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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 4 page paper examines religion with a focus on Durkheim's ideas on the sacred, profane and on rituals as well. Examples are provided. Bibliography lists 3 sources.
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4 pages (~225 words per page)
File: RT13_SA510D.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
of freedom of religion. At least, the settlers came to the New World to escape religious persecution. Hence, the U.S. is by no means a secular state even though there
is no official religion. Religion is taken seriously, despite the fact that there is no proof to support any of its assumptions. In a modern world where science is accepted
as fact, and religion as something unproved, it is nevertheless held high. In fact, many people claim that they are spiritual or religious and that their religion is the most
important thing to them. Yet, in looking at religion sociologically, one subscribes to the notion that religion serves a function. Why are people religious? If it were just a matter
of belief, they would not engage in rituals or hold concepts to extreme degrees. In examining religion, Durkheim contributes a great deal to the sociology of religion. For Durkheim,
the sacred and profane are opposites and something that religion fundamentally defines (Durham, 2001). In other words, there is a dichotomy in religion. Everything is good and bad, or right
and wrong. There seems to be no middle ground. It seems that for this author, "the primary characteristic of religion is that it divides the world into the two domains
of sacred and profane" (2001). One can see that this is exhibited in many religions today. If someone does not believe in a particular sects teachings for example, some congregants
will say that the individual is going to hell. There is a sense of intolerance and things are black and white. Durkheims explanation of what is meant by sacred
is that it is aligned with spirit and God and things of that nature (Durham, 2001). Anything that is not sacred is then considered profane (2001). Ramp (2004) explains: "Durkheims
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