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| Changing Churches 2023 by Geoffrey W Sutton & Bing AI |
Lewis Rambo, a leading theorist associated with the study of religious conversions, has presented a seven-stage process model of change from one religion to another. The model draws upon multidisciplinary sources of evidence and ideas focused on the process of religious conversion.
The model has been used to identify the stages of conversion and deconversion. The seven stages are:
1 Context: The dynamic personal, social, and cultural environment of the person. Contexts may be large such as a nation or as small as family and friends (microcontexts).
2 Crisis: The person becomes aware of difficulties and the lack of effectiveness. A crisis event is common in stories of conversion. Rambo suggests a variety of crises such as religious, psychological, cultural, and political. Crises may be described by five variables: Intensity, Duration, Scope, Source, Old/New. Crises may also be viewed from the perspective of research on Religious Struggles.
3 Quest: Possibly in response to a crisis, the person searches for meaning and a purpose in life.
4 Encounter: The person meets a key person who connects them with the new religion.
5 Interaction: The person develops an interest in the new way of living including new beliefs, practices, and experiences.
6 Commitment: The person goes public with their new faith. For example, a Christian becomes baptised. In some faiths, the person gives their testimony. To use a Christian phrase, they have become born again.
7 Consequences: Following conversion, there are consequences for the person and the group. The consequences may be dramatic or slow and the consequences are varied. On a personal level, some converts report a powerful sense of love, relief from guilt, and even a calling.
The seven stages do not indicate a rigid stepwise process but allows for variation in a person’s movement from one religion to another.
Along with the model that describes the process of change, the theory posits five types of conversions: apostasy, intensification, affiliation, institutional transition, tradition transition.
Although the model focuses on the process of conversion, it may also be seen as a model of deconversion for those already in a religion who enter a process of changing within their religion to another group, to another religion, or even leaving religion.
Related Concepts
Reference
Rambo, L. R. (1993). Understanding religious conversion. New Haven: Yale University Press.
Geoffrey W. Sutton, PhD is Emeritus Professor of Psychology. He retired from a clinical practice and was credentialed in clinical neuropsychology and psychopharmacology. His website is www.suttong.com
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Key concepts
Psychology of Religious Conversion
Psychology of Religious Deconversion
Religious Commitment
Religious or Spiritual Quest
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