Article Title：De-institutionalization of religion and religious individualization in eastern and western Germany
Abstract：
Luckmann's thesis of invisible religion which is based on religious individualization attracts great attention within the field of sociology of religion in the German speaking countries. It states that religion currently is not loosing social relevance, but that current religious changes are characterized by processes of religious individualization in which subjectively constructed, syncretistic, and non-institutionalized systems of ultimate meaning are replacing traditional Christian religious forms. Thus, the thesis contradicts the theory of secularization processes. On the basis of two surveys carried out by the authors, the paper looks for empirical evidence to support this thesis. Three dimensions of religion are distinguished: traditional church affiliation, individual Christian religiosity, and non-church religiosity. Additionally, an individualization index is constructed. The analysis shows that processes of de-institutionalization of religion can be observed, but forms of non-church or non-Christian religiosity do not constitute serious alternatives to church adherence and Christian religiosity. Secularization and religious individualization are not two diametrically opposed processes. The trend towards secularization is prevailing in Germany and the tendencies towards religious individualization are components of this pre-dominant trend.
Keywords: religion; individualization; secularization; non-christian religiosity; eastern and western Germany
DOI: 10.1007/s11577-003-0085-6
Source：KOLNER ZEITSCHRIFT FUR SOZIOLOGIE UND SOZIALPSYCHOLOGIE
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