8 A. Sociological theories of religion
Religion is a cultural system of commonly shared beliefs and rituals that provides a sense of ultimate meaning and purpose by creating an idea of reality that is sacred, all-encompassing, and supernatural.
Functional definition by Yinger - Religion is a system of beliefs and practices by means of which a group of people struggles with the ultimate problems of human life.
Substantive definition is concerned with the content of religion rather than its functions or purpose - Durkheim defined religion in terms of a distinction between the sacred and the profane. Sacred objects produce a sense of awe, veneration, and respect, whereas profane objects do not.
Sociology versus philosophy versus theology of religion: Sociology of religion does not ask whether God exists. Rather, sociology of religion asks if people.
Philosophy has many specializations like metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics. Metaphysics is, broadly put, the study of the abstract. As a metaphysician, a philosopher of religion has to deduce arguments for and against the existence of God. Epistemology is a study of the 'basis' of knowledge. Accordingly, as an epistemologist, a philosopher of religion examines the possibility of knowing God through various means.
Theologians are necessarily believers. They believe in the existence of God (in whatever form it may be) and try to understand the nature of divine beings by studying the faith of its believers. By analyzing people's experience of God, theologians try to understand God and God's plans.
Evolutionary Theory: It is concerned about the origin of religion and its basic purpose. Comte - three stages of evolution of any society see theological as the first stage. Religion originated from human consciousness to give answers to questions about the unknown. It served to satisfy human inquisitiveness. With the advent of science, the very same questions will be explained and answered differently. This renaissance led by science will lead to the disappearance of religion from society. Thus, he sees an interlinkage between the advancement of human consciousness, progress of human society, and displacement of religion with the rise of rationality.
Spencer - He believes that primitives got the idea of a person's duality from dreams, which were considered as real-life experiences by them. They believed that the dream-self moves about at night while the shadow-self acts by day. This notion of duality is reinforced by people's experiences of temporary loss of sensibilities and permanent death. The idea of ghosts grew into the idea of God. Ghosts of ancestors were considered divine. Thus, ancestor worship is the root of all religions. Spencer views God and religion as the product of human fear. With the growth of science, man develops the ability and confidence to face nature and its calamities. He is no more afraid of diseases or disasters. He is able to manipulate nature. This will lead to the loss of fear, and hence the decline of religion.
EB Tylor - he also views an evolutionary process and divides human history into three stages - magical, religious, and scientific. He believes that all three answer questions of the human mind, and each stage represents a more developed human consciousness. It also shows a movement from a tribal society to a medieval society and finally to a modern society. Animism.
James Frazer - He wrote about magical and religious practices in different cultures of the world. He talks about two types of magic - example: Jumi women of Maoris are clean-shaven so that no one can steal their hair and use it for black magic). He believes that magic and science are not logically different, rather science is an advancement of magic. Magic was also a means to coming to terms with the supernatural and gaining control over the environment. Both are based on human consciousness and where magic ends, science starts.
AE Crawley argues that religion is built around taboo and is a product of fear. RH Lowie sees religion as a response to awe and amazement. Magic and emotion make religion, while magic with no emotions makes science.
