RICHDARLAN N CALVARIO

2E-SOCIAL STUDIES
SOCIO-CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
CHAPTER 6
1. What is Religion?

Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and

worldviews that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to
moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and
sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to explain
the origin of life or the universe.

2. What does the anthropology of religion study?

Anthropology of religion defined as specialized field of study which is

concerned with the relation between sacred and society. The main focus of
anthropology of religion is to understand, analyze and explain the relation
between man and supernatural and the associated beliefs, practices and
institutions. Anthropologists of religion is not concerned with discovering
the truth or falsehood of religion. They are more interested in how the
universe is organized and the role of people within the world.
3. Why do anthropologists study religion?

Anthropologist study religion because they are interested in the

scientific and systematic ethnographic and ethnological analysis of religious
beliefs, practices, institutions and other aspects such as faith-based healings,
spirit possession, religiosity and other activities that are associated with
religion. Anthropologists investigate the origin, role and relationship of
religion to know its effectiveness to the development of people and its
society.

4. How does being strong in religious commitment may help one to be

mentally and physically health? Prove your answer.
 People with strong religious affiliation and commitment are said to be
more healthy both physical and mental because they found inner peace that
may help them to be happy. Regular religious practice may lessen
depression and promotes self-esteem. Religion gives people something to
believe in, promotes connection to other people with the same belief and
gives positive impact. Also religious rituals and prayers accompany all the
preparation of traditional medication. In this case. A patient will develop
hope and strength because they believe that god is healing them.

5. Describe the four general social functions of religion.

 Religion provides explanation about our world and the universe

Many things in life are difficult to understand even if we are in

today’s highly scientific age. Much of life and death remains a
mystery and religious faith and belief help many people to understand
things that science cannot answer. Religion provides some
explanation about the origin and evolution and eventual fate of the
universe.

 Religion serves as an expression of collective life

Religion may express in different ways and it can be rich in the

use of symbols, action, words and objects. Being religious can be seen
depending on a person how they will express themselves. Practices
and beliefs can be a way to develop unity because there is a same
religious faith that binds them.

 Religion serves as a means of validating society and its norms

Religion can affect more than a particular person's habits. These

beliefs and practices can influence an entire community, nation, or
region. Religious practices shape, and are shaped by, the culture
around them. The beliefs, values and ideas of religious traditions have
made, and continue to make, significant contributions to the
development of human societies and cultures. In essence, religions
 provide a frame of reference for understanding the world and for
guiding personal and communal action.

 Religion serves as a force for protest and sociocultural change

Religion as a conservative force means that it keeps things the

same – religion is a force for stability and social order. Religions
promote social change by guiding their followers to share or "live"
their views. By encouraging the outward expression of religious
views, the views become a vehicle for social change. The acceptance
or rejection of the social changes are often tied to personal belief as
well.

6. What kind of relationship exists among religion, traditional and scientific

medicine?

A religious ideology underlying health practices not only

codifies the way people should behave, but also gives an additional
sense of security to those who adhere to the percepts of the religion.
Although religion is an ideology, and religions set is a subset of
ideologies, religions focus on answering the world-view including
afterlife and other things that are not in the materialistic world,
whereas most ideologies focus on providing a world-view about the
materialistic world.

7. Discuss the contribution of faith-based as practiced in various religious

denominations in the Philippines?

Faith-based curing and healing of some serious health problems

such as mental illness and various other visible bodily and
psychosomatic diseases are witnessed among many organized
religious denominations. Since the Filipinos are so much attached in
religion, many of them are into faith-based practices. In traditional
 societies, religion and traditional medicine are highly interconnected.
Traditional religious medical beliefs and practices play significant
roles in the explanation of causes of illness, in the care for patients, in
the treatment of diseases-both physical and psychological and other
misfortunes.

8. How does religion affect the health care seeking behavior of individuals?

Religion affect the behavior of health care seeking individuals

by their beliefs and perspectives. Religious beliefs cause patients to
forego needed medical care, refuse life-saving procedures, and stop
necessary medication, choosing faith instead of medicine. Some
studies indicate that those who are spiritual tend to have a more
positive outlook and a better quality of life. The influence of culture
on health is vast. It affects perceptions of health, illness and death,
beliefs about causes of disease, approaches to health promotion, how
illness and pain are experienced and expressed, where patients seek
help, and the types of treatment patients prefer.