...Religion is often seen as conservative in the sense of being ‘traditional’, defending traditional customs, institutions, moral views and roles. Religion upholds traditional beliefs about how society should be organised. Religion is also seen as conservative because it functions to conserve or preserve things as they are. It stabilises society and maintains the status quo. The view of religion is held by functionalists, Marxists, and feminists. Although each of these perspectives see the role of religion differently, all of them argue that it contributes to social stability. Functionalists see religion as a conservative force because it functions to maintain social stability and prevent society from disintegrating. For example, as Parson stated; it promotes social solidarity by creating value consensus, thus reducing the likelihood of society collapsing through individuals perusing their own selfish interests at the expense of other. It also helps individuals to deal with stresses that would otherwise disrupt the life of society. Durkheim, another sociologist shares his view that the sacred symbols represent society’s collective conscience, which is the shared norms, values beliefs and knowledge that make social life and cooperation between individuals possible- without these society would disintegrate. For Durkheim, regular shared religion rituals reinforce the collective conscience and maintain social integration. Participating in shared rituals binds individuals together...
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...Religion can be both a conservative force and an initiator of social change”. To what extent to sociological arguments/evidence support this view. The view that religion acts as a conservative force stems from the structuralist theories of Functionalism and Marxism. Both see religion as facilitating the existence of society in its current form, although their views do differ substantially. For the Functionalist Emile Durkheim, religion, like many other social institutions, acts in the same way as one of the body’s vital organs, in that it “keeps society alive”. In other words, religion has a number of functions that serve the purpose of maintaining social stability and harmony. For example, functionalists believe that through the act of collective worship in the form of religious practices, religion helps bond and unite individuals; it acts as a “social glue” that promotes value consensus and social solidarity. Functionalists see religion as a conservative force in that it helps to integrate individuals and allows them to realise the “collective conscience” (a set of moral codes and values). In contrast, Marxists see religion as acting as a conservative force by preventing revolutionary change. In Marx’s words, “religion dampens the flames of working class revolution”; acting as an “opiate” which makes a life of ruling class oppression more bearable. For example, Engels claimed that the appeal of Christianity lies in the hope of “salvation from bondage and misery”. Those who...
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...Function of Religion Is to Promote Social Stability – (33 Marks) The main sociologists that support the view that the main functions of religious beliefs is to promote social stability are functionalists. They believe that religion performs functions and helps society, this is because society’s most basic need is the need for social order and solidarity so that its members can cooperate and to do this there needs to be value consensus, which without this individuals in society would pursue their own selfish desires and society would disintegrate. One functionalist that supports this argument is Durkheim which he states that religion and its institutions play a central part in creating and maintaining value consensus, order and solidarity. He distinguishes the difference between the sacred and the profane. He says that the sacred are the things set apart and forbidden that inspire feelings of awe, fear and wonder and are surrounded by taboos and prohibitions. By contrast, the profane are things that have no special significance. Therefore a religion is never simply a set of beliefs. It also involves definite rituals or practices on relation to the sacred and these rituals are collective which are performed by social groups. The fact that sacred things create such powerful feelings, Durkheim suggests this is because they are symbols representing something of great power and he says that this great power is society itself. Even though sacred symbols vary from religion to religion...
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...Religion is generally described as either a conservative force or a force for change within society. If religion is a conservative force, it means that it leaves society unchanged and functions to maintain the status quo. This is seen as a good thing by many theorists but undesirable by others. In contrast, religion as a force for change within society means that it is an active force that changes society. Functionalist, Marxists and Feminists would view religion as a conservative force, whereas, Neo-Marxists and those who support Weber’s view of religion, would see it as a force for social change. Functionalists see religion as a good conservative force in society. For example, after studying the Aborigines, Durkheim, a consensus theorist, concluded that it promoted collective consciousness, integration and social solidarity. Malinowski, who studied the Trobriand Islanders, found that religion is what helped believers during the crises of life - birth, death and marriage - these events caused stress and anxiety and religion helps the individual deal with these emotions, the individual is then stabilised and any threat the unstable individual might have posed to the group is wiped away. In contrast to Durkheim and Malinowski, Parsons claimed that religion promotes consensus by doing two things; it answers the big questions in life and society’s laws usually reflect religious laws. For example, questions like ‘how was the earth created?’ and ‘is there life after death?’ can...
