"There is a well-established link between religious participation and a host of other positive societal contributions, including volunteer work, charitable donations, community involvement, and political participation." (McConkey & Lawler, 2000, p
"From the earliest foundations of the discipline, sociologists have sought to understand the larger society through examining religion and its influence." (McGuire 2008, p
Origins The majority of the "classical religious beliefs emerged in a pre-scientific era before the application of the methods of science. The ancient religions of prophecies and revelations -- Judaism, Christianity, and Islam -- all claim that God intervened at one time in history, spoke to Moses and the prophets, resurrected Jesus, or communicated through Gabriel to Muhammad (Kurtz, 1999)
This means that heretics are enemies of God and the social fabric. Frederick held that the questioning of religious truths also involved questioning the monarch's command of law, and as enemies of the law, heretics were also the enemies of society (Abulafia, pp
He was instrumental in the Fifth and Sixth Crusades, and attempted to consolidate power away from the German Kings. Frederick became a staunch foe of the new Pope, Innocent IV, which was instrumental in some of his writings about God, religion and society (Armstrong, 2001)
Humans use religion to organize the universe into understandable chunks, give structure to social groupings, explain the unknown or unexplainable, control self and society, and provide hope during times of crisis or for an afterlife. "Religion is an illusion and derives its strength from the fact that if falls in with [human] instinctual desires" (Kenneally, 2011)
Societal organization and moral/ethical behavior, or law, is another prime example of religious control within society. Gaius Sallustius Crispus, or Sallust, was a Roman historian and politician who opposed the Roman aristocracy during most of his career and was also a supporter of Julius Caesar and his reform program (Mellor, 1999, p
Charismatic individuals have emerged at many times and places in the world. It seems that the key to long-term success -- and many movements come and go with little long-term effect -- has relatively little to do with the prophets, who appear with surprising regularity, but more to do with the development of a group of supporters who are able to institutionalize the movement (Monaghan and Just, 2000, p
In other words, religion is something that makes one "feel good" about their suffering, and because we humans suffer so very much, we need our constant fix of this opiate (religion). Like a drug, religion not only makes humans feel better, but it is addictive, and shrouds the truth about exploitation and control from the minds of the masses (Pals, 2006)
It is a theory of change, also known as the Age of Reason, but not a single theory or movement; in fact many of the notions from the 18th century are contrary and divergent. The idea of the enlightenment is thus more a set of values that tended to question traditional institutions, customs, morals, and most especially the religiosity of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, and replace them with stronger beliefs in rationalist thought and science (Porter)
I will go even further and say that we ought to look upon all men as our brothers. What! call a Turk, a Jew, and a Siamese, my brother? Yes, of course; for are we not all children of the same father, and the creatures of the same God? (Voltaire, n