Functionalist Perspective: - requires a certain degree of social solidarity, value consensus, harmony, and integration between its parts and religion makes contributions to meeting such functional prerequisites. Emile Durkheim: The sacred and the profane: In , Durkheim argued that all societies divide the world into two categories - the sacred and the profane. Religion is based upon this division. It is a unified system of beliefs and practices related to sacred things - things that are set apart and forbidden. A tree, a pebble, anything can be sacred. There is nothing about the particular qualities of these things that make them sacred. Sacred things must be symbols, must represent something. The relationship between sacred symbols and what they represent helps to understand the role of religion in society. Totemism: Durkheim called the religion of various clans of Australian Aborigines, totemism. It is the simplest and most basic form of religion according to him. Each clan has a totem, usually a plant or an Durkheim argued that as the totem is at once the symbol of God and of the society, in worshipping God, people are, in fact, worshipping society. Society is the real object of religious veneration. Sacred things are considered superior in power to profane things, and particularly to man. Humans are inferior and dependent on them. This relationship between humanity and sacred things is exactly the relationship between humanity and society. Totems are used because it is easier for a person to visualize and direct his feelings of awe towards a symbol than towards a complex thing like a clan. Collective conscience: Durkheim believed that social life was impossible without the shared values and beliefs that form the collective conscience. In their absence, there would be no social order, social control, social solidarity, or cooperation. In short, there would be no society. Religion reinforces the collective conscience. Worship of the society provides it with greater power to direct thus strengthens the unity of the group and promotes social solidarity. Durkheim also emphasized the importance of collective worship. Critique: 1. He studied only a small number of Aboriginal tribes; hence, generalization may be incorrect; It is more relevant to small, non-literate societies where there is close integration of culture and social institutions, and where members share a common belief and value system. 2. He overstates the degree to which the collective conscience permeates and shapes the behavior of society; this is especially seen in multi-faith societies. 3. Overstresses social order and continuity instead of social dynamism and transformation. 4. Gives no importance to the individual and emotional needs of human beings in seeking religion. 5. Views religion as essentially reductionist, thus rejecting spirituality embedded in it. Bronislaw Malinowski: - His work in the Trobriand Islands provided him with insights on religion in a small, non-literate society. Like Durkheim, he sees religion as reinforcing social norms and values and promoting social solidarity. However, he does not see religion as reflecting society as a whole or religious ritual as the worship of society. He sees religion as being concerned with situations of emotional stress that threaten social solidarity. Religion and life crises: Anxiety and tension tend to disrupt social life. Situations that produce these emotions include crises of life such as birth, puberty, marriage, and death. Death is the most disruptive of these events and Malinowski sees the comfort and support provided to the bereaved as a way to check their emotions. It controls the stress and anxiety that might disrupt society. Death is socially destructive, and at a funeral ceremony, the social group unites to support the bereaved and thus expresses social solidarity which reintegrates society. Religion, prediction, and control: Events that cannot be fully controlled or predicted also produce tension and anxiety. Malinowski noted that such events were surrounded by ritual, which he sees as a form of religious practice. For example: When the Trobrianders went fishing in the calm waters of the lagoon, where the catch was easy and abundant, there were no rituals attached to it. However, when they went fishing in the open sea, where the weather was uncertain and the catch was unpredictable, it was preceded by rituals to ensure a good catch and protect the fishermen. Thus, rituals reduce anxiety by providing confidence and a feeling of control. These rituals are also a social event, where the group unites to deal with situations of stress and further strengthens the group unity. Critique: He exaggerates the importance of religious rituals in helping people to cope with situations of stress and uncertainty. Tambiah points out that elaborate rituals are also associated with the cultivation of taro and yams on the Trobriand Islands. This is related to the fact that these are used by men as payment to obligations. These rituals are therefore simply related to the maintenance of prestige in that society and have little to do with cementing solidarity or dealing with uncertainty and danger. Talcott Parsons: Religion and value consensus: Parsons argues that human action is directed and controlled by norms provided by the social system. The cultural system provides more general guidelines for action in the form of beliefs, values, and systems of meaning. The norms are integrated and patterned by the cultural system. Religion is part of the cultural system and religious beliefs provide guidelines For example: The Ten Commandments demonstrate how many of the norms of the social system can be direct behavior which prohibits manslaughter, murder, and euthanasia. Religion and social order: Parsons also sees religion as being addressed to particular problems that occur in all societies and disrupt social life. death. Here, Parsons sees religion as a mechanism for adjustment to such events and as a means of restoring the normal pattern of life. effort and skill have been invested, but where unknown or uncontrollable factors can threaten a successful outcome. Example: inability to predict or control the effect of weather upon agriculture. Here, religion provides a means of adjusting and coming to terms with such situations through rituals In this way, religion maintains social stability by relieving the tension and frustration that could