Religion and Family A Sociological Perspective - PowerPoint Presentation

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Religion and Family

A Sociological Perspective

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Religion: The Basics

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What is religion?

Dimensions of religion

Set of beliefs and practices oriented toward sacred phenomena

Beliefs are views, perceptions, and outlooks (e.g., belief in God, views of scripture)

Practices are behaviors or actions (e.g., worship, prayer, scripture study)

Religion is a social phenomenon

Rituals are often performed collectively and are governed by social norms

As an institution, religion offers meaning, belonging, and social control

Even “individual” devotion (personal prayer or scripture study) is socially learned

Persistence of religion

U.S. is a highly religious nation despite some increase in secularism among young people

Religion maintains a significant social role in the contemporary world

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What is religion?

Conceptualization of religion

Affiliation: Connection to a faith tradition, denomination, or sect

Faith traditions include Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, etc.

Christian denominations include Catholic, Southern Baptist (conservative Protestant), Episcopalian (mainline Protestant), Church of God in Christ (Black Pentecostal), etc.

Variants of Judaism (Orthodox, Reformed) and Islam (Sunni, Shia)

Religious beliefs

Belief in God (theism, degree of certainty), images of God (judging vs. loving), afterlife (heaven, hell, etc.), scripture (literal vs. metaphorical); beliefs often shaped by affiliation

Religious attendance

Most often examined as attendance at worship services (religious network integration)

Other facets of involvement include youth group, congregational programs, etc.

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Religion, Partnering, and Family Formation

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Key pattern: Conservative vs. liberal faiths

In general, theologically conservative faith traditions are more supportive of traditional family arrangements than liberal faiths

Family beliefs and practices evident among members of liberal faith traditions are often indistinguishable from the religiously unaffiliated

Conservative faith traditions are often critical of mainstream views and behaviors related to family life

Conservative traditions often stress adherence to tradition as articulated in sacred scripture

Overall, conservative faith traditions tend to discourage premarital sex and cohabitation while promoting marriage, which is viewed as a sacred covenant

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Dating

Dating is a culturally informed pattern for forming romantic relationships and ultimately selecting a mate (partner)

Some young people today are less apt to “date,” more inclined to “hang out”

Religious differences in dating and romantic relationship formation

Most of this research has focused on Christian traditions

In the U.S., non-Christian groups typically do not have sufficient numbers to generate meaningful statistical comparisons in national surveys

Conservative faiths exhibit mixed views of dating

Concerns about such activity providing opportunities for premarital sex, considered “sin”

Latter-day Saints (Mormons) place restrictions on dating: No dating until age 16

Dating seen as “acceptable” pathway to marriage in some circumstances (group dates)

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Sexual activity and hooking up

Sexual activity tends to be delayed among members of theologically conservative faith traditions

Latter-day Saints (LDS/Mormons) stress chastity, which is institutionally tied to temple worship for young people and temple marriage for young adults

Thus, prolonged virginity is most pronounced among LDS young people, somewhat evident among conservative Protestants (“True Love Waits”)

There are also religious variations in hooking up

Hooking up is less common among conservative Protestant young women in college than their unaffiliated (non-religious) peers

Hooking up is more common among Catholic college-attending women than their non-religious counterparts

Nevertheless, regular attendance reduces hooking up among college women

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Cohabitation and marriage

Similar patterns are evident concerning religion, cohabitation, and the timing of first marriage

Conservative faith traditions discourage cohabitation and, for the most part, active members who are affiliated with these traditions and regularly attend are less likely to cohabit prior to marriage

More opposition to same-sex marriage is evident among conservative faiths

Not surprisingly, these same groups tend to marry at an earlier age

Latter-day Saints (LDS/Mormons) tend to marry at the earliest age, followed by conservative Protestants

There is not much difference between Catholics, mainline Protestants, and those who are unaffiliated; all these embrace mainstream delay of marriage

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Questions for discussion and ongoing inquiry

Some religious groups, particularly conservative ones, argue that sexual activity should be reserved for marriage. Examine websites that describe how conservative Protestant, Latter-day Saint, and Orthodox Jewish faiths view sexual activity. How do these views differ from mainstream secular views of sexual activity?

