of deficiencies in the government structure of certain countries.
There should be general consensus on their inclusion – they provide a critical check against fiscal abuse. If there are those within governments who prefer that the CSOs not be involved in the process, that does not surprise, but their views can hardly be taken seriously. Any reasonable person would agree that CSOs perform a vital service in terms of encouraging transparency.

2) Thussu (2006) describes subaltern flows as those that come from developing nations, rather than the more developed ones. The argument is that media from dominant global nations tends to hold a particular set of views, and that those views come to dominate global discourse. Contraflows that come from the global periphery may reflect different views and voices not otherwise normally heard in the context of global media. For the most part, subaltern flows have not been all that successful at challenging the dominance of Western media. For one, they tend to hold appeal within their own particular audience, be that a national or cultural audience. Within those communities, such media has typically been strong, but without a broader audience will only have limited impact. Another issue that that some of the more successful non-Western media outlets suffer from the same bias and ideology issues that Western media suffer from, whether it is the anti-Semitism of Al-Jazeera or the outright dubious nature of RT International.
There remains potential for subaltern flows, but at the same time they need to establish themselves as holding to a high standard, arguably higher than established Western counterparts. Further, because Western media talks with a similar voice, it presents a very loud voice on most issues, and subaltern voices would need to have a fair amount of unity to present anything other than a fringe response.

3) Religion has generally struggled with modernity. Modernity brings with it challenges ranging from distraction to science and a rejection of superstition. That religion is challenged by modernity is completely unsurprising – it has always been thus.
However, modernity has allowed for greater ease with which to spread religious messages Members of a faith community can find kin more easily online sometimes than in person, and this has actually allowed for some communities to be stronger. Further, expatriate communities find it easier by means of this communication technology to connect with the spiritual centers of the faith. These are two unintended consequences of modernity on religion.
Another unintended consequence is that some faiths have adapted to modernity. The Dalai Lama's embrace of science runs counter to his position as head of a very conservative religion. Other faiths have allowed for some modern mores and practices, as a means of remaining in touch with the needs of modern populations, and found their positions stronger and their communities enhanced through such actions.
There are doubtless still challenges that faiths face with modernity, but some faiths has become stronger because of communication, and others have adapted, changed themselves into something stronger, as a result of their response to modernity.




References

R4D.org (2017) The role of civil society organizations in supporting fiscal transparency in African countries. Results for Development. Retrieved November 6, 2017 from http://www.r4d.org/resources/role-civil-society-organizations-supporting-fiscal-transparency-african-countries/

Thussu, D. (2006). Contra-flow in global media. Media Asia. Vol. 33 (3-4) 123-129.