RELIGION

Learning Ojectives
 Define Religion
 Identify the elements of religion
 Define each elements of religion
 Identify and define religious beliefs or types
 To explain Rituals and Prayer
 To outline the characteristics of religious
organisation
Religion
 What is Religion?
 Religion can be defined in many ways. It exists in
all societies. In the Caribbean, there are a vast
variety of Religious Institutions . This variety of
institutions has been handed down as a result of
colonialism, slavery, indentureship.
Definitions of Religion
 Durkheim defines religion as a unified system of
beliefs and practices relative to sacred things.
 Bruce, ( 1995,pg.7) referred to religion as
consisting of beliefs, actions and institutions which
assume the existence of supernatural entities with
powers of actions and impersonal powers or
processes possessed of moral purpose.
 Both definition suggest that religion is associated
with Sacredness.
 Tischler ( 2002) sees religion as a system of beliefs,
practices and philosophical values shared by a
group of people; it defines the sacred, helps explain
life and offer salvation from problems of human
existence.
 Giddens (2001)claims that religion involves a set of
symbols invoking feelings of reverence or awe, and
is linked to rituals or ceremonials ( such as church
services) engaged in by a community of believers.
Elements/ Features of Religion
 Tischler claimed that all religion share common
sets of elements: beliefs/ types, ritual and prayer
and religious institutions
Religious Beliefs/ types
 Are the things we hold to be true.
 They are mainly associated with a supernatural
power or powers.
 They offer guidelines on how we should behave.
 They serve to justify our behaviours.
Some ideas associated with religious beliefs

 Concern about the origin of life.

 Concern about what our purposes on earth
 Concern about what happens after death
Types of Religious Beliefs/ Types of Religion

 They include: supernaturalism, Animism, Naturism,

Theism, Abstract Ideals.
 Supernaturalism: Belief in spirits. They believe that these
supernatural forces has the potential to influence human
behaviour.
 It often found in the small traditional societies.
 Spirits are used to explained all aspects of life.
 These supernatural forces can influence both animate (people,
trees, animals) and inanimate ( Places, table, chairs, books)
objects
 They tend to function on their own
Cont’d Supernaturalism
 The belief in the supernatural is common In
Melanesia, which comprises areas of the south pacific
such as the Papau, New Guinea.
 Melanesia refer to spirits as mana ( a sacred
impersonal force existing in the universe). To
illustrate, if a man or woman has many children, they
have good mana. On the other hand, if they are
childless or have unhealthy children, they have bad
mana.
Animism
 Belief in the clearly defined supernatural beings such
as spirits or demons.
 They believe that sprits/ghost co- exist with human in
the world.
 Spirits may be seen in everything- trees, animals,
mountains, volcanoes- and the belief is that one can be
invaded by these spirits and used for either good or evil
 It is not limited to primitive societies, it is also evident
in modern societies when people worship the devil or
fear ghost.
Naturalism
 Belief in things of nature. E.g. worship of the sun
the moon and the stars.
Theism
 Belief in a god or gods who are seen as controlling
all human activities and who reveal themselves to
humans in various ways
 These divine encounters are believed to offer
human an understanding of the universe and are
recorded as myths in holy books.
Cont’d of Theism
 There are two types of Theism; Monotheism and
Polytheism.
 Monotheism is the belief in a single god. Some of

the world most famous and powerful religions are

monotheistic. For example, Christianity.
Polytheism: Belief in many gods or goddesses. For
example, Hinduism.
Abstract Ideals
 Focus on correct thinking and behaviour that
facilitates the achievement of personal goals
 They do not subscribe to the manipulation of spirits
and worship of god or gods
 Buddhism: it places emphasis on meditation rather
than worshipping god or belief in spirits
Religious Rituals and Prayer
 Practices by members of a religion to maintain their
relationship with their god , gods or spirits.
 Ceremonial or formal solemn acts used in accordance
with some rule or custom and are practised to reaffirm
religious belief.
 some examples of rituals. Attending pray meetings, fasting;
seventh day believe in the keeping the Sabbath holy. Also,
the belief that water baptism by many religious institution
including the Pentecostal church that it is the only way a
person becomes a true Christian is if he or she is born again.
 Religious rituals convey unique meanings to its
members and they may be interpreted differently
by members of society. E.g. Saying the Rosary
( Catholic)
 Rituals may consist of prayer ( are examples of
private acts)
 It ( prayer) serves as a medium of communication
with these unknown forces and the supernatural.
 It may be performed quietly or aloud and may include
formalised bodily postures and gestures.
 Both rituals and prayers are reflective of the values
and beliefs of the particular religion
 Both rituals and prayers develop according to the
culture of the society.
 E.g Muslims in Trinidad practice the ritual of a 40 day
ceremony following the death of a relative but in the
Middle East where Islam is also practice, the ritual is
not customary.
This shows that some religion can be expressed
differently in terms of rituals and prayers depending
on the society and culture in which it is practice.
Religious Institutions/ organisation
 Many are arranged along the lines of organizational
structures.
 Many have a well-defined structure through which
individuals are selected and trained into becoming
religious specialists. The selection and training
processes vary according to the organisation.
 These structures tend to be hierarchal with religious
leaders at the helm
 These organisation serve to foster and solidify the
relationship between members of the religion
 They also serve as a means of promoting the
religion to community
Most sociology text prefer to discuss religion in the
narrow confines of the Christian tradition,
referring only to the many faiths of associated with
Christianity.
 Religious institutions /organisations include:

church, denomination, cult and sect.

Reference
 Chinapoo, C, James, N & Lee- Paiseley ( 2014)
CAPE Sociology: Unit 1&2. Edinburgh Gate ,
Harlow: Pearson Education limited.
 Mustapha, N (2014) Sociology for Caribbean
Students ( 2nd edition). Kingston, Jamaica: Ian
Randle Publishers