Theological Crucibles: Social Movements in and of Religion

Abstract

By their nature, religious organizations are deeply involved with theological and ideological beliefs about the relation of individuals and groups to each other, to society, and to the good and just life. Changes in belief systems in the larger society are bound to enter the internal life of denominations, and, in turn, beliefs developed within religious organizations become the basis for action in the larger society. This paper examines the social movement and political processes that are the carriers through which changes in beliefs are implemented. First, we examine the relation of the rise and fall of classes and groups in a world economy to social movements. Then, building upon a general framework for the analysis of social movements in organizations, we discuss the causes and forms of different kinds of social movements in denominations. The focus is upon mass movements and small scale insurrections in different church polities. Religious denominations evidence a variety of political structures and processes and are especially suitable sites for this kind of analysis.