Topic 1: Theories of religion

What is religion?

There are three main ways in which sociologists define religion: substantive, functional and social constructionist.

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Substantive definitions

These focus on the content or substance of religious belief, such as belief in God or the supernatural. For example Max Weber (1905) defines religion as belief in a superior or supernatural power that is above nature and cannot be explained

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Substantive definitions (2)

scientifically. Substantive definitions are exclusive- they draw a clear line between religious and non-religious beliefs. To be a religion a set of beliefs must include belief in God or the supernatural.

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Substantive definitions (3)

Substantive definitions conform to a widespread view of religion as a belief in God. However defining religion in this way leaves no room for beliefs and practices that perform similar functions to religion but do not involve a belief on God.

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Substantive definitions (3)

Substantive definitions are also accused of Western bias because they exclude religions such as Buddhism, which do not have the Western idea of a god.

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Functional definitions

Rather than defining religion in terms of specific kinds of belief, functional definitions define it in terms of the social or psychological functions it performs for individuals or society. For example Durkheim (1915) defines religion in terms of

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Functional definitions (2)

the contribution it makes to social integration, rather than any specific belief in God or the supernatural. Another functionalist Milton Yinger (1970) identifies functions that religion perform for individuals such as answering ultimate questions

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Functional definitions (3)

about the meaning of life and what happens when we die. An advantage of functional definitions is that they are inclusive- allowing us to include a wide range of beliefs and practices that perform functions such as integration. Also since they do not

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Functional definitions (4)

specify belief in god or the supernatural, there is no bias against non-Western religions such as Buddhism. However just because an institution helps integrate individuals into groups, this does not make it a religion.

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Constructionist definitions

Social constructionists take an interpretivist approach that focuses on how members of society themselves define religion. They argue that it is not possible to produce a single universal definition of religion to cover all cases since in reality

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Constructionist definitions (2)

different individuals and groups mean very different things by 'religion'. Social constructionists are interested in how definitions of religion are constructed, challenged and fought over. For example Aldridge (2013) shows that for its followers

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Constructionist definitions (3)

Scientology is a religion, whereas several governments have denied its legal status as a religion and sought to ban it. This shows that definitions of religion can be contested and are influenced by who has power to define the situation.

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Constructionist definitions (4)

Social constructionists do not assume that religion always involves a belief in God or the supernatural or that it performs similar functions for everyone in all societies. Their approach allows them to get close to the meanings people give to

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Constructionist definitions (5)

religion. However this makes it impossible to generalise about the nature of religion since people may have widely differing views about what counts as religion.

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Functionalist theories of religion

For functionalists society is a system of interrelated parts or social institutions such as religion, the family and the economy. Society is like an organism with basic needs that it must meet in order to survive. These needs are met by the different

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Functionalist theories of religion (2)

institutions. Each institution performs certain functions that is each contributes to maintaining the social system by meeting a need. Society's most basic need is the need for social order and solidarity so that its members can cooperate.

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Durkheim on religion

For functionalists religious institutions play a central part in creating and maintaining value consensus, order and solidarity.

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The sacred and the profane

For Durkheim (1915:1962) the key feature of religion was not a belief in gods, spirits or the supernatural but a fundamental distinction between the sacred and the profane found in all religions. The sacred are things set apart and forbidden that

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The sacred and the profane (2)

inspire feelings of awe, fear and wonder and are surrounded by taboos and prohibitions. By contrast the profane are things that have no special significance things that are ordinary and mundane.

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The sacred and the profane (3)

Furthermore a religion in never simply a set of beliefs. It also involves definite rituals or practices in relation to the sacred and these rituals are collective-performed by social groups. The fact that sacred things evoke such powerful feelings in

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The sacred and the profane (4)

believers indicates to Durkheim that this is because they are symbols representing something of great power. In his view this thing can only be society itself since society is the only thing powerful enough to command such feelings.

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The sacred and the profane (5)

When they worship the sacred symbols therefore people are worshiping society itself.

