Title: The Contemporary Landscape of Theories of Secularization
Abstract: The contemporary debate over secularization for the most part belongs to sociology of religion. Among classical sociologists, Western secularization has been generally interpreted as a process of decline of the relevance and influence of religion (Comte), of its demise as an illusion oppressive of the proletariat (Marx), of its transformation into a "religion of man" (Durkheim), or of relocation into a narrower sphere due to rationalization (Weber). At the present, it is possible to formulate an ideal type of three groups of theories involved in the conversation. The orthodox model affirms the project of modernity unavoidably erodes religion and marginalizes it, particularly because science and pluralism discredit religious worldviews. On an opposite end, the rational choice model sees secularization as fostering religious vitality due to the establishment of a "free religious market" in which religious organizations compete with each other. The debate between these positions has been strong and has led to an excessive focus on the relationship between religious freedom and religious vitality. The third group takes a different approach by criticizing the first one without espousing the thesis of the second. Although scholars in this group have different views, they all share an understanding of secularization as meaning religious change, without necessarily entailing decline nor revitalization. It is among the latter that we find Charles Taylor's meta-narrative of Western secularization. An important feature of his approach is that it constitutes the application of his philosophical ideas on the human person and on the method of the social sciences.
Publication Year: 2016
Publication Date: 2016-11-22
Language: en
Type: book-chapter
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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Cited By Count: 1
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