Two types of way that religion reinforces
social solidarity
the outcome is important but out of control- he done a
study on Trobriand Islands with the contrast of fishing in
the lagoon and ocean
Lagoon- this is safe and certain, there is
no ritual required
Ocean- rituals needed and is uncertain.
the ritual gives them a sense of
confidence and eases the tension.
life crises such as puberty, chid birth and death
death- funerals reinforces the feeling of solidarity, it makes them
more aware and appreciative of religion
Agrees with Durkhime that it promotes
solidarity but also helps to deal with
stress
Parson: Value and Meaning
Like Malinowski- religion helps to deal
with stress and has come up with 2 other
positive functions of religion
1. Creates a central values
2. Primary source of meaning
society's norms are legitimised through
sacred meanings
religion provides a sense of meaning to the world and answers the
ultimate questions e.g. what happens after death
Bellah: Civil Religion
Civil religion intergrates its members better than individual religion.
American civil religion involves: loyalty to nation state + Believe in
God= a true American
to express their beliefs they would sing national anthems 'one
nation under God'
However their God is different from religious God, rather an 'American
God' this is sacred as it binds the Americans together through their
shared beliefs
Alternative Functions
Religion is not the only source that provides it's members with collectivism, other social
groups may perform similar functions
shared norms and values and maintaining social cohesion
Bellah- other belief systems could perform the same
functions as religion.
Nazi has a shared beliefs of Jews but was
not seen to be a religion