An enchanted modernity: Making sense of Latin America's religious landscape

This is an interpretative, critical, and selective review of scholarly contributions that explore Latin America's religious landscape. We present data, both qualitative and quantitative, from Latin America and analyze the explanations given to make sense of it. After assessing the literature th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Critical research on religion
Authors: Morello, Gustavo 1966- (Author) ; Costa, Néstor da (Author) ; Rabbia, Hugo (Author) ; Romero, Catalina (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Sage [2017]
In: Critical research on religion
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Latin America / Religious geography / Religiosity / Folk religion / Interfaith dialogue
RelBib Classification:AD Sociology of religion; religious policy
AF Geography of religion
AG Religious life; material religion
AX Inter-religious relations
CD Christianity and Culture
KBR Latin America
Further subjects:B Pentecostals
B Nones
B Rational choice
B Modernity
B Secularization
B Popular Religiosity
B Catholicism
B Lived-religion
B Unaffiliated
B Literature report
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Description
Summary:This is an interpretative, critical, and selective review of scholarly contributions that explore Latin America's religious landscape. We present data, both qualitative and quantitative, from Latin America and analyze the explanations given to make sense of it. After assessing the literature that uses either secularization theory or the "religious economy" approach, we study explanations that highlight a Latin American style of "popular religiosity." These three models, in different ways, put the emphasis on religious institutions-their vitality, commands, competition, and authority. We propose, instead, a focus on the religious practices of regular believers. We speculate that embarking from that focus, the idea of an "enchanted modernity" will help make sense of Latin America's religious landscape. Nuanced elucidation of Latin America's religious particularities will situate them in dialogue with other regions of the world, like western Europe and the United States, while also acknowledging the fact that Latin America is experiencing a modernization process distinct from the North Atlantic one.
ISSN:2050-3040
Contains:Enthalten in: Critical research on religion
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1177/2050303217732131