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Totemism

Durkheim believed that the essence of all religion could be found by studying its simplest form in the simplest type of society- clan society. For this reason he used studies of the Arunta, an Aboriginal Australian tribe with a clan system.

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Totemism (2)

Arunta clans consist of bands of kin who come together periodically to perform rituals involving worship of a sacred totem. The totem is the clan's emblem such as an animal or plant that symbolises the clan's origins and identity.

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Totemism (3)

The shared totemic rituals venerating it serve to reinforce the group's solidarity and sense of belonging. For Durkheim when clan members worship their totemic animal they are in reality worshiping society-even though they themselves are not aware of

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Totemism (4)

this fact. The totem inspires feelings of awe in the clan's members precisely because it represents the power of the groups on which the individual is utterly dependent.

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The collective conscience

In Durkheim's view, the sacred symbols represent society's collective conscience or consciousness. The collective conscience is the shared norms, values, beliefs and knowledge that make social life and cooperation between individuals possible.

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The collective conscience (2)

For Durkheim regular shared religious rituals reinforce the collective conscience and maintain social integration. Participating in shared rituals binds individuals together, reminding them that they are part of a single moral community to which they

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The collective conscience (3)

owe their loyalty. Such rituals also remind the individual of the power of society- without which they themselves are nothing, and to which they owe everything. In this sense religion also performs an important function for the individual.

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The collective conscience (4)

By making us feel that part of something greater than ourselves, religion reinvigorates and strengthens us to face life's trials and motivates us to overcome obstacles that would otherwise defeat us.

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Cognitive functions of religion

Durkheim sees religion as not only as the source of social solidarity but also of our intellectual or cognitive capacities. In Durkheim's view religion is the origin of the concepts and categories we need for reasoning, understanding the world and

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Cognitive functions of religion (2)

communicating. In their book Primitive classification Durkheim and Marcel Mauss (1903:2009) argue that religion provides basic categories such as time, space and causation.

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Criticisms

The evidence of totemism is unsound. Worsley (1956) notes that there is no sharp division between the sacred and the profane and that different clans share the same totems. And even if Durkheim is right about totemism this does not prove that he has

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Criticisms (2)

discovered the essence of all other religions. Durkheim's theory may apply better to small-scale societies with a single religion. It is harder to apply it to large-scale societies where two or more religious communities may be in conflict.

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Criticisms (3)

His theory may explain social integration within communities but not the conflicts between them. Similarly postmodernists such as Stjepan Mestrovic (2011) argue that Durkheim's ideas cannot be applied to contemporary society because increasing

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Criticisms (4)

diversity has fragmented the collective conscience so there is no longer a single shared value system for religion to reinforce.

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Psychological functions

The anthropologist Bronislaw Malinowski (1954) agrees with Durkheim that religion promotes solidarity. However in his view it does so by performing psychological functions for individuals, helping them cope with emotional stress that would undermine

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Psychological functions (2)

social solidarity. Malinowski identifies two types of situations in which religion performs this role. 1 where the outcome is important but is uncontrollable and thus certain. 2. At times of life crises.

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Psychological functions (3)

1. Where the outcome is important but is uncontrollable and thus uncertain. In his study of the Trobriand Islanders of the Western Pacific Malinowski contrasts fishing in the lagoon and fishing in the ocean.

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Psychological functions (4)

Lagoon fishing is safe and uses the predictable and successful method of poisoning. When the Islanders fish in the lagoon there is no ritual. Ocean fishing is dangerous and uncertain and is always accompanied by 'canoe magic'-rituals to ensure a

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Psychological functions (5)

safe and successful expedition. This gives people a sense of control which eases tension, gives them confidence to undertake hazardous tasks and reinforces group solidarity.

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Psychological functions (6)

He sees ritual serving as a 'god of the gaps'- it fills the gaps in human beings' control over the world, such as being unable to control the outcome of a fishing trip.

