Secularization, RIP

26 Pages·2012·2.82 MB·English

Secularization, R.I.P.
Author(s): Rodney Stark
Source: Sociology of Religion, Vol. 60, No. 3 (Autumn, 1999), pp. 249-273
Published by: Oxford University Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3711936 .
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SociologoyfR eligio1n9 99,6 0:32 49-273
SecularizationR,. l.P.
RodneSyt ark*
UniverosifWt ya shington
Fromth eb eginninsogc,i aslc ientihstasv ec elebrattehdes ecularizattihones dise spitteh ef actt hat
itn evewr asc onsistewnitt hem piricraela lityM.o ret han1 50y earasg oT ocqueviplloei nteodu tt hat
'thef actbs yn om eanasc corwd ith[t hese cularizatitohne]o rya,n"d t hilsa cko fa ccorhd asg rowfna r
worssei ncet henI.n deedt,h eo nlys hreodf c redibilfitoyrt hen otionth atse cularizathioansb een
takinpgl aceh asd ependeodn c ontrasbtest weenno wa nda bygonAeg eo fF aithI.n thise ssayI
assemblteh ew orko fm anyr ecenhti storiawnsh oa reu nanimouths att heA geo fF aithis pure
nostalg-i a thatla cko fr eligiopuasr ticipatwioans ,i fa nythinegv,e nm orwe idespreiandm edieval
timetsh ann ow.N extI, demonstrtahtaett h erhea veb eenn or ecenrte ligiocuhsa ngeinsC hristendomn
thata re consistenwti tht hes ecularizatitohne si-s note vena mongsc ientistIs a. lso expand
assessmeonftt hes ecularizatdioonct rintoen on-Christsioacni etisehs owintgh ant ote vent heh ighly
magica"l folkr eligionisn" Asia haves hownt hes lightedsetc lineisn responsteo quiter apid
modernizatFioinna. wl ordasr eo fferaesd s ecularizatiisol ani dt or est.
Forn earlyth reec enturiesso,c ials cientisatns da ssortewd esterinn tellectuals
haveb eenp romisintgh ee ndo fr eligionE.a chg eneratiohna s beenc onfident
thatw ithinan othefre wd ecadeso,r p ossiblay b itl ongerh,u manws ill" outgrow"
beliefi n the supernaturTalh. is propositiosno on camet o be knowna s the
secularizatiothne sisa,n d itse arliespt roponentses emt o haveb eenB ritisha,s
theR estoratioinn 1660l ed to an erad uringw hichm ilitanatt tackos n faith
wereq uitep opulara mongf ashionabLleo ndoner(sD uranta nd Durant1 965).
Thus,a s fara s I ama blet od iscoverit,w asT homaWs oolstonw hof irsste ta date
byw hicht imem odernitwyo uldh avet riumpheodv erf aithW. ritingin about
1710,h e expressehdi s confidencteh atC hristianitwyo uldb e goneb y 1900
(Woolston1 733). Halfa centuryla terF rederictkh eG reatt houghtth isw as
mucht oo pessimisticw, ritingto his friendV oltairet hat" theE nglishman
Woolston.. . couldn otc alculatew hath as happenedq uiter ecently. . . . It
[religioni]s crumblinogf itselfa,n d itsf allw illb e butt he morer apid'( in
Redman1 949:2 6). In responsVe,o ltairve enturehdi sg uesst hatt hee ndw ould
comew ithinth en ext5 0 yearsS.u bsequentlnyo,t e venw idespreapdr essr eports
concernintgh es econd" GreatA wakeningc"o uldd eterT homasJ effersforno m
* I uouldl iket ot hanAk ndreGwr eeleyw,i gwt homI h avel ongb eene xchangicnitga tionosn t hen onexisteonfca en
Ageo fF aithin E uropeahni storDyi.r eccto rrespndentocR e odneSyt arkD, eparuneonftS ociolog(Byo x3 53340),
UniversoitfWy ashingtSoena,t tleW, A9 8196.
249
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250 SOCIOLOGYO F RELIGION
predictinign 1822t hat" thereis nota youngm ann owl ivingin theU nited
Statesw how illn otd iea Unitarian(H" ealy1 984:3 73). Ofc oursea, generation
laterU, nitarianws erea s scarcea s ever,w hilet heM ethodisatns dB aptistcso n-
tinuedth eirsp ectacularra teso fg rowt(hF inkea ndS tark1 992).
