Ma`rifat Farhangi Ejtemaei

The domain and social role of religion especially its meta-institutional position have long been the subject of inquiry in such fields as theology and sociology and the special concern of thinkers. In this new world, which is referred to as the modern and rational world, this topic has been a matter of dispute among many writers. Some have minimized the role of religion, firmly denied the relationship between religion and the world, and stressed the idea of necessity of separating religion from public arena. Others, though do not openly talk about the isolation of religion, believe that the circumstances of modern world necessitate this isolation. In other words, they consider the decline of the social role or religion and its social isolation as a prerequisite for a modern world, and they name it "secularization". Such a belief is based on some presuppositions which have been analyzed and criticized in this article.