Lesson Three - Religion

Religion has historically been a major impetus to social change. In early Europe, the translation of sacred texts into everyday, non-scholarly language empowered people to shape their religions. Disagreements between religious groups and instances of religious persecution have led to mass resettlement, war, and even genocide. To some degree, the modern sovereign state system and international law might be seen as products of the conflict between religious beliefs as these were founded in Europe by the Treaty of Westphalia (1648), which ended the Thirty Years War. As outlined below, Canada is no stranger to religion as an agent of social change.

Secularization

At the same time that religion is still a major force in Western society, it is within a backdrop of societies becoming more and more secularized. Secularization as a social and historical process has been outlined by the sociologist Jose Casanova as three interrelated trends, all open to debate: 1) the decline of religious beliefs and practices in modern societies, 2) the privatization of religion, and 3) the differentiation of the secular spheres (state, economy, science), usually understood as “emancipation” from religious institutions and norms (Casanova 2006).

Historical sociologists Émile Durkheim, Max Weber, and Karl Marx and psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud anticipated secularization, claiming that the modernization of society would bring about a decrease in the influence of religion. Weber believed membership in distinguished clubs would outpace membership in Protestant sects as a way for people to gain authority or respect.

Conversely, some people contend that secularization is a root cause of many social problems, such as divorce, drug use, and educational downturn. U.S. presidential contender Michele Bachmann even linked Hurricane Irene and the 2011 earthquake felt in Washington D.C. to politicians’ failure to listen to God (Ward 2011).

While some scholars see the Western world, including Canada, becoming increasingly secular, others observe that religion is still all around us. For example, recent statistics show that about 75 percent of Canadian marriages still involve a religious ceremony. But this varies from a a high of 90 percent in Ontario to less than 40 percent in British Columbia (Black 2007, B.C. Vital Statistics 2011).

At the time of this writing, religion impacted post-secondary education in Canada. Trinity Western University, a respected private Christian university in British Columbia, is embroiled in controversy as several provincial bar associations have voted not to accept graduates of Trinity’s proposed law program. One of the central issues is the “covenant” the university requires its students to sign that forbids sex unless it is within a marriage between a man and a woman. The university intends to take the bar associations in British Columbia, Ontario, and Nova Scotia to court “to respond to what it calls threats against freedom of religion” (CBC 2014). At this time, law societies in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Nunavut have decided to accept Trinity Western’s graduates.

This is not a new battle for Trinity Western University. In 2001, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled against the B.C. College of Teachers in its bid to uphold the original decision not to accept Trinity Western graduates into the teaching profession. This action would have effectively blocked Trinity graduates from teaching in British Columbia (Wikipedia N.d.). The 2001 court decision makes for an interesting read, even providing insights into Trinity’s next legal battle to assert its rights as a religious organization (Supreme Court of Canada 2001).

Religious independent schools teaching from kindergarten to grade 12 receive varying degrees of public funding across Canada. In British Columbia, these schools are countering the student population declines found in the public schools and have generally increased enrolments annually (B.C. Ministry of Education 2014).

Compared to other democratic, industrialized countries, Canada is generally perceived to be a fairly religious nation. Whereas 42 percent of Canadians in a 2009 Gallup survey said religion was an important part of their daily lives, 65 percent make this claim in the United States. The numbers were also higher in Spain (49 percent), but lower in France (30 percent), the United Kingdom (27 percent), and Sweden (17 percent) (Crabtree and Pelham 2009). Secularization interests social observers because it entails a pattern of change in a fundamental social institution.

The above data on the importance of religion in daily lives tell us much about our views on other issues. For example, countries such as Canada that have a lesser level of impact from faith on our day-to-day routine are more tolerant, even accepting of, homosexuality (Trinity Western University notwithstanding). A recent study shows that countries where religious influence is low are generally also the richest countries (Pew Research 2013). They are more accepting of homosexuality than poor countries where religious influence is high. Predominantly poor and/or Muslim countries have almost no levels of acceptance of homosexuality. There is a strong relationship between a country’s religiosity and opinions about homosexuality. The fact that Canada has become more secular is evidenced in the 10 percent increase in acceptance of homosexuality over the last decade.

While less than half of Canadians state that religion is important, 80 percent of Canadians claim a religious affiliation (Statistics Canada 2011). Canada is known for its religious diversity, yet it is predominantly Christian, with 72 percent declaring membership in one of its denominations or sects. Catholicism stands out as the most popular choice with almost 50 percent of Christian Canadians. Religious affiliations among recent immigrants to Canada are similar for Christians and those claiming no religion, according to statistics gathered between 2001 and 2011 (Statistics Canada 2011). Other common affiliations for new immigrant are Muslim (18 percent), Hindu (8 percent), and Sikh (5 percent).

The power of the sociological study of religion goes well beyond how we think and behave over religion. These views and behaviours spill over in fundamental ways into other important arenas within our lives. Whether we consider our views on politics, homosexuality, or our children’s education, the sociological study of religion provides valuable insights into our collective behaviour.