Religion as a conservative force - SlideShare.
Functionalists, Marxists and Feminists have generally dismissed the idea that religion can cause social change in society. Functionalist Emile Durkheim supports the idea of religion as a conservative force with the idea of a collective conscience, which is the shared morals and beliefs which unite society.As would be expected, many sociologists have took the middle ground, and argue that religion can act as both as conservative force, and an initiator of change. The view that religion acts as a conservative force stems from the structuralist theories of Functionalism and Marxism.Feminist also believe religion being a conservative force is a negative force because it legitimates patriarchal power and maintains women’s subordination. Religion can be seen as a conservative force as well as being force for change, the most famous of these being Max Weber study of the protestant ethic and spirit of capitalism.
Religion as a conservative force can be defined in two ways; the first way of defining religion as a conservative force is to refer to religion as preventing change and maintaining the status quo. The functionalist perspective and Marxists perspective both provide arguments to support this definition of religion as a conservative force.In the end we can say that, religion is indeed a conservative force as well as a force which brings about change. This position is supported by the evidence which has been put forward in support of both views. It shows that religion has the capacity to take on both roles, the role of acting as a radical force as well as a conservative force.
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