Rahul
August 10 2024
How does sociology study religion?
COMMENTS
Himani August 11 2024 11:07:47 AM
Sociology studies religion as an institution and conducts it in three ways:
(i) An empirical study on the various functions of religion and its interrelatedness to the society.
(ii) It uses a comparative method.
(iii) It investigates the religious beliefs and practices in relation to other aspects of the society.
There are different groups of religion that originated with the change and need of the society such as Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism and Jainism, etc.
Religion has certain beliefs, norms, rules and regulations that are expected to be followed by its members, which govern and regulate their behaviour.
Further, religion has had a very close relationship with power and politics. There have been many social movements which were carried out on the basis of religion.
Classical sociologists believed that as societies have modernised, the influence of religion on the lives of individuals has decreased, which has led to secularism.
Many thinkers of sociology have presented their theories upon religion and their origin. For example, Max Weber in his study, The Protestant Ethic and The Rise of Capitalism viewed that capitalism was a result of Calvinism and their thinking of increasing the economic activity, in order to please the god.
Similarly, Emile Durkhiem presented the view of differentiating the sacred from the profane that existed in religious societies.
Further religion is not only a private matter of individual but it also has a public character, as it holds strong ties with other institutions like politics, economics, education and marriage and kinship.
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Ashish June 17 2025 03:21:52 PM
Sociology studies religion by looking at how it affects people and society, not whether it’s true or not.
It focuses on things like how religion influences behavior, how it brings people together, or even causes conflict.
It also looks at religious institutions and how they interact with other parts of society, like politics, education, or family.
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V SARAVANARAJA June 17 2025 03:23:08 PM
Sociology doesn’t study religion based on beliefs or faith, but more on how it works in society.
Like, it looks at how religion shapes people’s actions, how it creates communities, and how it can impact things like laws, values, or social norms.
It’s more about the role religion plays in everyday life and society as a whole.
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MEGHNA June 17 2025 03:24:02 PM
Sociology studies religion by checking out how it affects social life and relationships.
It looks at things like why people follow certain religions, how religion influences culture, and how it helps build groups or sometimes causes divisions in society.
Basically, it’s about understanding religion as part of how people live together.
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MEGHNA June 17 2025 03:25:52 PM
Sociology looks at religion by studying how it shapes society and how society shapes religion in return.
It’s interested in how religion affects things like social behavior, group identity, and even social change.
So instead of focusing on the spiritual side, sociology focuses on how religion fits into the bigger picture of people’s lives and communities.
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