Subsequenptr ophetosf s ecularizatiohna veb eenn o lessc ertainb, utt hey
have beens omewhamt orec ircumspecast to dates.T hus,j usta s Jefferson's
prophesfya iledb, acki n FranceA, ugustCe omtea nnouncetdh at,a s a resulot f
modernizatiohnu,m ans ocietyw aso utgrowinthg e" theologicsatla geo" fs ocial
evolutionan da newa ge wasd awningin whicht hes cienceo fs ociologwy ould
replacre eligioans theb asisf orm orajlu dgmentBsu. t,C omted idn ots aye xactly
whena ll thisw ouldb e accomplisheIdn. similafr ashiona,s oftena s Frederich
Engelsg loateda bouth ow the socialistr evolutionw ouldc ause religiont o
evaporathe,e wouldo nlys ayt hati tw ouldh appen" soon."In 1878M axM uller
(p. 218)c omplainetdh at:
Everyd ay,e veryw eeke, verym onthe,v eryq uartert,h em ostw idelyre adj ournalsse emj ust
nowt o vie withe acho theri n tellingu s thatt het imef orr eligionis past,t hatf aithis a
hallucinatoioran n i nfantdilies easteh, atth eg odhs avea tl astb eenf ounodu ta nde xploded.
At thes tarotf t het wentietchen turyA,. E. Crawley(1 905:8 ) reportetdh at" the
opinioni s everywhegraei ningg roundth atr eligionis a meres urvivaflr oma
primitiv. e.. age,a nd itse xtinctioonn lya matteorf t ime.S" everayl earlsa ter,
whenM ax Webere xplainedw hym odernizatiwono uldc auset he" disenchant-
mento" ft hew orlda,n dw henS igmundF reudr eassurehdi sd iscipletsh att his
greatesotf a ll neurotiicl lusionws ouldd ie upont het herapistc'osu ch,t heyt oo
wouldb e no mores pecifitch an" soon."
A generatiolnat erh, owever",s oon"b ecame" underwaoyr" "ongoingF."o r
examplet,h ed istinguishaendt hropologAisnt thonyF. C. Wallace( 1966: 264-
265) explainedt o tenso f thousandosf Americanu ndergraduattehsa t' the
evolutionarfyu turoef religionis extinctiona,"n d whileh e admittetdh ati t
mightr equir"es everahl undreyd earst"o completet hep rocessi,t alreadyw as
wellu nderwaiyn thea dvancedn ationsA. nd throughohuits i llustriocuasr eer,
BryanW ilson( 1982: 150-151)h as describedse cularizatioans "a longt erm
procesosc curriningh umanso cietya'n dp ointedou tt hat" thep rocesism pliciitn
thec oncepot fs ecularizaticoonn cedeast oncet hei deao fa n earliecro nditioonf
lifet hatw asn ots ecularo,r t hatw asa t leastm uchl esss ecularth ant hato fo ur
ownt imes."
Then in 1968,i n contrastto all of thisi ntellectuaplu ssy-footinPegt,e r
Berge(r1 968: 3) toldt heN ewY orkT irnetsh att heb y" the2 1stc enturyre, ligious
believerasr el ikelyt o be foundo nlyi n smalls ectsh, uddledto gethetro resisat
worldwidseec ularc ulture.U" nleashinhgi sg iftf orm emorabilme ageryB,e rger
saidt hat" thep redicamenoftt heb elieveris increasinglliyk et hato fa Tibetan
astrologoenr a prolongevdi sitt oa n Americaunn iversityIn." l ighto ft her ecent
lionizatioonf t heD alai Lamab yt heA mericanm ediaa ndh isc ordiawl elcome
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SECULARIZATIONR, .M.P. 251
to variousc ampuses,B erger'ssi milen ow admitst o rathera differenitn terpre-
tation.I n anye vent,w henh isp redictionh ad onlyt hreey earsl eftt o run,B erger
gracefullrye cantedh is beliefi n secularization(a s I discussa t the end of this
essay).I quoteh is statementdsu ringt he 1960so nlyb ecauset heys o fullye xpress
them oodo ft het imesa, moodt hatI shared( cf.,S tark1 963).
Noticef ivet hingsa bouta ll oft heses ecularizatiopnr ophesies.
