Center for Multi-cultural Studie

Speaker: Professor Yoa, Yu-shuang (Institute of Religious Studies, Fo Guang University)

Time: 2021/6/9 14:00-16:00

Link: https://youtu.be/djkBFiXnxQE

At the end of the 20th century, religious sociologist Byran Wilson proposed a new research method for large transnational religious groups, that is, to use extensively the theories of "marketing" and "recruitment" in economics. Systematically analyze various factors of how the new group can successfully spread, correcting the past scholars who only focused on "participants" or "classical analysis", and focused their research on the activities of the group itself. What is more important is to analyze the various activities and developments of religious groups with a critical attitude combined with overlooking. This research method can not only fully grasp the strategies of religious groups to absorb believers, but also can deeply understand how the religious groups design and transform believers' values and values.

My main research results in recent years have provided a new direction for the study of religion in Western academic circles, that is, in the study of the mass religious movement of the "new middle class" in the metropolitan area of Taiwan, I proposed the personality traits of "Chinese charismatic authority" , women religious leaders, and the latest contemporary development - religious appeal. Religious appeals (supplications, accusations) are an uncultivated field of study. In interpreting the limited literature, it is always taken from the point of view of mechanistic functionalism as an understanding of the nature of the positive feelings and teachings of an group. It is also generally believed that the appeal to religion is a response to dissatisfaction with the existing social organizational structure or aversion to unfair traditional values. Thus, the "offering" or "supply" of a new religious group is often considered a motivation for religious appeal and conversion. This subjective empirical research method not only deals with the traditionally established position in the academic world - the correlation between the rise of religion and social transformation, but also can explain in depth the theory that has expanded from the "deprivation theory" to "sectarianization".

The research has found that the search for sanctity, peer pressure, insecurities in life, or the need for self-reaffirmation and spiritual enrichment are causes of religious change. In addition, ethnic identity and social background have also become important research categories that affect believers' religious demands. By joining a religious group with the same social background as one's own, the social responsibility of the participants and the return to traditional values can be promoted, leading to another powerful reason for loyalty to the religious group. Therefore, it can be seen that in the strategy of "member recruitment", religious groups always deliberately and actively meet the needs of a specific social group.