The Contemporary International Politics of the Weberian Dialectics on Religion and Social Class

      In the contemporary time, it is no longer the application to know the relationship of religious affiliation and social stratification that have significant effect to the social experiences regardless of nationality and culture. There is already a dialectical result as to the by-product of evolutionary development of culture and tradition that made a tremendous impact to the new life experiences of the society. The new insights on this paper provides a discussion made by Weber in the religious affiliation and social stratification in his study of Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism that have relationship in the contemporary time particularly in the social and economic stratification and ethical , moral and behavioral development of religious ideology. These are social experiences that generated from the historical analysis religious affiliation and social stratification which are true in the contemporary time

      The occupational statistics of any country can study the significant labor force including industrial, commercial and technological enterprises that can dictate the stratification system of the society. Weber identified religion as one sector that defines the labor force of the country. There is however a difference in the extent of affiliation on the nationality of a protestant which gives more priority as to the cultural development. It is true that the greater relative participation of Protestants in the ownership of capital, in management, and the upper ranks of labor in great modern industrial and commercial enterprises, may in part be explained in terms of historical circumstances which extend far back into the past, and in which religious affiliation is not a cause of the economic conditions, but to a certain extent appears to be a result of them.

      The existence of freedom provides an opportunity to expand a wide range of participation in the economic stratification. The religious affiliation has negligible effect as can been seen from the historical circumstances. However, the participation and freedom usually dealt with economic stratification. This has been the historical trend on the existence of participation and freedom. The underlying reason is more on economic stratification. The economic affiliation transcends from the co-equal structure which may produce social bond among the unified structure on wealth and status. The inherited wealth and ownership of capital in contemporary time are the most favored group to co-exist in the social stratification of society. The ethical values are much different when you compare the religious affiliation of Weber. The affiliation for them is reflected from economic stature that they hold in the society. This is expanded further from the horizon on economic and political process. The religious affiliation can be viewed in the social responsibility based on the success of the corporate enterprise. The protestant ethics is more glaring from the Muslim countries where religious affiliation is so strong that this is also a political ideology. However, the protestant ethics still exist in the traditional protestant group who adheres more on moral dimension.

      The historical facts in his time was connected from the two unifying view that economic traditionalism was always attached in religious tradition through the power of the Catholic Church. Basically the motion of reformation would eliminate the control of the Catholic Church. The spiritual existence was more on ethical beliefs that strengthen the moral fibers of the society. The existence of man has always attached the concern on his spiritual life and the judgment of soul on afterlife. The best way to invest after life lies so much on the power of prayer and obedience to the church. The belief of supernatural order and afterlife denoted from the sociology of religion lays the weakness of man to obey the dogmatic principle of the church. This holds true to all kinds of religion that the unilateral perception and knowledge on their spiritual beliefs are the only existing genuine religion founded by the social experience in life.

     There seemed to be the problem of the Catholic Church in controlling their power from guided spiritual right on man's existence as they exploited the religious beliefs in Europe. However, as Weber synthesized the three centuries ecclesiastical evolution of the Protestant Church in Europe the same problem existed on different dimension from the dichotomy on the shadow of exploitation on spiritual ideology.

      The center of human struggles and developments from the birth of developed , advanced and civilized society that shaped the world until the contemporary time is in Europe. No other continent in the world where you can find the sustained vibrancy on all angles of political and economic development of society. If you are not in this continent you will agree from this dialectical analysis from a deeply rooted from evolution of human development. The European never thought on its evolution to become perfect breed of biological man that would influence the entire course of world history. The evolutionary change on its spiritual beliefs from the control of the Catholic Church to the Ideal Protestant Society encountered dilemma on highly rigid spiritual practices and deeply rooted from the influence of ecclesiastically devoted priest that always guide the time tested religious beliefs with too much control on Christian life. Human activity relies so much to satisfy the basic and secondary needs that sometimes dictates the kind of aspiration they live in as they follow certain social and spiritual role in his life.

    The life sustaining physiological needs and satisfaction relies on the economic status that will also dictate the social class of man. This will be the situated life condition that is adjusted by culture and human experience. The religious beliefs from the dichotomy of Christian religion for the Protestant and Catholic have certain degree of commitment of spiritual beliefs. Weber synthesized this dichotomy on too much attachment with the spiritual beliefs of the Catholic Church and the other side where the Protestants were not being controlled by the church. Weber always mentioned the economic prosperity of the Protestant at all occupational levels in the owner of the enterprise in industrial , commercial, technological and other areas of economic development. The economic prosperity of the Protestant resulted to the maximum satisfaction of needs and wants as a fruit of labor from the profit gained in the enterprise. They were considered in the social stratification as the wealthy class and middle class. The establishment of enterprise or business primarily operate in the interest to gain profit in return it could accumulate more wealth .Thus, the owner of production concentrates more of efficiency of production to reduce the cost and produce more profit and income. Likewise, the best way to produce more profit must be a good marketing strategy to get more demand from the produce goods and services.

