Religion : An Aspect Of Our World

This restriction of variation in interpretation and action transfers over to their religious beliefs in such a way that open-mindedness about the interpretation of religious text is forbidden and the words written must be the truth and the only truth.

Religion is one of the most important components of culture which has been used in understanding the universe, natural phenomena, what to die for and how to dwell among other people. Religion can be considered as culture by itself because it provides the set of values, beliefs and guidelines for specific behavior (Samovar, Porter, McDaniel & Roy, 2013, p.40). Religion helps to control the social behavior, maintains conflict, supports emotions and gives explanations to unexplainable.

It should be undisputed that religion is very much intertwined with the construction of our world. Both Peter Berger and Emile Durkheim consider similar ideas about the role of religion in the construction in our world. However, both approach the sociological study of religion from two different viewpoints: functionalist and substantive. Berger adopts the functionalist stance, which much more scientific than the substantive stance, which Durkheim chooses to adopt. The functionalist study of religion focuses more on the “quantity” of religion, i.e. an individual’s experience of religion, or religion’s impact on that individual. Functionalists also believe that there is a clear demarcation between what is sacred and what is “profane.” Meanwhile, Durkheim adopted the more sociological substantive stance towards religion, which studies the community and collective effect that religion brings about.

Sociologists define religion as 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 (Durkheim in Giddens 2006 p.534). Religion can be viewed as a lifestyle or culture for some people: This culture entails united beliefs, the same values, customs and philosophies that generates a shared distinctiveness among a group of people. All religions have a behavioural aspect to them – these are distinctive activities in which members of the faith participate in, and that identify them as members of a religious community, an example of this would be Ramadan, this is a period of roughly thirty days fasting which Muslims partake in yearly which is then ended by a huge celebration named Eid al-Fitr. Sociologists are not concerned with the validity of religious beliefs, rather they tend to focus on the social effect that religion has on people individually, and the institution itself. Since the beginning of human existence religion has been a very important part of society’s substance.

Religion has played an important role in the history of the United States and in creating the colonies of the New World in many ways. Religion was definitely one of the major reasons for the establishment of the colonies. The early colonists wanted the freedom to worship God as they seen as proper, and they were promised this freedom of worship. Most of these colonies were deeply rooted in their religious beliefs. Religion strongly influenced the social and political life of the colonial times in the New World. Generally, in the colonies, the church was normally a large building in the center of a town, and was used not only for a place of worship, but it was also used for town meetings and community gatherings. Many times a church

Lotus: Said ‘padma’ in Hindi. The symbol of transcendence and purity because of how it grows vibrant out of the mud

Individuality can not be defined in one definition there are numerous things that make up this word.Being individual is what makes you stand out from the rest of society .You're born with the idea of being your own person. You may rely on your parents at first but as you get older you develop a form of self-reliance. Beliefs, empathy, emotions, backgrounds, and many more things.

Religion is the prominent key source that has brought people together conforming around one solid belief of God’s plan. Throughout history, different paths of religions have taken course and formed different segways of beliefs and followed the words of the bible in different ways. Any religion has brought peace to people, keeping their trust around faith worshiping of a superhuman with power. My family and friends have helped shape my religion towards the Catholic church, even if the older generations in the family have gone different directions, such as, methodist or lutheran. Overall, even with different religions and practices of church in my family, I have allowed myself to keep an open mind with studying religions, even if mine is solely catholic. Altogether, my family and I have allowed ourselves to be overall christians and believe in the higher power.

Religion has been a powerful force in human history. Mankind has longed and searched for the answers to its purpose, the reason for being and the possibility of life after physical death. They reasoned that an afterlife would be a place of accounting and reckoning for the life they lived on earth. Religious belief systems seemed to give the answers as to how to prepare for the afterlife. Religion became the means of giving answers to those basic yet deep-seated questions of both life and death. Religion provided a format of rules and laws for conduct and treatment toward others based on the desires and wishes of a god or gods that people envisioned, imagined or invented. Religious belief systems have been a powerful force for good and bad...good in the sense that it provided a measure of individual behavior and order in society for the wellbeing of the whole, but bad in the sense that men of ambition who craved power and control over others would often use religion as a tool of manipulation and fear. A casual glance of history tells us that complete civilizations have been built, grown and maintained around elaborate religious systems, ancient Egypt being a prime example.