Firstt, herei s universaal greementth atm odernizatioins the causal engine
draggintgh eg odsi ntor etiremenTth. at is,t hes ecularizatiodno ctrineh as always
nestledw ithint he broadert heoreticafl rameworokf modernizatiotnh eoriesi,t
being proposed that as industrializationu,r banizationa, nd rationalization
increaser, eligiousnesms ustd ecrease( Hadden 1987; Finke1 992). Keep in mind
thatm odernizatioins a longg, raduarle, lativeclyon stanptr ocessW. ars,r evolutions,
and otherc alamitiesm ayc ausea n occasionals uddenb lip in the trendl ines,b ut
theo verallp rocessi s not volatile.I fs ecularizatioins ther esulto fm odernization
or,i ndeed,i s one aspecto fi t,t hens ecularizatioins notv olatilea nd,r athert han
proceedingb ys uddenf itsa nd startsi,t too willd isplaya long-termg,r aduala,n d
relativelyco nstantt rendo f religiouds ecline,c orrespondintgo similaru pward
trendsin sucha spectso fm odernizatioans economicd evelopmentu,r banization,
and education.I n termso f times eriest rendsm, odernizatioins a long,l inear,
upwardc urve,a nd secularizatioins assumedt o tracet he reciprocaolf t hisc urve,
to be a long,l ineard, ownwardcu rve.I ndeed,s incem odernizatioins s o advanced
in manyn ationst hat" postmodernismis t"h el atestb uzzwordit, mustb e assumed
thats ecularizationis at least" ongoingt" o the extentt hata significandto wn-
wardt rendi n religiousnecssa n be seen.
The secondt hingt o noticea boutt he secularizatiopnr opheciesis thatt hey
are notd irectedp rimarilyto wardi nstitutionadli fferentiatio- n theyd o not
merelyp redictt he separationo f churcha nd state or a decline in the direct,
seculara uthoritoyf c hurchl eadersT. heirp rimarcyo ncerni s withi ndividupaile ty,
especiallyb elief.T hus, Jeffersopnr edictedt he next generationw ould find
Christianb eliefs,a nd especiallyf aithi n the divinityo fJ esus,i mplausiblean d
would limit themselvest o the minimalistc onceptiono f God sustainedb y
UnitariansW. hat mostc oncernedE ngelsw ere not bishops,b ut the religious
"fantasieso"f t he masses.F reudw rotea boutr eligiouisl lusionsn, ota boutc hurch
taxes,a nd Wallace (1966: 265) assertedt hat" beliefi n supernaturaplo wersi s
doomed to die out, all over the world"b ecause,a s BryanW ilson (1975: 81)
explained", The rationals tructuroef s ocietyi tselfp recludems uchi ndulgencein
supernaturalitshti nking."
This is verys ignificanbt ecause in recenty earss ecularizationh as been
definedi n several ways (Hanson 1997; Tschannen 1991; Dobbelaere 1987;
Shiner1 967) and, unfortunateltyh,i sp ermitsso mep roponentosf the thesist o
shiftd efinitionass needed in ordere scape inconvenienft acts( cf.,D obbelaere
1987, 1997; Lechner1 991, 1996; Yamane 1997). One definitiono,f tenr eferred
to as the macro version( cf., Lechner 1996), identifiesse cularizationas de-
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252 SOCIOLOGY OF RELIGION
institutionalizat(Dioonb belaere1 987; Martin1 978). This refertso a decline in
the social powero f once-dominanrte ligiousi nstitutionws herebyo thers ocial
institutioness,p eciallyp oliticala nd educationali nstitutionhs,a ve escapedf rom
priorr eligiouds omination.
If thisw erea ll thats ecularizatiomn eans,t herew ouldb e nothingt o argue
about.E veryonme usta greet hat,i n contemporarEyu ropef, ore xampleC, atholic
bishopsh ave lessp oliticalp owert hant heyo nce possesseda,n d thes ame is true
ofL utheranan d Anglicanb ishops( althoughb ishopsp robablyn everw eren early
so powerfuals theyn ow are thoughtt o have been). Nor are primarays pectso f
publicl ifea ny longers uffusewd ithr eligiouss ymbolsr, hetorico,r ritual.T hese
changes have, of course, aroused scholarly interest,r esultingi n some
distinguishedst udies (Casanova 1994; Martin 1978). But, the prophetso f
secularizationth eoryw eren ot and are not merelyw ritingab outs omethingso
obviouso r limited.A t issuei s not a narrowp redictionc oncerninga growing
separationo f churcha nd state. Instead,a s we have seen, fromt he startt he
prophetso f secularizationh ave stressedp ersonalp iety,a nd to the extentt hat
theye xpressedm acroi nterestist has been to claimt hatt heya re so linkedt hata
decline in one necessitateas decline in the other.T hus, ift he churchesl ose
power,p ersonalp ietyw ill fade;i fp ersonalp ietyf ades,t he churchesw ill lose
power.I ndeed,P eterB ergerl,o ngt he mosts ophisticatedm odernp roponento f
the secularizatiotnh esis,w ase ntirelyca ndido n thisp oint.H avingo utlinedt he
macroa spectso fs ecularizationB,e rger(1 967: 107-108)n oted:
Moreoveirt, i s impliehde ret hatt hep rocesosf s ecularizatihoans a subjectivseid ea s wellA. s
thereis a secularizatioofns ocietyan dc ultures,o thereis a secularizatioofnc onsciousness.