disrupt social order. Religion and meaning: As a part of the cultural system, religious beliefs give meaning to life and answer Social life is full of contradictions that g or feel ought not to happen, and this allows intellectual and emotional adjustment. And this adjustment promotes order and stability in society. Radcliffe Brown argues that religious ceremonies, for example, in the form of communal dancing, promoted unity and harmony and functioned to enhance social solidarity and the survival of the society. Religious beliefs contained in myths and legends, he observes, express the social values of the different objects which have a major influence on social life such as food, weapons, day and night, etc. They form the value consensus around which society is integrated. Kingsley Davis argues that religious beliefs form the basis for socially valued goals and a justification of them. Religion provides a common focus for identity and an unlimited source of rewards and punishments for behavior. Merton, a twentieth-century functionalist, introduced the concept of dysfunction. Talking about religion, for instance, he pointed out the dysfunctional features of religion in a multi-religious society. In such a society religion, instead of bringing about solidarity, could become the cause of disorganization and disunity. Odea and Yinger, Joan Davies - Thus, one is not expected to justify his faith in God and to what extent in modern society. They believe that transcendental belief, faith in supernatural force and rituals constitute the essential ingredients of It does not have a collective appeal; rather different people find different forms of these ingredients appealing. However, it is argued that the ultimate experience is the same. Path chosen for divinity is different, but the benefits obtained are similar. Gaps are created by science and these are filled by religion and vice versa. Thus, religion is functional, and there is a mutual coexistence of religion and science. Critique of the functionalist approach: It emphasizes the positive contributions of religion to society and tends to ignore its dysfunctional aspects. With its preoccupation with harmony, integration, and solidarity, functionalism neglects the many instances where religion can be seen as a divisive and disruptive force. It gives little consideration to hostility between different religious groups within the same society or the internal divisions within a community over religious matters or the multiple religious conflicts throughout history. Maintains the status quo, promotes fatalism and pessimism, acts as an obstacle to progress and development. Hinders promotion of human intellect. Secularization - What is viewed as secularization in other theories is seen as simply religious change in functionalist terms. Functionalist theorists argue that religion takes different forms in apparently secular societies. It is more individualized, less tied to religious institutions. The character of modern industrial capitalist society, particularly its rampant individualism, is thus seen to be expressed in the differentiated character of religion in a society like the USA. Although seemingly having little basis for integration, the celebration of individualism is itself an integrating feature of such diverse religious forms. Moreover, new and distinctive forms of religion may perform latent functions for the system by deflecting adherents from critical appraisal of their society and its distribution of rewards. Communism - In anti-religious societies such as some communist states, this argument cannot hold, but here it is claimed that functional alternatives to traditional religion operate. Other systems of belief such as communism itself fulfill the same role as religion. National ceremonials, ritual celebration of communist victories, heroes, etc., meet the same need for collective rites, which reaffirm common sentiments and promote enhanced commitment to common goals. Marxist Perspective: From Marx - a distortion of the real relationship between people and inanimate objects. Through religion, humans project personal characteristics onto the impersonal forces of nature - they create Gods whom they believe to have control over nature. This renders nature potentially open to manipulation by humans, for example through prayer or sacrifice. To Marx, this is a form of alienation. People create imaginary beings or forces which stand above them and control their behavior. Marx believed that religion was rooted in societies that alienated and exploited their members, and when such societies were superseded, religion would no longer be necessary. The proletariat would remove the need for religion by replacing the oppressive capitalist society with a communist one. Thus, to Marx, religion is an illusion that eases the pain produced by exploitation and oppression. It is a series of myths that justify and legitimate the subordination of the subject class and the domination and privilege of the ruling class. It is a distortion of reality which provides many of the deceptions that form the basis of ruling class ideology and false class consciousness. e sentiment of a heartless world and the It is both an expression of real suffering and a protest against suffering, but it does little to solve the problem and instead helps to make life more bearable and thus dilutes the demand for change. It merely stupefies its adherents rather than bringing them true happiness and fulfillment. It cushions the effects of oppression by: 1. P. 2. Making poverty more tolerable by offering a reward for suffering and promising compensation for injustice in the afterlife. 3. The hope of supernatural intervention to solve problems on earth. 