The problem stated by secularization as the loss of its leading role by religion has been formulated long ago and is widely used in philosophical and scientific discussions. As a consequence of the dominant influence of religion on the historical development of culture, a catalyst for secularization processes emerged – structural differentiation, as a result of which religious institutions are isolated from other social subsystems, thus reducing the involvement of religion in the social structure and the effectiveness of its integrating function (Berger, 1996). Additionally, the reason for secularization is seen in the rationalization of consciousness.
There are many statements by various authors on the disadvantages of modern theories. Those stated by Gray (2002) include that the modernist theorists are opposing the enlightenment values. The weakness of the classical theory is that it proceeds from the view of the social system as a basic category, and secularization is analyzed as a result of structural changes in society. At the same time, it is quite possible that this effect on religion is caused exclusively by individual factors. Additionally, references to the decline of certain religions around the world are not supported in any way, and there are no official statistics that would confirm this information.
In conclusion, classical theories analyze secularization as a result of the structural and functional complications of society. Currently, each of the social subsystems forms its own value attitudes and occupies the social space of action allotted to it, and religion at the level of the structure of society gives way and becomes a side effect. There are various existing theories, including classical and modernist, but it is precisely the classical that lacks scientific argumentation.
References
Berger, P. L. (1996). Secularism in retreat. The National Interest, (46), 3-12. Web.
Gray, J. (2000). Three mistakes about modernity. Public Lecture, 2.