SOC 201 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: Antireligion
Document Summary
Once, on about the third day of the semester, a student in my introductory sociology class walked up to me and said, sociology is the work of the devil. But had he given me the chance, i would have told him that i disagreed with his assessment. In fact, i am sure that the devil hates sociology more than most things. It is true that sociology emerged at a time in history when many individuals (including some sociologists) were questioning the authority of religious leaders. It is likewise true that a few of those early sociologists even thought that sociology might someday replace religion. But there is nothing inherently antireligious about sociology. Of course, the skepticism and questioning attitude of sociologists do threaten some people in authority. Whether that is a bad thing is for you to judge. In any case, as i will discuss shortly, whether something is good or bad is not a proper sociological question.
