Abstract

MORELLO SJ, Gustavo  and  RABBIA, Hugo H.. Religious Changes and Demographic Dynamics: Beyond Secularization Theory. The Case of Catholicism in the City of Córdoba, Argentina. rev.estud.soc. [online]. 2019, n.69, pp.14-27. ISSN 0123-885X.  https://doi.org/10.7440/res69.2019.02.

This article critically explores the explanations of religious dynamics in Argentina based on Secularization Theory (TdS). Most scholarship uses political-institutional relations as an independent variable; therefore, TdS focuses on what takes place within the leadership of the institution and intermediate organizations. This research collects data directly from a century of baptism records in the city of Córdoba (Argentina) and compares it with the city’s birth rate. This analysis shows that the use of political-institutional variables fails to adequately explain religious dynamics, as measured in baptisms. The proposed hypothesis is that religious transformations are better understood when demographic variables are applied.

Keywords : Latin America; baptisms; Christianity; Church and State; religious institutions; birth rate.

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