The Secularization Thesis and the Secular State: Reflections with Special Attention to Debates in Australia

Chavura, Stephen A.

doi:10.7135/upo9780857288073.004

Cited by 9 publications

(6 citation statements)

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“…the privatization of religion thesis). Or, as was the case when the Federal State of Australia was created in 1901, politicians saw Christian religions as plural, and secularism meant anti-sectarianism and was a political model to prevent one Christian denomination from dominating any others in the public sphere (Chavura, 2011).…”

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confidence: 99%

Post-secularism in multiple modernities

Possamaï

2017

Journal of Sociology

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'Post-secularism' is a term that has emerged in various disciplines, including sociology, to reflect religion's move back into the public sphere and the need to take into account the voice of religious actors in any contemporary analysis of society. This article argues that post-secularism is, in fact, a specific type of secularism that deals with the neoliberal management of religion in the public sphere. To unpack this argument, the article will first explore what is meant by postsecularism, and then, via a case study of Shari'a in Australia, it will move to the theory of multiple modernities in order to underline the relativeness of such a term. It will then be proposed that what is meant by post-secularism is, in fact, a type of secularism (perhaps 'late' rather than 'post') in neoliberal societies.

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confidence: 99%

Post-secularism in multiple modernities

Possamaï

2017

Journal of Sociology

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“…Further, not all migrants’ constructions are that different from those held in Australia. This challenges the populous belief that Australia is a very liberal and secular [34] country while other (especially non-Western cultures) are colloquially described as more conservative. As such, Australian society, policy and health care services may overlook their own conservatism around SRH and therefore miss opportunities to appropriately engage with migrant SRH care [35].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Culture Clash? Investigating constructions of sexual and reproductive health from the perspective of 1.5 generation migrants in Australia using Q methodology

et al. 2017

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BackgroundIn Australia, those who migrate as children or adolescents (1.5 generation migrants) may have entered a new cultural environment at a crucial time in their psychosexual development. These migrants may have to contend with constructions of sexual and reproductive health from at least two cultures which may be at conflict on the matter. This study was designed to investigate the role of culture in constructions of sexual and reproductive health and health care seeking behaviour from the perspective of 1.5 generation migrants.MethodsForty-two adults from various ethno-cultural backgrounds took part in this Q methodological study. Online, participants rank-ordered forty-two statements about constructions of sexual and reproductive health and health seeking behaviours based on the level to which they agreed or disagreed with them. Participants then answered a series of questions about the extent to which their ethnic/cultural affiliations influenced their identity. A by-person factor analysis was then conducted, with factors extracted using the centroid technique and a varimax rotation.ResultsA seven-factor solution provided the best conceptual fit for constructions of sexual and reproductive health and help-seeking. Factor A compared progressive and traditional sexual and reproductive health values. Factor B highlighted migrants’ experiences through two cultural lenses. Factor C explored migrant understandings of sexual and reproductive health in the context of culture. Factor D explained the role of culture in migrants’ intimate relationships, beliefs about migrant sexual and reproductive health and engagement of health care services. Factor E described the impact of culture on sexual and reproductive health related behaviour. Factor F presented the messages migrant youth are given about sexual and reproductive health. Lastly, Factor G compared constructions of sexual and reproductive health across cultures.ConclusionsThis study has demonstrated that when the cultural norms of migrants’ country of origin are maintained it has a significant influence on how 1.5 generation migrants construct, experience and understand various aspects of sexual and reproductive health. Policy makers, health care professionals and resettlement service providers are advised to engage with migrant parents and youth in exploring, discussing, reframing and reconstructing SRH in an Australian context.

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“…Christianity, and particularly Protestant Christianity, formed a core part of early Australian identity, both in its initial colonial settlement similar to other British settler colonies, and in its later federation and national establishment, where divine legitimacy is directly referenced in the formative Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act of 1900 (Chavura 2011;Klassen 2015). Even after more than 200 years, there is a strong narrative in contemporary Australian culture of the country as a "Judeo-Christian nation" (Elder 2007;Vasta 2017).…”

Section: Public Discourse On Religiosity Within Jewishnessmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Even after more than 200 years, there is a strong narrative in contemporary Australian culture of the country as a "Judeo-Christian nation" (Elder 2007;Vasta 2017). Whilst Australia is, like the United States, Canada and New Zealand, a liberal democracy with a mildly religious population, the prominence of Christian tradition and practice in the public sphere is a formative part of Australian understandings of nationhood, federal education and taxation policies, and state symbolism (Chavura 2011;Klassen 2015). Nevertheless, Australian discourse of the relationship between church and state often labels the nation as a secular society.…”

Section: Public Discourse On Religiosity Within Jewishnessmentioning

confidence: 99%

Secular Jewish Identity and Public Religious Participation within Australian Secular Multiculturalism

Creese

2019

Religions

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Many Australian Jews label their Jewish identity as secular. However, public representations of Jewish culture within Australian multiculturalism frequently highlight the religious practices of Judaism as markers of Jewish cultural authenticity. This study explores how secular Jews sometimes perform and reference Jewish religious practice when participating in communal events, and when identifying as Jewish to non-Jews in social interactions and in interactions with the state. Ethnographic participant observation and semi-structured in-depth interviews with nine self-identified secular Jews living in Queensland, Australia, were employed to gather data. These self-identified secular Jews within the community incorporate little religiosity in their private lives, yet in public they often identify with religious practice, and use a religious framework when describing and representing Jewishness to outsiders. This suggests that public Jewishness within Queensland multiculturalism might be considered a performative identity, where acts and statements of religious behavior construct and signify Jewish group cultural distinctiveness in mainstream society. These secular Jews, it is suggested, may participate in this performativity in order to partake in the social capital of communal religious institutions, and to maintain a space for Jewish identity in multicultural secular society, so that their individual cultural interpretations of Jewishness might be realised.

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The Secularization Thesis and the Secular State: Reflections with Special Attention to Debates in Australia

Cited by 9 publications

References 0 publications

Post-secularism in multiple modernities

Post-secularism in multiple modernities

Culture Clash? Investigating constructions of sexual and reproductive health from the perspective of 1.5 generation migrants in Australia using Q methodology

Secular Jewish Identity and Public Religious Participation within Australian Secular Multiculturalism

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