This paper reviews the concepts of spiritual diversity and religion’s role as a social institution. The world’s largest religions, including Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, and Buddhism, are connected by an attempt to hypothesize the global meanings of humanity’s existence (TED-Ed, n.d.). Religion instrumentalizes the concept of sacredness or things deserving of reverence in order to produce specific social norms and values, such as charity, morality, or social cohesion (CrashCourse, n.d.). At the same time, it represents a unique form of social control and contributes to the establishment of hierarchical relationships between demographic groups, especially men and women (CrashCourse, n.d.). The institution in question is part of a larger system of social organization that includes education and family (Khanacademymedicine, n.d.). There are three interesting facts presented in the week’s materials. First, aside from being a protest against official religious movements, sects and cults are short-lived and stem from the breakdown of widely recognized belief systems (Khanacademymedicine, n.d.). Second, atheism is increasingly prevalent among young U.S. citizens; still, more than 70% of adult Americans report the importance of spirituality in their life, making the U.S. more religious than other high-income countries (CrashCourse, n.d.). Third, religions can establish almsgiving as an obligation; for instance, Zakat payments in Islam are used to promote balance in wealth distribution (TED-Ed, n.d.). I find the second fact the most interesting since it reveals an intergenerational conflict surounding a departure from faith-based lifestyles and the maintenance of tradition. Concerning connections, information on spirituality and behavior, such as Buddhists’ celebration of silence and conciseness in conversation, can promote changes in my intercultural communication skills (TED-Ed, n.d.). Specifically, I can increase the recognition of my interlocutors’ spiritual self-identity and mirror their approaches to information exchange to improve mutual understanding.
References
CrashCourse. (n.d.). Crash course sociology #39 [Video]. YouTube. Web.
Khanacademymedicine. (n.d.). Social institutions – Education, family, and religion | Society and culture | MCAT | Khan Academy [Video]. YouTube. Web.
TED-Ed. (n.d.). The five major world religions – John Bellaimey [Video]. YouTube. Web.