Social Institutions: Religion

Chapter 15: Sociology, Schaefer, 1995-2008.

Modern society and the process of secularization (Rate of attendance)

Sociology: Not a question of truth, but of social aspects:

Adherents.com: a growing collection of over 41,000 adherent statistics and religious geography citations

Pew U.S Religious Landscape Survey (local copy of full report)

Durkheim and Functionalism

Functions

  1. Integration and Solidarity
  2. Explanation: Theodicy
  3. Social Support
  4. Order

Marx and Conflict Theory

Weber and Interactionism

  1. Ideas and Social Change (1)
  2. Protestantism and Capitalism: The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (the book online)
  3. Weber's Sociology of Religion

Peter Berger: The Sacred Canopy

Dimensions of Religious Experience

Types of Religions

Common Element: Theodicy- Emotionally satisfying explanation of problems, the meaning and purpose of life.

Religious Organizations

Ecclesiae:

Denominations:

Sects:

Cults (New Religious Movements)

Religion in the USA

  1. Pew U.S Religious Landscape Survey
  2. Secular Religion
  3. Strong value ("Not what, but if you believe")
  4. Christian
  5. Social Class
  6. 84%-specific preference
  7. Church attendance~44%
  8. Many traditional--decline, Catholics--stable, Fundamentalist--dramatic growth (problems of change and secularization-not just here: Islam)
  9. Shopping Market--lots of switching, fit in with lifestyle.
  10. Power: Electronic church and political organization
  11. Cults-"Radical departures"
  12. Church and State

    Educational Institutions

    Political Economy

    URL: http://www.umsl.edu/~keelr/010/religion.html
    Owner: Robert O. Keel rok@umsl.edu
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    Last Updated: Thursday, May 7, 2009 10:00 AM