Durkheim believed that the main function of religious belief is to promote social stability which is reinforced by the collective conscience. The collective conscience is the shared values and moral beliefs and without them there would be no social order, social control, social solidarity or cooperation. Durkheim says that the attitudes of respect towards the sacred is the same attitudes applied to social duties and obligations, therefore people are worshipping society and recognising the importance of the social group. Religion strengthens the unity of the group and promotes social stability by bringing them together at religious rituals. When being together in religious rituals, social groups are able to express their faith and their common beliefs and values.
The belief and believers are what make up any religion.l They are what keep the structure of religion in order to continue its existence. The beliefs of a religion are defined as the faith, trust and confidence in a tenet or creed. The believers are those who are empowered by faith, trust and confidence of the religion. For example, in Christianity, Christians are the believers of God and live by God’s will to spread His word. A living, dynamic religion integrated with the belief and believers is the ability to incorporate a religions beliefs into a more modern context to suit the current believers without sacrificing the principle values.
To what extent do sociologists agree that religion creates social harmony. Sociologists have many different views on religion and how it affects us and our society. For Functionalists, religion plays a key role in creating value consensus and social solidarity. Emile Durkheim was one of the first Functionalists to develop this idea. For Durkheim, the key feature of religion was the distinction between the sacred and profane.
A number of sociologists argue that religion is a conservative force in society and it reinforces the shared needs and values of society. Some sociologists see this as positive, while others such as Marxists and feminists see this as negative. Durkheim supports the view religion is a conservative force in society which reinforces the needs of society. He argued that religion should be explained in terms of shared social needs. Durkheim saw religion as a positive force within society as it has essential and beneficial effects for the society.
A famous example of this was Martin Luther Kings ‘I have a dream’ speech, his use of religion in his passionate speech for equality helped to motivate people in society to push for social change, and ultimately changed America’s legislation and outlook on integration and equality between the black and white community in America. This shows that religion is a force for social change. Furthermore the church acts as a an ‘honest broker’ between two groups, in this case the church was the middle ground between the government and the African American community, this once again means that religion is a clear force in social change, this is because the church was capable of bringing the two communities together through religion. The church did this by spreading messages such as ‘love thy neighbour’ which promoted more equality in society, this means that the influence the church
The ego is the part of the mind which is shaped by what Freud called ‘external influences’ such as life experiences like traumas and education. Freud argued that religion provides away to satisfy people desire for example that the world will be in order and that life will be meaningful. The answers that religion provides are appealing and that if we life a good life we will be awarded for it after death Freud used the word obsessional neurosis Freud used this to indicate that religious people use this faith in god because it answers their desires, such as life after
The first example and major factor that affects culture is religion. The reason why I think religion is a major factor is because if you believe in a religion and its ways and customs then you will most likely follow it. For example, a nun who believes in Christianity wears a distinguished dress (habit) that there religion believes in. They believe that this is what you should wear which makes it a form of culture. The society that this person lives in is a society with people dressed like this.
Do you think it’s easier to instill Christian morals or Islamic law into the political system of a county? Justify your answer. It is easier to instill a set of morals into a system rather than enforcing a political system to conform to one religious belief which is the centralized focus of Islamic law. Furthermore, Christian morals are viewed as simplistic because of the liberty to conscience. What helped our forefathers create a great nation and form a government were their principles and ethical sense of right and wrong.
He was able to utilize the previous autocrats’ work as a springboard for his reign to complete the act of emancipating the serfs. Other motives for emancipation stemmed from the religious ideologies held by Alexander II. Striving for a “common good”, Christian charity, and equality were all factors that contributed to Alexander II’s push to emancipate the serfs. Religious ideology permeates the language used by Alexander II in his emancipation edict and speeches. This use of language reflects the deeply held religious convictions that he held and used as inspiration for many of his decisions.
Marxists and Functionalists agree with the purpose of religion being a conservative force. Marx and Durkheim share the assumption that religion was a product of society and that it is a conservative force. They both agree that religion is in the interest of the ruling class. The evidence that supports the marxist perspective is that the church of england has traditionally been seen as the 'conservative party at prayer' . Evidence that criticises the marxist perspective states that there are many instances where religious leaders or movements have challenged the established order and help promote change.