Define and discuss the four main categories of religion, and link them to the types of societies in which they tend to occur

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Religions have been classified into four main categories based on their dominant belief.

(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) 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

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.