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Instead of losing its importance, sociology of religion should become more essential for study in sociology curriculum. It should be more than the anthropology and theology students who are asking such questions as, "What is the future of religion in society? Despite the growing complexity of society and the increase in stress and related emotional problems, why is there a decrease in formal religion attendance? Does modernity secularize as Durkheim noted? Can there be a complete break between "secularization" and "religiosity?" Where, how, and why can religion grow and survive in a highly technical world? What social forces and influences explain different religious outcomes? What impact does religion have in a country, as the United States, which is undergoing a major demographic change in cultures? What place does religion play in an increasing globalized world?
Apparently, however, Luckmann's concern for the study of sociology of religion is not coming to fruition. Over the past several years, reports Cnaan, "the sociological study of religion is witnessing an academic revival." Increasing numbers of social scientists recognize the need to include religious factors in their academic work.
In their book, Sociology of Religion: Contemporary Developments, authors Christiano, Swatos and Kivisto state that the study of religion in secular-academic circles is both difficult and challenging. Religion both "motivates [the] most killing in the world today" and "contributes to [the] most healing in the world today" (51). Anything that exerts so much control over humanity is important to study. Similarly, Idinopulos and Wilson...
However, the authors argue, Durkheim has provided "an abundance of explanatory ideas." For that reason, alone, his works will continue to be important for many years to come.
Regardless of whether or not someone agrees with Durkheim's conclusions or believes that his studies were wide or in-depth enough for generalizations to other societies and cultures, it is difficult to disagree about the relevance of religion in today's world. In order to better understand the dynamics that are taking place both in the U.S. And other countries, it is essential to have a better understanding of the two-way impact between religion and society.
References
Christiano, K., Swatos, W. Jr., and Kivisto, P. Sociology of Religion:
Contemporary Developments. Walnut Creek, CA: Alta Mira Press, 2002
Cnaan, R.A. Sociology of Religion: Contemporary Developments: Lanham, MD:
AltaMira Press, 2002
Durkheim One interesting way of looking at cultural, historical, and sociological trends is to extrapolate the individual into society and vice versa. Trends that occur within the individual -- birth, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, illness, old age, dementia, and death -- also occur within society, albeit at a different pace and severity. The pathology of an empire, for example, the Roman Empire, can be compared to more modern interpretations of the stages
His underlying interest was to understand the basic forms of religious life for all societies. In Elementary Forms, Durkheim argues that the totems the aborigines venerate are actually expressions of their own conceptions of society itself. This is true not only for the aborigines, he argues, but for all societies (ibid). Religion, for Durkheim, is not "imaginary," although he does deprive it of what many believers find essential. Religion is
Marx and Durkheim on Religion Karl Marx and Emile Durkheim, two of the most important social critics of the modern world, agree on very little about the functions and goals of religion and its place in modern societies. The one clear overlap in their assessments of religion is that it is immensely important and that no important critique of society can be complete without an examination of religion. This paper explores
662). In other words, individuals coalesce around environments repetitively to form the collective. The collective structure stays even when the individual is alone. This is close to the collective representations of Durkheim, but it is based on innate or genetic structures that connect during the repetition of social encounters (which in Allport are not religious). The social bonding function is similar: "The collective-structure event-format (so called 'reality of the
Many different views abound on the origins of modern capitalism, causalities that range from economic to political, from religious to cultural, or for some, an amalgamation of societies need to expand and the resources necessary to fuel that expansion. Max Weber's the Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism is a study of the relationship between the ethics of ascetic Protestantism and the emergence of the spirit of modern capitalism.
It cannot apply exactly to any individual."(Durkheim 1982, pg. 82) This is illustrating how social science is a way of objectively analyzing society. It is different from other disciplines by showing how it is seeking to look at different collective facts. This is in order to understand why everyone will behave and react in a particular fashion. (Gane 2010) (Applerouth 2008) Furthermore, it must respect all scientific principles and be