Postmodernism and Religion

Postmodernist theory believes that the UK and other western

societies have experienced major economic and cultural change
in the past 20 years. They claim that this transformation from
modern society to postmodern society has profound implications
for religious organisations and the way religion is practised.

Religion and modern society

In order to understand postmodernist beliefs, it is important to

understand how they see modern society, i.e. the type of
society they argue existed before the emergence of
postmodern society.

a) Modern society is dominated by an industrial

economic system focused on factories producing
manufactured goods. In other words, modern society
began with the industrial revolution, and the
emergence of free enterprise, i.e. capitalism. As
industrial society developed, so too did other
characteristics of modern societies, in particular,

 urbanisation (i.e. a majority of people moved from the

countryside to live in cities),
 a meritocratic society based on universal rules,
especially examinations and qualifications
 a centralised government
 the nation-state (i.e. people developed a sense of
national identity).

b) Postmodernists argue that modern society is

dominated by particular approaches to knowledge.
In modern societies, people are concerned with pursuing
‘absolute truths’ or right answers to particular
problems. It is believed that by adopting specific
approaches based on rational thinking and logic that
problems can be solved for good. Post modernists claim
that three types of belief systems or meta-

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 narratives (i.e. ‘big stories’) emerged in modern society
to provide explanations or truths about the world.

 Science – the most high status form of

knowledge because it underpins the standard
of living of modern societies

 Political ideologies, e.g. ideas about how we

should organise our economies and lives such as
communism, conservatism, liberalism, socialism,
feminism etc.

 Religion – the established religions in modern

European societies were based around Christianity,
e.g. the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of
England etc generally claimed a monopoly on God
and spirituality.

c) In modern societies, people’s identities are shaped

by social influences over which they have little or
no control such as their

 social class,
 gender,
 ethnicity
 nationality

In regard to religion, in modern societies, people are

usually born into a religion – they do not choose it.

Postmodern society

So how is postmodern society different from modern society?

(1) If we examine the economic system, we can see that

manufacturing industry in the UK is in decline.
Postmodernists argue that the economy has undergone
radical change. It is no longer exclusively concerned with
producing manufactured goods.

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  One reason for the decline in manufacturing industry in
the UK is that in postmodern societies, production has
undergone globalisation. Manufactured goods are
now mainly produced in the developing world.

 The postmodern economy in the UK is now a service

sector economy which mainly provides personal
services in retail, mass media, education and
welfare. The focus on these services is on knowledge
and consumption. Most people work in jobs which
either involve the processing of information (e.g.
government, finance etc) or the servicing of
consumption (e.g. retail, fast food etc). As a
society, we now consume more than we produce.

(2) Postmodernists argue that people have become

disillusioned with the old meta-narratives of science,
politics and religion.

 For example, science, for all its benefits, is seen to have

a downside associated with environmental destruction.

 Political ideologies such as communism have been

discredited whilst people generally no longer have faith
in politicians.

 The established Christian religions are experiencing

secularisation as people make the choice not to go to
church.

Postmodernists argue that people no longer see knowledge

and truth as absolutes. People understand that there are
no right answers. Instead people are turning to ‘relativism’
– the notion that there are many ways of looking at a
problem - all of which have some validity.

(3) Postmodernists note that culture and personal identity

have undergone a transformation in the move from
modern to postmodern society.

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  In particular, we have seen the globalisation of
culture through a global mass media and the
internet.

 We have also seen a move away from compulsory

forms of identity. In postmodern society, we choose
our identity from a rich and diverse global culture,
and consequently mix and match styles from a
fantastic range of sources.

The emphasis on postmodern society is therefore on the self, the

pursuit of lifestyle choices and the construction of personal
identity.
Postmodernist studies of religion

(1) Hervieu-Leger

There are two crucial ideas in the work of Hervieu-Leger relating to

religion in the postmodern world.

(a) Hervieu-Leger (2000) claims that secularisation is

the result of ‘cultural amnesia’ – this means that
postmodern societies have experienced a collective
loss of religious memory. She notes that for
centuries, children used to be taught religion in the
extended family, at school and at Sunday school at the
local parish church. Religion was handed down
generation by generation.