Some religious groups have been affected by debate and dissent concerning same-sex marriage. Choose a faith tradition that has an official policy on whether or not their religious leaders are permitted to perform same-sex marriages. Describe the policy and its underlying rationale (justification).

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Religion, Relationship Quality, Paternal Involvement, and Housework

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Religious homogamy and heterogamy

It is important to think about religion not solely as an individual attribute; it is also a group property

Within the context of marriage, same-faith marriages (homogamy) can be distinguished from mixed-faith marriages (heterogamy)

Mixed-faith marriages have become increasingly prevalent in the latter part of the twentieth century and into the twenty-first century

This pattern is interpreted by some researchers as evidence of secularization, yet this point is debated among scholars; the issue is complex

It is possible that religion still influences family life but that the religious background of one’s mate has diminished in influence

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Religion and relationship quality

Many family scholars study the quality of people’s intimate relationships (cohabiting partnerships, marriages)

Religion has been shown to influence marital quality positively

Moreover, couples in same-faith marriages report higher marital quality than couples in mixed-faith marriages or unaffiliated couples

Same-faith marriages exhibit higher levels of marital quality because of the shared worldviews of couples from the same religious background, and religious groups’ definition of family as “sacred”

Shared religious values create a common frame of reference

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Religion, marital conflict, and domestic violence

Other facets of religious marriages are intriguing as well

Consistent with the research on marital quality, relationships among spouses from the same faith background exhibit less conflict than those among mixed-faith couples

Here again, religious homogamy is an advantage while heterogamy can be a disadvantage

Domestic violence is not more common among theologically conservative couples despite these groups’ traditional gender views

Still, theologically conservative men are more likely to abuse their theologically liberal wives; thus, specific religious combinations are important

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Religion and paternal involvement

American fathers are less involved with children than mothers

These disparities reflect broader societal patterns in gender

Child care is feminized (viewed as or assumed to be “women’s work”)

Child care not rewarded vs. workplace success and public achievements

Conservative Protestant fathers are more involved with their children (e.g., having regular family meals, monitoring children’s behavior)

Fatherhood in these faith communities is defined as active involvement

Patriarchal language (father as “head” or ”leader”) encourages involvement

Leadership defined as presence and participation, not ruler or dictator

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Religion and housework

Housework in American families is gendered, with women investing considerably more time in housework than men

These disparities again reflect broader gender norms in the general population

Housework is devalued relative to paid labor force participation

Housework investments are less unequal in dual-earner couples

Housework among conservative Protestant dual-earner couples is quite unequal

Conservative Protestant wives/mothers invest more time in household tasks

Such disparities are magnified for “women’s tasks” (laundry, meal prep)

Traditional gender norms in such families influence these disparities

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Questions for discussion and ongoing inquiry

Conservative Protestant families show an odd mix of gender traditionalism and gender progressivism. Housework in such families tends to be less equally divided. However, fathers in such homes are more involved in the lives of their children. How might these apparently contradictory patterns be explained?

There are not many statistical differences observed between Catholic, mainline Protestant, and secular families in terms of housework and paternal involvement. What does this lack of difference tell us about such families? Might other methodological approaches to studying these families yield new insights that statistics miss?

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Assignment opportunity

As a class, develop an interview questionnaire designed to examine married couples’ appraisals of their relationships, including meaningful shared experiences, most and least favorite activities, efforts to overcome challenges they have encountered, etc.

Split the class in half. Charge half with interviewing spouses in highly religious same-faith marriages. Assign the other half with interviewing spouses in non-religious (secular) marriages.

Each student must interview each partner in a one couple relationship separately. Transcribe and analyze those two interviews.

Students compare their findings in a class discussion of the results.

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Religion, Parenting, and Child Development

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Religion and fertility (childbearing)

Consider the data presented in the following table.

https://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/chapter-3-demographic-profiles-of-religious-groups/pr_15-05-12_rls_chapter3-07/

What patterns are evident in this table concerning religious differences in completed fertility?

What patterns are evident concerning children currently at home?

How can broad differences between all of the religious groups (in general) and the nonreligious groups be explained?

