Postmodernism and religion

• Watch the clip on postmodernism and take down up to 10 bullet points.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oL8MhYq9owo

• Using the notes you have taken, write a 200 word summary explaining what postmodernism is.

Postmodernism – A Summary

We live in a society characterised by:

• The coexistence of many different subgroups and cultures

• The erosion of traditional social classes• The growth of movements such as environmentalism,

feminism and ethnic politics

• The absence of agreed standards for evaluating what is true/false and right/wrong

• The blurring of what is real and not

• Experimentation with self-identity

• Local traditions have been eroded.

• We live in and ‘information rich’ world.

• Anyone can obtain information on anything from anywhere at anytime!

• The ‘meanings’ of things have now become more individualised.

• We consume the products, symbols and signs of a globalised economy…but we provide our own meanings to these.

Postmodernism and Religion

Lyotard

Lyotard - claims postmodern society is characterized by a loss in confidence of 'meta-narratives' - the grand explanations provided by religion, politics, science & sociology. The 'truth' these subjects + belief systems claim to reveal have not been forthcoming.

Bauman

• Bauman – we are experiencing a 'crisis of meaning'. • Traditional religions in particular seem unable to

deal with this crisis. Consequently, newer expressions of religiosity have become more individualistic and more socially diverse. This has enables individuals to restore meaning in their lives, without having to rely on established religious institutions imposing a monopoly of truth.

• This can be seen by the decline in religious monopolies and rise in NRM's + NAM's.

Lyon – Jesus in Disneyland• The centrality of consumerism to

postmodern life means that people choose what to believe in, as readily as they choose what to wear.

• Rather than declining, traditional religious beliefs as relocating to the sphere of consumption

• People are less willing to accept an externally imposed narrative to put their lives in context, so they personalise the stories available to them from a much broader range of cultural sources.

Bunting

• Religious belief is becoming a DIY cocktail

• Seasonal attenders – Christmas and Easter

• People are dipping into different beliefs and taking what most appeals to them, rejecting the beliefs when they no longer apply.

Heelas

• There is a development of New Age Beliefs as a rejection of science and modernity in the postmodern age.

• Holistic milieu – a range of activities involving the mind, body and spirit, such as yoga, tai chi, healing and self discovery.

Davie

• Religion is taking a different, more privatised form. • Believing without belonging – people hold

religious belief but don’t go to church• Vicarious religion – a small number of professional

clegy practice religion on behalf of a much larger number of people, who experience it second hand. Despite low attendance levels, people still use the church for rites of passage (weddings, funerals)

Herviru-Leger

• Young people no longer have a fixed religious identity due to cultural amnesia (loss of collective memory) and not passing down religious traditions.

• Individual consumerism has replaced collective tradition, people have become spiritual shoppers and as a result, religion no longer acts as a source of collective identity that it once did.

Summary

• The postmodernist view therefore highlights that religion, in one or another, still influences people.

• Religion has just become more consumerist. Individual's are choosing their beliefs and shaping them into there own philosophies. Hence, if people are choosing hybrid religion's then religion still exists.

Activity

• Make a list of all the postmodern theorists and their main concepts. 10 mins

• In pairs, take it in turns to go through the list explaining each theory/concept to each other.