How does religion provide a legitimation of social inequality? What characteristics of religion make it so difficult to challenge beliefs that legitimate social inequalities?
What will be an ideal response
Religion can be used as a tool to teach the masses that social inequalities of the larger society and existing social arrangements represent what God desires. Examples of this include the divine right of kings during the Middle Age monarchies and in Hinduism which has existed for over 3,000 years. The essential quality of belief supporting the monarchy or caste system is not subject to challenge, either by evidence or by logic. No argument or evidence can prove that a belief is wrong. To challenge the belief would constitute treason and blasphemy, both of which are usually not only capital offenses, but capital offenses that often called for death.
You might also like to view...
As a society, we can change negative attitudes towards groups of people by
A) implementing prejudice-reduction programs within our school systems B) mandating equal representation of all racial and ethnic categories in the mass media C) implementing diversity trainings within all organizations D) enforcing all of the above to increase overall levels of tolerance and promote higher levels of inter-group contact
John Kenneth Galbraith's theory of global stratification, referred to as a culture of poverty, is based on a concept first proposed by ________
A) Frank Tannenbaun B) John Hanaway C) Oscar Lewis D) William Ogden
A suicide attempt is really:
a. a cry for help. b. an act of repression. c. a form of sublimation. d. an adaptation syndrome.
________ point out that humans create, manipulate, and employ symbols to direct their own behavior and to influence the behavior of others.
A. Conflict theorists B. Systems theorists C. Symbolic interactionist theorists D. Exchange theorists