      In business, it relies so much in the demand of the product and services. The production of demand must meet certain criteria such as low price, quality product and suitable to the taste and needs of the buyers. Certainly, the interesting part in the production of goods and services do not rely only the demand but the supply of the products being produced by the other enterprise. There is always a competition in the production of all kinds of goods and services. The problem of economic production comes from competition and motive to gain more profit. In the business world, the skills of marketing and strategic management use to gain more profit has great effect on its ethical and moral consideration. The accumulation of wealth in the past had produced so much misery of the poor. The employment of labor in the past was more on efficiency on the production of goods. The climax of the history of economic production and the birth management were centered so much on inhumane way to produced goods for the sake of material wealth. Not a single part in our history that economic production and prosperity of nations provided quality of life in all classes of society. The development terms of affiliation and stratification have critical implications on the study of religion. The ethical and moral fibers of the society are at stake when we speak economic production, economic development and prosperity, capitalism and other relevant terms we could used just to accumulate wealth through the concept of profit and return of investment.

      The ethical and moral values are the primary basis of religion. The human convictions are generated on the physiological and biological orders particularly in the mental and emotional processes on the belief of afterlife and cultural training in religion. The religious attachments are human conditions that must be nurtured by the principles of obedience, devotion and loyalty. Likewise, the ecclesiastical dogma of the Catholic Church strictly adheres in the loyalty and devotion to their subjects to achieve spiritual purity of souls and actions. The Catholic Church was only the main instrument of spiritual purity which transforms to human ethical and moral actions. The best way to achieve spiritual purity in religion is to adhere the Christian virtue without adoring the accumulation of material wealth.

     These are the interesting empirical analysis of Weber as he pointed out that these religions with a view to finding out what peculiarities they have or have had which might have resulted in the behavior we have described:

1.On superficial analysis, and on the basis of certain current impressions, one might be tempted to express the difference by saying that the greater other-worldliness of Catholicism, the ascetic character of its highest ideals, must have brought up its adherents to a greater indifference toward the good things of this world. Such an explanation fits the popular tendency in the judgment of both religions.On the Protestant side it is used as a basis of criticism of those (real or imagined) ascetic ideals of the Catholic way of life, while the Catholics answer with the accusation that materialism results from the secularization of all ideals through Protestantism.

2. One recent writer has attempted to formulate the difference of their attitudes toward economic life in the following manner: "The Catholic is quieter, having less of the acquisitive impulse; he prefers a life of the greatest possible security, even with a smaller income, to a life of risk and excitement, even though it may bring the chance of gaining honour and riches. The proverb says jokingly, ''either eat well or sleep well''. In the present case the Protestant prefers to eat well, the Catholic to sleep undisturbed."

     In the contemporary time, it is no longer application to know the relationship of religious affiliation and social stratification that have significant effect to the social experiences regardless of nationality and culture. There is already a dialectical result as to the by-product of evolutionary development of culture and tradition that made a tremendous impact to the new life experiences of the society. Let us now synthesize the new insights based on the discussion made by Weber which I believed that have relationship in the contemporary time particularly in the social and economic stratifications and ethical , moral and behavioral development of religious ideology. These are social experiences that generated from the historical analysis religious affiliation and social stratification which are true in the contemporary time.

1. The existence of freedom provides an opportunity to expand a wide range of participation in the economic stratification. The religious affiliation has negligible effect as can been seen from the historical circumstances. However, the participation and freedom usually dealt with economic stratification.

2. The economic affiliation transcends from the co-equal structure which may produce social bond among the unified structure on wealth and status.

3. The inherited wealth and ownership of capital in contemporary time are the most favored group to co-exist in the social stratification of society.

4. The affiliation for them is reflected from economic stature that they hold in the society. This is expanded further from the horizon on economic and political process. The religious affiliation can be viewed in the social responsibility based on the success of the corporate enterprise.

5. The accumulation of wealth in the past had produced so much misery of the poor. The employment of labor in the past was more on efficiency on the production of goods. The climax of the history of economic production and the birth management were centered so much on inhumane way to produced goods for the sake of material wealth.

     Not a single part in our history that economic production and prosperity of nations provided quality of life in all classes of society. The development terms of affiliation and stratification have critical implications on the study of religion. The ethical and moral fibers of the society are at stake when we speak economic production, economic development and prosperity, capitalism and other relevant terms we could used just to accumulate wealth through the concept of profit and return of investment.