The Secularization of Europe

Paper Summary:

The paper presents the thesis that Europe's move to secularization would not have taken place without three factors: increasing urbanization, the related transfer of jobs from the agriculturally based to the industrially based, and the state sponsorship of religion, which reduced the recruiting zeal of organized religion and allowed for a decay of religious sentiment during the century. The paper shows how the stage was set for the theories of Charles Darwin to be accepted in the mid-19th century as a logical extension of the diminished role of God and religion in the affairs of man.

Outline:
Introduction
Precursors in the 18th Century
At the Dawn of the 19th Century
Secularism in the University
Religion in the 19th Century: Distancing itself from the Populace
Increasing Urbanization in Europe and its Effect on Secularization
Other Factors Increasing Secularization
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"The emergence of rationalism in the 1700s showed a flowering of economics and philosophy, and paralleled an increase in agricultural wealth throughout these countries. The increase of trade and the introduction of high-yield crops contributed to an increase in agricultural production across a broad part of the United Kingdom, and to a more limited extent in France and Germany. This resulted in redundancy in the fields, which allowed for out-migration and the creation of a ready labor pool for industrial concerns."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Asen, R. "The Multiple Mr. Dewey: Multiple Publics and Permeable Borders in John Dewey's Theory of the Public Sphere." Argumentation and Advocacy, 2003: 174-182.
• Bazillon, R. J. The Zollverein 1834-1870. Historical Report, Leiden: Leiden University, 2007.
• Clout, H. C. "An Historical Geography of Europe 1800-1914." Geographical Review, 1987: 115-117.
• Diderot, J. Encyclopedie. Paris: Andre le Breton, 1743.
• Eberts, M. E. "The Roman Catholic Church and Democracy in Poland." Europe-Asia Studies, 1998: 817-842.

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