My Midterm

Will religion die? If so, why? If not, why? Please detail your answers with specific references in this course.

Answer:

Many believe that increased secularization of society will cause religion to die out. The secularization thesis claims that most will look for answers via science and technology instead of turning to the super-natural help of religions. There is also a general feeling that now there is a much larger emphasis on the individual. For these reasons, religion is thought to be dwindling away from its once conservative base.

It is important however to note that religion over time and history has been continually changing and evolving. Conservative practices often soften over time with the influx of followers and popular thought and become more moderate for a time. After a while they move again toward an even more liberal stance and then eventually move toward becoming secular in their approach. However, from the secular view emerge new sects or cults wanting a return to the more conservative views. And thus the cycle continues. All religions have experienced this evolution from conservative to secular views.

It is unlikely that religion will go away as religion plays a huge role in the development of society. It is the religious practices/roles that provide guidelines for people to base their lives on, while providing an environment that fosters community. In addition religion provides hope to people regarding an unknown future. The group most responsible today for trends in religion is the baby boomers generation. As this group approaches mid-life, they usually turn toward inward reflection and self-assessment, and then eventually wonder what life is all about. Often this personal journey of discovery will lead to a change in their religious views. Instead of just blindly accepting what they have been told, the baby boomer generation has generally sought out answers. They often look towards personal choice and individual experiential approaches. However, baby boomers are altering their concept of God. Moving from that of God as a transcendent being to one who is more of holistic part of nature.

Religions originate out of ones need to explain the human condition, to be part of a community and to have some rules or standards of behavior that one can follow. For this reason Religious Sociologists, Durkheim, Wilson and Simmel all agree that religion is a needed component of society. There are six explanations for how religions originate. One is a “biological” explanation which instead of assigning a mystic reality, provides the explanation by addressing what is going on neurologically within the brain, (part of the construction of our neural network.) As a result, it is felt that our brains long for a sense of meaning and community. Another is a “theological” explanation, which concludes that the ideas originate from something divine or “God”, who then inspired his spiritual truths to various individuals who either taught them to others or wrote them down in the form of a book or letter. A third is an “anthropological” explanation, which studies primal human’s evolution of intellect, trying to deify the forces of nature. A forth is a “psychological” explanation which believes that religion stems from our deeply rooted unconscious mind which is filled with archetypal symbols and that religion becomes an outward expression of these. A fifth is the “sociological” explanation in which religions have a social origin. In this explanation a feeling of belonging or community exists. And lastly an “egotistical” explanation, which conscious formulation occurs to garner for its creator either praise or income. No matter how one explains the origins of religion, religion will always have a future since it is deeply engrained in our neurology and psychology.

Nietzschian also explores the concept of the death of God in Chapter Three of “When God’s Decay”. What Nietzschian refers to is the decay of how we see God in our culture. Nietzschian states that what is dying off are certain versions of God. Science has been extremely helpful in helping us understand the world around us. This understanding is prompting us to adapt our version of God in order to better match what we now know is scientifically true. This decay of God does not always lead to demise but to a re-birth of God in a new version or form

To the question of will religion (or concept of the death of God) die? The answer is no. Secularism is just a fuel that grows new off-shoots that return to more convention beliefs.