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Psychological functions (7)

2.At times of life crises. Events such as birth, puberty, marriage and especially death mark major and disruptive changes in social groups. Religion helps to minimise disruption. For example the funeral rituals reinforce a feeling of solidarity among

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Psychological functions (8)

the survivors, while the notion of immortality gives comfort to the bereaved by denying the fact of death. In fact Malinowski argues that death is the main reason for the existence of religious beliefs.

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Parsons: values and meanings

Like Malinowski Talcott Parsons (1967) sees religion helping individuals to cope with unforeseen events and uncontrollable outcomes. In addition Parsons identifies two other essential functions that religion performs in modern society.

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Parsons: values and meanings (2)

1. It creates and legitimates society's central values. 2. It is the primary source of meaning. Religion creates and legitimates society's basic norms and values by sacralising them. Thus in the USA Protestantism has sacralised the core American

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Parsons: values and meanings (3)

values of individualism, meritocracy and self-discipline. This serves to promote value consensus and thus social stability. Religion also provides a source of meaning. In particular it answers ultimate questions about the human condition such as why

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Parsons: values and meanings (4)

the good suffer and why some die young. Such events defy our sense of justice and make life appear meaningless, and this may undermine our commitment to society's values. Religion also provides to such questions for example by explaining suffering as

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Parsons: values and meanings (5)

a test of faith that will rewarded in heaven. By doing so religion enables people to adjust to adverse events or circumstances and helps maintain stability.

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Civil religion

Like Parsons Robert Bellah (1991:2013)is interested in how religion unifies society especially a multi-faith society like America. What unifies American society is an overachieving civil religion- a belief system that attaches sacred qualities to

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Civil religion (2)

society itself. In the American case civil religion is a faith in Americanism or the American way of life.

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Civil religion (3)

Bellah argues that civil religion integrates society in a way that America's many different churches and denominations cannot. While none of these can claim the loyalty of all Americans, civil religion can. American civil religion involves royalty

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Civil religion (4)

to the nation-state and a belief in God, both of which are equated with being a true American. It is expressed in various rituals, symbols and beliefs such as the pledge of allegiance to the flag, singing the national anthem, the Lincoln Memorial

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Civil religion (5)

and phrases such as One nation under God. However this is not a specifically Catholic, Protestant or Jewish God but rather an 'American' God. It sacralises the American way of life and binds together Americans from ethnic and religious backgrounds.

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Functional alternatives

Functional alternatives or functional equivalents to religion are non-religious beliefs and practices that perform functions similar to those of organised religion such as reinforcing shared values or maintaining social cohesion.

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Functional alternatives (2)

For example although in America civil religion involves a belief in God, Bellah argues that it doesn't matter have to be the case. Some other belief system could perform the same functions. For example Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union had secular

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Functional alternatives (3)

political beliefs and rituals around which they sought to unite society. However the problem with the idea of functional alternatives is the same as with functional definitions of religion .

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Evaluation of functionalism

Functionalism emphasises the social nature of religion and the positive functions it performs but it neglects negative aspects such as religion as a source of oppression of the poor or women. It ignores religion as source of division and conflict

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Evaluation of functionalism (2)

specially in complex modern societies where there is more than one religion- e.g Northern Ireland. Where there is religious pluralism, it is hard top see how it can unite people and promote integration. The idea of civil religion overcomes this

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Evaluation of functionalism (3)

problem to some extent by arguing that societies may still have an overarching belief system shared by all, but is this really religion-especially if it is not based on belief in the supernatural?

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Marxist theories of religion

Unlike functionalists who see society as based on harmony and consensus Marxists see societies as divided into two classes on of which exploits the labour of the other. In modern capitalist society, the capitalist class who own the means of

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Marxist theories of religion (2)

production exploit the working class. In such a society there is always the potential for class conflict and Marx predicted that the working class would ultimately become conscious of their exploitation and unite to overthrow capitalism.