4.. Religion is also an instrument of oppression. It acts as a mechanism of social control, maintaining the existing system and reinforcing class relationships. By offering an illusion, it produces a false class maintain ruling class power. The ruling class also adopts religious beliefs, but to justify their position both to themselves and to others. They also often directly support religion to further their interests. Europe, Egyptian belief that the Pharaohs were Gods, slave owners approving the conversion of slaves to Christianity believing it to be a controlling and gentling influence - are all evidences that support Marxist view of religion in society. Critique: Evidence suggests that religion does not always legitimate power; it is not simply a justification of alienation or a justification of privilege, and it can sometimes provide an impetus for change. Example: Protestant ethics and capitalism. It does not explain the existence of religion where it does not appear to contribute to the oppression of a particular class. Nor does it explain why religion might continue to exist even when the oppression has come to an end. Example: In the USSR, even under communism, where the state actively discouraged religion and many places of worship were closed, religion did not completely die out. Neo-Marxist Perspective: Fredrick Engels in recognized the active role that may be played by religion in effecting revolutionary social change. Engels compared some of the early Christian sects that opposed Roman rule to communist and socialist political movements. He said that while Christianity originated as a way of coping with exploitation among oppressed groups, it could become a source of resistance to the oppressors and thus a force for change. Otto Maduro - from the economic system of the bourgeoisie. He believes that members of the clergy can develop revolutionary potential where oppressed members of the population have no outlet for their grievances and can pressure priests to take up their cause. Rational Choice Theory: R. Stephen Warner argued that a whole new paradigm had emerged in the sociology of religion. The old paradigm assumed that a truly religious society was one in which a single religion dominated society as a whole and people automatically became members of the dominant Church at birth. Any departure from this was seen as evidence of religious decline. However, this model did not fit the experience of the USA, or even the recent development of religion in other parts of the world, and a new perspective was therefore required. From this perspective, the greater the religious pluralism, the more successful religion was likely to be. This new perspective is known as rational choice theory. It originates from the USA and is largely based upon the experience of religion in the USA. It assumes that most people are naturally religious. It argues that there are rational reasons behind belief in religion - people believe in religion because there is something in it for them. It thus adopts a more individualistic stance. Religion is seen in similar terms to a market in which individual consumer choices are important in determining whether a particular religion is successful or not. 5. - - that is, whether consumers of religion have a good selection of alternative products (religious organizations) to choose from. 6. Rational choice theory generally rejects the view that religion is declining. Rodney Stark and William Sims Bainbridge - Exchange Theory - Human desires: They believe that religion helps to meet universal human needs. T and try to avoid This provides a straightforward basis for human decision-making but individuals still face problems: 1. Many of the things that people desire, for example, wealth and status, are scarce and cannot be obtained by everybody. 2. Some things that people strongly desire may not be available at all. Example: a desire for life after death. These desires provide the basis for religion. Compensators: They recognize that, for example: religion might not actually provide people with eternal life the distant future or in some other context which cannot be verified. In the absence of immediate rewards, people are liable to seek compensators instead. Compensators and the supernatural: Sometimes individuals want rewards that are so great and so remote from everyday experience that the possibility of gaining them can only be contemplated one to have answers to such fundamental questions. Thus, religion offers general compensators based on supernatural assumptions. Religious pluralism and secularization: Since religion answers universal questions and its compensators meet universal human needs, religion can neither disappear nor seriously decline. In fact, American society has become characterized by increasing religious pluralism as people have sought new sources of compensators if their Church becomes less appealing as a source of compensators. It has also been observed the majority of people who say they have no religious affiliation express considerable belief in the mystical and supernatural. Hence, they have not lost their need for supernatural compensators. Also, where agnosticism or atheism existed in one generation, it tended not to be passed down to succeeding generations. Critique: by Steve Bruce Evidence shows that secularization is indeed taking place. Not all humans are seeking what religion has to offer. Evidence also shows that towns in the USA with greater religious pluralism have lower rates of Church membership, and not the highest rates as the theory predicts. He does not believe that in choosing religion, people can behave like consumers. This is because there is no clear way to compare the costs and benefits of rival beliefs. Symbolic Theory: Peter Berger - in sees religion from a phenomenological perspective, as different and unique for each. Everyone is born with an empty mind into which is injected values, norms which are a part of culture and are inherited by individuals by socialization. These Nomos vary from culture to culture and society to society. conforming to our Nomos we have a negative perception about that person. Thus, religion is nothing but and is used to reflect on food, dress, behavior, etc. Respect for differential Nomos is needed to minimize conflicts in a society. Religious conflicts are a result of differing Nomos. Religion is an everyday experience, and driven by Nomos, we go for certain behavior. This comprises the plausibility structure. It gives direction to life, allows reflecting on others, carries shared values, and can help transmit them to the future generations. plausibility of structure. David Luckmann - performing rituals does not mean that a person is irreligious. Religion is a unique experience for each person. It has not disappeared from individual life, rather the extent to which it is practiced and present Clifford Geertz - religion is present due to the presence of bafflement, sufferings, and evils. A powerful force like God is sought to deal with these problems. Religion is thus present in hearts and souls and experienced in everyday life.