CHAPTER 15: RELIGION

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CHAPTER 15 RELIGION
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WHAT IS RELIGION?

• Religiona social institution that involves
  shared beliefs, values, and practices based on
  the supernatural which unites believers into a
  community

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What Is Religion?

• Durkheim distinguished between
• Sacredanything that people see as mysterious,
  awe-inspiring, extraordinary
• Profaneeveryday activities, secular

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What Is Religion?

• Religiositythe ways that people demonstrate
  their religious beliefs
• Spiritualitya personal quest connected to a
  reality greater than ourselves

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TYPES OF RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATION

• Culta religious group that is devoted to beliefs
  and practices which are outside of mainstream
  culture and society, new religious movement
• Secta religious group that has broken off from
  an established religion to form its own

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Types of Religious Organization

• Denominationsubgroup within a religion that has
  a common name, tradition, and identity
• Churcha large body of people belonging to an
  established religious group that has strong times
  to the larger society

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Application

• Identify the type of religious organization
• Baptists have a common tradition and identity and
  are a subgroup of Christianity.
• Heaven's Gate was a small religious group in
  California organized by a charismatic leader.
• The Amish broke away from an established religion
  to form their own.

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SOME MAJOR WORLD RELIGIONS

• Christianity
• The largest group worldwide
• Largest numbers are in Latin America and Europe.
• Islam
• Founded by Muhammad
• Mainly in Asia

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Some Major World Religions

• Hinduism
• Mainly in India
• Buddhism
• Throughout Asia
• Judaism
• Mainly Israel and the United States

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RELIGION IN THE UNITED STATES

• About 92 of Americans believe in God.
• About 56 say that religion is very
• important in their lives.
• Mainline Protestant groups have lost membership.
  Evangelicals have
• increased in number.
• About 4 in 10 Americans attend
• religious services at least once
• a week.

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Discussion

• Why is the number of people who attend church so
  much smaller than the number of people who
  believe in God?

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Religion in the United States

• Religious participation is influenced by
• SexWomen tend to be more religious.
• AgeOlder Americans are more likely to be
  religious.
• Race/ethnicityWhites are the least likely to be
  affiliated with a church.
• Social classAs income increases, the importance
  of religion decreases.

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SECULARIZATION IS RELIGION DECLINING?

• Secularizationthe process of
• removing institutions from the
• dominance or influence of religion
• There is evidence of greater
• secularization as well as fundamentalismthe
  belief in
• the literal meaning of the text.

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Secularization Is Religion Declining?

• Some argue that the U.S. practices civil religion
  in which elements of nationalism and patriotism
  take on properties of the sacred.

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Secularization Is Religion Declining?
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Discussion

• Does the United States have a civil religion?

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SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON RELIGION

• Functionalism considers the benefits of religion.
• Belonging and identity
• Meaning, purpose, and emotional comfort
• Social service
• Social control
• Social change

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Discussion

• How does religion maintain the status quo?
• How can religion be used as an agent of social
  change?

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Sociological Perspectives on Religion

• Conflict theories argue that religion promotes
  social inequality.
• Marx view religion as a form of false
  consciousness, an acceptance of a system that
  prevents people from protesting oppression.
• Religion often promotes strife through the
  differentiation of "we" and "them."
• Religion can promote prejudice and discrimination.

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Sociological Perspectives on Religion

• Feminist theories argue that religion
  subordinates and excludes women.
• Most religions are patriarchal, emphasizing men's
  experiences and women as subordinate.
• Some argue that religious texts have been
  interpreted and manipulated in a patriarchal
  manner.

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Sociological Perspectives on Religion

• Feminist scholars also point out that women are
  excluded from leadership positions.

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Sociological Perspectives on Religion

• Symbolic interactionists study the ways in which
  religion provides meaning in everyday life.
• Religion is a social product that is taught
  through symbols, rituals, and beliefs.

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Sociological Perspectives on Religion

• Symbolsomething that stands for something else
• Ritualformal and repeated behavior
• Beliefconvictions about what people think is
  true

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Application

• Is it a symbol, ritual, or belief?
• Prayer is important.
• First communion and confirmation reinforce a
  child's place in the church.
• Judaism is represented by a star.

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Internet Connections Quick Links

• Academic Info Religion in America is an
  excellent gateway for information on many
  religious faiths, religious studies programs, new
  religious movements, and religious news articles
  http//www.academicinfo.net/amrelig.html
• Religious Tolerance promotes religious freedom,
  tolerance, and diversity as positive cultural
  values. It contains thousands of essays and
  numerous links to sites that explain the range of
  religious beliefs in North America, from Asatru
  to Zoroastrianism, and includes writings on
  dozens of hot topics such as same-sex marriage
  and abortion http//www.religioustolerance.org
• The Pew Forum on Religion Religious Life seeks
  to promote a deeper understanding of issues at
  the intersection of religion and public affairs.
  This site examines the relationships between
  religion and other institutions, and hosts
  interesting national surveys on religion amongst
  U.S. minority groups http//www.pewforum.org
• Who, or what, created the world? The Genesis
  Project invites you to explore a variety of
  creation beliefs from around the world
  http//library.thinkquest.org/29064/main.html