Apostasy in Terms of Moral Deviance

Abstract

Apostates often face serious problems. This contribution argues that the apostate does not merely give up religious beliefs but renounces their community’s moral norms, declaring themselves a deviant and causing stigmatization for family members as well. Because of this, the apostate often has to switch over to a different community. Therefore, processes related to apostasy need explanations in social terms in addition to religious and psychological perspectives. Apostasy involves several oppositions: not only the apostate versus their family members, and the apostate versus the community, but also the apostate’s family members versus their community and the communities involved versus each other. Multicultural societies therefore need to deal with apostates without causing deep rifts between the different communities.