Historically, religion has dominated individuals’ in their daily lives. Religion may define ones’ morals and virtues, culture, or explain how the universe began. Depending on ones’ interpretation of their religion, it can be realized that religion is either harmful or beneficial for a certain gender. Most common religions restrict women and make them inferior to men. In particular, Islam religion limits women in interfaith marriages, behavior and rights within the marriage, sexuality, divorce, religious life, employment, and plays a factor in gender roles.

What are beliefs? A belief may be the acceptance of something as truthful. It may perhaps be considered a condition or custom to place confidence in a supernatural phenomenon. Or it may just depend on the individual and the religion he/she follows. Beliefs are what make the foundation of world religions such as Yoruba and Judaism. They play a huge role in the lives of the religions’ followers. Practitioners of the Yoruba religion have faith in the supreme, self-existing deity – Olodumare. Judaism followers have faith in Yahweh, and some Jewish individuals do not believe in a G-d (supreme-being). Beliefs are important to each religion in its own unique way. The traditions provide a way of life for those who practice both Yoruba religion and Judaism; however, these traditions vary among the two religions due to their origin and beginnings. Judaism, as a monotheistic faith that originated in Canaan, also holds many beliefs and practices in common with the polytheistic Yoruba religion.

Most of the arguments concerning the beginning of the world and various religious phenomena are based on false premises. In a real sense, there are two significant threads which religion has followed, since the ancient times. ; The line of Shem and the priesthood, and that of Nimrod and the Babylonians. Three mystery cults were developed, and the basis of the Babylonian system was animism (Meyer, 2010). In general, the history of religion refers to different compositions of systematically written religious experiences and ideas from humans. The earliest evidence of religious ideas dates back to a hundred thousand years back which are the middle and the lower Paleolithic periods.

Religion has never been a very big factor in my life. I celebrated Christmas and Easter, went to church for a christening once in awhile and was dragged to a few services around wedding or funeral times but other than that my family never actively practiced too much. I personally have never had any sort of religious service administered to me and have never had any religious model or figure that I would consider to be a follower of. My grandparents are slightly more involved in their religious endeavors however they still do just about as little with their christianity as possible. I have yet to discover a religion that I truly believe I would dedicate myself to however I understand the appeal as to why people find their support through religion.

Religion is a universal part of many cultures and affects societies through its functions and dysfunctions. Firstly, religion offers a reason for life on earth, by explaining life after death, and giving its followers missions and motives for daily life. It also provides emotional and mental comfort for individuals going through a stressful time; as it gives suffering, stress, and death a purpose. Furthermore, religion sets guidelines for everyday life and is a form of social control. For example, the ten commandments for Christians, karma for Hindus, and the Shariah Laws for Muslims, are social regulations that set a pathway for specific behaviors and attitudes. Contrastingly, religion also negatively impacts society, as it opens doors for conflicts among different belief systems. Historically, crusades and torture were common forms used by religious groups to gain and maintain control. Currently, torture still occurs in some countries as religious groups are fighting for power and believe that anyone who doesn’t believe in their gods or follow their ways deserves to die. Religion may also create anxiety among individuals as they are consumed with following the “rules”, and feel distressed when they violate them. Some followers are not able to meet the set guidelines, such as, not having enough money to tithe, or not having a way to attend church. Meanwhile others have the means to follow the principles but for their own personal

Ever since I was little I’ve always admired the earth that we live on. How the grass grows and the animals move was always mesmerizing to me. I’ve always had a large respect for this planet and everything on it. Through religion I have always had a large connection to Earth and all the beings on it. Religion has always been a large part of my life even since I was a child I have always been a member of the catholic church and have been very religious. I was told as a child that God was the creator of everything and everyone but now that I have learned the theories of the origins of the world and the universe I have started to question this.