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...the view that religion was once mainly a conservative influence but today is more a force for social change (30 marks) In the past religions role as a conservative force was portrayed by the monarchy, ruling the divine rights in medieval Europe, and the Egyptian pharaohs were considered as almost God-like figures and so no one questioned their authority. Feminists and Marxists both agree that religion is a conditioning device that oppresses people, diluting the demand for social change to protect the interests of the men and the ruling class. This is partially supported by the Functionalist approach, Durkheim expressed the belief that religion provides social cement, reinforcing traditional beliefs chosen by religious moral code; such as the 10 commandments for Christianity, for the good of society. However there are numerous examples of ways where religion has acted as a force of change, such as the war in Palestine, the wars in former Yugoslavia and in a positive way, the actions of religious leaders, such as Ghandi and Martin Luther King. In today’s society religion has acted as both a conservative force and a force of social change, as shown by ‘Islamic Fundamentalists’ in Iran and Afghanistan, and Christian fundamentalism reintroducing the teachings of creationism in the US. Religion is also seen to be a conservative force because it functions to preserve things as they are, it stabilises society and maintains status quo. Most religions have conservative moral beliefs...
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...“Religion can be both a conservative force and an initiator of social change” to what extent do sociological arguments and evidence support this view? Sociologists such as Durkheim and Marx have argued that religion is a conservative force in the sense that it maintains the status quo, disagreeing with sociologists such as Weber and Gramsci who say it is a more radical force and prompts change, and even some fundamentalist groups have gotten involved to argue that religion is conservative in the sense that it keeps tradition and the old ways. Even feminists such as De Beauvoir have had a say in this matter. Functionalists and Marxists have the general consensus that religion maintains the status quo within society rather than it causing social change. They believe that religion acts as a conservative force preventing social change. However, if any change happens it is due to the changes in society that shape religion. Religion as a conservative force can be defined in two ways; the first way of defining religion as a conservative force is to refer to religion as preventing change and maintaining the status quo. The functionalist perspective and Marxists perspective both provide arguments to support this definition of religion as a conservative force. Durkheim supports the idea that religion is a conservative force with his idea of a collective conscience, which is the shared morals and beliefs uniting society. Durkheim believed that "religion promotes social solidarity."...
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...to whether sociologists believe religion does or does not inhibit social change will be discussed throughout this essay. Whereas sociologists such as Functionalist and Marxists believe that religion acts as a conservative force, thus inhibiting social change whether that is positive or negative, others believe that religion is a radical force and a major contributor to social change Firstly, functionalists believe that religion socialises its members through promoting shared norms, values and morals which prevent change as it promotes integrity and social solidarity. Functionalists such as Durkheim and Parsons argue that life is impossible without the shared norms, values and morals enforced in society and without them, believe that society would fail. Durkheim sees religion as having traditional conservative beliefs about moral issues and many oppose changes that would allow individuals more freedom in their personal lives for example, the Catholic Church forbids divorce and abortion etc. This supports the idea that religion inhibits change because it upholds the functionalist ideology of ‘family values’ and often favour the more traditional and out-dated ideas of family such as the patriarchal domestic division of labour. However, it is hard to see how religion can socialise the majority of society and stop social change from happening when in today’s society, only a minority of people regularly attend church or believe in a traditional religion. Furthermore, Functionalist...
