Author: Michael Brennan
Brennan, Michael, 1999 Enchantment in an age of disenchantment: A study of Australian catholics, Flinders University, College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
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This thesis deals with one of the most characteristic aspects of modernity, namely the loss of the sense of mystery in everyday life. Max Weber described this phenomenon as the 'disenchantment' of modernity and attributed its spread to the influence of rationalisation, intellectualisation and scientifically oriented thinking. This dissertation in addition to studying Weber's argumentation about 'disenchantment', draws on the work of two other sociologists who explore the same topic, namely Thomas Luckmann and Pierre Hegy.
This thesis studies a group of church-going Catholics – labelled the 'integrationists' – whose experience seems to defy the above sociological predictions about the loss of enchantment within modernity. Contrary to sociological expectations the 'integrationists' retain their sense of enchantment, while being thoroughly enmeshed in the rationalisation of modernity. I also choose a second group of Catholics – whom I call the 'dualists' – to act as contrast to the 'integrationists'. This second group is chosen on the basis that their experience of enchantment typically occurs in organised religious activity rather than in everyday life. I explore the characteristics of both groups through in-depth interview.
The thesis explores this sociological conundrum (people sustaining enchantment during the rationalisation of modernity) by presenting Weber's, Luckmann's and Hegy's argumentation in the form of sets of hypotheses. Each hypothesis is reduced to an empirical identifiable implication; the plausibility of which is evaluated against the contemporary data generated from the interview material. While the interview data supported Weber's, Luckmann's and Hegy's overall 'rationalisation-disenchantment' argument, it revealed the existence of conceptual practices which curtail 'disenchantment'. The thesis identifies which conceptual practices sustain enchantment within the rationalisation of modernity; the conceptual practices the 'integrationists' typically employ are shown to be quite distinct from those of the 'dualists'.
The interview data reveal that the nature of the conceptual practices the 'integrationists' employ have a non-rational character about them, and that the 'integrationists' commonly employ symbolic and analogous forms of thought. The 'integrationists' are ill at ease with overly rationalised forms of religion which occur in aspects of institutional Catholicism. The thesis addresses the issue of the potential split in the relationship between the 'integrationists' and institutional Catholicism. The interview data together with a number of Weberian insights offer a modus vivendi for the 'integrationists' and institutional Catholicism not only to avoid polarisation, but actually to support one another. This thesis proposes that the conceptual practices the 'integrationists' employ when they experience enchantment are actually sustained by the mythic elements of ritual provided by institutional Catholicism. At the same time the interview data reveal that the disenchanting effect rationalisation has upon institutional Catholicism is minimised by the characteristics typifying the 'integrationists'.
Keywords: enchantment, religion, Catholocism
Subject: Theology thesis
Thesis type: Professional Doctorate
Completed: 1999
School: College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
Supervisor: Bill Martin