Secularization, Coursework Example

In Secularization, Steve Bruce’s main claim is supported by concept C, in which secularization is occurring, but Christianity in the United States is not declining. This may be indicative of a slow transition towards the loss of religion in this country, but this phenomenon has not yet occurred. Chapters 8 through 10 of his book focus on this concept, as he attempts to define the evolution of our nation’s religious views. Bruce discusses that while many religious individual’s still attend church, they do so either in lesser numbers, or choose to do primarily to celebrate religious holidays. However, this does not stop people from considering themselves religious, or even ceasing to practice their religion. In actuality, religion has become more closely integrated with an individual’s personal values and may reflect how they go about their daily lives. For example, belief in Jesus Christ as the messiah will continue to impact an individual’s personal feelings about issues like gay marriage and abortion, regardless of the individual’s specific opinion on these matters. However, solely based on the fact that the individual believes that he or she is religious, he or she will be making this decision based on an individual interpretation of the religion.

Steve Bruce’s critics argue that he is exaggerating secularization or simply misperceiving something about it. However, throughout his book, he primarily discusses clearly observable trends that have occurred in the practices of modern Americans. American society has become one that is not satisfied by the status quo. We want things at the moment we begin to want them and we often want to exercise our own opinions and beliefs independently from those who disagree with us. Therefore, Bruce is commenting on an evolution of religious practice rather than a disappearance of it, which can be considered a type of secularization. It is difficult to argue that attendance at church and other religious institutions has plummeted. Many modern Americans believe they do not have time to organize their schedules around their place of worship, which has resulted in this lack of attendance. However, those that still require religion in their lives will continue to share some of the opinions of their former congregation and adapt some other concepts to personalize their own worship at home. In addition, worship will transform from being a ceremonial act to one that is more symbolic in an individual’s daily life. Thus, critics of Bruce are incorrect in stating that he is exaggerating secularization. It exists, just more subtly than one would notice due to the transition of what secularization means and the altered definition of what practicing one’s religion is.

Many people believe that secularization should be classified as either good or bad, but in reality, the shift to secularization is a neutral phenomenon that has many benefits and disadvantages. Individuals who consider secularization to be bad do so because they worry that failure to practice their religion as it has been practiced over a period of many years will lead to a permanent alteration of these practices so that their children and grandchildren will be less likely to appreciate the value of these concepts in their daily lives. However, it is important to consider that secularization is not the loss of religion, it is the change its practice. Ultimately, these individuals should worry that the way their religious worship was conducted will change, but they shouldn’t concern themselves with the possibility that is content will. Many modern religions have been practiced for hundreds of years and will continue to be practiced for hundreds of years to come. However, it is important to note that the ways that these religions have been practiced have changed since their origin and will continue to change. For example, many modern Christian religions evolved from the practices of the Roman Catholic Church. When true believers became dissatisfied with the way that the Church was delegating praise, Christian sects, such as Lutheranism, formed. Today, we have even more sects available for practice that are designed to cater to individual Christian beliefs, and include Mormons, Methodists, Presbyterians, and others. Thus, religion is changing, not disappearing.

Individuals who consider secularization to be good do so because secularization of mainstream religions occurs to recreate existing beliefs and make them more accessible for people. Ultimately, secularization results in an adaptation of religious concepts that many more individuals support because they believe these beliefs pertain to their thoughts on creation and how the universe works. While there is truth in the fact that many of the supposed negative consequences of secularization are not true while the supposed positive consequences of secularization have greater support, secularization is a neutral concept. It describes a natural tendency for ideas to evolve and change, which is not a unique concept to religious principles. This realization allows us to recognize that secularization may be considered a negative concept for only specific individuals. In the realm of politics, secularization is particularly detrimental to conservative parties, who utilize their belief in religion and tradition to unite voters. Ultimately, a reduction in traditional religious practices will create political platforms that smaller groups of people will support. In addition, church workers are particularly upset about secularization because religious work is their livelihood. A decrease in the occurrence of traditional religious practices will result in a lesser need for church personnel, which will diminish these jobs. Since many of these individuals are trained specifically for these church positions, it may be difficult for them to find work outside of the church. Thus, it is clear that secularization negatively impacts a certain percentage of the population. However, since politicians and church personnel have influence over the opinions of many people, it is possible that they are making secularization appear to be a greater problem than it is in actuality.

Despite influence from these individuals to abandon secularism, a free society that is able to make its own decisions will naturally trend towards change in religious practice. Ultimately, the growing benefit of religious freedom has caused the benefit of secularization. People can now choose to practice religion or avoid practice of religion as they choose. Those who continue to practice their religion of choice may now do so in a way that is personally meaningful.

Despite the occurrence of secularization, there are certain laws that should guide the role of religion in American society. In particular, the Ten Commandments are an excellent reflection of ethics that should be followed in an individual’s daily life, regardless of whether they consider themselves to be religious or not. Furthermore, it is essential to ensure that the government prohibits religious practices that can cause direct harm to other individuals. For example, certain Satanist practices that involve human sacrifice should not be protected as a religious freedom because it is also considered homicide. Ultimately, it is essential for the government to protect the religious interests of its people, but only to the extent that they are ethical as defined by the Constitution and common law.

While it is important to uphold specific ethical values, many of which were derived from the bible, it is essential to avoid extremes in enforcing or failing to enforce religious practices. For example, the religious unity model is too extreme for modern society; the advent of religious freedom marks this ideology as obsolete. It is no longer appropriate to condemn people for what they believe and it is important to enact a policy of tolerance even if we do not agree with their beliefs. Furthermore, it is essential to avoid the negative consequences of the religious conflict model, although it is important to allow each religion to believe that their beliefs are correct. This only becomes an issue when it results in violence against other groups for their beliefs, which should be prohibited. Many modern societies have a religious relativism model, which resulted from the evolution of the religious conflict model. This model states the modern, correct concept that individual freedom and government neutrality should be emphasized. However, it is important to continue to build upon this freedom in a manner that will prevent religious groups from being discriminated against and allow them to feel free to practice their beliefs. The ultimate rule in determining what ought to be and how it should be regulated is that there should be complete religious freedom with the exception of situations that directly impede the religious practices of others, impact their livelihood, or result in violence.

A majority of the concepts discussed in question three only apply to America as a society, rather than the world. The United States is unique because we have been allowed religious freedom to the extent that there are questions of when these freedoms should be limited due to negative consequences. Many other countries, such as those in the Middle East, do not have this luxury. The nature of current religious practice regulation and ideal religious practice regulation therefore varies substantially in these two geographic areas. Therefore, both areas should have significantly different goals in increasing the amount of religious freedom relevant to their current practices.

According to the above discussion, many Middle Eastern countries that predominantly practice Islam would be categorized as belonging to the religious unity model. Even though many religions or variants of the same religion are practiced in these countries, political leaders do not tolerate religious practices that differ from their own or the majority. Therefore, to guide the role of religion in this area, it is important to strive to achieve the religious uneasy toleration model. This particular model is not relevant in the United States and will never be. To some extent, tolerance is not necessary in the United States because we have religious freedom. On the other hand, nations across the world that are far from achieving religious freedom should at minimum, strive to achieve religious tolerance. Ultimately, when considering world events related to religion, we should consider the United States separately due to its unique status as a country that was founded with a separation of church and state.