Open AccessAre All Socialists Anti-religious? Anti-religiosity and the Socialist Left in 21 Western European Countries (1990-2008)
Author(s) -
Egbert Ribberink,
Peter Achterberg,
Dick Houtman
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
vestnik rossijskogo universiteta družby narodov. seriâ politologiâ
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2313-1446
pISSN - 2313-1438
DOI - 10.22363/2313-1438-2016-4-66-85
Subject(s) - religiosity , socialism , soviet union , religious identity , political science , politics , religious studies , european union , sociology , identity (music) , political economy , gender studies , law , philosophy , economics , communism , economic policy , aesthetics
The political situation in the Soviet Union during the twentieth century has led some to suggest that socialism is some kind of secular religion as opposed to ‘normal’ religion. In modern Europe, however, there have been vibrant Christian socialist movements. This article looks into the different attitudes of socialists towards religion and answers the question whether it is pressure of religious activity or pressure of religious identity that makes socialists resist religion. The results from a multilevel analysis of three waves of the European Values Study (1990-2008) in 21 Western European countries specifically point to an increase in anti-religiosity by socialists in countries marked by Catholic and Orthodox religious identities.