Religion

Religion and Postmodernity

The Collapse of Metanarratives (1)

Religious practice and affiliation have decreased

This is particularly notable in the case of the “big” religions such as Christianity in Britain

And could be seen as a symptom of the collapse of metanarratives such as religion

The Collapse of Metanarratives (2) HOWEVER at the same time, faith in other

metanarratives has declined, particularly science Consequently, people are turning to a mix of belief

systems to explain the world. So whilst major religions have declined, smaller

religions have flourished Heelas (1996) has shown that people are increasingly

turning to “new age” movements These are often seen as offering legitimate

alternatives to science. For instance, “alternative medicines” (e.g.

acupuncture, herbal medicines, etc) .

Hybridity (1)

Many NRM’s are syncretic i.e they borrow from different religions And are often an eclectic mix of different

narratives – a characteristic of post modernity.

For instance, Scientology mixes psychoanalysis, science-fiction and spirituality.

This reflects the postmodern symptom of hybridity

Hybridity (2)

There has also been an emergence of spiritual shoppers

People pick-and-mix their religious beliefs, dipping in and out of different beliefs

See Madonna’s mix of a catholic name and wearing of a crucifix with a claim to follow Kabala. This has, though, made religious identity more superficial (simulacra)

A Response to Uncertainty The collapse of metanarratives – and with it absolute

truth – produces a huge degree of uncertainty Some revel in this situation, allowing them to make

many choices they couldn’t have made in modernity. Yet others struggle with this relativity and crave truth

and certainty The move to NRMs could be seen as a response to

this problem. Others have highlighted that increasing

fundamentalism (e.g. Islamic fundamentalism) could be seen as a response to postmodernism

As it offers absolute truth and avoids the psychological problems of choice, pluralism and relativity

Leading Bauman to argue that “fundamentalism is a thoroughly contemporary, postmodern phenomenon”

A possible conclusion…

It is easy to assume that the rejection of metanarratives signalled by postmodernism will, by definition, lead to the rejection of religion.

However, this does not see them to be the case – we have seen a transformation of religion, and both Bauman and Giddens argue that religion has become more important in the late modern/postmodern world (all be it in an adapted form now).

As Giddens states, “spiritual concerns seem fairly widespread in late

[post] modern societies…not only has religion failed to disappear; we see all around us the creation of new forms of religious sensibility and religious endeavour”