Put simplyt,h ism eanst hatt he modemW esth as producedan increasinngu mbero f
individuawls hol ooku pont hew orlda nd theiro wnl ivesw ithoutth eb enefiotf religious
interpretations.
As noted,r ecentlyB erger( 1997) gracefullyw ithdrewh is supportf ort he
theoryo fs ecularizationI .c itet hisp assagef romh ise arlierw orkn ott o emphasize
myp reviouds isagreemenwti thB ergerw, hosew orkI alwaysh ave mucha dmired,
buta s a contrastt o the recentt acticb yo therp roponentosf s ecularizationw,h o
seekt o evade theg rowingm ountaino fc ontraryev idenceb yp retendintgh att he
theorym erelyp ertaints o deinstitutionalizatiaonnd anyt rendsin personapl iety
are irrelevantL.e t me noteK arelD obbelaere'sb reathtakinegv asioni n his article
in this issue," the religiousnesosf individualsis nota valid indicatori n eval-
uatingt he processo f secularizationS."u ch revisionismis not onlyh istorically
false,i t is insincereT. hose who employi t revertt o celebratingth e demiseo f
individualp iety whenevert hey see a fact that seems to be supportiveo r
whenevert heyb elieve theya re speakingt o an audience of fellowd evotees.
Thus, at a conferencein Rome in 1993, Lilliane Voye and Karel Dobbelaere
(1994: 95) explainedt hatb ecauses cience is "a thoroughlsye cularp erspective
on the world"a nd has come to dominatet he educationalc urriculat, his has
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253
SECULARIZATIONR,. I.P.
resulteidn "desacriliztinhgec ontenotf l earninagn dt hew orld-vioefw
studentCsi.t"i nega rlieerss aybsy D obbelaetrhee, wy enotn t oc laim:
thes uccessfruelm ovbayl s ciencoef a llk indosf a nthropomorpfhriosmmous r t hinkinhgav e
transformtheetd r aditiocnoanl cepotf " Goda sa personin" toa belieifn a life-forac peo,w er
ofs piriatn dt hish asa lsog radualplryo motaegdn osticiasnmda theis-mw hich explaintsh e
long-terdmec lineo fr eligioupsr actices.
ExactlyT!h ati s precisewlyh att hes ecularizattiohne sihs asa lwaybse ena, nd
Voyea ndD obbelaereem's piriccalla imsi,f t ruew, ouldf ullysa tisfWyo olston's
prophe-s ya lbeita bitl ate.B uta, s willb e seeni,t i sn'tso .W hatis s o,i st hat
secularizatpiorned icat ms arkedde clinien t her eligiousnoefst sh ei ndividual.
Thet hirtdh ingto n oticaeb outt hes ecularizattiohne siiss t hati,m pliciint
allv ersionans de xpliciitn m osti,s t hec laimth ato fa lla spectosf m odernization,
iti ss ciencteh ath ast hem osdt eadlyim plicatiofnosrr eligionFo. rC omtaen d
Wallacea,s forV oyea ndD obbelaeriet, i s sciencteh atw illf reeu sf romth e
superstitifoeutst eorfsf aithO. r,i nt heo ddf ormulatbioynB ryaWn ilson(1 968:
86)," Christianiwtyit,ht hei mpacotf s cientifaincd s ociasl cientifhiicn dsights,
hasl ostg eneratlh eologicpalla usibilitIyft .h" isis s o,t hens cientisotusg htto b e
expectetdo b ea relativeilryr eligiolouts.B uta, sw ilbl es eens,c ientisatrsea bout
as religiouass a nyoneel se,a ndt hep resumiendc ompatibibliettyw eerne ligion
ands ciencsee emms ythical.