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Marxist theories of religion (3)

This would bring into being a classless society in which there would no longer be exploitation. Marx's theory of religion needs to be seen in the context of this general view of society. Whereas functionalism sees religion as unifying force that

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Marxist theories of religion (4)

strengthens the value consensus and is a feature of all societies Marxism sees religion as a feature only of class-divided society. As such there will be no need for religion in classless society and it will disappear.

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Religion an ideology

For Marx ideology is a belief system that distorts people's perception of reality in ways that serve the interests of the ruling class. He argues that the class that controls economic production also controls the production and distribution of ideas

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Religion an ideology (2)

through institutions such as the church, the education system and the media. In Marx's view religion operates as an ideological weapon used by the ruling class to legitimate the suffering of the poor as something inevitable and god-given.

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Religion an ideology (3)

Religion misleads the poor into believing that their suffering is virtuous and that they will be favoured in the afterlife. For example according to Christianity it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich man

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Religion an ideology (4)

to enter the kingdom of heaven. Such ideas create a false consciousness- a distorted view of reality that prevents the poor from acting to change their situation. Similarly, Lenin (1870:1924) describes religion as 'spiritual gin'-an intoxicant doled

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Religion an ideology (5)

out the masses by the ruling class to confuse them and keep them from attempting to overthrow the ruling class by creating a mystical fog that obscures reality. Religion also legitimates the power and privilege of the dominant class by making

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Religion an ideology (6)

their position appear to be divinely ordained. For example the 16th century idea of the Divine Right of Kings was the belief that the king is God's representative on earth and is owned total obedience. Disobedience is not just illegal but a sinful

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Religion an ideology (7)

challenge to God's authority.

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Religion and alienation

Marx (1844) also sees religion as the product of alienation. Alienation involves becoming separated from or losing control over something that one has produced or created. Alienation exists in all class societies, but it is more extreme under

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Religion and alienation (2)

capitalism. Under capitalism workers are alienated because they do not own what they produce and have no control over the production process and thus no freedom to express their true nature as creative beings. Alienation reaches a peak with the

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Religion and alienation (3)

detailed division of labour in the capitalist factory where the worker endlessly repeats the same minute task, devoid of all meaning or skill. In these dehumanising conditions the exploited turn to religion as a form of consolation.

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Religion and alienation (4)

As Marx puts it religion: 'is the opium of the people. It is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, the soul of soulless conditions, the spirit of a spiritless situation'. Religion acts as an opiate to dull the pain of

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Religion and alienation (5)

exploitation. But just as opium masks pain rather than treating its causes, so religion masks the underlying problem of exploitation that creates the need for it. Because religion is a distorted view of the world it can offer no solution.

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Religion and alienation (6)

Instead its promises of the afterlife create an illusory happiness that distracts attention from the true source of the suffering, namely capitalism. Thus Marx sees religion as the product of alienation. It arises out of suffering and acts as a

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Religion and alienation (7)

consolation for it, but fails to deal with its causes, namely class exploitation. Religion acts as an ideology that legitimates both the suffering of the poor and the privileges of the ruling class.

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Evaluation

Marx shows how religion may be a tool of oppression that masks exploitation and creates false consciousness. However he ignores positive functions of religion such as psychological adjustment to misfortune. Neo-Marxists see certain forms of religion

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Evaluation (2)

as assisting not hindering the development of class consciousness. Some Marxists such as Althusser (1971) reject the concept of alienation as unscientific and based on a romantic idea that human beings have a true self. This would make the concept

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Evaluation (3)

an inadequate basis for a theory of religion. Religion does not necessarily function effectively as an ideology to control the population. For example Abercrombie, Hill and Turner (2015) argue that in pre-capitalist society while Christianity was a

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Evaluation (4)

element of ruling-class ideology, it had only limited impact on the peasantry.

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Feminist theories of religion

Feminists see society as patriarchal- that is based on male domination. Many feminists regard religion as a patriarchal institution that reflects and perpetuates this inequality.

