Techniques of Ruining the Confessional Identity

Author

ARISTOVA ALLA

a Doctor of Philosophy, a professor of Philosophy and Pedagogics Department of the National Transport University. Scientific interests: religious studies; religion sociology; conflictology.

Techniques of Ruining the Confessional Identity

Abstract

The processes of purposeful destruction of the religious and confessional identities as a variety of modern social technologies are considered in the article.

The authoress is proceeding from the assumption that the technologies of creation and transformation of social subjects, the formation or deformation of their identity (such as civilizational, societal, national, religious, etc.) and manipulation by them have become the leading geopolitical technologies in the global world.

In this point of view, the technologies of religious identity destruction appear as a complex of actions, resources, means, influences with the intention to destroy the existing confessional identity of the individuals and communities and replace it with another (other­confessional, other­religious or non­religious) identity.

According to the subject of the application of destructive technologies the authoress is distinguishing: 1) religious technologies, used by religious institution (such as the prevailing faith, church), religious organizations, religious group (society, community) or believer; 2) state­repressivetechnologies, which subject includes the state or its agencies, institutions, official persons. All of them are repressive ones because they expect either destruction of undesirable religious identity or the marginalization, isolation, suppression of their carriers, purposely distortion of historical memory and cultural inheritance continuity interruption); 3) cluster technologies, ruled by the interconnected, social­network structures of different types: such as political­oppositional groups, militarized groups, public organizations, cultural and educational circles, scientific and academic associations, etc.; 4) media technologies that embody the informational and suggestive impact of multiple subjects of the media space. It is shown that the technologies of religious (confessional) identity destruction can have a fundamentally different purpose: from political and ideological expansion to the acceleration of the cultural assimilation of minorities or returning to authentic tradition after a long time of its oblivion or discrimination.

At the same time, missionary, proselyte, enlisting religious technologies are distinguished among a wide range of them. Their peculiarity and consequences are denoted.

It is considered, that the technologies of the religious identity destruction have become a significant component of modern hybrid wars and a challenge for national security. Also the examples of their use in hybrid aggression against Ukraine are given.

Keywords

social technologies, identity destruction, religious identity, imposed identity.

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