Bangalore is a tremendous hub of technological innovations, frustrated by an ineffective state. Getting around the city is fraught with frustrations: car horns blare, while roads are either blocked with traffic, or deep underwater. Urban governance is a major challenge, worldwide, because towns and cities are expanding at lower levels of wealth.
Captivating as always! For this analysis to work, do urban areas need to become more religious than non-urban areas, or become more religious after rapid population growth? Or is more like, the expected secularization that normally comes with urbanization hasn’t happened in many countries, because they urbanized while poor? Also raises the question of why these countries are urbanizing if urbanization hasn’t raised living standards… or maybe it does raise living standards, it just also creates extra chaos that religion helps to mitigate?
Fascinating analysis! I have been saying for years that the Republican party's willingness to sabotage the U.S. economy during a democratic Presidency could benefit them in other ways. People who are financially desperate are more likely to embrace religion, i.e., fundamentalism or Pentacostalism. Also, the right-wing de-funding and denigration of public schools and Universities helps enlarge their base in the long run. Highly educated tend not to vote Republican. We can also contemplate the rising tide of Fascism all over the world. Interesting how Bolsonaro is connected to Pentacostalism in Brazil, Trump with conservative Christians, Modi with chauvinist Hinduism, Putin with the Russian Orthodox. Marriages of convenience! Only in China is religion suppressed across the board. However the CCP is a one-stop-shop for everything: politics, law, religion, education, historical interpretation.
This analysis cries out for comparison with rapidly growing 19th-century cities, especially those in the U.S. where large-scale immigration led to people from diverse backgrounds living in close proximity.
So there are three obvious points: 1) 19c cities were quite conservative on many issues, in 1880 an art proprietor in New York was arrested for selling nude prints; but 2) Europe had undergone the secular enlightenment (which did not occur in Africa, south east Asia or the Middle East; 3) Europe has weaker family bonds
Better to compare to the U.S. than to Europe, I think. But, re: family bonds, Theodore Dreiser in his autobiography (I've read this version: https://amzn.to/3R0YJsK) tells the story of visiting his devout German Catholic father, all of whose many children have moved away from both him and the church. He feared for their souls.
That said, there seems to have been an upsurge in religiosity in 19th-century cities, along with the temperance movement. But at least in the U.S., it took the form of proliferating religious movements, including liberal ones, rather than a single orthodoxy.
The US is uniquely religious among rich countries - look at its weekly prayer attendance! Three times or more its European peers for example, or even almost twice Canada.
Captivating as always! For this analysis to work, do urban areas need to become more religious than non-urban areas, or become more religious after rapid population growth? Or is more like, the expected secularization that normally comes with urbanization hasn’t happened in many countries, because they urbanized while poor? Also raises the question of why these countries are urbanizing if urbanization hasn’t raised living standards… or maybe it does raise living standards, it just also creates extra chaos that religion helps to mitigate?
The Islamic revival started in cities, 100%
Fascinating analysis! I have been saying for years that the Republican party's willingness to sabotage the U.S. economy during a democratic Presidency could benefit them in other ways. People who are financially desperate are more likely to embrace religion, i.e., fundamentalism or Pentacostalism. Also, the right-wing de-funding and denigration of public schools and Universities helps enlarge their base in the long run. Highly educated tend not to vote Republican. We can also contemplate the rising tide of Fascism all over the world. Interesting how Bolsonaro is connected to Pentacostalism in Brazil, Trump with conservative Christians, Modi with chauvinist Hinduism, Putin with the Russian Orthodox. Marriages of convenience! Only in China is religion suppressed across the board. However the CCP is a one-stop-shop for everything: politics, law, religion, education, historical interpretation.
This analysis cries out for comparison with rapidly growing 19th-century cities, especially those in the U.S. where large-scale immigration led to people from diverse backgrounds living in close proximity.
I agree! Did you see my post yesterday? https://open.substack.com/pub/draliceevans/p/whats-driving-the-global-decline?r=zccyx&utm_medium=ios
So there are three obvious points: 1) 19c cities were quite conservative on many issues, in 1880 an art proprietor in New York was arrested for selling nude prints; but 2) Europe had undergone the secular enlightenment (which did not occur in Africa, south east Asia or the Middle East; 3) Europe has weaker family bonds
Better to compare to the U.S. than to Europe, I think. But, re: family bonds, Theodore Dreiser in his autobiography (I've read this version: https://amzn.to/3R0YJsK) tells the story of visiting his devout German Catholic father, all of whose many children have moved away from both him and the church. He feared for their souls.
That said, there seems to have been an upsurge in religiosity in 19th-century cities, along with the temperance movement. But at least in the U.S., it took the form of proliferating religious movements, including liberal ones, rather than a single orthodoxy.
I wonder why the US did not secularise as much? 🤔
The US is uniquely religious among rich countries - look at its weekly prayer attendance! Three times or more its European peers for example, or even almost twice Canada.