Answer to Question 1
Sociologist Emile Durkheim was one of the first to emphasize that religion is essential
to the maintenance of society. He suggested that religion is a cultural universal found
in all societies because it meets basic human needs and serves important societal
functions. According to Durkheim, all religions share three elements: (1) beliefs held
by adherents, (2) practices (rituals) engaged in collectively by believers, and (3) a
moral community based on the group's shared beliefs and practices pertaining to the
sacred. For Durkheim, the central feature of all religions is the presence of sacred
beliefs and rituals that bind people together in a collectivity. Religious beliefs and
rituals are collective representationsgrou p held meanings that express something
important about the group itself.
From a functionalist perspective, religion has three important functions in
any society:
(1) Meaning and purposereligion offers meaning for the human
experience. Some events create a profound sense of loss on both an
individual basis (such as the death of a loved one) and a group basis
(such as famine). Inequality may cause people to wonder why their own
situation is no better than it is. Most religions offer explanations for these
concerns.
(2) Social cohesion and a sense of belongingby emphasizing shared
symbolism, religious teachings and practices help promote social cohesion.
An example is the Christian ritual of communion, which not only
commemorates a historical event but also allows followers to participate in
the unity of themselves with other believers. Religion has played an important
part in helping members of subordinate groups develop a sense of social
cohesion and belonging even when they are the objects of prejudice and
discrimination by dominant group members. Religion has also been important
to those who voluntarily migrated to the United States.
(3) Social control and support for the governmentall societies attempt to
maintain social control through systems of rewards and punishments. Sacred
symbols and beliefs establish powerful, pervasive, long-lasting motivations
based on the concept of a general order of existence. Religion also helps
maintain social control in society by conferring supernatural legitimacy on the
norms and laws of a society. In the United States, the separation of church
and state reduces religious legitimation of political power. Political leaders
often use religion to justify their decisions. This informal relationship between
religion and the state has been referred to as civil religionthe set of beliefs,
rituals, and symbols that makes sacred the values of the society and places
the nation in the context of the ultimate system of meaning.
The U.S. flag is the primary sacred object of our civil religion, and the Pledge of
Allegiance includes the phrase one nation under God.
Answer to Question 2
False
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