Abstract

In this article, the author compares the emergence, the content, and the functions of socio-cultural Christianity with the American civil religion, the most evolved of all civil religions. First, he establishes a parallelism between the emergence of both growing functional differentiation and its accompanying processes increasingly marginalized the church(es), stimulating a search för more genera! meaning systems to legitimate and integrate the nation or pillar. Both "religions” are based on certain central values. The difference between socio-cultural Christianity and the American civil religion is not only situated in differences in values, but essentially in the fact that the American civil religion functions for a pluralistic nation while socio-cultural christianity functions only tor the Christian segment of a society, Consequently, the former refers to the Jewish and Christian tradition and is clearly differentiated from the Jewish and Christian denominations while the latter is exclusively Christian and the differentiation from the Catholic Church is only partial, Finally, the author discusses the integrative, prophetic, and legitimating functions. He stresses the importance of socio-cultural Christianity for the legitimation of the pillar and points out its prophetic functions. He also argues that socio-cultural Christianity plays an important role in the "expressive" integration of the pillar but not in its "instrumental” integration.

How to Cite:

Dobbelaere, K., (1986) “Sociaal-culturele christenheid en publieke religie: een vergelijking”, Tijdschrift voor Sociologie 7(4), 653–679. doi: https://doi.org/10.21825/sociologos.85960