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... a) Identify and briefly explain some of the ways in which religion could be said to ‘exert social control over the members of society’ (June2006) b) Identify and briefly explain some of the ways in which functionalists see religion meeting the needs of society and / or individuals. (June 2007) New syllabus: 12 mark questions a)Using material from item a and elsewhere, briefly examine the extent to which religion can still be said to be functional for individuals and society (June 2002) b) Briefly examine the evidence and or arguments in favour of the view that religion can act as a force for change in society (June 2006) c) Briefly examine post-modernist views on the nature and role of religion (June 2007) NEW SYLLABUS: 40 mark essay questions • Assess the role and functions of religious institutions and movements in contemporary society. (40) Sample A2 paper (Issued May 2000) • Evaluate the view that religion acts as a conservative force in modern society (40) Jun 2001 “The main function of religion is to provide people with a code of behaviour which regulates personal and social life.” Assess the extent to which sociological arguments and evidence support this view of religion in modern society (40) January 2002 Assess and evaluate the relationship between religion and social change. (40) Jan 2003 Assess the view that in most societies, religion functions more to cause conflict than to bring about harmony...
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...view that religion is a force for social change. (18 marks) Sociologist take different views on the role of religion on society. Functionalist sociologist such as Parsons argue that religion serves to help its members by providing answers and comforting them through challenging period in their life. Whereas Marxist and feminist believe that religion acts as a conservative force for society, in order to prevent social change. Weber argues that religion can be a force of social change. From his study of the ‘protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism’, he argues that Calvinist beliefs helped to bring about major social change, in particular developing capitalism in Northern Europe. Calvinist led an ascetic lifestyle by working long hours, practising self-discipline and shunning all luxuries. As a consequence of their hard work they became wealthier, leading them to take this as a sign of God’s favour and their salvation. Weber argues that the acquisition of more and more money is the spirit of modern capitalism. Therefore this shows that the religious Calvinist beliefs played a major part in the emergence of capitalism into the world. However other sociologist argue that religion is a conservative force as is aims to preserve and stabilises society, which in turn maintains the status quo. Although Marxist and feminist have different views on the role of religion they both agree that it contributes to social stability. Marxist argue that religion is a conservative ideology...
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...Sociologists suggest that there is a relationship between religion and social change but there are two main arguments. One is that religion has not helped or contributed to social change as some sociologists as that religion is a conservative force, which believe in traditional values and beliefs about moral issues and that they oppose changes that would allow individuals more freedom in personal and sexual matters. For example the Catholic Church which forbid divorce, abortion and artificial contraception. Most religion’s as a conservative force also uphold ‘family values’ and often favour a traditional patriarchal domestic division of labour. Keeping roles separate and traditional, this shows that it is not acting as a force for social change and that it would like to keep things all traditional. Similarly it can act as a conservative force as it functions to preserve things as they are. It stabilise society and maintains the status quo. Functionalists argue that religion does this by it maintaining social stability and preventing society from disintegrating. Marxists and feminists believe that religion is an ideology that supports the social structure and acts as a means of social control, creating stability in the interests of the powerful, which helps to maintain the status quo by preventing the less powerful from changing this. Marx also sees religion as it prevents the working class from uprising and therefore helping to maintain the stability of capitalist society...
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...How Far Is Religion a Conservative Force? (33 marks). In the views of functionalism, neo-functionalism, feminism, and Marxism, religion is a conservative force that prevents social change from happening and maintains the current status quo. Yet neo-Marxism and Weber contrast this view by saying religion is used as a force for social change, while post-modernism argues we have the ability to ‘pick and mix’ our religion with the growth of new-age religions. This is all then contrasted by fundamentalism, which looks to bring about social change to take society back to biblical traditions and values. Before we try and figure out if religion is a conservative force or not, we should first define the difference between substantive and functional definitions in sociology: substantive definitions are more concerned with looking at what makes religion distinctive, while functional definitions look at how it is that religion contributes to society as a whole. Starting with functionalism, this is supported by Durkheim, Malinowski and Parsons, this views religion as a conservative force. Durkheim split all items into two different categories: the sacred and the profane. The sacred items were ‘special, unworldly and forbidden’, while all other ‘normal’ objects were just profane, such as a chair. Specifically, Durkheim focused his research on the Aborigines. He found that their Totems were sacred (a Totem was a carved animal), and they were often carved from bull roar wood, the most sacred...
