When thinking about religion, we all know that there is a lot of conflict between different religions, their beliefs, and the society to which we belong, for example, the social viewpoint of Islamic Muslims and how that has brought conflict between the Islamic religion and society as a whole. But what we don’t necessarily always think about is how much conflict there is within each sect or denomination, both similar conflicts and different. McGuire points out that issues of deviance, control, authority, and heresy dictate the conflicts that are common within the church, within the synagogue, within the mosque, etc.. Issues of deviance arise when members don’t follow the beliefs to the standard that religions want them to, for example, I was always raised to believe that Christians aren’t to partake in common trends like tattoos and that anyone in the church who had them were seen as sinners in the eyes of God, but as I grew older I became a part of this trend myself and felt unsure of whether I was really a sinner, or the fact that the church couldn’t control my actions made me a sinner in the eyes of the church, but not necessarily in the eyes of God. As far as the issues of heresy, McGuire states that it is more than deviance as it is almost a complete change in beliefs and ideas that were set forth by authority figures in the church, which again, brought me to question whether the church was really led under an authority working for God, or just a figure of authority wanting to showcase that form of power, which is something I was witness to at an old church where my family was shunned because my mom was following through with a divorce and our pastor told her that she was wrong and needed counseling because it wasn’t right in the eyes of the Lord, although the pastor was also co-workers with my ex-step-father. So taking into consideration all issues of conflict within the church, I wonder whether the same issues are seen from and cause issues outside of the church.
America’s Social Conflicts: Religious or Political?
McGuire discusses civil religion as legitimating myth, and how at times the same civil religion could be a significant source of cultural conflict. She states that “If Americans are in conflict over basic notions of ‘what it means to be one of us’ and ‘what kind of people do we want to be’, opposing civil religious sentiments are likely to be stirred in debates about abortion, capital punishment, immigration, civil rights, family values, and economic justice, among others” (McGuire 205). This prompted me to think of how the political beliefs of American are becoming increasingly polarized, with primarily young millennials arguing for liberal stances, and older baby boomers trying to maintain traditional and conservative values. While this appears to be political, perhaps this is an outcome of a religious disparity between the generations, and has created a sort of mini-crisis of values. With a very controversial president, many people have questioned the values of America, and what it means to “be American”— it seems that our identity as a nation is being heavily questioned. I wonder, then, if this is rooted in a religious turnover where more people are distancing themselves from religious institutions, not affiliating with any religion at all, or are deviating from traditional religious stances on social topics like abortion or homosexuality. This then leads me to wonder, if politic is a branch that deals with law making and protecting in order to establish order in a society, they must be basing their laws off of some moral code. Is it possible that there is no political view that does not derive from a religious conviction?
“Born Again” in relation to “The Social Context”
I have not had much experience in interacting with people from sectarian faiths because I grew up in a more denominational community. In high school, I learned that people who were fundamentalists and believed in the literal truth of the Bible were unintelligent and stuck in old, traditional values. I always viewed people with conservative ideologies because of their religion as people who were opposed to social change. I now understand because of classes like this religion and sociology class and cultural anthropology classes that there are reasons for certain faiths and religious organizations. Rather than to judge the way these people live, it is more interesting to observe how and why they live and believe in the way they do.
In “Born Again”, the daughter of the pastor describes her Christian school as very close-knit and “everybody knows your business”. In the “Social Context”, McGuire explains that this primary relationship is important part of the sectarian orientation because is supports the believer in the face of real or perceived opposition (183). Similarly, many people often criticize Baptist churches for their belief in creationism rather than evolution. This church criticized public schools that taught evolution. It depicts what McGuire calls “cognitive minority” – a group of people whose worldview differs from that of the dement society. Close-knit relationships provide a structure within which the believers’ distinctive worldview is plausible, whereas outside the group that worldview is disconfirmed (183).
It is easy to criticize certain religions for having values that might not line up with that of your own. However, as a sociologist it is important to recognize that there are explanations to this and the reasons for people believing in certain things says a lot about society as a whole.
