Transmission and Transformation of Religion Among Muslims in Canada and West Germany

Bibliographic Data

ID5654563
AuthorsAllison Cummins (0000-0002-0722-8724, Carleton University), Linda Hennig (0000-0003-2289-5717, University of Münster, corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume16
Issue10
Pages1293
Publication date2025-10-11
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueReligions (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/rel16101293
OpenAlexW4415117397
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited47

In many countries across the Western world, religion is in decline, with public secular environments increasingly outweighing family-based religious socialization. Canada and West Germany exemplify this trend, where younger generations often perceive religion as something to be justified within predominantly nonreligious peer groups. Muslims, as a religious minority, display greater resilience to secularization, yet their religiosity is also subject to transformation. Drawing on narrative family interviews spanning two to three generations, this study examines the conditions shaping religious continuity and discontinuity within Muslim families in Canada and West Germany. Focusing on second- and third-generation Muslims, we find that practicing religion with children is the most significant factor in successful transmission, especially when rituals are woven into daily life. Yet family practice alone is insufficient: embedding children in faith-based community networks and fostering open dialogue about religion prove crucial for sustaining confidence, belonging, and adaptability. Religious transmission also intersects with ethnic and cultural identity, though ethnic ties alone do not guarantee continuity. Ultimately, we observe that transmission involves transformation: parents are changing the way they approach religion, placing a greater emphasis on their children making their own choices. Muslim families, like other faith communities, shift toward more individualized and reflective forms of religiosity, negotiating their identities within secular and often critical societal contexts

Ethnic group · Faith · Islamophobia · Narrative · Negotiation · Religiosity · Secularism · Secularity · Diaspora, migration, transnational identity · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Migration, Refugees, and Integration

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