Finally, how can specific differences among the various religious groups be explained?

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Religion and parenting

There are significant religious variations in parenting attitudes and practices

Conservative Protestants express more supportive attitudes toward physical discipline (corporal punishment, spanking)

Conservative Protestant parents are more inclined to use corporal punishment to discipline their children

Leading conservative Protestants encourage the use of physical discipline when children defy parental authority

Biblical interpretations are used to support this practice

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Religion and parenting

However, conservative Protestant parents are not harsh authoritarians

Although conservative Protestant parents more commonly spank their children, they are also more inclined to hug and praise their kids than other parents

These same parents are also less likely to yell at their children

This odd mix of childrearing practices has been described as a “parenting paradox” because they are not often used in tandem

Biblical interpretations also support parent-child love

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Religion and parenting

Interestingly, the effects of conservative Protestant child discipline are different than those in other families

While corporal punishment has been associated with negative effects on children in the population at large, these same patterns are not evident in conservative Protestant homes

Why do conservative Protestant families deviate from this pattern?

Cultural values and beliefs in a community are powerful: Conservative Protestants define corporal punishment as a parental demonstration of concern for the welfare of children

Situations defined as real are real in their consequences -- W.I. Thomas

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Religion and child sexual abuse

Recent media reports have highlighted the disturbing prevalence of child sexual abuse by religious leaders

This problem is especially widespread in the Catholic Church’s decades-long cover-up

Research has only begun to examine this issue

Negative consequences for children abused by clergy

Mental health trauma and religious identity difficulties

Lay Catholics have mobilized to lobby for changes (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests—SNAP)

Discussion question: What actions do you think should be taken to address this problem and prevent it in the future?

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Religion, family, and child development

For quite some time, the effects of religion on child development were not examined (lack of data, likely fed by academic secularism)

Recent evidence indicates that religion can provide a positive developmental platform for children’s growth

Religion can enhance children’s social skills, foster psychological adjustment

Faith communities sanctify parent-child relationships, provide role models

There are also potential downsides

Parental arguments about religion can harm children’s development

Children’s exposure to religion can undermine their performance on standardized math and science tests

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Assignment opportunity

Read the following study on religion and child development.

https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10010037

What does this study reveal concerning the effects of religion on child development? What findings stand out to you?

What questions is this study unable to answer? Consider the ways in which religion and child development are measured (and not measured), as well as the sole reliance on statistical data.

If you had to design a study on the role of religion in the lives of young children, what approach would you use to investigate this issue? Why would you adopt that approach?

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Religion, Divorce, and Remarriage

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Religion, divorce, and remarriage

Leaders of various faith traditions (Catholic, conservative Protestant, Mormon, and Orthodox Jewish) have spoken out against divorce

Conservative Protestants exhibit quite negative attitudes toward divorce

Yet, as divorce has become more common in society at large, divorce rates in faith communities have increased as well

Same-faith couples are less likely to divorce than mixed-faith couples

How can this pattern be explained?

The vast majority of people who divorce will, at some point, remarry

Conservative Protestants tend to remarry more quickly than others

Catholics are slow to remarry due to institutional barriers to remarriage

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Religion and Family in Global Context

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Research on religion and family worldwide

Research discussed thus far has focused on the U.S. context

Yet, religion is a powerful social force around the world

What do we know about religious families in other social contexts?

Original research is scarce compared with that focused on U.S. families

Yet, there is evidence of a strong relationship between religion and family life around the world

Global expressions of the religion-family relationship are remarkably diverse

Why? Global religions themselves exhibit breathtaking variation

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religion and family worldwide: Jewish Families

There are several variants of Judaism

Orthodox Judaism

Traditional Jewish practices and lifestyles

Modern Orthodox Judaism is more welcoming of the larger secular society

Ultra-Orthodox Judaism tends to limit the degree of interaction with secular culture; highly traditional

Reform Judaism

Views traditional Jewish beliefs and practices as somewhat outdated

Defined by nationalities (German, French, etc.); sees Judaism as a

religion,

not

a

primary identity

Called “Liberal Judaism” or “Progressive Judaism” in Europe; called “

Neolog

Judaism” in Hungary

Conservative Judaism

The middle ground between Orthodox Judaism and Reform Judaism

Preserves Jewish traditions, but exhibits measured openness to modern social life