Observing Life in Different Religions
This past week, we discussed the different types of religions and how people behave when apart of it. We then watched the film, Born Again: Life in a Fundamentalist Baptist Church, that gave an inside look to how different people live their lives when apart of a certain religion. The kids in the movie complained about not being able to experience new things and knowing everyone’s business that surrounded them. Because everything was known around the community, if they participated in something that was considered sinful to the church they would have to keep it a big secret and not tell anyone. Even certain adults were not content and happy being apart of the religion. At one point, a mother was unable to see her kids, because she had committed a sinful act and could only see them if she followed certain guidelines and orders. It is amazing that people will live a certain way, because they believe in a certain religion and believe that it’s ruling is always correct. In our readings this week, it also showed that the involvement in youth in churches is starting to decline. The church is beginning to become a more older age group collectively. Younger people are no longer inspired by religion, because it seems like something that will limit them. Just from watching the film, it is apparent that kids aren’t thrilled about being apart of something that will hinder their fun and experiencing all opportunities of life.
Northern Ireland/Born Again doc.
The religious conflict in Northern Ireland between Protestants and Roman Catholics is one regarded as much more political than I expected. McGuire writes that “between 1970 and 1998, the sectarian strife claimed between 3,000 and 4,000 lives (or about one in 500 citizens), more than half of whom were civilian noncombatants”, it is sad to see the repercussions this rivalry has on the innocent civilians of Northern Ireland (McGuire 220). Other than the obvious tragedies that result from this religious conflict, what stood out to me most was the similarities between the two groups. As McGuire describes, “the opposing sides in Northern Ireland appear to share the same racial stock, language, and social class”, this is quite unlike the conflicts seen in America which usually revolve around issues of race and segregation, which do revolve around both social and physical dissimilarities. After watching the documentary Born Again in class, I saw an “us versus them” mentality as described in the reading. Though there are no outward distinctions between the members of the fundamentalist Baptist church and most other Americans, once pastor John starts describing the practices and intensity of the church, it is clear as to why this particular organization is referred to as sectarian. Though I do not identify with any specific religion, I have somewhat assumed that other Christians and Baptists who have watched this documentary probably do not see eye to eye with the way this church and its members conduct themselves. There are many conflicts and differences within particular religions that I had never taken notice to before, both the reading and the documentary have helped highlight those.
Weekly Reflection
This week in class we discussed religious organizations, typology, and trends in American religion. Within Christianity there are different polities. These power structures and hierarchies range from being run by elected and elevated officials to simply a group of people following someone. As noted in class, there is a similarity between the religions(Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and Hinduism) in which once they migrate and settle in America, the polity becomes congregational. The term that is used to described with polity is autonomous, or self governing. The churches, temples, and mosques no longer belong to an outside governing power. I think this is interesting because it is somewhat mimicking the “American dream.” Thry are becoming separate to do the best for each individual organization; this is something only seen in America.
McGuire presented her own religious typology. The chart which we saw in class describes where each organization or sect can fit. Throughout time these can shift and change. Some more traditional denominations have become more lenient. Other trends that have appeared in America is the increase in spiritual, but not religious and a decrease in the Bible being literal. These trends continue to appear despite their source. It makes me wonder if we will see a rise in religion after this period of decreasing religion. Throughout history this has happened before, such as the first and second Religious Awakening. It is intersting, however, to learn America is more religious than other countries. Maybe it is only the Western European countries that we have talked about, but I still think it is surprising.
Born Again: Life in a Fundamentalist Baptist Church
When watching Born Again: Life in a Fundamentalist Baptist Church, I was intrigued by the story of the youth in the Church. The pastor’s daughter, Valarie, was talking about wishing she was not the pastor’s daughter, and she wanted to experience what life outside of the church would be like. The kids in the school felt suffocated because they all know each other and they all know each other’s business. They were also talking about how they did things that their parents didn’t know about: they went on secret dates, they lied (very minor white lies), and they talked about things that would be considered “sinful” by their parents or other members of their community. I found it interesting to hear what the kids had to say when their parents were not around. They were able to say what they probably would not be able to say with their parents there. Do their parents know that their kids feel this way about their school and religious practice? It seemed as though the kids felt like their on a rather tight leash and would like some freedom.
