Week 3 Readings, Religion and Popular Culture

by Laura Green

Morgan gives an in depth study of the relationship between religion and popular culture in his chapter “studying religion and popular culture,” and how this relationship has come to be studied in serious academia. He begins with an interesting overview of the formation of popular culture, particularly in regards to American experience.

In America there was once a great divide between what was considered high culture and what was considered popular. Morgan illustrates this through the world of art. Before the 1960s artists often looked down upon art that was popular with the general public, believing it to be visually unchallenging, they asserted that good art had to be difficult and demanding for the viewer. However, Morgan claims that overtime this view of popular culture as irrelevant has eroded and recently there has been a surge in scholastic interest in studying popular culture and its place in the modern world.

Morgan believes that the study of religion in conjuncture with popular culture blurs the lines between different disciplines in the academic world. This can be challenging for the scholar of popular religious culture, as they are constantly the outsiders to prevailing norms of academic research. Yet, Morgan believes this challenge is necessary in order to truly understand modern religious practice. The mediums of popular culture are the means by which many people construct their view of community and themselves and so ignoring these mediums also ignores an important aspect of modern religiosity.

Many scholars, like Morgan, now appreciate the importance of studying popular culture in regards to modern religious practice. However, when reading James Elkin’s blog on “bridging the gap between Modern art and religion,” it appears that some aspects of religion are considered irrelevant to modern art. Elkin suggests that artwork that incorporates and celebrates religious themes and motifs is rarely displayed in prominent art galleries; yet, works that are critical of religion are much more often displayed. Elkin believes that this is due to misunderstandings between different types of scholars, those who value religious culture and those who value the secularity of modern society. He believes this misunderstanding is highly detrimental to art education. Yet, it is also detrimental to the type of study conducted by Morgan into the relationship between religion and popular culture, as the religious aspect of popular culture is sometimes sidelined.

References:

Elkin J. 2007. Bridging the gap between modern art and religion. ArtStyle Blog, Nov 30, http://www.chicagoarts-lifestyle.com/cac-perspectives-can-modern-art-and-religion-get-along/#more-660

Morgan, D. 2007. Studying religion and pop culture. In G. Lynch, Ed., Between Sacred and Profane: Researching Religion and Popular Culture. London & New York: I.B. Taurus & Co.