How does religious beliefs influence a society?

Answer 1

Religion is there, to shape the way we think about things. Religion is a thing of beauty, because it is something to believe in, something to make us great and strong. It makes us in tune with everyone's environment. Religion exists to make us forgive ourselves, and it is used to give us hope and happiness in the world. If there was no religion, the world would be a sad place of people who don't care for one another. Nothing we do in this world can survive without spirituality and religious practices.

Answer 2

A:Religion has always been part of a person's identity, and in that way has encouraged social unity. More often, though, it has created disunity, with Christian against pagan, Christian against Jew, Muslim against Christian, and so on. We have even seen the effect on society in Catholic against Protestant, so that no Catholic could become President of the United States until John Kennedy.

The colonisation of North America occurred as a result of religious intolerance in Europe. Different communities were set up by different and competing Christian denominations, who often brought with them the same intolerance they had escaped. Fortunately for modern America, the Founding Fathers had the wisdom to separate religion and state in the U.S. Constitution.

For centuries, religious leaders around the world have demanded privileges from the civil authorities. While there are few remaining explicit privileges of the type enjoyed in the past, much of the pomp and ceremony of British royalty and the House of Lords is intertwined with religious ceremony.

Religion has led to intolerance and bigotry. It was used to justify slavery in the United States and apartheid in South Africa. It was the religious element known as antisemitism that helped keep Hitler in power. Religion was at least partly responsible for the creation of the state of Israel, with sad consequences for the Palestinians and decades of brinkmanship in the Middle East. The overthrow of the Shah of Iran did not lead to an era of democracy, as Islamists took over and created a repressive, theocratic state. Fear of Islamic extremism is part of the American consciousness, leading to an element of xenophobia.

Religion has encouraged superstition, some of which persists to the present day. On the other hand, these beliefs have brought us harmless, essentially non-religious festivities based around Santa Claus, Easter eggs and Halloween. It should not be considered that religion's impact on society has always been negative.