Marx and Engels' View and Purpose of Religion Essay

He chose to view religion as a negative thing unlike Durkheim who viewed it in a positive way. Marx believed that “humanity makes religion; religion does not make humanity.” (Kessler. A, 2001). Karl Marx states that opium and religion can be an effect on human suffering by removing the incentive to do whatever is necessary to overcome it. Hamilton points out that “religion offers compensation for the hardship of this life in some future life, but it makes such compensation conditional upon acceptance of the injustices of this life.” Religion, to Marx, does not have the power to lead to social change. (Kessler. A, 2001). Max Webber attempted to demonstrate that religious beliefs were not mechanically connected to the economic structure of society, it shapes individuals behavior and actions in everyday life. Overall, it can be seen that the three main sociology writers differ greatly when it comes to ideas regarding religion.

Karl Marx said what about religion? Why might this be significant? Karl said religion is important, people need something to believe

Generally, Marx’s position on religion is drawn up in an entirely negative manner. In his writings, he expresses his belief that religion is a set of doctrines intended to stabilize, while at the same time bring into servitude the working class people. In addition to that, he argues that the society’s inclination towards religious excitement serves to represent a reaction to disaffection. Also, Marx contends that, since religion causes human beings to feel delusive happiness it makes an erroneous mental representation in as well as of itself. Indeed to him, it is an instrument utilized to sustain cultural systems together with ideologies that in most cases encourages oppression in the society (Parsons 38-46).

Karl Marx, a German philosopher, once said, “Religion is the opium of the people.” During the medieval ages, religion drove the daily lives of the people. People used the Catholic religion as a way to justify their living conditions in order to ease their suffering. However, the upper class used religion to their advantage as it enabled them to deceit the lower class into giving them money. This created a disparity between the two classes. In The Book of Margery Kempe by Margery Kempe, the Catholic ideology blinded society from the corrupt socioeconomic system between the bourgeoisie clergy and the proletariat.

At the point when Karl Marx composed, "Religion is the opium of the general population," doubtlessly he put forth this expression subsequent to understanding that individuals look to a higher Being from whom they can get request, comfort, and a purpose behind living, and in addition clarifications. The idea of the great beyond bears a despondent individual motivation to continue onward, Marx more likely than not suspected; this objective turned into an opium for them is his conclusion. Many people who take after a religion have confidence in a Supreme Being, there is a positive comfort for the hopeless in the possibility of some unceasing prize, however, it is generally not so extraordinary, to the point that it warrants being contrasted with opium.

Karl Marx wrote that religion was, “an opiate of the people.” Although those words were not published in The German Ideology, they best describe his various views on religion. Marx wrote that there was a social relationship between the upper class or bourgeoisie and religion. The upper class that owned the means of production used religion as a tool to keep the working class or proletariat, oppressed and poor. Marx criticized that religion had so many ulterior motives that there was no actual spiritual meaning. He argued that religion existed because of the state of society and its class struggles. The existence of religion also helped limit or avoid change in society.

Following the Industrial Revolution in 19th century Europe, change was in full swing and religion began to have different meanings for different people. The upper-class citizens used Religion, namely Christianity, and the power that it possessed in an attempt to keep their high status in society, while the lower class turned to faith so that their lives could possibly improve. Instead of religion being the cornerstone of faith and worship amongst all people, it was being used for power and money by the upper class. Even worse, religious leaders were using the upper class people as well, gaining money and authority from their endorsement. A man by the name of Karl Marx saw

In the late 18th and early 19th century, revolution was on the tip of the world’s collective tongue. The French monarchy was in the process of being overthrown; there was political and civil unrest throughout Europe. In the midst of all this turmoil Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel emerged, presenting an analysis of history that would echo through the future, an understanding of the human condition, and an estimate of the end of said history and what would bring it about. This end of history would be brought about by the State, for the State’s sole purpose was to bring positive change and freedom to the individual. Less than a century later, Karl Marx released the Communist Manifesto. Marx had drawn heavily from Hegel for basis of his

