The Religious Situation in Europe: The Background to Contemporary Conversion Cover Image

РЕЛИГИЈСКА СИТУАЦИЈА У ЕВРОПИ: ПОЗАДИНА САВРЕМЕНИХ ПРЕОБРАЋЕЊА
The Religious Situation in Europe: The Background to Contemporary Conversion

Author(s): Thomas Luckmann
Subject(s): Social Sciences
Published by: Универзитет у Нишу
Keywords: Europe; Social Form of Religion; Conversion; Islam

Summary/Abstract: The author presents a general background to the discussion of conversion to Islam in Europe by restating an outline of what is known about the social form of religion in contemporary Europe. This concept (social form of religion) identifies the most important and cultural determinants of the institutional and/or non-institutional location of religion in the major historical types of the social organization of human life. The prevailing social form of religion in contemporary Europe is marked by privatization, marginalization of the traditional Christian form of religion, and structural cementing of increased options for individual bricolage. The main courses leading to the prevalence of this social form of religion are structural differentiation and a modern form of pluralism: the main consequences with respect to conversion are a changed frame both of subjective and social plausibility for the change from one optional way of life to another.

  • Issue Year: 2005
  • Issue No: 01+02
  • Page Range: 135-144
  • Page Count: 10
  • Language: Serbian