Life’s Meaning and Religion in Contemporary Europe

Abstract

The challenges of modernity in the West have been numerous, affecting even the deepest or existential segments of human being. That the anxiety of the modern era has led to crises has been claimed by many. At the same time religion, in this case Christianity, has undergone notable changes, where its institutional and social roles have been particularly weakened. Since religions seek to assert metaphysical knowledge and answer existential questions, I examine if and to what extent religiosity determines meaning in an individual’s life. A questionnaire was developed consisting of seven scales measuring Higher Meaning of Life, General Meaning in Life, Religiosity, Spirituality, Faith Maturity, Faith in Day-to-Day Life and Social Connectedness. Results show that higher meaning of life and general meaning in life are two separate categories, determined by different parameters. In terms of absolute values, participants have reported significantly lower mean value on the Higher Meaning of Life scale in comparison with General Meaning in Life scale. Further analysis shows that religiosity is not a key predictor of higher meaning of life, nor general meaning in life. As giving meaning and purpose is considered to be one of the essential functions of religion, I conclude that religiosity, and consequently religion, does not fulfil one of its main functions in contemporary Slovenia. However, spirituality has been measured to have a considerable effect on the higher meaning of life.