Fourtshe,c ularizatiisor ne gardaesda na bsorbisntga t-e thato ncea chieved
it is irreversibinles,t illinmgy sticiaml munitHyo.w everev, entasn dt rendisn
easterEnu ropaen dt hen ationosf t hef ormSeorv ieUt niond on ots upportht ese
expectatioInnss.t eadas, AndreGwr eele(y1 994:2 72)s oa ptlypu ti t,a ftemr ore
than7 0 yearos fm ilitanetf forbtys t hes tatet o achieves ecularizati"oSnt,.
Vladimhira sr outeKda rMl arx."
Fiftahn df inallwy,h ilme osdt iscussioonfss ecularizatfiooncu osn C hristen-
doma,l ll eadinpgr oponenotfts h et hesiasp plyit g loballTyh. usi,t i sn otm erely
beliefin C hristth ati s "doometdo d ieo ut,b" uta, s Wallacee xplaineidn t he
passagqe uoteda bove," belieifn supernatuproawl ersa,n" d thisi s goingt o
happen" all over the world."H ence, Allah is fatedt o join Jehovaha s only" an
interestinhgi storicaml emory.H" owevern, o one has botheredt o explaint hist o
Muslimsa,s willb e seen.
Now fors pecifics.
THE MYTH OF RELIGIOUS DECLINE
Manys cholarsa ppeart o believet hati fr ateso fi ndividuarl eligioubs eliefa nd
participationfo rm ostn ationso f northernan d westernE uropew ereg raphed,
theyw ouldb e reciprocatl o the trendsi n modernizationB.e ginningw ithh igh
levels of faitha nd practicea t the end of the eighteenthc enturyt,h e master
trendsa re assumedt o have been ever downward,c ulminatingi n veryl ow
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254 SOCIOLOGYO F RELIGION
currenlte velso fr eligiousneAssn. d thel atterar er egardeads buti nsignificant
residualsso, ont od isappeatro o( Wilson1 966,1 982;B ruce1 995;L echner1 991,
1996).F ore videncein supporotf t hesec laimsw, ea red irectetdo notea steep
declinei n churcha ttendancien mucho f Europea nd to inferf romt hisa n
erosiono f individuafla itha s well,o n the groundtsh atp articipatioins low
becauseo fa lacko ft heb eliefns eededt o motivataet tendancTe.h esev iewsa re
wrongin a ll respects.
DavidM artin( 1 965)w ast hef irscto ntemporasroyci ologisttor ejectth es ecu-
larizatiotnh esiso utrighetv, enp roposintgh att hec oncepto fs ecularizatibone
eliminatefdr omso cials cientifdicis coursoen theg roundtsh ati th ads erveodn ly
ideologicaaln dp olemicalr,a thetrh ant heoreticaflu, nctionans db ecauset here
wasn o evidencien favoro fa nyg eneraolr c onsisten"tsh ifftr oma religioupse r-
iodi nh umanaf fairtso a secularp eriod("M artin1 991:4 65). And,a stoundinasg
it mays eemt, hes ecularizatitohne sihs asb eeni nconsistewntit hp lainf actfs rom
thev erys tartF. ore xampleh, avingn otedt hep opularitoyf t hes ecularization
doctrinaem onge ighteenth-centpuhriylo sopherAsl,e xisd e Tocquevillet hen
commented:
Unfortunatthelefy a,c tbsy n om eanasc corwd ithth eitrh eorTyh. eraer ec ertaipno pulations
in Europwe hoseu nbelieisf o nlye qualledb yt heirig noranacne dd ebasemenwth; ilein
Americoan, eo ft hef reeasnt dm osetn lightenneadt ionins t hew orldth, ep eoplfeu lfwilli th
fervaolrlt heo utwarddu tieosf r eligio([n1 840119 563: 19).
In them oret han1 50y earssi nceT ocquevillme adet hoseo bservationnso,t
onlyh as Americanr eligiousnensso t gone intod ecline,t he rateo f church
membershaicpt uallyh asm oret hant reble(dF inkea ndS tark1 992),w hileo ther
indiceos fc ommitmehnatv eh elds teadyor h aver isenm odestl(yG reeley1 989).
Moreovera,l thoughth eA mericanca se continuetso offear devastatincgh al-
lenget o thes ecularizatiodnoc trineit, f ailsi n Europet oo.F irstt,h ereh asb een
no demonstralbolne g-terdmec linien Europeanre ligioupsa rticipatioGnr! anted,
participatiopnr obablhya s variedf romti met o timei n responsteo profound
sociald islocationssu cha s warsa nd revolutionbsu, tt hef arm orei mportant
pointi st hatr eligioupsa rticipatiwona sv erylo wi nn ortherann dw esterEnu rope
manyce nturiebse forteh eo nseto fm odernization.
