Transcript Chapter 19

Comunicación y Gerencia
Religion
Chapter 19
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Religion: Basic Concepts
Religion: Basic Concepts
• Emile Durkheim
– Religion focuses on things that surpass the
limits of our own knowledge.
• Profane – “outside the temple”-
Ordinary elements of everyday life
• Sacred – That which is extraordinary,
inspiring a sense of awe, reverence,
and even fear.
• Religion – The social institution
involving beliefs and practices based
upon a conception of the sacred.
• Ritual – formal, ceremonial behavior
Religion and Sociology
• Faith
– Belief anchored in conviction rather than
scientific evidence.
• If not science, what?
– Sociological analysis of religion is
interested in the patterns of religious
activity and their effect on society.
Theoretical Analysis
of Religion
Structural Functional Analysis
• According to Durkheim religion has 3 major functions
– Social cohesion – Unites people through shared symbols, values,
and norms
• Totem – an object in the natural world collectively defined as
sacred
– Social control – The use of religious symbols and language to
control human behavior has always been with us
– Provides meaning and purpose – Personal spirituality allows
humans to pass through tough times without total collapse
• Critical Evaluation
– Downplays religion’s dysfunctions such as generating social
conflict and violence.
Symbolic-interaction Analysis
• Religion is socially constructed (although perhaps
with divine inspiration) through rituals like
prayers, fasts, observances we sharpen the
distinction between sacred and profane.
– According to Peter Berger placing our brief
lives in some cosmic frame of reference gives
us the semblance of security and permanence.
• Critical Evaluation
– Socially constructed religion only works if we
ignore that it is a social construct.
– Downplays religion’s link to social inequality.
Social-conflict Analysis of Religion
• Religion serves the ruling elites by legitimizing the
status quo and diverting people’s attention from social
inequities
– Disrupts cultures with attempts to “convert
heathens”
– Focuses on the “better world to come” Marx called
it the “opium of the people”
• Critical Evaluation
– Downplays religion’s efforts to promote social
equality as in the abolition of slavery and the civil
rights movement
Religion and Social Change
Max Weber:
Protestantism and Capitalism
• Calvinism – form of Protestantism
– Predestination
– Anxiety over their fate
• Work all the time  great wealth
• Capitalism arises
• Weber said that capitalism arose as a
disenchanted religion, further showing
the power of religion to alter the shape
of society.
Liberation Theology
• The combining of Christian principles
with political activism.
• Goal: Promote greater social equality.
• Improving conditions for the poor &
oppressed.
Types of Religious
Organizations
Religious Organizations
• Church – organization that is well integrated into
society.
• State church – formally allied with the state
– Example: Anglican Church/Church of England
• Denomination – independent of the state and
pluralistic
• Sect – a type of religious organization that stands
apart from the larger society
– Leaders sometimes have charisma – extraordinaire
personal qualities that can turn an audience into followers
• Cult – religious organizations that are substantially
outside a society’s cultural traditions
Religion in History
History of religion
• In preindustrial societies
– Rituals practiced 40,000 years ago
– Embraced “animism”
• Elements of the natural world are conscious life
forms that affect humanity.
– No full-time religious leaders
• In industrial societies
– Science has often replaced religion as a source of
comfort and certainty.
– Science is silent when it comes to answering “why” we
and the rest of the universe exists.
– Often these two belief system are at odds with one
another.
World Religions
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Christianity
2.0 billion followers
85% of Americans and Canadians
Christianity began as a cult.
It is monotheistic (one god).
Jesus Christ is central figure as
both man on earth and son of god.
• Preaches personal salvation.
• Many splits from original form of
roman Catholicism.
• Supports patriarchy
Global Map 19-1 (p. 507)
Christianity in Global Perspective
Source: Peters Atlas of the World (1990).
Islam
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1.2 billion followers
Not all Muslims are Arabs
The Middle-East, Asia, and parts of Africa are
Islamic-centered
Islam is the word of god as revealed to the prophet
Muhammad, born in Mecca around 570
The Qur'an urges submission to god (Allah) as the
path to inner peace
Five pillars of Islam
– recognize Allah as the true god
– ritual prayer
– giving of alms to the poor
– fasting during Ramadan
– making the once in a lifetime pilgrimage to
Mecca
Supports Patriarchy
Global Map 19-2 (p. 507)
Islam in Global Perspective
Source: Peters Atlas of the World (1990).