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Evidence of patriarchy

Although the formal teachings of religions often stress equality between the sexes, there is considerable evidence of patriarchy within many of them. Religious organisations are mainly male-dominated despite the fact that women often participate more

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Evidence of patriarchy (2)

than men in these organisations. For example Orthodox Judaism and Catholicism forbid women to become priests. Karen Armstrong (1993) sees exclusion from the priesthood as evidence of women's marginalisation.

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Evidence of patriarchy (3)

Places of worship often segregate the sexes and marginalise women for example seating them behind screens while men occupy the central and more scared spaces. Women's participation may be restricted for example not being allowed to preach or to read

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Evidence of patriarchy (4)

from sacred texts. Taboos that regard menstruation, pregnancy and childbirth as polluting may also prevent participation. Sacred texts largely feature the doings of male gods and prophets and are usually written and interpreted by men.

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Evidence of patriarchy (5)

Stories often reflect anti-female stereotypes such as Eve who in the Judaeo-Christian story of Genesis caused humanity's fall from grace and expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Religious laws and customs may give women fewer rights than men,

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Evidence of patriarchy (6)

for example in access to divorce, how many spouses they may marry, decision-making, dress codes etc. Religious influences on cultural norms may also lead to unequal treatment such as genital mutilation of punishments for sexual transgressions.

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Evidence of patriarchy (7)

Many religions legitimate and regulate women's traditional domestic and reproductive role. For example the Catholic Church bans abortion and artificial contraception.

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Evidence of patriarchy (8)

However feminists argue that women have not always been subordinate to men within religion. Karen Armstrong (1993) argues that early religions often places women at the centre. For example earth mother goddesses, fertility cults and female priesthood

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Evidence of patriarchy (9)

were found throughout the Middle East until about 6,000 years ago. However from about 4,000 years ago the rise of monotheistic religions saw the establishment of a single, all powerful male God such as the Hebrews' Jehovah and male prophets.

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Evidence of patriarchy (10)

While religion my be used to oppress women, Nawal El Saadawi (1980) argues that it is not the direct cause of their subordination. Rather it is the result of patriarchal forms of society coming into existence in the last few thousand years.

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Religious forms of feminism

Linda Woodhead (2009) criticies feminist explanations that simply equate religion with patriarchy and the oppression of women. While accepting that much traditional religion is patriarchal she emphasises that this is not true of all religion.

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Religious forms of feminism (2)

She argues that there are religious forms of feminism- ways in which women use religion to gain greater freedom and respect. Woodhead uses the example of the hijab or veil worn by Muslim women. While Western feminists tend to see it as a symbol of

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Religious forms of feminism (3)

oppression, to the wearer it may be a means of liberation. According to Sophie Gilliat Ray (20100 some young British Muslim women choose to wear the hijab in order to gain parental approval to enter further education and especially employment where

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Religious forms of feminism (4)

Muslim women's presence had traditionally been problematic. For them the hijab is a symbol of liberation that allows them to enter the public sphere without being condemned as immodest. Women also use religion to gain status and respect for their

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Religious forms of feminism (5)

roles within the private sphere of home and family. For example as Elisabeth Brusco (1995:2012) found in Colombia belonging to a Pentecostal group can be empowering for some women. Despite the strong belief in traditional gender roles that such group

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Religious forms of feminism (6)

hold women are able to use religion to increase their power and influence,

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Religious forms of feminism (7)

Piety movements. Rachel Rinaldo (2010) sees this pattern as typical piety movements. These are conservative movements that support traditional teachings about women's role, modest dress, prayer and bible study.

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Religious forms of feminism (8)

Like Brusco and Woodhead Rinaldo argues that even within conservative religions women may sometimes find ways to further their own interests. However she notes that it is middle-class urban women who are most likely to join piety movements.

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Religious forms of feminism (9)

Liberal Protestant organisations such as the Quakers and the Unitarians are often committed to gender equality and women playing leading roles. The church of England, the official state has had female priests since 1992 and female bishops since 2015.

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Topic 1: Theories of religion

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