I wish the film spent more time on exploring the lives of the youth. I want to know more about their own beliefs, and how much their parents have influenced them. Do they have the same religious views if they are born into it rather than being “born again” like their parents? If not now, will they develop them in their future? I also wish we could have heard what the parents have to say about their kids.
Chaves, ch. 4-9
This week, we learned primarily about shifting patters of religious life in America. The clearest pattern is that no symbol of religiosity in American life has increased, but most of the time, any declines have been gradual and/or not statistically significant. A few trends do stand out, however. First, childhood and youth involvement has declined, decreasing the possibility that they will become religiously involved adults. As a result, the church population is growing considerably older, and the number of young people interested in a religious career has plummeted. Finally, congregants have consolidated themselves into a small number of very large churches, which means that smaller churches are closing more quickly.
In terms of shifts among different kinds of Protestantism, Chaves distinguishes between liberal and conservative Protestants. Conservative Protestant denominations have grown partly by siphoning off members from liberal denominations but more importantly by merely keeping their young people involved at a higher rate than liberal denominations do. However, Chaves believes that liberal religious sentiments have not declined, only their expression in the form of church participation. On a national stage, the polarization of Republicans and Democrats has contributed to increasing polarization between liberal and conservative Protestants. As the religious conservatives aligned themselves with the Republican party in the 1980s, the liberal conservatives in turn allied themselves with Democrats. While Chaves posits that our society has not yet engaged in a “culture war,” he believes that it may be headed in that direction if the political parties continue to move further apart.
Baptists Less Political in 1987
For the Fundamentalist Baptists in the movie Born Again, one needs to be a part of the Church in order to be saved. Before watching this film, I associated Born Again Baptists with political issues. As discussed in Chaves’ “Polarization”, religious involvement has become increasingly tied with political stance. As religious involvement has softened, those who still attend a weekly service are more likely to be conservative.
In my politically aware lifetime, I have known Baptists to be rather vocal about political issues. Particularly in the South, there is significant preaching to the public from the Baptist community in regards to gay rights and women’s rights. Born Again showed a different story. In a Fundamentalist church in Massachusetts, God’s word is the only word that should really be considered, and following the word of God is the only way to salvation. Conservative politics are not particularly preached by the pastor. Rather, the pastor speaks about things such as how he has been “liberated by my wife” and says that “my wife knows something, and so does yours”. The pastor is heavily involved in counseling members of the church, and we frequently see scenes of him sitting down for coffee, helping husbands and wives through their marital issues. He serves as a source of wisdom and a reference to the word of God.
Born Again was released in 1987, which is an important factor to consider. It would be interesting to see if a similar church in the modern day would focus more on political issues, rather than providing personal advice to members of the congregation, and getting “non-believers” to be Born Again.
Born Again
Growing up Catholic I did not know much about belonging to a Sectarian church. As we watched the film Born Again I was able to have an inside view of the way religion shapes the members of a Born Again Church. What stood out to me the most was the way the Christian school day differed so much from the elementary and middle school I attended. I attended a Catholic elementary school and thought that because they were both schools that integrated religion and academia that they would be similar when in fact there are many differences. From the start of the school day the children pledged allegiance to the bible and to the Christian faith using a Christian flag as a symbol of their faith. I thought this was was both fascinating and scary. The fact that the children pledged to the Christian faith before the US was something that I have never seen. It also got me wondering do children that young really the understand what they are pledging? How many of the churches with a strict mindset have members who grow up and question their faith? Although I saw a great passion in the members of the Born Again community, I feel as though they were not as welcoming to other ideas that they might not believe in such as divorce. This notion that the Born Again way is the only way really got me to question why people give other’s the power to speak on “God’s” behalf.