An Invitation To The Study Of World Religions Essay Example

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What do Religions do?
In an age where secular humanism is on the rise, many persons have questioned the purpose of religion. Some have even questioned if it is even worthwhile to study world religions. Today, religions are, at times, seen as not being relevant in a world that does not see relying on a Supreme Being to accomplish anything as a necessity. However, there are many that can put forward the argument that religions still have a place in the Twenty-first Century. This is because religion is still relied on by millions of people to provide explanations to intellectual problems that are difficult to understand. Ellwood argues that although in the past religion was seen as being superstitious, the “progress” made in science makes it easy to find out if the “religious concepts” are important to society or not (291). Furthermore, Cris Campbell explains that religion has the ability to connect society (par. 1). Campbell explains that it does this through the use of rituals (par. 1). In addition, religion is important in coping with fear and other strong emotions. Freud argued that the “function of religion” was to deal with “fear” and to “serve other emotional needs” (Campbell par. 1). Finally, religions are important in helping a person “interpret life events” and to gain a “sense of meaning and purpose” (Campbell par. 5). In other words, religions are important in providing a person with a sense of direction, and help him to make sense of whatever is taking place around him.

Works Cited

Campbell, Cris. “The Many Functions of Religions.” Genealogy of Religion. 2010. Web. 13 Jan. 2016. <http://genealogyreligion.net/the-many-functions-of-religions>.
Ellwood, Charles A. “The Social Function of Religion.” American Journal of Sociology 19.3 (1913): 289-307. Print.