Religion and Modernity

A review essay on a book by Franz-Xaver Kaufmann, Religion und Modernitat. Sozialwissenschaftliche Perspektiven ([Religion and Modernity. Social Scientific Perspectives] Tubingen: JCB Mohr, 1989 [see listing in IRPS No. 65]). This work offers sociological perspective on the persistent tension between religion & modernity, challenging the modernist assumption that the historical formations of Christian churches will be changed into a vague Christian society or civilization where substitutes for the current denominational structures will be found. Historical analysis shows that the political disadvantages of church membership in the former East Germany date back to 1933, while religion has enjoyed a privileged position in the former West Germany, since 1945. Thus, secularization patterns vary widely from one part of the newly unified Germany to another. Links between Christian ethics & political values are investigated. M. Meeks