Introduction to

World Religions
and Belief
Systems
The Influence of Religion to Culture
and Society
 Positive and Negative Effects of
Religion
Religion has become a very
important aspect in the development
of civilizations and cultures. In fact,
most ancient societies based their
worldviews on religion and it has
been proven to be beneficial to the
attainment and maintenance of
social stability and cohesiveness.
 However, as time went by, religion has
also become the basis of conflicts between
societies, even within societies. While
religion has promoted solidarity among
societies, it has also been the reason
behind the outbreak of particular wars in
history.

In this lesson we will discuss the

positive and negative effects of religion as
well as examples of historical events
Positive Effects of Religion
Religion has been considered a prevailing
agency in society as it has positive effects,
performing many vital social functions which
include the following:

1. Religion provides Social Change

Since religion is a source of moral values, it
provides social change likewise it can be very
effective in lobbying and campaigning for certain
social issues using its own moral teachings as a
basis of argument.
2. Religion helps create
Disciplined and Beneficial
Citizens
As religions encourage members
to live in line with the precepts of
religious traditions, they provide
models for ideal living.

For example: Christians strive to be

Christ-like; Buddhists - imitate the
3. Religion boosts Self-worth and
Dignity
Religion explains that a person,
regardless of his social and
economic status, is important in the
sight of God who considers him or
her as His beloved child.

Such a case: Being unsuccessful in

careers does not take away one’s
4. Religion promotes Charity
and Humanitarianism
Numerous religious
organizations dedicate their time
and effort to charitable and
humanitarian activities for the
welfare of the poor, destitute
and those who are suffering the
effects of both natural and man-
Examples: Gawad Kalinga (Catholic Lay
movement) is an extension of Catholics’
efforts to renew and strengthen Christian
values by giving help to the poor

Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) is a

healthcare program meant to provide a
corrective surgery to children with cleft or
palate and strengthening Islamic
partnerships with government and
organizations worldwide.
5. Religion reduces Fear of the
Unknown
Religions provide answers for
phenomena and questions that
science or reason cannot explain.
The belief in the afterlife has become
very important in most religions
because it has become the basis for
their daily conduct or how they live
their lives.
In such cases: Hindu – Dharma
(social and moral obligations)
determines what will happen to
them in the afterlife.

Christians – Ten Commandments,

obeying the law and being good to
others will earn a reward of eternal
life in heaven; doing the opposite will
lead to eternal damnation in hell
Negative Effects of Religion
On the other hand, let us enumerate
some of the supposedly negative effects of
some religions which greatly affect the
lives of many believers. These include the
following:

1. Religion affirms Social Hierarchy

Some religions affirm social hierarchy
often favoring men and as a result,
perpetuate the notions of class or gender
Like: Chinese Confucian concept
emphasize the relations between the ruler
and the subject, with the former
exercising authority over the latter

Indian Caste system propagates that

people had to be subdivided into certain
social classes with particular social roles
and that the attainment of moksha (union
of universal soul and individual soul)
would depend on how they performed
2. Religion teaches Dependence
It is said that there is a relationship between
religiosity and resignation for believers depend
on God’s will and laws to solve problems and
for some, this attitude is harmful to society at
large as well as to individuals.

Examples: In Judaism, women are deemed as

more righteous if they let God manage their
family planning

In Christianity, famines, poverty and diseases

3. Religion sanctions Barbarism
and Conflicts
Religions’ sacred text are said to
sanction these things including
slavery and brutal warfare. It is
further explained that believers
looking to excuse their own rage,
sense of superiority, and aggression
can find justification in texts that
claim to be authored by God.
Such instances:

Catholic Inquisitions refer to the Roman Catholic

Church groups charged with subduing large
popular movements in Europe, which involved in
heresy and paganism that resulted to torture
and death

Religious Wars –
Jews vs. Muslims in Palestine;
Buddhists vs. Hindus in Sri Lanka;
Christians vs. Muslims in Indonesia;
it means that there are so many resources that
4. Religion marginalizes Women’s Rights
Many religions have been criticized for
advocating patriarchal system which marginalizes
women who play lesser roles or even prohibitions
in religious activities and in society.

To name a few: In Muslim countries, a notable

act of violence often associated is the “honor
killings” where women and girls are murdered
because they have violated and have brought
shame to their respective families

In India, acid attacks against people deemed

“untouchable” are prevalent; these acts mostly
5. Religion instills Fear

Religion indeed requires that individuals

prove to God that they are worthy of heaven
by following his will, thus people find
themselves in the state of fear.

Examples: Doctrine of Sin – the fear of hell

or being born sinners is continuously in the
people’s mind filling them with worry and
anxiety
Historical Events that Primarily Caused by
Religions
History can provide pieces of evidence that
religion brought about significant events. These
historical events include the following:

1. Violent and Deadly Crusades

Crusades were a series of religious wars
sanctioned by the Catholic Church between the
11th-16th centuries with the purpose of seizing
Jerusalem from Islamic rule, to take back
Christian territories, defend Catholics in non-
Christian lands, attain political or territorial
2. Religions’ Anti-Slavery Commitment
In 2104, the gathering of Jewish rabbis,
turbaned Sunni Imams and Shia
Ayatollahs, Catholic Pope Francis, the
Archbishop of Canterbury, a Hindu Guru
and the orange-robed Buddhist Chief Priest
of Malaysia agreed that slavery in its
various contemporary forms is a sheer evil,
a disgrace to God and dishonor to
humankind. Hence, they signed a
declaration with commitment to work
together for the extermination of what is
3. Self-Immolation of a Buddhist Monk
in Vietnam
Self-immolation or killing oneself as a
form of sacrifice is used as a form of
political protest or martyrdom. This case
was reported that a Buddhist monk
named Thich Quang Duc in 1963 set
himself on fire in the middle of a street in
South Vietnam in protest against the
religious discrimination experienced by
the Buddhists by the Roman Catholic
4. Widow Burning Among the Hindus
in India
It is believed to have started among the
ruling class or rajputs in India, when the
rajput women burnt themselves to death
after their men were defeated in battles to
avoid being taken away by the
conquerors. Later on, in 2006, it has
become a manifestation of wifely devotion
to which Janakrani, a widow had burnt
herself to death on the funeral pyre of her
5. Doomed LGBTQI persons in
Westboro Baptist Church
Many religions viewed the group of
lesbians, gays, bisexual, transgender,
queer and intersex, as living in defiance of
religious doctrine. In fact, members in
this church believed that anyone who
does not follow the laws of the Bible is
doomed to suffer in hell; this organization
is known for its slogan, “God Hates Fags”
and it has been deemed as a group that