ABSTRACT
In his masterful study of social constructionism, Social Theory and Religion, James Beckford states that ‘One aspect of the sacred that is currently undergoing re-location is the relationship between conceptions of religion and spirituality’. Three approaches will be pursued in the search for possible relationships between such conceptions. The first involves proposing two ideal-typical models that locate spirituality in opposition to conservative religiosity on the one hand and to secularism on the other. Secondly, there is a brief overview of some of the meanings that people have attached to spirituality. Finally, a few empirical findings are drawn from a pan-European study of religious and moral pluralism. A three-component solution offered a relatively clear summary of the patterns of correlations, albeit one explaining only just over a quarter of the variance in the data. These include: traditional religiosity; unorthodox authoritarianism; and liberal spirituality.
