Protect the State. Protect the Religion. An Analytical Approach to the Political Use of Religion in Denmark and The United States of America.
Author
Kristensen, Line
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2018
Submitted on
2018-05-31
Pages
75
Abstract
This thesis examines how religion is used in politics in Denmark and the United States and what the public use of religion reveals about secularization in both countries. It asks whether Denmark and the U.S. are secular, why the U.S. appears more publicly religious than Denmark, and how constitutional arrangements, history, and culture shape these differences. The study proposes and tests the hypothesis that the key divergence lies at the societal level and in politicians’ public use of religion, and that a legal separation of church and state in the U.S. contributes to high publicly expressed religiosity, while Denmark’s state–church connection contributes to lower publicly expressed religiosity. Methodologically, it combines a systematic review of secularization theory and alternatives (including rational choice and individualization) with a descriptive mapping of the religious landscapes in both countries, covering constitutional frameworks, historical trajectories, and statistics. The concept of civil religion is used to illuminate national rituals and symbolism. Empirically, the thesis conducts a comparative textual analysis of official speeches and statements by Danish and U.S. politicians, assessing word choice, religious references (e.g., biblical citations), rhetorical stance (positive, negative, neutral), and the use of ethos, pathos, and logos to identify how religion is legitimized, bounded, or mobilized in public. A subsequent discussion relates the findings to sociological explanations to evaluate the decisive factors behind observed differences. Specific results and a final determination of whether the hypothesis is supported are not included in this excerpt.
Denne specialeafhandling undersøger, hvordan religion bruges politisk i Danmark og USA, og hvad den offentlige brug af religion siger om sekularisering i de to lande. Udgangspunktet er spørgsmålene: Er Danmark og USA sekulære, hvorfor fremstår USA mere offentligt religiøst end Danmark, og hvilken rolle spiller forfatningsmæssige forhold, historie og kultur? Afhandlingen opstiller og afprøver hypotesen om, at den vigtigste forskel ligger på det samfundsmæssige plan og i politikeres offentlige brug af religion, samt at en juridisk adskillelse mellem stat og religion i USA medvirker til høj offentligt udtrykt religiositet, mens den danske stats-kirkelige forbindelse medvirker til lavere offentligt udtrykt religiositet. Metodisk kombineres en systematisk gennemgang af sekulariseringsteori og alternativer (bl.a. rational choice og individualisering) med en beskrivende kortlægning af de religiøse landskaber i begge lande, herunder forfatningsrammer, historiske udviklinger og statistiske oversigter. Begrebet civil religion anvendes til at belyse nationale ritualer og symbolik. Den empiriske analyse er en komparativ tekstanalyse af officielle taler og udsagn fra danske og amerikanske politikere, hvor ordvalg, religiøse referencer (fx bibelcitater), retorisk tone (positiv, negativ, neutral) samt ethos, pathos og logos vurderes for at identificere, hvordan religion legitimeres, afgrænses eller mobiliseres i offentligheden. En efterfølgende diskussion sammenholder fundene med sociologiske forklaringer for at vurdere afgørende faktorer bag forskellene. Konkrete resultater og en endelig afgørelse af, om hypotesen kan understøttes, fremgår ikke af dette uddrag.
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Keywords