Chapter 6: The Globalization of Religion

Chapter 6:
The Globalization of Religion

Learning outcomes:
1. Explain how globalization affects religious practices and beliefs;
2. Identify the various religious responses to globalization; and,
3. Discuss the future of religion in a globalized world.

What is religion?
 It is the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal
God or gods.
 Religion as a phenomenon looked on as universal — Eliade’s concept of the “sense of the
sacred”

What are the five major religions of the world?

Christianity Islam Judaism Buddhism Hinduism

Symbol

The Holy
Trinity:
Brahman, the
1. God the
eternal origin
Name of God Father Yahweh
who is the
or major 2. God the Allah (Hebrew for Buddha
cause and
Gods Son/Jesu God)
foundation of
s
all existence.
3. Holy
Spirit
What is the Torah/Pentateuc Tripitaka/
The Holy
name of their Qur’an/Koran h of the Five Tipitaka/ The Vedas
Bible/Bible
Holy Book? books of Moses Pali Canon
How are
believers Christians Muslims Jews/Israelites Buddhists Hindus
called?
For
Christians.
How is Jesus Jesus Christ For Muslims, For Jews, Jesus
Jesus is not Jesus is not
portrayed in is the Jesus Christ Christ is a
mentioned mentioned
this religion? Messiah. The is a prophet. prophet.
savior of the
world.
Do this
religion
descended Yes Yes Yes No No
from
Abraham?
Do this
religion
believe in No No No Yes Yes
reincarnation
?

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 Chapter 6: The Globalization of Religion

Religion vs. Globalism

Religion Globalism
 It is concerned with the sacred.  It places value on material wealth.
 It follows divine commandments  It abides human-made laws.
 It assures that there is “the possibility  It is much more concerned on how
of communication between humans much human action can lead to the
and the transcendent.” highest material satisfaction and
subsequent wisdom that this new
status produce.
 Religious people are ascetics,  Globalists skills are more pedestrian
meaning, they are less concerned (humanly than divine) as they aim to
with wealth and all that comes along seal trade deals, raise the profits of
with it. private enterprises, improve
government revenue collections,
protect the elites from excessively
taxed by the state, and, naturally,
enrich themselves.
 The religious main duty is to live a  Globalists are less worried whether
virtuous, sin-less life such that when they end up in heaven or hell.
he/she dies, he/she is assured of a
place in the other world.

 The religious is concerned with The globalist ideals focus on the

spreading the Holy ideas globally, realm of markets. It wishes to spread
goods and services.
 Religion and globalism clash over the fact that religious evangelization is in itself a
form of globalization.
1. Missions are being sent from the different religious sectors which aims to
spread the word of God and gain more adherent. Thus, they regard identities
associated with globalism such as citizenship, language, and race, as inferior
and narrow because they are earthy categories.

2. And, membership to religious group, organization, or cult represents a

superior affiliation that connects humans directly to the divine and the
supernatural.
o In other words, being a Christian, Muslim, or Hindu is superior than
just being a Filipino or whatever.
o With this reason, it explains why certain groups “flee” their
communities and create impenetrable (not easy to enter) sanctuaries
where they can practice religion without the meddling of state
authorities. They believed that living among “non-believers” will
distract them from their missions or tempt them to abandon their faith
and become sinners like everyone else.
o Example:
 Believers of Dalai Lama established Tibet.
 Rizalistas in Mt. Banahaw,
 The Essenes during the Roman Controlled Judah (Israel).
3. Communities justify their opposition to government authority on religious
grounds.
Example:

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 Chapter 6: The Globalization of Religion

 Priestess and Monks led the first revolt s against colonialism

in Asia and Africa, warning that these outsiders were out to
destroy their people’s gods and way of life.
 The Catholic priests greatly opposed the RH bill before as it
bypasses the divine commandment of upholding life.

Realities:
The following numbers sentences are the notable realities of the manifestation and
involvement of religion to the world activities:

1. The relationship between religion and globalism is much more complicated.

a. Far from being secularized, the “contemporary world is… furiously religious.” –
Peter Berger.
b. In most of the world, there are true and real explosions of religious fervor, occurring
in one form or another in all religious traditions – Christianity, Judaism, Islam,
Hinduism. Buddhism, etc.
2. Religions are the foundations of modern Republics.
a. The Malaysian Government places religion at the center of their political system.
In their Constitution, it is clear that “Islam is the religion of the Federation,” and the
rulers of each state was also the “Head of the religion of Islam.”
3. Religious movements do not hesitate to appropriate secular themes and practices.
a. Secular – relating to worldly or temporal.
b. The moderate Muslim associations Nahdlatul Ulama in Indonesia has Islamic
schools (called pesantren) where students are taight not only about Islam but also
about modern science, the social sciences, modern banking, civic education, rights
of women, pluralism, and democracy.
4. In some cases, religion was the result of a shift in state policy.
a. The Church of England, for example, was “shaped by the rationality of modern
democratic (and bureaucratic) culture.” King Henry VIII broke away from Roman
Catholicism and established his own church to bolster his own power.
5. In United States, religion and law were fused together to help build this “modern
secular society.”
a. “Not only the Americans practice their religion out of self-interest but they often
even place in this world the interest which they have in practicing it.” – Alexis de
Tocqueville (early 1800s).

