Onoverzichtelijke moderniteit

In 1985 Jürgen Habermas characterised the contemporary Western society after 1960 as ‘Die neue Unübersichtlichkeit’ (translated as ‘the new opacity’ or ‘the new disorder’). Zygmunt Baumann has a predilection for the expression ‘Liquid modernity’. Karl Marx wrote already in 1848 that ‘all that is so...

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Main Author: Staf Hellemans
Format: Article
Language:nld
Published: Radboud University Press in cooperation with Open Journals 2007-09-01
Series:Religie & Samenleving
Online Access:https://religiesamenleving.nl/article/view/13202
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author Staf Hellemans
author_facet Staf Hellemans
author_sort Staf Hellemans
collection DOAJ
description In 1985 Jürgen Habermas characterised the contemporary Western society after 1960 as ‘Die neue Unübersichtlichkeit’ (translated as ‘the new opacity’ or ‘the new disorder’). Zygmunt Baumann has a predilection for the expression ‘Liquid modernity’. Karl Marx wrote already in 1848 that ‘all that is solid melts into air’. These three expressions point to a major tendency within (late) modernity towards disintegration and fluidity. In this article, first presented as a lecture at the second joint conference of the ‘Vlaams- Nederlandse Werkgroep Godsdienstsociologie’ and the journal ‘Religie en Samenleving’ in Tilburg in May 2007, I want to show that this tendency, which is also clearly visible in other societal domains as the economy, the polity or the sciences, strikes also deep chords within religion. For religion – included its conservative and fundamentalist currents – is no less an integral part of modernity. Starting point of the analysis is the distinction between three levels of religion: the religious field at the macro-level, the religions at the meso-level and the individual religiosity at the micro-level. After 1960, these three levels do grow further apart. The dissociation fortifies tendencies towards the fragmentation of the religious field, towards the precarisation and flexibilisation of the religions and towards chronic searching behaviour by and a sense of homelessness of the individuals.
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spelling doaj-art-df7fe6238345406a822eef0e2108cd7d2025-08-20T02:39:28ZnldRadboud University Press in cooperation with Open JournalsReligie & Samenleving1872-34972773-16692007-09-012210.54195/RS.13202Onoverzichtelijke moderniteitStaf Hellemans0Universiteit van Tilburg In 1985 Jürgen Habermas characterised the contemporary Western society after 1960 as ‘Die neue Unübersichtlichkeit’ (translated as ‘the new opacity’ or ‘the new disorder’). Zygmunt Baumann has a predilection for the expression ‘Liquid modernity’. Karl Marx wrote already in 1848 that ‘all that is solid melts into air’. These three expressions point to a major tendency within (late) modernity towards disintegration and fluidity. In this article, first presented as a lecture at the second joint conference of the ‘Vlaams- Nederlandse Werkgroep Godsdienstsociologie’ and the journal ‘Religie en Samenleving’ in Tilburg in May 2007, I want to show that this tendency, which is also clearly visible in other societal domains as the economy, the polity or the sciences, strikes also deep chords within religion. For religion – included its conservative and fundamentalist currents – is no less an integral part of modernity. Starting point of the analysis is the distinction between three levels of religion: the religious field at the macro-level, the religions at the meso-level and the individual religiosity at the micro-level. After 1960, these three levels do grow further apart. The dissociation fortifies tendencies towards the fragmentation of the religious field, towards the precarisation and flexibilisation of the religions and towards chronic searching behaviour by and a sense of homelessness of the individuals. https://religiesamenleving.nl/article/view/13202
spellingShingle Staf Hellemans
Onoverzichtelijke moderniteit
Religie & Samenleving
title Onoverzichtelijke moderniteit
title_full Onoverzichtelijke moderniteit
title_fullStr Onoverzichtelijke moderniteit
title_full_unstemmed Onoverzichtelijke moderniteit
title_short Onoverzichtelijke moderniteit
title_sort onoverzichtelijke moderniteit
url https://religiesamenleving.nl/article/view/13202
work_keys_str_mv AT stafhellemans onoverzichtelijkemoderniteit