Second modernity's effects on the religious field: Implications for a mapping project

Abstract

A precondition for studying change/continuity in any religious mapping project is the validity of the investigations. Are we actually studying what we are supposed to be studying? Do we really map religions and adherents to religions? To secure the validity of ones studies one has to be aware of both the societal conditions at hand at the time for the mapping as well as the changes these conditions have gone through (and presumable go through). These requirements are essential since the social conditions and the change of these have a direct impact on the religious field. Ulrich Beck and his thoughts about the transition from first modernity to second modernity will in this article be used as the point of departure. Beck highlights five developments challenging the cornerstones of first modernity: Globalization, intensification of individualization, transformation of gender roles, the flexible employment and the global ecological crises. Primarily in my discussion of Beck's five points I will use the results from the two waves of mapping taken place in Aarhus 2002 and 2012 (Aarhus is the second largest city in Denmark with about 325,000 inhabitants).