Many people find it difficult to understand why religion is needed today. And this is not surprising, because outside the window is the 21st century, when it seems that all natural phenomena have long been explained from the point of view of science, and the dogmas of Christianity, Islam and other religions have lost all meaning.
But this is only at first glance. If you look deeper into this issue, it turns out that the functions of religion in society today are no less relevant than in the Middle Ages. Let's take things one by one.
How did the first religions begin?
It is impossible to say with complete certainty which religion was the first, most likely it was one of the pagan beliefs. Mankind at the dawn of its formation could not explain the seemingly simple phenomena of nature, whether it be thunder, lightning or wind. So people began to deify nature around them.
This was done with several goals - it was easier to understand nature and control the fear of the unknown. People had their own patron gods, which gave them confidence in everyday life, in war, in campaigns and voyages. This is well seen in the exampleAncient Greece, where every profession had its own supreme patron.
Later, there was a need for new beliefs, the old religions no longer corresponded to the development of society - many of them lacked morality, which led to the decay of society. Partly for this reason, early Christianity spread so rapidly, since in it the functions of religion were clearly spelled out in the form of commandments.
Religion as a deterrent to animal instincts
The basis in any religion is moral teaching, that is, the promotion of positive qualities inherent in man, and the containment of negative ones. Positive characteristics include kindness (love your neighbor as yourself), honesty, sincerity, etc. And negative characteristics include envy, greed, lust and other human vices.
In his teaching, Jesus emphasized the importance of love for one's neighbor, self-sacrifice. His crucifixion is also symbolic, which means not so much the atonement for the sins of all mankind, but self-sacrifice: he gave the most valuable thing he had - his life - for the sake of people. In this way, people were given an example of selflessness.
The social functions of religion in society are to maintain a balance between animal instincts and human qualities. And one of the key tasks of religion is to regulate human behavior so that he does not succumb to his weaknesses and do something bad.
Worldview function of religion
Human consciousnessarranged in such a way that it requires a clear explanation of the surrounding world. From the moment of birth until death, a person strives to learn new things and find an explanation for everything that he sees. But not everything around us could be explained logically until recently, and even today there are inexplicable things. Religion took on this ideological task, instilling norms of behavior on the example of biblical characters and showing what can happen if these norms are violated.
Until the twentieth century, no one doubted the educational function of religion, and only with the fall of morality did many negative labels begin to be attached to faith. We will not deny that today Christianity itself is already violating its own commandments, but one cannot but admit that in its original form it brought order and organization to society, providing a stable support for its development.
Also, do not forget that it is important for a person to live a meaningful life, and for many, faith in higher powers gave and gives such meaning.
The unifying role of faith
One of the functions of religion is to unite people, to unite them within society. It is for this reason that people turn to faith at times of crisis in history. The simplest example: during the war, when not only the solidarity of people is required, but also the raising of their military spirit. Even during the Great Patriotic War, this was remembered, although the very ideology of communism denies the existence of God as such!
But there are negative examples in history - the Crusades orjihad (translated as "holy war"). Under good intentions, terrible military conflicts unleashed, leading to many casu alties and destruction. And it cannot be said that all this is in the past and will never happen again.
Compensatory function of religion
From time immemorial, people came to temples in search of solace, trying to drown out inner pain. This is the function of religion in society as an outlet for a person, where he can calmly speak out and find peace. The priest in this case performs to some extent the role of a psychologist, and to some extent - an intermediary between God and man. After all, it is on his behalf that he forgives sins and gives advice to the penitent, thereby giving him relief.
Of course, today not so many people come to church in search of consolation, however, it cannot be said that the function of religion as a compensator for mental suffering has been lost. It has survived, though not as obvious to many today. Part of her role is played by psychologists, providing the necessary psychological assistance to those who need it.
Religion and marriage
According to statistics, up to 80% of marriages today break up. Moreover, the majority in the first few years of their life together, young people simply cannot stand living together.
Why is this happening now, but it did not happen in pre-revolutionary Russia or under the USSR? After all, it would seem that life has become much easier than a century ago, but the number of divorces continuesrise and the birth rate falls. And note that this happens mainly in traditionally Christian countries, and not in Muslim ones, where the functions of religion in human life have not lost their relevance, and the commandments are strictly observed today.
The answer suggests itself: young people entering into marriage do not take this step with due seriousness. For many, the words "both in sorrow and in joy" do not carry the proper meaning, but remain just words. At the first difficulty, they file for divorce, and more often this is done by women who, logically, should be interested in preserving the family.
It used to be different: getting married, people understood that they would have to live together all their lives. And the dominant role of the husband in the family was confirmed not only by the very fact that it was he who played the main role of the breadwinner in the family, but also by religion. No wonder there was an expression "Husband from God", that is, given to a woman as a husband once and forever.
Managing life through religion
Faith gave not only guidelines for correct behavior and logical meaningfulness of life, but also performed a managerial function in society. It regulated relationships in society in various social groups and between them. I tried to reconcile the rich and the poor, thereby preventing the development of social conflicts.
Summarize
Having analyzed what functions religion performs in society, one can understand why religions not only arose, but were also actively supported by the state. Through faith in the life of a simple manmeaning appeared and order was maintained in society itself, and this made it possible for its full development, at least until some historical period.
In our time, religion performs the same functions as centuries ago. And we must admit that even with the development of technology, humanity is not able to do without it.