The secondr easont o rejectc laimsa boutt hes ecularizatioofnE uropeis t hat
currendta tad o notr eveatl hea rrivaolf a n ageo f" scientifaitch eismL."e velos f
subjectirveel igiousnreesms ainh igh- to classifay nationa s highlyse cularized
whent hel argem ajoritoyf i tsi nhabitanbtes lievei n God is absurdI.n deedt,h e
importaqnute stionab outr eligioinn E uropeis ,a s GraceD avie( 1990b:3 95) put
it, notw hyd o peoplen o longerb elieveb, utw hyd o they" persisitn believing
buts ee no needt o participatwei the venm inimarle gularitiny t heirr eligious
institutionOs?f" t heset wom ajorb asesf orr ejectincgl aimsa boutt hes ecular-
izationo fE uropet,h ec laimt hatr eligioupsa rticipatiowna sn everv eryh ighi n
northerann dw esterEnu ropeis t heo net hatm usstt rikme ostr eaderass dubious.
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SECULARIZATIONR, .I.P. 255
THE MYTHO F PAST PIETY
Everyon"ek nowst"h ato nce upona timet hew orldw asp ious- thati n
oldend aysm ostp eoplee xhibitelde velso fr eligioupsr acticaen dc oncernt hat
todayli ngeorn lyi n isolatedso cials ubculturseusc ha s theA mishu, ltra-orthodox
Jewso,r M uslimf undamentaliBstust. ,l ikes o manyo nce-upon-a-titmalee st, his
conceptiono f a piousp asti s meren ostalgiam; ostp rominenhti storianosf
medievarl eligionn owa greet hatt heren everw asa n "Ageo fF aith"( Morris
1993;D uffy1 992;S ommervill1e9 92;B ossy1 985;O belkevich1 979;M urray
1972;T homas1 971; Coulton1 938). Writingin the eleventhc enturyt,h e
Englishm onkW illiamo fM almesburcyom plainetdh att hea ristocracryar ely
attendecdh urchan de vent hem orep iousa mongth em" attendedm" assa t home,
inb ed:
Theyd idn'tg o to churchin t hem orningins a Christiafna shionb;u ti n theirb edchambers,
lyingin thea rmso f theirw ivest, heyd idb utt astew itht heire arst hes olemnitioesf t he
morninmg assr ushetdh rougbhy a priesitn a hurr(yin Fletche1r9 97:4 76).
As fort heo rdinarpye opled, urintgh em iddlaeg esa ndd urintgh eR enaissance,
the massesr arelyen tereda churcha,n d theirp rivatew orshipw as directed
towarda n arrayo f spiritsa nd supernaturaagl encies,o nlys ome of them
recognizabClyh ristian(G entilecor1e9 92;S chneider1 990;D elumeau1 977;
Thomas1 971).A lexandeMr urraya'sss essmenoftm edievaIlt alianr eligioulsif e
is typical":s ubstantisael ctionos f thirteenth-centsuorciye tyh ardlyat tended
churchat all."T he Dominicanp riorH umberotf R omansin hish andbookO n
theT eachinogf P reacherMs,u rranyo tesa, dvisedh isf riartsh at" reachintgh el aity
involvecsa tchintgh ema t marketans dt ournamenitnss ,h ipsa,n ds o on,"w hich
Murrayin terpreatss "a faire noughs ignt hatt heyw eren ot to be caughti n
churchesI."n deedH, umberftr anklayck nowledgtehda tt hem asse"sr arelgyo to
churcha,n d[ whent heyd o attendr]a reltyo sermonsso; theyk nowl ittleo fw hat
pertaintso theirs alvation.F"i nallyH, umberatd mittetdh att her egulacrl ergy
weres o involvedi n gamblingp,l easurea,n d "worset hings,t"h att heyt oo
"scarcelyco me to church."I n similart ermsB, lessedG iordanoo f Rivalto
reportetdh at,u pona rrivinign Florencet o preachh, e suggestetdo a local
womant hats het akeh erd aughtetro churchat leasto n feastd ays,o nlyt o be
informetdh at" It is not thec ustom("M urray1 972:9 2-94).T he anonymous
Englishau thoro fD ivesa ndP auper([ circa1 41011 976:1 89) complainetdh at
"thep eoplet hesed ays.. . arel oatht oh earG od'sS ervice[.A ndw hent heym ust
attendt]h eyc omel atea ndl eavee arlyT. heyw ouldr athegro t oa tavernth ant o
HolyC hurch."I1n about1 430,S t.A ntonin(oi n Coulton1 938:1 92)w rotteh at
1
Myt ranslatiforno mM iddleE nglish.
