Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Tables
- Figures
- Acknowledgements
- Note
- Introduction: Xers and Yers as Cohorts of the Post-1970s Generation
- Chapter 1 Religious Diversity and the Politics of Definition
- Chapter 2 Religion and Popular Culture
- Chapter 3 Religion and Modernity: Marx, Durkheim and Weber
- Chapter 4 Religion, Spirituality and the Post-Secularisation Approach
- Chapter 5 Religion and Postmodernity (Part A): Consumer Religions
- Chapter 6 Religion and Postmodernity (Part B): Hyper-reality and the Internet
- Chapter 7 Esotericism, Its McDonaldisation, and Its Re-enchantment Process
- Chapter 8 Monotheistic Fundamentalism(s) as an Outcome of Consumer Culture
- Chapter 9 Buddhism, Its Westernisation and the Easternisation of the West
- Chapter 10 Christianity: Churches and Sects in a Post-Christian World
- Chapter 11 The Multiple-Modernities of Islam?
- Chapter 12 New Religious Movements and the Death of the New Age
- Chapter 13 Witchcraft, the Internet, and Consumerism
- Conclusion: What Do Sociologists of Religion in Academia Do Apart from Teaching and Marking? Their Work as Intellectuals
- References
- Index
Chapter 12 - New Religious Movements and the Death of the New Age
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Tables
- Figures
- Acknowledgements
- Note
- Introduction: Xers and Yers as Cohorts of the Post-1970s Generation
- Chapter 1 Religious Diversity and the Politics of Definition
- Chapter 2 Religion and Popular Culture
- Chapter 3 Religion and Modernity: Marx, Durkheim and Weber
- Chapter 4 Religion, Spirituality and the Post-Secularisation Approach
- Chapter 5 Religion and Postmodernity (Part A): Consumer Religions
- Chapter 6 Religion and Postmodernity (Part B): Hyper-reality and the Internet
- Chapter 7 Esotericism, Its McDonaldisation, and Its Re-enchantment Process
- Chapter 8 Monotheistic Fundamentalism(s) as an Outcome of Consumer Culture
- Chapter 9 Buddhism, Its Westernisation and the Easternisation of the West
- Chapter 10 Christianity: Churches and Sects in a Post-Christian World
- Chapter 11 The Multiple-Modernities of Islam?
- Chapter 12 New Religious Movements and the Death of the New Age
- Chapter 13 Witchcraft, the Internet, and Consumerism
- Conclusion: What Do Sociologists of Religion in Academia Do Apart from Teaching and Marking? Their Work as Intellectuals
- References
- Index
Summary
Introduction
The television show Xena: Warrior Princess portrays a female hero who can use a sword as strongly and skilfully as any male warrior. In these stories, which are based in a historically re-invented sword and sorcery fantasy setting populated by gods and goddesses, the main character has been received by the public as a feminist icon or even as a goddess figure by some neopagan groups (see Chapter 13). McPhillips and Franzman (2000) summarise well the religious underpinning of this TV series:
[Xena] participates in the soap opera tradition by reflecting current popular trends, e.g. towards denigration of institutionalized religions and uncritical acceptance of newer forms of religion. This is clearly filtered through the writers' and/or directors' feminist viewpoints regarding religion and religious beliefs. Thus, traditional and institutional religions are presented mostly in caricature, as in the case with the presentation of Islam only under its extreme militant and zealous aspect. Newest forms of religion or spirituality are generally presented in highly positive, uncritical, or naïve ways.
Using Xena as a case study, one can thus claim that there are traces in popular culture which indicate that newer forms of religions are favoured over more traditional ones. This is reflected in everyday life with people who have an increased interest in New Religious Movements and New Age Spiritualities. However, this chapter argues that this growth is far from being enough to overtake institutional religions.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Sociology of Religion for Generations X and Y , pp. 167 - 181Publisher: Acumen PublishingPrint publication year: 2009