marxism

• marxism

  -religion is a conservative force that stops the working class from rebelling.
• marx

  -'religion is the opium of the masses'

  -religion is the dominant ideology

  -ideas/belief systems of the ruling class shape peoples view of the world.

  -this reproduces and reinforces the false-class consciousness.
• Althusser

  -religion is an ideological state apparatus which spreads the dominant class ideology & manufactures hegemony.

  -work appears a lot in religion, for example, in the Bible Jesus was a carpenter. This promotes work and influences the working class to continue at working for the bourgeoisie.

  -the Torah also promotes work.
• examples of religious scripture promoting work


  'blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth' - Matthew 5:5

  'the rich man in his castle, the poor man at his gate' - all things bright and beautiful
• how religion eases the pain of oppression


  -promises an escape (afterlife)

  -legitimises WC suffering

  -gives the hope of supernatural solving problems
• Engles - religion is a dual character

  -religion inhibits social change but also influences social change

  -example: liberation from slavery & misery is preached
• Ernest Bloch

  -religion helps social change

  -principle of hope: religions offer people hope for a better society - utopia

  -utopia helps people see where society needs to be improved

  -example: organic intellectuals - Martin Luther King
• Gramsci

  -looked at the ruling class & how they maintained dominance through ideas, not force

  -religion maintains hegemony by offering immediate gratification after death

  -people can start to see through this hegemony because of the better world

  -supported by organic intellectuals

  -religion can create counter-hegemony. MLK used biblical verses to create social change
• liberation theology

  -people high in the church challenge oppression. Poor & oppressed people are helped

  -society benefits from this
• Oscar Romero

  -spoke out against injustices in El Salvador

  -protested against the government

  -liberation theology
• Millenarian movements

  -religion is for social change

  -old social order and power is disrupted which results in religious movements called millenarian

  -religions are born from frustration, seek to leave hopeless situations

  -example: cargo cults. Thought plans were gifts sent from ancestors, copied the Americans to get the cargo. Started worshiping something else - religion as social change
• Billings

  -applied Gramsci's ideas to a case study looking at textile workers and coal miners

  -TW: leadership - no leadership; organisation - could not use churches; support - church opposed them when they did union activities

  -CM: leadership - benefited from organic intellectuals leadership; organisation - used churches to hold meetings; support - morale was high, churches gave supportive sermons to do this

  -religion can be a conservative force and a force of social change