Religion for and against globalization:

(An excerpt from the book)

There is hardly a religious movement today that does not use religion to oppose “profane”
globalization. Yet of the so-called “old world religions” – Christianity and Islam – see globalization
less an obstacle and more are an opportunity to expand their reach all over the world.
Globalization has “freed” communities from the “constraints of the nation state,” but in the process,
also threatened to destroy the cultural system that bind them together. Religion seeks to take the
place of these broken “traditional ties” to wither help communities to cope with their new situation
or organize them to oppose this major transformation of their lives. It can provide the groups
“moral codes” that answer problems ranging from people’s health to social conflict to even
“personal happiness.” Religion is thus not the “regressive force” that gives communities a new

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and powerful basis of identity. It is an instrument with which religious people can put their mark in
the reshaping of this globalizing world, although in its own terms.
Religious fundamentalism may dislike globalization’s materialism, but it continues to use
“the full range of modern means of communication and organization” that is associated with this
economic transformation. It has tapped “fast long-distance transport and communications, the
availability of English as a global vernacular of unparalleled power, the know-how of modern
management and marketing” which enabled the spread of “almost promiscuous propagation of
religious forms across the globe in all sorts of directions” It is, therefore, not entirely correct to
assume that the proliferation of “Born Again” groups, or in the case of Islam, the rise of movements
like Daesh (more popularly known as ISIS, or Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) signal’s religion’s
defense against materialism of globalization. It is, in fact, the opposite. These fundamentalists
organizations are the result of the spread of globalization and both find ways to benefit or take
advantage of each other,
While religions may benefit from the processes of globalization, this does not mean that
its tensions with globalist ideology will subside. Some Muslims view “globalization” as a Trojan
horse hiding supporters of Western values like secularism, liberalism, or even communism ready
to spread these ideas in their areas to eventually displace Islam. The World Council of Churches
– an association of different Protestant congregations – has criticized economic globalization’s
negative effects. It vowed that “we as churches makes ourselves accountable to the victims of
the project of economic globalization,” by becoming the latter’s advocates inside and outside the
“centers of power.” The Catholic Church and its dynamic leader, Pope Francis, likewise
condemned globalization’s “throw-away culture” that is “fatally destined to suffocate hope and
increase risks and threats.” The Lutheran World Federation 10th Assembly’s 292-page declaration
message included economic and feminist critiques of globalization, sharing the voices of
members of the Church who were affected by globalization, and contemplations on the different
“pastoral and ethical reflections” that members could use to guide their opposition. It warns that
as a result of globalization: “Our world is split asunder by forces we often do not understand, but
that result in stark contrasts between those who benefit and those who are harmed, especially
under forces of globalization. Today, there is also a desperate need for healing from “terrorism,”
its causes, and fearful reactions to it. Relationships in this world continue to be ruptures due to
greed, injustices, and various forms of violence.
These advocacies to reverse or mitigate economic globalization eventually gained the
attention of globalist institutions. In 1998, the World Bank brought in religious leaders in its
discussions about global poverty, leading eventually to a “cautious, muted, and qualified”
collaboration in 2000. Although, it only yielded insignificant results (the World bank agreed to
support some faith-based anti-poverty projects in Kenya and Ethiopia), it was evident enough that
institutional advocates of globalization could be responsive to the “liberationist, moral critiques of
economic globalization” (including many writings on “social justice”) coming from the religious.
With the exception of militant Islam, religious forces are well aware that they are in no
position to fights for a comprehensive alternative to globalizing status quo. What Catholics call
“the preferential option for the poor” is a powerful message of mobilization but lacks substance
when it comes to working out a replacement system that can change the poor’s condition in
concrete ways. And, of course, the traditionalism of fundamentalist political Islam is no alternative
either. The terrorism of ISIS is unlikely to create “Caliphate” governed by justice and stability, In
Iran, the unchallenged superiority of a religious autocracy has stifled all freedom of expressions,
distorted democratic rituals like elections, and tainted the opposition.

Conclusion:
Religion, is here to stay, despite the globalists resistance with it. Even, despite efforts of
secularization. It’s embedded among societies and intangible.

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