The Concept of Religion

Religion has a long history as a category of human activity. The term, which originated in the Latin religio, means “scrupulous devotion” or “felt obligation”. It was retooled by western scholars to mean an activity of faith or a belief system. The retooling was due in part to the development of a scientific methodology for studying cultures and their myths, stimulated by Renaissance interest in ancient cultures and the voyages to the Americas.

Several social theorists in the nineteenth century studied the concept of religion. Emile Durkheim, for example, analyzed religion in terms of its societal impact and argued that it serves the vital function of creating solidarity within society. Paul Tillich reworked this perspective to define religion as whatever system of values organizes a person’s beliefs and practices (whether or not they involve belief in unusual realities).

The sociologist Max Weber examined the role of the state in defining religious life, holding that the state is essential for maintaining a social order that allows people to live with integrity. The German philosopher Karl Marx (1818-1883) analyzed the relationship between religion and capitalism, believing that religion reflects the stratification of society and serves to maintain an unjust status quo.

It is not surprising that some people have criticized the notion of religion as a social genus by saying that it names a category of human activities that does not exist. These criticisms are based on the classical view that every instance accurately described by a concept must have one or more properties that distinguish it from other instances.