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A postmodern religion can be defined as any type of religion that is influenced or shaped by postmodernism and postmodern philosophies. Examples of religions that may be interpreted using postmodern philosophy include Postmodern Christianity, Postmodern Neopaganism and Postmodern Buddhism. Postmodern religious systems of thought view realities as plural and subjective and dependent on the individual's worldview. They acknowledge and value a multiplicity of diverse interpretations of truth, being and ways of seeing. There is a rejection of sharp distinctions and global or dominant metanarratives by followers of postmodern religion and this reflects one of the core principles of postmodern philosophy. A postmodern interpretation of religion emphasises the key point that religious truth is highly individualistic, subjective and resides within the individual.

Eclecticism and non-dogmatic theology

For postmodernists, society is in a state of constant change. There is no absolute version of reality, no absolute truths. Postmodern religion strengthens the perspective of the individual and weakens the strength of religions that claim to deal with objective realities. In Postmodern religion there is no universal religious truths or laws, rather, reality is shaped by social, historical and cultural contexts according to the individual, place and or time. Individuals may seek to draw eclectically on diverse religious beliefs, practices and rituals in order to incorporate these into their own religious world view.

In Japan, Shinto and Buddhist ideas are woven together and co-exist. Similarly, versions of Hinduism and Neopaganism may also be interpreted from a postmodern perspective. A Postmodern religion is non-dogmatic, syncretic, eclectic, draws from various faiths and traditions and challenges the notion of absolute truths. Some people who practice Buddhism may be syncretic in their approach and this is suggestive of a postmodern interpretation of Buddhism. Syncretism occurs among the Eastern religions.

Historical bias and versions of truth

According to postmodern philosophy, history may be written by powerful groups in society, who may marginalise, silence or misrepresent other, less powerful or oppressed groups. A postmodern religious philosophy openly acknowledges and accepts that rituals, beliefs and practices are invented, transformed, created and reworked based on constantly shifting and changing realities, individual preference, myths, legends, archetypes, rituals and cultural values and beliefs. A postmodern approach to religion acknowledges that history is frequently represented in an inherently biased way, reinforcing the mainstream ideologies of those in power. Individuals who follow a postmodern approach may draw from the histories of various cultures to inform their religious beliefs - they may questions, reclaim, challenge and critique representations of religion in history based on the theories of postmodernism, which acknowledge that realities are diverse, subjective and depend on the individuals interests and interpretations.

Appeal to marginalized groups in society

Members of groups in society who face discrimination or who are marginalized, such as the Gay community, Jewish community or other ethnic minority groups, may be drawn to postmodern religious thinking. For example, in Semitic Neopaganism, a postmodern approach to this tradition of Wicca involves challenging or reclaiming mainstream versions of reality and truth. Minority groups and the socially or economically disadvantaged may be drawn to follow a postmodern approach to religion, because of the way that postmodern philosophy empowers the individual and provides an "emancipatory framework" with which to challenge mainstream ideologies or dominant power structures.

Postmodernist religious interpretations

Postmodern interpretations of Neopaganism

Neopaganism is often approached and interpreted from a postmodern perspective. A Postmodern Religion is non-dogmatic,syncretic, eclectic, draws from various faiths and traditions and challenges the notion of absolute truths. Postmodern interpretations of Wiccais an interpretation of Wicca using postmodern philosophies. It is a postmodern religion that is defined by a syncretic and eclectic approach. Postmodern interpretations of Wicca often lead to the practitioner adopting a more eclectic approach, because the very nature of postmodern theory involves the acceptance of many versions of truth and reality. Eclectic Wicca is the most widely adapted form of Wicca in America today and the core philosophies of postmodern thinking are often used in order to form an interpretation of Wicca that is highly individual and characterized by the subjective questioning of reality and truth. Postmodern Neopaganism draws from, adapts, challenges and adopts a wider range of religious beliefs and perspectives, such as Buddhism, Shintoism, Druidism and Hinduism. In contrast, a postmodern interpretation of Wicca may draw more specifically from Wicca and Goddess Movements such as Dianic Wicca, Celtic Wicca and Jewitchery.Postmodern theory is increasing and shaping many aspects of society, including politics, religion, philosophy and law. Postmodern interpretations of Wicca differ from Modernist interpretations because postmodern interpretations of Wicca tend to be context driven, egalitarian, immanent and experiential whereas modernist interpretations may be defined as hierarchical, cognitive, transcendent or more evidence based. Both perspectives are valid and important interpretations of Wicca as a religious movement. Wicca is the most widely practiced and adapted form of Neopaganism. According to postmodern theory, this positions Wicca as the dominant, mainstream ideology of the religious movement, Neopaganism. For example, In her Introduction to Pagan Studies, Barbara Davies comments that Llewellyn Publications, the largest publisher of Wiccan and Neopagan titles, prefers its books to use "Wicca" as opposed to "Paganism". Because Wicca is the primary and most widely adopted tradition of Neopaganism, the ideological values and beliefs of this tradition have a strong impact on the entire Neopagan movement. Critical analysis of academic texts from a postmodern perspective reveal that Wicca is often represented in literature and research as being underpinned by discourses of modernism. A Postmodern interpretation of Wicca(as the dominant ideology) may challenge, reinvent, adopt and adapt the dominant modernist discourses in order to create an alternative, postmodern version of truth and reality (and of the religion).