Many people practice Judaism in ways that differ from these primary variants

Some combine aspects from each branch; Jewish practice best understood as a spectrum

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religion and family worldwide: Jewish Families

As Jewish communities integrated with secular society, practices that were traditionally under the rule of Jewish law came under the jurisdiction of civil law

This dual authority created tension concerning marriage and family

Reform Judaism accepted the legal processes of both entering and exiting marriages as outlined by civil law

However, Orthodox Judaism and Conservative Judaism resisted acceptance of divorce, given that the secular society did not account for (or require) a religious separation

For Orthodox and Conservative Judaism, a civil divorce without religious consideration would render any additional marriages as illegitimate and adulterous

Orthodox Judaism advocated a prenuptial agreement that requires a husband to support his wife financially until there is a formal religious divorce

Conservative Judaism developed the ketubah (Jewish marriage contract)

Video on Ketubah:

https://youtu.be/clM1SEJfixo

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religion and family worldwide: Jewish Families

In some traditional Jewish families, a husband and wife abstain from conjugal relations (sexual activity with one another) during niddah

Niddah is a phase that begins with the start of a woman’s menstrual cycle and lasts about twelve days, with the exact number of days varying among different Jewish branches

Jewish mikvah

A mikvah is the ceremonial immersion of Jewish women in a pool of water

In traditional Judaism, niddah officially ends when a woman is immersed into the mikvah and becomes pure again

This practice is not found in Reformed Judaism

Many modern Jewish branches have broadened the usage of the mikvah

https://youtu.be/PGfvqBl-3Ao

https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-mikveh/

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religion and family worldwide: Jewish Families

Globally, Israel’s rise as a Jewish state has reinforced Jewish identity

Prior to the establishment of Israel, Jews did not have a clearly defined homeland

Israel further increased the world prominence of Judaism

Child-rearing in Israel

In Israel, the majority of children are raised in nuclear families, similar to the dominant family form found in the U.S.

But there is also a long tradition of communal living in Jewish societies that features a collective approach to child-rearing in kibbutzim

https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/history-and-overview-of-the-kibbutz-movement

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5_JO8-zRZ0

Judaism remains a major world religion not confined to Israel

Judaism and Jewish families have dispersed worldwide throughout the Jewish diaspora

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religion and family worldwide: Muslim Families

Scholars of Islam have studied different facets of Muslim families

The diversity of Muslim family forms is a product of different historical, cultural, and national traditions

Also influenced by various interpretations of Islamic scripture (

Qu’ran

)

Passages in the

Qu’ran

define marriages as consensual unions based on tranquility, mercy, affection, and kindness between men and women

Marriage contracts in Islam

Sacred marriage contracts were traditionally formed to emphasize companionship and harmony within unions

These contracts did not outline the requirement of service of one spouse by another

This practice stands in distinction to current views of Muslim marriages as “inherently” patriarchal; patriarchy is a product of surrounding cultural norms, not inherent to Islam

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religion and family worldwide: Muslim Families

Muslim family forms vary: Many are monogamous (one husband, one wife), but some are polygynous (one husband, many wives)

Within many Islamic societies that embrace polygamy, men are allowed to have up to four wives but only if they can care for all of them equally

Many interpret the

Qu’ran

as attempting to limit the practice of polygamy rather than promoting it

Why? It is unlikely that a man will treat all of his wives in an equally fair fashion

Worldwide, numerous countries have outlawed the practice of polygamy

In some countries, polygamy is legal and continues to be practiced; however, not all Muslims support the practice of polygamy and instead choose to have monogamous relationships

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Polygamy worldwide: legal practice

https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/polygamy

The areas highlighted in green indicate countries where polygamy was legally acceptable in 2006.

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religion and family worldwide: Muslim Families

Worldwide, many countries with a large population of practicing Muslims have institutionalized Muslim family law

Progressive social changes have increased the social status of women in some Muslim countries

How do these larger social changes influence Muslim family values?

