Functionalist theories of religion

Functionalist theories of religion:

Durkeim on religion:

For functionalists, religious institutions play a central part in creating and maintaining value consensus, order and solidarity. The first functionalist to develop this idea was Durkeim.

The Sacred and the Profane:

For Durkheim, the key feature of religion as not a belief in God or the supernatural, but a fundamental distinction between the sacred and the…