SOSA 1003 Lecture Notes - Lecture 25: Collective Effervescence, Socialized Medicine, Zbigniew Brzezinski

• School: Dalhousie University
• Department: Soc & Social Anthropology
• Course: SOSA 1003
• Professor: Falconer C.

Document Summary

Sosa 1003 lecture 25 november 21, 2018 religion. In 1902, psychologist william james observed that religion is the common human response to the fact that we all stand at the edge of an abyss. It helps believers to cope with the terrifying fact that we all must die. It offers believers immortality, the promise of better times to come, and the security of benevolent spirits who watch over believers. It provides meaning and purpose in a world that might otherwise seem cruel and senseless. The motivation for religion may be psychological, as james argued. However, the content and intensity of religious beliefs, and the form and frequency of religious practices, are influenced by the structure of society and a person"s place in it. As a sociological observation, the idea that god is dead is preposterous. Eight out of ten canadians say they believe in god or a universal spirit.