Postmodern interpretations of Buddhism

Some people who practice Buddhism may be syncretic in their approach and this is suggestive of a postmodern interpretation of Buddhism, syncretism occurs among the Eastern religions, for example, Buddhism is practiced by adherents alongside many other religious traditions- including Taoism, Confucianism, Shinto, traditional religions, shamanism, and animism- in regions such as East and Southeast Asia.

References

1. Powell, Jim (1998). "Postmodernism For Beginners" (ISBN 978-1-934389-09-6)
2. Patton, K and Ray,B (2008) A Magic Still Dwells: Comparative Religion in the Postmodern Age, University of California Press, Berkeley
3. Oxford University Press - Journals - Aaron Stuvland http://jcs.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2010/08/12/jcs.csq055.extract
4. On Deconstructing Life-Worlds: Buddhism, Christianity, Culture (Atlanta: Scholars Press of American Academy of Religion, 1997; Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000; ISBN 0-7885-0295-6, cloth, ISBN 0-7885-0296-4, pbk
5. Linda Woodhead, Religions in the Modern World (Routledge, 2002), pp. 186
6. Lévi-Strauss, Claude. Structural Anthropology. Trans. Claire Jacobson and Brooke Grundfest Schoepf (First published New York: Basic Books, 1963; New York: Anchor Books Ed., 1967), 324.
7. Eve, Raymond Wiccans vs. Creationists: An Empirical Study of How Two Systems of Belief Differ, The University of Texas http://www.skeptic.com/eskeptic/10-08-25/
8. BBC Religions: Postmodernism http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/atheism/types/postmodernism.shtml
9. Hatcher, B (1999) Eclecticism and Modern Hindu Discourse, Oxford University Press USA
10. ^ Lewis, James (1996) Magic religion and Modern Witchcraft New York University Press - page 46 "While pre-modern themes form the foundation for this movement it is the manner that such themes are reworked to be appropriate in the contemporary context that form the greatest relevance to the significance of Witchcraft as a postmodern form of spirituality"
11. Raphael, Melissa (April 1998) Goddess Religion, Postmodern Jewish Feminism, and the Complexity of Alternative Religious Identities ‌Nova Religion, Vol. 1, No. 2, Pages 198–215 (abstract can be found at: Caliber: University of California Press)http://caliber.ucpress.net/doi/abs/10.1525/nr.1998.1.2.198
12. Patricia M. Mcdonough, Peter Mclaren (1996) Critical, Postmodern Studies of Gay and Lesbian Lives in Academia, Harvard Educational Review, Summer 1996 Issue
13. Patridge, Christopher. "Alternative Spiritualities, New Religions, and the Reenchantment of the West", in James Lewis (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of New Religious Movements (2004)"Neopagan in this text refers to Wicca and Witchcraft
14. Lewis, James (1996) Magic religion and Modern Witchcraft New York University Press - page 46 ...While premodern themes form the foundation for this movement it is the manner that such themes are reworked to be appropriate in the contemporary context that form the greatest relevance to the significance of Witchcraft as a postmodern form of spirituality
15. Carpenter, Dennis. "Emergent Nature Spirituality: An Examination of the Major Spiritual Contours of the Contemporary Pagan Worldview", in James Lewis (ed.), Magical Religion and Modern Witchcraft (1996) in this text, Neopagan specifically means Witch and Wiccan
16. Smith, Diane Wicca and Witchcraft for Dummies
17. Patridge, Christopher. "Alternative Spiritualities, New Religions, and the Reenchantment of the West", in James Lewis (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of New Religious Movements (2004)
18. Anderson, Walter Truett. "Four Ways to Be Absolutely Right", in Anderson (ed.), The Truth About the Truth: De-confusing and Re-constructing the Postmodern World (1995)
19. Fisher, Amber Journal of Western Mystery Tradition, Vol. 1 http://www.jwmt.org/v1n6/editorial.html
20. Raphael, Melissa (April 1998) Goddess Religion, Postmodern Jewish Feminism, and the Complexity of Alternative Religious Identities ‌Nova Religio, Vol. 1, No. 2, Pages 198–215 (abstract can be found at: Caliber: University of California Press)
21. Werner, Michael "Ecofeminism, Neopaganism, and the Gaia Movement in the Postmodern Age", in Humanism Today, vol. 7 (1992)
22. Eilberg-Schwartz, Howard. “Witches of the West: Neopaganism and Goddess Worship as Enlightenment Religions”, Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion, vol. 5, no. 1 (1989)
23. "Chinese Cultural Studies: The Spirits of Chinese Religion". Academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
24. Windows on Asia - Chinese Religions
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• Postmodernism
• Religion
• Postmodern religion