The religious component of human lifesocieties are always more or less directly related to social processes. To determine the nature of this influence, you need to figure out what social functions religion performs.
The role of religion in society
Religious traditions affect the individual andsociety in many ways. The nature of this impact is not constant and varies from place to place and over time. However, in any case, it determines the results of such an impact, which researchers define as the social functions of religion. The latter are understood to mean the whole range of consequences of religious influence, which has its place in a wide variety of historical conditions.
The degree of influence of religion on society
Place of religious teachings in the life of society -variable value. For example, in the Middle Ages, religiosity penetrated into all civil institutions, having a direct impact on secular institutions: administrative apparatus, military institutions, professional associations, the arts, etc. Today, the Western world is much more secularized, therefore, analyzing what social functions religion performs in society today, we must proceed from the fact that religion has been ousted from many spheres of life. This is true for the developed countries of the so-called first world, but not for the states of Africa or, say, the Middle East, where religious values still play a primary role in the organization of society.
Marxist theory of the social functions of religion
At the moment, sociology, likeReligious studies do not have a specific standard of criteria with which to approach the study of what public functions religion performs. For example, according to a sociological theory focused on the authority of Karl Marx, the role of religion is evaluated in connection with its influence on the progress of society. In other words, when asked about the public functions of a religion, the short answer depends on the assessment of its obstacles or the promotion of social progress. As is well known, Marx himself compared this function in the modern world with opium. But at the same time, he (like Friedrich Engels) recognized the enormous creative role of early Christianity and Protestantism, which allowed, in his opinion, to bring public life to a new, higher level in terms of progress in social relations.
Thus, Marxist sociology speaks of the two main functions of religion — revolutionary and reactionary.
Social Functions of Religion by Erich Fromm
Another set of criteria for determining functionsreligion offered an outstanding philosopher and sociologist from America Erich Fromm. Exploring what public functions religion performs, he identifies two from the whole of their spectrum, which, in his opinion, are common to all religious teachings of the world - humanistic and authoritarian.
Humanistic function of religion
Humanist function fromm puts independence on such a religious system that emphasizes the value of human existence itself. As a result, such a religion stimulates the inner growth of the individual and society. In general, this function contributes to the development of intellectual, cognitive, ethical and other resources of the individual and society. A logical consequence of its consistent implementation Fromm saw a society in which the ideas of the unity of the world, nature and humanity dominate. Fromm’s list of such religions includes the teachings of Buddha (early), Christianity, and a number of other religious doctrines, such as Taoism.
The authoritarian function of religion
But to fully understand what kind of publicfunctions are performed by religion, briefly you need to touch on the second role, marked by Fromm, which is called authoritarian. Its nature is based on the doctrinal statement of a higher power, in comparison with which a person is recognized as the beginning weak and helpless. Unlike the humanistic type of religiosity, where the main attention is taken by man and his development, authoritarian religiosity places on the individual and society as a whole the burden of worship, creeping before a deity. Such a religion ascribes all the best to God, and all low qualities to a person, thereby robbing the creative, intellectual and moral potential of humanity. In a society formed by such a religion, a sense of fear and guilt is cultivated. Joy and freedom acquire shades of sinfulness in him, and obedience is proclaimed the main virtue.
Striking example of this kind of religion in the worldis Islam, and for modern Russia a vivid example of an authoritarian cult is the Russian Orthodox Church, whose mainstream spiritual culture proclaims the principle of “obedience above fast and prayer” and in fact declares repentance as the main work of faith.
On the other hand, it is important to note that religionsFromm is not strictly divided into two camps. Without exception, all cults carry the potential for the manifestation of both humanistic and authoritarian functions. It is the nature of specific historical conditions that determines what social functions religion performs. The same Buddhism, as well as Christianity, at different stages of its development, in different conditions, played both humanistic and authoritarian roles.
Other functions
Along with, so to speak, global functionsreligions, denoted by Marx and Fromm, you can specify the more private, local. Among them, the first will be followed by the function of satisfying purely spiritual needs - the need for faith, mystical experiences, etc. The second function is ethical. It allows you to regulate the ethical norms of human society, claiming them with their authority and preventing their violation.
Another function is related to spiritual andemotional anesthesia. Religious faith gives hope and encouragement in a situation of unhappiness and grief - both the individual and society as a whole. In conclusion, we can also note the ideological function - religion plays the role of the ideological bond of society, developing patriotic and other sentiments of the population.