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256 SOCIOLOGYO F RELIGION
Tuscanp easantsse ldomat tendm assa ndt hat" verym anyo ft hemd o notc onfess
once a year,a nd farf ewera re thosew ho takec ommunion. . . . Theyu se
enchantmenftosrt hemselvaens df ort heirb easts . . beingi gnoranatn, dc aring
littlef ort heiro wns oulso rf ork eepinGg od'sc ommandmenwths,i cht heyk now
not."A ntoninow ento n to blamem osto f thiso n "thec arelessneassn d evil
consciencoef t heirp arishp riests."
In furthesru pporotf t heser eportasn, extensivseu rveyof s urvivinpga rish
churcheisn varioups artso fE uroper evealst hemt o be too smallt o haveh eld
moret hana tinyf ractionof local inhabitant(sB rookea nd Brooke1 984).
Indeedi,t w asn'ut ntitl hel atem iddlaeg est hatt hereev enw erem oret hana few
parishch urcheosu tsidoe ft hec itiesa ndl argetro wns(n otc ountintgh ep rivate
chapelsm aintainefdo rt hel ocaln obilitya)t, a timew henn earlyev eryonleiv ed
in ruraal reas( Morris1 993). Moreovera,s EamonD uffnyo teda, largep ercen-
tageo f whatr uralp arisheds id existl ackeda pastorm ucho f the time.H e
estimatetdh atd uringth es ixteentche nturyfo, re xamplea,t least2 5 percenotf
thep arisheisn t heD ioceseo fS trasbourang du pt o 80 percenitn t heD ioceseo f
Genevah ad no clergyT. o makem atterws orse,e ven wheret herew as an
assignepda stor",A bsenteeiswma sr ife("D uffy19 87:8 8). The bishopv'si sitation
of 192p arisheisn Oxfordshidruer ing1 520f ound5 8 absentee(sC oulton1 938:
156). IndeedP, .H. Sawyer(1 982: 139) notedt hati n northerEnu rope" Bishops
whon everv isitedt heirs eesw eren otu nknownI."n deed,m anys uchd ioceses
wereg ivent op apalp rotegewsi thouatn yo bligatiotno r eside(C oulton1 938).
That religioups articipatiown as lackinge ven in the citiesi s not very
surprisinwgh enw e realizet hatg oingt o churchin ,s ay,t hef ifteentchen tury,
requiretdh ea veragep ersont o standi n an unheatebdu ildintgo heara service
whichw asc onducteedn tirelyin incomprehensiLbalet inb yp riestws hom ay
indeedn oth ave beens peakingL atina t all, butm anyo fw homw eres imply
mumblinngo nsenssey llableTs.h e VenerablBee de( [73011 955:3 40) advisedth e
futurbei shopE gbertth atb ecauses o fewE nglishp riestasn d monkks newa ny
Latin" I havef requentolyff eretdr anslatioonfsb otht he[ Apostle'Cs]r eeda nd
theL ord'sP rayeirn toE nglishto manyu nlearnepdr iests.I"n 1222t heC ouncil
of Oxfordd escribedth e parishc lergyas "dumbd ogs"( Coulton1 938: 157).
Almosta thousanyd earsa fterB ede'se fforttos teachc lergyat leastt heL ord's
Prayern,o thinhga dc hangedW. illiamT yndalne otedi n 1530t hath ardlyan yo f
thep riestasn d curateisn Englandk newt heL ord'sP rayeorr c ouldt ranslatiet
intoE nglishT. his was confirmewd heni n 1551 the Bishopo f Gloucester
systematicatlelyst edh isd iocesanc lergyO. f 311 pastors1,7 1c ouldn otr epeat
theT en Commandmenatnsd 27 didn otk nowt hea uthoro ft heL ord'sP rayer
(Thomas1 971: 164). Indeed,t hen exty earB ishopH ooperf ound" scoreos f
parishc lergyw hoc ouldn ot tellw how ast hea uthoro ft heL ord'sP rayero,r
whereit w ast ob e found("C oulton1 938:1 58).A crosts hec hannelS,t .V incent
de Pauld iscovereidn 1617t hath is localp rieskt newn o Latin,n ote vent he
wordos fa bsolutio(nD elumeau1 977).S imilarlyin, 1547A rchbishoGpi ovanni
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SECULARIZATIONR, .I.P. 257
Bovio,o ft he Brindisi-Ordiiao cesei n southerInt aly,f oundt hatm osto fh is
priest"sc ouldb arelyr eada nd couldn otu nderstanLda tin"( Gentilcor1e9 92:
42).
