Laicization, Cultivation and Translocality: Sociological Interpretation of Religions in Contemporary Taiwan

Taiwan is a society rich in diversity, where new and old religions coexist, religious imports and exports coincide, and multiple religions are synthesized and integrated, creating a unique religious spectacle. From a sociological perspective, this book analyzes Taiwan’s distinctive religious landscape, attempting to provide a framework for understanding religious diversity and reflecting on possible alternatives to Western knowledge frameworks, thereby establishing a knowledge map of Taiwan’s religion.

 

The book is divided into three main parts: The first part, “Religious Landscape of Taiwanese Society,” consists of four chapters discussing the four main religions in Taiwan—Buddhism, Taoism, folk beliefs, and Christianity. It examines how these religions develop their respective responses to the growing trend of modern spiritual demands and the societal expectations for religious groups to address public issues. The second part, “Reflections on Religious Issues and Knowledge Frameworks,” showcases the perspectives of interactive comparison and quantitative research, demonstrating how these methods can be applied to religious issues. The third part, “Religion Across Social Mobility,” includes chapters that provide valuable insights into Taiwanese religion. It highlights how ethnic identity is an endogenous factor in constructing religious subjectivity and explores how the identity of “Chinese” influences the religious subjectivity of Southeast Asian Chinese and affects the delineation of boundaries among Chinese Muslims in Southeast Asian societies.