Globalization and Proliferation of Religious Values: An Essay

This essay examines the multifaceted relationship between globalization and the proliferation of religious values. It explores how globalization, driven by advancements in technology, media, and multinational corporations, facilitates the exchange of cultures, religions, and values across borders, leading to a sense of global identity beyond nationality and religious beliefs. The essay analyzes the ways in which globalization can threaten religious identities, particularly through the imposition of majority religious values and the marginalization of minority communities. It highlights the potential for cultural homogenization and the rise of intolerance. The essay supports its arguments with references to relevant literature, including works by Casanova, Turner and Holton, and others, providing a comprehensive analysis of this complex issue.

Running head: GLOBALIZATION AND PROLIFERATION OF RELIGIOUS VALUES
Globalization and Proliferation of Religious Values
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Author Note

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GLOBALIZATION AND PROLIFERATION OF RELIGIOUS VALUES
1. Which aspects of globalization do you think contribute most to the proliferation
religious values across borders, whether across states or civilizations? Please explain
why and support your responses with clear references to the relevant literature and
the provision of detailed practical examples.
Globalization has extended a person’s identity more in the term of a larger
framework than being restricted his or her religion and nationality. With the propagation
of modernization in the societal realms and with one’s individual self, people pose less
opposition or revulsion to other religions. They tend to be more dynamic and voluntary
towards the world system and amalgamation of religions and culture. Globalization has
enabled this flow of religion and culture across borders which ensure a directionality.
This flow and mixing of values and cultures make people realize about their global
identity which is beyond their nationality and religious beliefs (Turner and Holton 2015).
This has strengthened a sense of global human conditioning.
Globalization primarily is primarily looked at in terms of economy which are
linked to the developments within the global market. The process of globalization has
given immense boost to the multinational corporations, capital, media, technology and
information. Due to globalization, today there are agreement between countries for their
respective benefits which ensure trade and commerce as well as the maintenance of peace
across borders (Casanova 2001). Immigration has increased due to the exchanges as
people move to other countries either in search of jobs or for the purpose of settlement.
Therefore people from different ethnic and territorial origin live together which result in
the effect of hybridization. The approach which was primarily to boost economy and
integrate it, which has given way to the co-existence of different religions, cultures and

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values (Rowntree et al. 2015). This has only been possible due to globalization which has
opened doors to the spread of values across borders and coverage in a cultural
homogenization.
2) In what ways can globalization threaten the identity (ies) of the religious faith(s)
of your choice? Please explain why and support your responses with clear references
to the relevant literature and the provision of detailed practical examples.
Globalization has enabled the flow of cultures, religions and values across states
whereas this has also been the reason behind the consequential turmoil and unrest which
followed because of the fail of accommodation of varying cultures within a society. The
spread and relatedness of global identity and community has led to a directional flow of
people across countries for different purposes. It often happen that two or more such
cultures fail to coexist and put humanity at threat. Immigration has increased the number
of minority communities within cultures and societies where they are often marginalized
by the majority religion (Strenski 2004). The universal globalization have often been the
reason behind the forces which limit religious freedom of people and try to impose the
religious values and practices of the majority. There have also been decline in the
freedom thus. There have also been religious discrimination which was carried out by
legislation. Globalization has made nations to be commonplace for several religions,
languages and cultures which were curbed by legislation and imposition of laws to
converge into the majority practices and beliefs (Lum 2017). There have been rise in the
interference of government and institutions into people’s religious practices in the last
decade which is very alarming. In any countries there are severe restrictions which are

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posed by the government which also include stipulations by laws and constitution which
limit religious freedom of the people residing in those parts of the world.
As a result, religious communities tend to be against each other’s practices and
beliefs which have got reflected in political agendas and consequences (Steger 2017).
Since time immemorial there have been dominant orthodox religious forces in the society
which have asserted their practices and beliefs on the minority classes which have posed
restrictions to marriages, speech, censorship on press and media (Robertson and Chirico
1985). Globalization is also be perceived as a mechanism which has its effect in the form
of threat on people’s preferences and restrict them from reaching a level of religious and
cultural homogeneity (Dawson 1998). This has reduced interaction between people from
two different community and intolerance in people which is evident in their manifestation
of rage and violence.

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References
Casanova, José. "Religion, the new millennium, and globalization." Sociology of religion 62, no.
4 (2001): 415-441.
Dawson, Lorne L. "The cultural significance of new religious movements and globalization: a
theoretical prolegomenon." Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion (1998): 580-595.
Lum, B. Globalization and identity: cultural diversity, religion, and citizenship. Routledge, 2017.
Robertson, Roland, and JoAnn Chirico. "Humanity, globalization, and worldwide religious
resurgence: A theoretical exploration." Sociological Analysis 46, no. 3 (1985): 219-242.
Rowntree, Lester, Martin Lewis, Marie Price, and William Wyckoff. Diversity amid
globalization. Pearson Education UK, 2015.
Steger, Manfred B. Globalization: A very short introduction. Vol. 86. Oxford University Press,
2017.
Strenski, Ivan. "The religion in globalization." Journal of the American Academy of Religion 72,
no. 3 (2004): 631-652.
Turner, Bryan S., and Robert J. Holton, eds. The Routledge international handbook of
globalization studies. Routledge, 2015.