Clericali gnorancies not surprisinwgh enw e recognizteh at" therew ere
virtuallnyo seminarieasn" dt herefomreo stp riest"sl earnerdu bricasn" da "smat-
teringof L atin"a s an apprenticteo "a prieswt hoh ad himselhfa d littleo r no
trainingI."n thef ifteentchen turyS,t .'Bernardinoof S iena observeda priest
"whok newo nlyt heH ail Marya,n du sedi t evena t thee levationof t heM ass"
(Duffy19 87:8 8). EamonD uffy(1 992) has effectivedleym onstrattehde i gnor-
anceo ft hep arishcl ergyfr omth ec ontentosf t hev eryf irs"tp rimerfso"r c lergy
thatb egant o be distributeind thef ourteentahn d fifteentchen turiesT. hat
bookletsm, osto ft hemw ritteinn thel ocall anguagrea thetrh ani n Latina nd
preparefdo rt hosew hoa lreadyw eres ervinags clergyw, erel imitetdo them ost
elementaraysp ectso fd octrinaen dp ractic-e fore xamples,i mpleli stso ft he
sacramentasn d of the sinst hats houldb e confessed- showst hatc hurch
officiatlsh oughmt osts ervincgl ergyk newc onsiderablleys st hana modern10 -
year-oladt tendinpga rochiaslc hool.
Givens uchc lericailg noranciet, i s no wondetrh att hem asseks newn extt o
nothingin termos fb asicC hristiacnu ltureT. he LateranC ouncilo f 1215,i n
additionto requirinagll Catholicst o confesasn d to takec ommunioant least
once a yeard uringt he Easters eason,p roposedth ata massivec ampaigno f
elementarryel igiouins structioofnt hel aityb e undertakeTnh. us,a t theC ouncil
of Lambethin 1281,t he Englishb ishopsr espondebdy a doptingt hea imo f
teachintgh el aityt heL ord'sP rayerH,a il Marya,n dt heA postle'Cs reed.L ater
thisw ase xpandedt o includet heT en Commandmentths,e S evenW orkso f
Mercyt,h eS evenS acramentasn, dt heS evenD eadlyS ins( Duffy19 92).S imilar
planst oc atechizteh el aityw erea doptedth roughoEuutr opeD. espitet hesev ery
modesgto alsi,t s eemsu nlikeltyh atm anyo ft hel aityo,t hert hanm emberosf t he
educatedel ite,e verm asteretdh eses implele sson-s sinces o manyp riestdsi d
not.A s ColinM orri(s1 993: 232) puti t," Ignorancoef t hef ormaclo ntenot f
faithw asg eneral.M" orritsh enr ecounteadn instancoe fa villagep riestw ho
managetdo teachm anyin h isc ongregatioton r ecitet he" OurF atheri"n Latin,
notingth att heyh adn ott hes lightesidt eao fw hati t meant(p ossibltyh ep riest
didn'te ither)O. there xamplecso mef romin vestigatioonfss coreso fi ncidents
involvinrge ligiouasp parition(ms ostloyf M aryi) n Spaind urintgh ef ourteenth
andf ifteenctehn turieTsh. eseh earingrse vealetdh atm ostp arishionerresp orting
suchv isionws erei gnoranotf t heT en Commandmenatnsd theS evenD eadly
Sins. It wasn'tm erelyth att heyc ouldn ot recitet hem,b ut thatt heyw ere
entirelyig noranotf theirc ontentsA. typicailn stancein volveda manw ho
claimedf requenvti sionos fM arya ndw ho,d urinagn interrogatiionn 1 518,w as
askedi fh e knewt heT en Commandmenantsd t heS evenD eadlyS ins." He said
he didn otk nowan yo ft hesein w holoe ri np art.. . . He wasa skedif p ridoer
envyo rl usto rk illinag mano ri nsultinsgo meonwe itho ffensiwveo rdws asa sin,
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