Define and discuss the four main categories of religion, and link them to the types of societies in which they tend to occur
What will be an ideal response?
Religions have been classified into four main categories based on their dominant beliefs:
1 . In very simple preindustrial societies, religion often takes the form of simple supernaturalism—the belief that supernatural forces affect people's lives either positively or negatively. This type of religion does not acknowledge specific gods or supernatural spirits but focuses instead on impersonal forces that may exist in people or natural objects.
2 . By contrast, animism is the belief that plants, animals, or other elements of the natural world are endowed with spirits or life forces that have an impact on events in society. Animism is associated with early hunting and gathering societies and with any Native American societies, in which everyday life is not separated from the elements of the natural world.
3 . Theism is a belief in a god or gods. Horticultural societies were among the first to practice monotheism—a belief in a single supreme being or god who is responsible for significant events such as the creation of the world. Three of the major world religions—Christianity, Judaism, and Islam—are monotheistic. By contrast, Hinduism, Shinto, and a number of the indigenous religions of Africa are forms of polytheism—a belief in more than one god.
4 . Transcendent idealism is a nontheistic religion—a religion based on a belief in divine spiritual forces such as sacred principles of thought and conduct, rather than a god or gods. Transcendent idealism focuses on principles such as truth, justice, affirmation of life, and tolerance for others, and its adherents seek an elevated state of consciousness in which they can fulfill their true potential.
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