Judaism
• 15 million adherents worldwide
• National majority only in Israel
• Jews believe that a covenant exists between god
and god’s chosen people.
• The torah emphasizes moral behavior in the world.
• Denominations:
– orthodox Jews are very traditional
– reform Judaism is more church-like
– conservative Judaism acts to bridge the first
two belief systems
• Anti-semitism
– Prejudice and discrimination against Jewish
people.
• Supports Patriarchy
Hinduism
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The oldest of all world religions
More than 800 million believers
Found mostly in India and Africa
No sacred writings like the bible
Principles:
– Dharma refers to correct living
– Karma refers to belief in spiritual
progress through reincarnation
• Nirvana represents spiritual perfection
and a release from the cycle of rebirth.
Global Map 19-3 (p. 510)
Hinduism in Global Perspective
Source: Peters Atlas of the World (1990).
Buddhism
– 350 million persons
• almost all Asians
– Resembles Hinduism in
doctrine and Christianity due
to its ties to the life of one
individual.
• Siddhartha Gautama
– achieved “bodhi” or
enlightenment
– became “Buddha”
– No “god of judgment,” but
daily action has its
consequences
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Global Map 19-4 (p. 510)
Buddhism in Global Perspective
Source: Peters Atlas of the World (1990).
Confucianism
– 100,000 persons in north
America
– Prior to the 1949
revolution, it was the
official religion of China.
– Perhaps it is more a way of
disciplined living than a
religion.
•
Figure 19-1 (p. 512)
Religiosity in Global
Perspective
Religion is stronger in the United
States than in many other
nations.
Source: Inglehart et al. (2000).
Religion: East and West
• Western religions have a clear focus on
God (deity-based).
• Eastern religions tend to be ethical codes;
they make a less clear-cut distinction
between the sacred and the profane.
• Western religions join together in group at
a special place at a regular time.
• Eastern religions express religion in their
daily lives.
Religion in the United States
Religion in the US
• Religiosity
– Refers to importance of religion in a
person’s life.
• Who’s More Religious in the US?
– Women are more religious than men;
– Members of sects are more religious than
members of churches
– Older people are more religious than
younger people.
Table 19-1 (p. 513)
Religious Identification in the United States, 2002
National Map 19-1 (p. 514)
Religious Membership across the United States
In general, people in the U.S. are more religious than people in other high-income
nations. Yet membership in a religious organization is more common in some
parts of the country than in others. What pattern do you see in the map? Can you
explain the pattern?
Source: From Rodger Doyle, Atlas of Contemporary America. Copyright © 1994 by Facts on File, Inc. Reprinted with the
permission of Facts on File, Inc..
National Map 19-2 (p. 514)
Religious Diversity across the United States
In most counties, at least 25 percent of people who report having an affiliation
are members of the same religious organization. Thus, although the U.S. is
religiously diverse at the national level, most people live in communities where
one denomination predominates. What historical facts might account for this
pattern?
*When two or more churches have 25 to 49 percent of the membership in a county, the largest is shown. When no church
has 25 percent of the membership, that county is left blank.
Source: Glenmary Research Center (2002).
Religion in a
Changing Society
Religion’s Changing Face
• Secularization – historical decline in the
importance of the supernatural and the
sacred.
– Religion isn’t going away, but rather some features
are in decline
• Civil religion – A quasi-religious loyalty binding
people in a basically secular society.
– American way of life has its core rooted in a moral
belief system.
– Celebrating patriotic holidays.
Figure 19-2 (p. 515)
Religious Nonaffiliation among First-Year College Students, 1970-2004
The share of students claiming no religious affiliation has risen in recent
decades.
Sources: Astin et al. (2002) and Sax et al. (2004).
The Electronic Church
• Some organizations especially
fundamentalist are becoming
electronic churches.
• Prime-time preachers include:
Oral Roberts, Pat Robertson,
and Robert Schuler
• 10 million regular watchers;
40 million watch some every
week
• The internet is one of the most
recent modalities to spread
religion to people
• Pope John Paul II called it the
“new evangelism”