RLG100Y1 Chapter Notes - Chapter Frazer and Anthropological Approaches to Religion: James George Frazer, Omnipotence
Document Summary
During the period of the enlightenment in the nineteenth century, many notable scholars tackled the concept of religion in order to understand how it originated and came to rule society and the minds of its people. While this may seem as though he is diminishing the importance of religion, it is quite the contrary. Frazer acknowledges how crucial religion is to society and admits that it does, in fact, serve a great purpose in the everyday lives of people. Religion is able to connect communities of people through rituals, ceremonies, and with one set of scripture that encourages morality and altruism to one"s neighbours. Although frazer understood this, he believed that religious people attempt to use the idea of a higher power as compensation for the unexplainable and as a way to shed responsibility for the things they can not control.