The paradoxical case of Indonesia*

Indonesian Muslim women face expanded educational and workforce opportunities resulting from economic development

Yet, these progressive changes are accompanied by gender traditionalism at home

Within the home, husbands and wives commonly conform to traditional scripts (women as obedient; men as authoritative)

*Rinaldo, Rachel. 2019. “Obedience and Authority among Muslim Couples: Negotiating Gendered Religious Scripts in Contemporary Indonesia.” 

Sociology of Religion

80(3): 323–349.

Doi: 10.1093/

socrel

/sry045

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religion and family worldwide: Muslim Families

The

Qu’ran

details rather egalitarian relationships between husbands and wives

However, patriarchal worldviews throughout history have often been mixed with interpretations of Islamic scripture

In modern societies, Muslim families are often characterized as patriarchal

However, there are also egalitarian Muslim marriages: Local context matters

Peruse the study at this link; consider what factors foster equality and why

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03906701.2018.1473124

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religion and family worldwide:

Hindu Families

Hinduism is quite prevalent in India

In Hinduism, marriage and family are a means of establishing “dharma” (order)

In traditional Hinduism, marriages are often arranged by parents

Marriages of young people are arranged based on similar backgrounds (compatibility)

Arranged marriages are not forced; arrangement entails agreement of various parties

https://youtu.be/Yj2ToKRLN3E

In India, arranged marriages are still a common practice

Despite the prevalence of arranged marriages in India, not all matrimonial unions are created by parents or extended relatives

Some unions today are formed through individual decision-making or are “semi-arranged”

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religion and family worldwide:

BUDDHIST Families

Buddhism is commonly practiced as a religion of personal choice with beliefs and values that can influence an individual’s everyday life

Buddhism initially faced difficulty altering family and cultural values of the time

Buddhism often merged with dominant values and did not directly foster family change

As Buddhism spread, its exposure to diverse cultural norms created variation within Buddhism

As a world religion, there are many variants of Buddhism

Such internal variation is evident concerning filial piety, a Buddhist family value

Filial piety emphasizes a child’s duty to respect their parents, whether living or deceased

Different forms of Buddhism incorporate this concept to varying degrees

Chinese Buddhism and East Asian Buddhism place great emphasis on this virtue

Indian Buddhism has elements of filial piety, but it is less emphasized in India

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religion and family worldwide:

BUDDHIST Families

Family relationships are a key means through which ethical frameworks of Buddhist life are established for children

Socialization into Buddhism often begins early in childhood through exposure to Buddhist ethics and principles that are taught or modeled within the home

Other opportunities for Buddhist youth socialization are also evident

The

Poy

Sang Long festival in Thailand is a Buddhist ceremony in which young boys of the Shan culture can become novice Buddhist monks

http://neocha.com/magazine/poy-sang-long/

Thus, there are various paths for religious socialization among Buddhist youth

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Helpful Resources: Religion & Family

Marks, Loren D. and David C.

Dollahite

. 2017.

Religion and Families: An Introduction

. New York: Routledge.

Petts, Richard J. (ed.). 2019.

Religion and Family Life

. Basel, Switzerland: MDPI.

Bengtson, Vern,

Norella

Putney, and Susan Harris. 2017.

Families and Faith: How Religion is Passed Down across Generations

. New York: Oxford University Press.

Browning, Don S., and David A. Clairmont (eds.). 2007.

American Religions and the Family: How Faith Traditions Cope with Modernization and Democracy

. New York: Columbia University Press.

Browning, Don S., M. Christian Green, and John Witte, Jr. (eds.). 2007.

Sex, Marriage, and Family in World Religions

. New York: Columbia University Press.

Browning, Don S. and Marcia J. Bunge (eds.). 2009.

Children and Childhood in World Religions: Primary Sources and Texts.

Piscataway, NJ: Rutgers University Press.

Riley, Naomi Schaefer. 2013.

'Til

Faith Do Us Part: How Interfaith Marriage is Transforming America.

New York: Oxford University Press.

Yassari

,

Nadjma

. 2016.

Changing God’s Law: The Dynamics of Middle Eastern Family Law

. London: Taylor and Francis.