Religion is a broad concept that encompasses many beliefs and practices. It is an important part of people’s lives. The word religion is often used to describe Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Shinto, and others. It also includes more general concepts like morality, spiritual experiences and worship. It is sometimes used to describe a group of people, such as a country’s population or a particular social class. The term religion has become controversial in recent years because of debates over what it really means.
The most common definitions of religion include some form of belief in a God or gods, a belief in miracles and a belief that there is an afterlife. These are often referred to as “substantive” definitions because they determine membership in the category of religion by the presence of a belief in a distinctive kind of reality. Throughout history, one has also seen the emergence of other, less-frequently used definitions of religion. These “functional” definitions drop the substantive element and define religion in terms of a specific role that a form of life can play in people’s lives–in other words, they are essentially taxonomies.
For example, Emile Durkheim, a pioneer in the sociology of religion, defines religion as whatever system of practices unite a number of people into a single moral community (whether or not these systems involve beliefs in unusual realities). Other scholars have defined religion more simply as the dominant concerns that organize a person’s values.
Most scholars agree that the word religion derives from the Latin religio, meaning “carefully taken in hand.” Some think that it is related to legere, the ancient practice of careful reading. Others favor other derivations, such as that of Cicero in his “De Natura Deorum” (“On Nature of the Gods”), II, xxviii: “The divine things are to be carefully and thoroughly studied.”
While the debate over the nature of religion continues, it is clear that religious practices have always been important to people. They are a powerful force in their lives, influencing their beliefs and attitudes.
For most adults, religion is a very important part of their lives. This chapter looks at why, examining the importance of different religious beliefs and practices, including prayer, congregational activities, spiritual experiences, and morality. It also explores how exclusive people are in their claims to salvation and examines beliefs about God, Scripture and miracles.
The chapter also discusses the various degrees of importance that Americans assign to religion and analyzes how their religious beliefs are influenced by their family, education level, and ethnicity. It concludes by describing how religious practices, such as worship and other congregational activities, are practiced – scrupulously, generously, devotedly, ecstatically, superstitiously, puritanically, ritualistically, or in some other way. A mnemonic device that might help people remember all the ways in which things can be done religiously is to add a fourth C to Smart’s three-sided model of the true, the beautiful, and the good: the material.