In the present day, people’s attitude to religion may be regarded as highly controversial. In her work, Karen Armstrong examines the modern concept of God introducing the term Homo Religiosus. Similar to Homo Erectus who had unique peculiarities in comparison with its ancestors, Homo Religiosus develop its own perception of religion. In the modern global society, religion still plays a significant role in human life, however, it is strongly connected with culture, social development, and creativity rather than limitations and taboos.
In the 1960s, despite the fact that young Americans stopped visiting church, they practiced oriental meditative techniques as they invariably demanded the spiritual way of life (Armstrong 3). The rise of the fundamentalism at the end of the 1970s demonstrated people’s desire “to see religion more clearly reflected in public life” (Armstrong 4). However, this movement is not conservative and orthodox; fundamentalists believe that modernized economies of developed countries promote the conditions of equity and justice valued by religion more effectively than partially modernized societies (Armstrong 6). Terrorist acts that are supposed to be determined by religious aspects practically have political underlying reasons. In turn, even science and logic are inseparable from aesthetic vision, intuition, and faith (Armstrong 14). Moreover, rejected by atheists, the religion practiced on a daily basis developed altruism and “elevated human life to the realm of holiness and gave practitioners intimations of transcendence” (Armstrong 13).
From a personal perspective, from the author’s arguments, readers should understand that religion is a significant part of human history and it has a considerable impact on every person’s life at all events. At the same time, people’s attitude to religion, God, dogmas, and tradition is subsequently developing, and religion may be served as a source of knowledge, creativity, and psychological help. That is why the position of radical atheism cannot be regarded as indisputably reasonable.
Work Cited
Armstrong, Karen. “The Case for God; Homo Religiosus.” 2009. Web.