A Sociological Approach to Religion and Belief

Examine Research Evidence on Religion and Belief in a Contemporary Society

“Traditionally, religion has become a major influence in social change. Throughout early Europe, the incorporation of religious scriptures into common, non-scholar language enabled people to form their religions. Disagreements within religious groups and incidents of racial persecution have led to mass displacement, violence, and even genocide. To a certain degree, the existing democratic political system and international law may be viewed as a consequence of the conflict between religious principles developed in Europe by the Treaty of Westphalia (1648) which culminated in the Thirty Years' War (Onnekink, 2016).”

Identify and Explain Any Similarities and Differences between Two or More Theories and Studies

Many psychologists describe the emergence and continuity of faith in Darwinian evolutionary theory. For this claim, they include a conceptual description of the universal religious existence or the condition of being normal to all religions' varied social types and environments. Psychologist Roger Cloninger describes this central faith concept as a tendency of self-transcendence (De Raad and Mlačić, 2015). It has three observable components: self-forgetful transpersonal identity (perception of divine unity with the world and capacity to minimize self-limitation vs. others) and mysticism (perception or recognition of events that cannot be rationally explained). The argument is that, since this is a common disease, it must have a particular physiological or genetic history that is transmitted down across generations that promotes human survival.

At the same time as religion continues to have a significant impact on western civilization, it is steadily secularised in cultures. Sociologist José Casanova defined secularisation as a social and historical concept as three interlinked occurrences, both of which are open to debate: 1) deteriorating religious beliefs and practices in western cultures; 2) The privatization of religious belief; and 3) Separation of secular spheres (state, society, science) is commonly viewed as "emancipation" from religious organizations (Pollack, 2015).

Evaluate Evidence on Religion and Belief 

“Although some academics see the Western world, like Canada, become more secular, some note that Christianity is still among us. For example, recent figures indicate that around 75% of Canadian weddings still include religious rituals. However, that differs from 90% in Ontario to fewer than 40% in British Columbia. Trinity Western University, a prominent private Christian college in British Columbia, is in controversy because a variety of state bar societies have decided not to accept graduates in Trinity's latest law program. One of the major issues is the "covenant" of the institution, which requires the members to consent to prevent sex until it is part of a relationship between a man and a woman. The University plans to introduce bar associations in British Columbia, Ontario, and Nova Scotia to trial to respond to difficulties with religious freedom. (CBC 2014).”

Give a Sociological Analysis of Changes in Religion and its Relationship to Contemporary Society 

While it is not thoroughly researched, there are signs that the much-discussed global re-emergence of religion is tied to the increasingly global growth of deregulated capitalist markets. So far, work has mainly centered on the individualizing implications of market cultures and the consequent belief in ‘spirituality’ as opposed to the more institutionalized 'religion'. But there are many forms of looking at ties in the sense of the 21st century: on the one side, globalization and liberalism endanger culture in general and faith in particular, a challenge that generates religious resistance groups such as the Taliban and American conservative evangelicalism, to name two of the more prominent instances (Nesbitt, 2020). On the other side, growing social inequality may be seen as providing a 'market' for religions that have a 'promise of redemption'.

Outline Key Changes in Patterns of Religious Participation and Belief

The 'mediation' of culture, the mechanism by which our daily awareness is gradually filtered through means of mass communication, is a pervasive feature of contemporary societies. Although the media revolution was already apparent in 1990, unlike the face-to-face case, the answer to a newspaper article is seldom made public (Hjarvard, 2011). However, historically unseen ways of indirect social exchange have arisen in the 21st century: for example, forums and social networking overflow with commentary on news from across the globe. Over the years religion has seeped into these new mediums and has provided people with new platforms to unite together for their religious beliefs (Hjarvard, 2011).

Discuss the Social Significance of These Changes, concerning Sociological Theories

Even though some people believe that religion has some human elements (because religious views may be extremely personal), religion is often a collective structure for sociologists. Social scientists understand that faith operates as a structured and interconnected collection of views, attitudes, and expectations based on fundamental societal needs and values. Faith is a common characteristic present in all social classes. In any society, for example, funeral ceremonies are performed in some manner, but such rituals differ across societies and within religious affiliations. Durkheim projected that the power of faith would decline as culture modernized (Durkheim and Swain, 1915). He assumed that rational science would eventually overtake traditional thought, with people paying little attention to traditions and procedures. He also believed that the idea of "Jesus" was on the brink of extinction. Alternatively, he imagined a community that encourages secular worship, in which, for example, public festivals, parades, and pride take the place of religious services. Nevertheless, if mainstream Christianity were to survive, he claimed that it should do so only as a way to maintain societal stability and order. While people generally believe that Marx did not see a position for faith, this presumption is not completely accurate. Marx claimed that faith acted as a refuge from the harshness of daily existence and the injustice of the wealthy. Even, he expected that one day the mainstream faith would move away (Marx, 1964).