However, in postmodern societies, religious

knowledge and stories are no longer handed down
by parents to their children. Instead parents often let
children decide for themselves with regard to
religious belief. Hervieu-Leger also notes the decline of
Sunday schools and observes that religion no longer
has the status it once commanded in the education
system. As a result, young people today have little
religious knowledge and are less likely to inherit a
fixed religious identity.

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 (b) However, Hervieu-Leger notes that religion has not
disappeared despite these trends. Instead, she argues
that individual consumerism has replaced
collective tradition with regard to religious belief
and practice. She argues that people today feel that
they are consumers of religion and consequently
they have become spiritual shoppers in a religious
marketplace characterised by great diversity and
choice.

Moreover, Hervieu-Leger argues that religion is now

more individualised in postmodern society. This
means that people can construct their own unique
programmes of religious belief and practice rather
than having it imposed on them by membership of an
organised religion. This do-it-yourself approach to
religion allows people to explore spirituality in
their own time and in their own way.

Hervieu-Leger argues that two types of religious people have

consequently become more common in postmodern society:

 Pilgrims – these are people who choose to follow an

individual path in a search for self-discovery or
development. This is achieved by joining ‘new age’ spiritual
groups or through individual therapy or meditation.

 Converts – these are people who join religious groups that

offer a strong sense of belonging, usually based on a
shared ethnic background or religious doctrine. Such
groups aim to re-create a sense of community in a
society and to make up for the loss of traditional
religious knowledge. Examples of such groups would
include the evangelical ‘born again’ denominations such
as Baptists and Pentecostals.

(2) David Lyon

David Lyon (2000) argues that in postmodern society traditional

religion is being replaced by new religious forms that suggest

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religion is still important. He makes three important
observations:

(a) He argues that the globalisation of mass media, especially

the rise of satellite television and the internet, has
‘disembedded’ religion. This means that religious
beliefs and practices have been lifted out of their
normal context, i.e. the physical church with its fixed
programme of worship, and moved to media sites so
that people can choose to practice religion at their
own convenience.

Lyon notes that many religions now have web-sites – the

‘electronic church’ is becoming the norm – or global
satellite television channels. People no longer have to
physically go to their local churches to worship – they can
just log on to their computer or turn on the
television. Religion has become de-institutionalised and
instead become a cultural resource that individuals can
adopt and adapt for their own purposes.

(b) Lyon argues that people in postmodern societies

construct their identities through what they choose
to consume. Lyon argues that people have not abandoned
religion. Instead religion has re-located to the sphere
of consumption and people have become conscious
consumers choosing to relate to those bits of different
religions that they find useful.

For example, Ammerman’s study of Christian

fundamentalists in the USA found that they were happy to
worship at a range of Christian denominations. However,
Lyon concedes that religious consumerism has
weakened the power of the major religions because
it has given people greater access to a wider set of
beliefs and consequently made people sceptical
about the ‘truth’ of any one religious belief system or
meta-narrative.

(c) Lyon is very critical of the view that secularisation is

occurring and that religion is being replaced by a rational

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 scientific worldview. He argues that society is actually
experiencing a period of ‘re-enchantment’ in which there
has been a growth in unconventional religious beliefs,
practices and spirituality. From Lyon’s perspective,
religious beliefs and practices are just as strong as
ever –they just take different forms compared with
the past.

Postmodernism – an evaluation

Some sociologists believe that postmodernists have taken their

analysis too far and are very sceptical that we have entered
a brand new age of postmodernity.

 Steve Bruce (2002) rejects the postmodern concept of

relativism and the idea that all truths carry equal
weight. He notes that people can see that science is
always superior in terms of its outcomes compared
with religion, e.g. people will always see that astronomy is
more believable than astrology or that medical science works
better than faith healing or aromatherapy.

 Bruce also rejects the idea of individualisation and suggests

that postmodernists underestimate the continuing
power of group identities based on social class, age,
ethnicity and nationality.

 There is little evidence that the new ways of religious

practice found on the internet or on satellite television
are resulting in new forms of belief and worship.
Research shows that people choose to view programmes that
confirm their existing beliefs.

 Bruce argues that consumerist religion is weak religion –

it has little effect on the lives of its believers because it
is often too dependent on fad and fashion. It may be
trendy one week and unfashionable the next.