The usefulness of the concept: multiple modernities for the study of religious manifestations

Abstract

Nowadays, debates about religion flow from various aspects and professional and personal interests. Topics such as the so-called return of religion and its revival in post-secular times are common. The task of any researcher or teacher interested in the study of the society-religion relationship from different disciplines is arduous. It presents a great challenge since the religious phenomenon is a multidimensional fact with infinite modes of manifestation. Today, a great variety of reflections unfold from the concept of multiple modernities, revealing the imperative need to rethink Modernity not only from the present historical contingency but also from the past, often omitted in the once hegemonic narrative where otherness was assumed to be almost nonexistent. Similarly, the concept of multiple secularizations and even multiple post-secularizations emerges. It is essential to discuss, understand, and disseminate significant aspects that distinguish the interests and contributions regarding the mentioned relationship, based on the theoretical elaborations of Latin American thinkers without overlooking or underestimating significant aspects of contemporary foreign thinkers. This is amid the emergence of new beliefs and the transformation of identities and subjectivities, expressed in an active market of symbolic goods that puts an end to the old Catholic monopoly.