There have been some instances where, religion has been used by man as a means of explaining the unexplainable, as well as to provide a way out for those who want escape from the harsh realities that plague their lives. At the same time, for Marx’s criticism to be valid, religion has to be abused, and it has to be abused to the point where it becomes a hinderance on the stability and progress of society. Therefore, the use of religion would have to be to an extremity. While I said that his criticism of capitalism was more substantial than his criticism of religion, the aforementioned premise is remarkably similar to the basis of Marx’s criticism of capitalism. Capitalism would also have to be abused to the degree of it being a detriment to society as a

Lindy: Religion was an unnecessary social institution that provided a little comfort, but in the end served only to stupefy people in the end to Marx. This is reflected in this quote from Karl Marx, “Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.”. Marx believed injustice, poor economic conditions, desperation, and panic cause humanity to cling to religion and Marx’s goal was for the world to no longer need this

A religion can be seen as a unified system of beliefs and practices which are relative to sacred things and beliefs (Giddens 1972, p.224). It can shape ones thoughts and feelings and gives people a sense of hope and something to believe in. All three main sociologist writers Karl Marx, Max Weber and Emile Durkheim offer different perspectives on religion and how important it is to society. Some of the theorists chose to have a positive view whilst others argue the unimportance of religion. This essay attempts to discover which theorist has the most accurate perspective of religion in modern times. This is done by firstly explaining the basic ideas regarding to religion put forward by Marx, Weber and Durkheim. Then both Marx's and

There are not Gods or any supernatural phenomenon, politics and beliefs exist solely due to economic climate and positioning. Induced by the ruling classes throughout history to serve as means of social control, this is directly related to the question surrounding the struggle of class and the argument of False Consciousness. Again contrary to Hegel's work of Idealisms Marx indeed "stands him on his head". However to abandon the widespread beliefs that are commonplace in most societies is a weakness as to the widespread acceptance of Marxist historical teachings. For example, through practical everyday life wage-labourers reproduce themselves physically, i.e. work to earn money in order to buy food, shelter and clothing they need to survive. This is at the heart of Historical Materialism. Wage-labourers as part of their "jobs" engage in production, production of the things they need to buy in order to survive. An underlying theme then to the class struggle is the capitalist way of ruling without mercy. The capitalist system being based on private ownership of the means of production, which gives the power to very few. Marx himself mounted a full-scale attack on the theories, institutions, and philosophies of industrial

In contrast to my personal views on religion, economist Karl Marx believed religion was created by man

His ideas can be interpreted and reformulated according to the new philosophical apparatus. Wilhelm Windelband, for instance, advises us to capitalise Hegel's philosophy, even if we don’t agree about the validity of the whole system. He expresses the hope that “the as yet untouched treasures of the Hegelian philosophy may speedily be explored. And the explorer will be wise if he not merely follows the continuous march of the main argument, but makes it his special business to examine those pregnant germs of thought which he will there find scattered in such abundant measure” . In the case of Marx, Hegel's influence is much stronger. Although he renounces, from the outset, at the project of a unitary system, he is not content to adopt only some few isolated results but grounds his critical apparatus by including substantial speculative methodological elements. We intend to elucidate, in the following, of which type the relationship between the two dialectical models is: opposition, complementarity or

Karl Marx is a German materialist philosopher, socialist, economist and journalist whish was born in5 May 1818. His philosophy and thoughts have been influenced by Hegel’s philosophy and believes that the essence of human beings is relationship with nature and other beings. In the case of religion, he has a negative and pessimistic view about religions .Marx believes that, there is no God and there is no need of God. He believes that religion is an illusion of human being minds that avoid people to seek the reality as it does not allow people to question religions. As he compares it to opium; “It is the opium of the people”( Eggers). Opium reduces the pain from human’s body in the short term, but it is harmful in a long time and it reacts like poison in human’s body. Religion is also like this; it reduces the suffering, but it will reduce the energy and willingness to fight against the oppressive system of capitalism. Religion cannot find the real cause of suffering. He mentions that for having a real