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...Asses the view that religion was mainly a conservative influence but today is more of a force social change (33 marks) Weber sees religion as a form of social change as he believes it brought about modern capitalism. He uses the example of Calvinists. Calvinism was a new religion formed where they believed God had predetermined idea of who would go to heaven and who would hell. This caused panic within the believers and as a coping mechanism they lived and ascetic lifestyle and reinvested their money to prove that they were worthy to be one of the chosen souls that got to heaven. This created modern capitalism as Calvinists would work to the top and reinvest their money into themselves instead of disrupting wealth equally, forming a class society. One criticism of Weber is that it was not the Calvinist belief system that brought about the capitalist attitudes that he claims but rather an alternative to earn money as they were excluded from society and professions. However that could be countered as other religious minorities were excluded and didn’t exceed bringing about modern capitalism like Calvinists did. Functionalists however would completely disagree with Weber as they see religion as a conservative force as they believe it maintains social stability. It is argued that religion performs this function by creating value consensus so people are less likely to pursue their own selfish interest, bringing a risk of society collapsing. For example in the biblical scripture it...
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...Critically examine the relationship between religion and social change (33 marks) In relation to social change, some theories have argued that religion is a conservative force and acts to prevent change and keep society stable. This is the view held by earlier theories that stressed the role of institutions in shaping human behaviour and maintaining the stability of society, such as Functionalism and Marxism. Religion is also seen as conservative because it is traditional; defending traditional customs and moral views, for example. Functionalists view religion as a conservative force, preventing social change. Durkheim believed that religion performs an important function for society, binding people together like ‘social cement’ preventing anomie. Religion provides a set of moral values that form the collective conscience, ensuring social stability. This is where religion unifies people which leads to conformity which then makes behaviour predictable. Religion also answers eternal questions such as ‘why the good die young’ and ‘why do people suffer’ in Christian for example, helping to prevent social change. Durkheim studied totemism among Australian Aboriginal tribes. Totems are a symbol of a set of beliefs. This can be anything from an object to an animal and is treated with the highest respect by those that follow the set of beliefs or religion. For example, it is similar to the crucifix for Christians which explains why they uphold traditional beliefs in society, preventing...
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...“Religion poisons everything” Religion can be defined as the human need for meaning and purpose of life which is concerned with the supernatural power of the creator, the inevitable forces of the natural and spiritual world and how we interact with mysterious forces. It is a society or community based on similar beliefs, friendship, companionship and support network. Religion has made significant contributions to the lives of individuals as well as society as a whole. Religion proposals an individual’s answers to life’s philosophical questions. It explains the story of creation, human nature and the purpose of life. Also, it gives the individual an identity within a certain religion. It gives the person a logic of belonging which helps for them to understand what their role in life is and the nature around them. Religion has made significant contributions to the life of a person in areas such as the personal search of meaning, ethical guidance, sense of belonging and ritual meaning. These areas have specifically impacted on individuals. The primarily contribution would be the personal search for meaning. A person examines for a better understanding of key questions in life. These questions of life include a human’s origin, purpose and destiny. People will look at religions at times of many diverse situations where they want to discover the answers to their questions particularly during times of personal trauma or crisis. E.g. someone who might be struggling with family problems...
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...establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercises thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” Many people believe that the first amendment clearly states that there is a separation between the church and state, however that language is not included in the first amendment; rather Thomas Jefferson described the separation in a personal letter to church leaders in Connecticut where he states that the first amendment erects “ a wall of separation between church and state.” The main point of contention for people interpreting the portion of the first amendment dealing with religion is the difference between the conservative and liberal points of view. The conservative view point of the first amendment, as spoken by Ronald Reagan, is that “ to those who cite the first amendment for the reason for excluding god from more and more of our institutions and everyday life, may I just say; The first amendment of the constitution was not meant to protect people of this country from religious values; it was written to protect religious values from government tyranny.” The liberal perspective more closely mirrors the perspective of Thomas Jefferson who was quoted in his 1802 letter which referenced that there should be a wall between religion and government. Those subscribing to the liberal view point would like no reference or role of religion in all of government...
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