Religion

=== Theories ===
{{Main|Theories of religion}}

[[Sociology of religion|Sociological]] and [[Anthropology of religion|anthropological]] theories of religion generally attempt to explain the [[origin of religion|origin]] and [[social function|function of religion]].<ref>{{harvnb|Segal|2005|p=49}}</ref> These theories define what they present as universal characteristics of [[religious belief]] and [[Religious behaviour|practice]].

==== Origins and development ====
{{Main|History of religion}}
[[File:Yazilikaya B 12erGruppe.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.15|The [[Yazılıkaya]] sanctuary in [[Turkey]], with the twelve gods of the underworld]]
The origin of religion is uncertain. There are a number of theories regarding the subsequent origins of religious practices.

According to [[anthropologists]] John Monaghan and Peter Just, "Many of the great world religions appear to have begun as revitalization movements of some sort, as the vision of a charismatic prophet fires the imaginations of people seeking a more comprehensive answer to their problems than they feel is provided by everyday beliefs. Charismatic individuals have emerged at many times and places in the world. It seems that the key to long-term success—and many movements come and go with little long-term effect—has relatively little to do with the prophets, who appear with surprising regularity, but more to do with the development of a group of supporters who are able to institutionalize the movement."<ref>{{cite book |title=Social & Cultural Anthropology |url=https://archive.org/details/socialculturalan00mona |url-access=limited |last1=Monaghan |first1=John |last2=Just |first2=Peter |year=2000 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York |isbn=978-0-19-285346-2 |page=[https://archive.org/details/socialculturalan00mona/page/n136 126]}}</ref>

The [[development of religion]] has taken different forms in different cultures. Some religions place an emphasis on belief, while others emphasize practice. Some religions focus on the subjective experience of the religious individual, while others consider the activities of the religious community to be most important. Some religions claim to be universal, believing their [[law]]s and [[cosmology]] to be binding for everyone, while others are intended to be practiced only by a closely defined or localized group. In many places, religion has been associated with public institutions such as [[education]], [[hospital]]s, the [[family]], [[government]], and [[politics|political]] hierarchies.<ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite book |title=Social & Cultural Anthropology |url=https://archive.org/details/socialculturalan00mona |url-access=limited |last1=Monaghan |first1=John |last2=Just |first2=Peter |year=2000 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York |isbn=978-0-19-285346-2 |page=[https://archive.org/details/socialculturalan00mona/page/n134 124]}}</ref>

Anthropologists John Monoghan and Peter Just state that, "it seems apparent that one thing religion or belief helps us do is deal with problems of human life that are significant, persistent, and intolerable. One important way in which religious beliefs accomplish this is by providing a set of ideas about how and why the world is put together that allows people to accommodate anxieties and deal with misfortune."<ref name=autogenerated1 />

==== Cultural system ====
While religion is difficult to define, one standard model of religion, used in [[religious studies]] courses, was proposed by [[Clifford Geertz]], who simply called it a "cultural system".<ref>Clifford Geertz, ''Religion as a Cultural System'', 1973</ref> A critique of Geertz's model by [[Talal Asad]] categorized religion as "an [[anthropology|anthropological]] category".<ref>Talal Asad, ''The Construction of Religion as an Anthropological Category'', 1982.</ref> Richard Niebuhr's (1894–1962) five-fold classification of the relationship between Christ and culture, however, indicates that religion and culture can be seen as two separate systems, though with some interplay.<ref>Richard Niebuhr, ''Christ and Culture'' (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1951) as cited by Domenic Marbaniang, "The Gospel and Culture: Areas of Conflict, Consent, and Conversion", ''Journal of Contemporary Christian'' Vol. 6, No. 1 (Bangalore: CFCC, Aug 2014), {{ISSN|2231-5233}} pp. 9–10</ref>

==== Social constructionism ====
{{Main|Theories about religions#Social constructionism|l1=Social constructionism}}
One modern academic theory of religion, [[social constructionism]], says that religion is a modern concept that suggests all [[spirituality|spiritual]] practice and [[worship]] follows a model similar to the [[Abrahamic religions]] as an orientation system that helps to interpret reality and define human beings.<ref name="vergote 89">Vergote, Antoine, ''Religion, belief and unbelief: a psychological study'', Leuven University Press, 1997, p. 89</ref> Among the main proponents of this theory of religion are Daniel Dubuisson, Timothy Fitzgerald, Talal Asad, and Jason Ānanda Josephson. The social constructionists argue that religion is a modern concept that developed from Christianity and was then applied inappropriately to non-Western cultures.

==== Cognitive science ====
{{Main|Cognitive science of religion}}
{{Further|Religion and schizophrenia}}
Cognitive science of religion is the study of religious thought and behavior from the perspective of the cognitive and evolutionary sciences.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Barrett |first1=Justin L. |title=Cognitive Science of Religion: What Is It and Why Is It? |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1749-8171.2007.00042.x |journal=Religion Compass |access-date=10 January 2021 |pages=768–786 |language=en |doi=10.1111/j.1749-8171.2007.00042.x |date=2007 |volume=1 |issue=6 |archive-date=12 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112011855/https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1749-8171.2007.00042.x |url-status=live }}</ref> The field employs methods and theories from a very broad range of disciplines, including: [[cognitive psychology]], [[evolutionary psychology]], [[cognitive anthropology]], [[artificial intelligence]], [[cognitive neuroscience]], [[neurobiology]], [[zoology]], and [[ethology]]. Scholars in this field seek to explain how human minds acquire, generate, and transmit religious thoughts, practices, and schemas by means of ordinary cognitive capacities.

[[Hallucination]]s and [[Religious delusion|delusions related to religious content]] occurs in about 60% of people with [[schizophrenia]]. While this number varies across cultures, this had led to theories about a number of influential religious phenomena and possible relation to psychotic disorders. A number of prophetic experiences are consistent with psychotic symptoms, although retrospective diagnoses are practically impossible.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Nicholson|first1=PT|title=Psychosis and paroxysmal visions in the lives of the founders of world religions.|journal=The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences|volume=26|issue=1|date=2014|pages=E13–14|doi=10.1176/appi.neuropsych.12120412|pmid=24515692}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Murray|first1=ED|last2=Cunningham|first2=MG|last3=Price|first3=BH|title=The role of psychotic disorders in religious history considered.|journal=The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences|volume=24|issue=4|date=2012|pages=410–426|doi=10.1176/appi.neuropsych.11090214|pmid=23224447}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Weber|first1=SR|last2=Pargament|first2=KI|title=The role of religion and spirituality in mental health.|journal=Current Opinion in Psychiatry|date=September 2014|volume=27|issue=5|pages=358–363|doi=10.1097/YCO.0000000000000080|pmid=25046080|s2cid=9075314}}</ref> Schizophrenic episodes are also experienced by people who do not have belief in gods.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Reina|first1=Aaron|title=Faith Within Atheism|journal=Schizophrenia Bulletin|date=July 2014|volume=40|issue=4|pages=719–720|doi=10.1093/schbul/sbt076|pmid=23760918|pmc=4059423}}</ref>

Religious content is also common in [[temporal lobe epilepsy]], and [[obsessive–compulsive disorder]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Favazza|first1=A|editor1-last=Sadock|editor1-first=B|editor2-last=Sadock|editor2-first=V|editor3-last=Ruiz|editor3-first=P|title=Kaplan and Sadocks Comprehensive Textbook of Psychiatry|publisher=Wolters Kluwer|edition=10th|chapter=Psychiatry and Spirituality}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Altschuler|first1=EL|title=Temporal lobe epilepsy in the priestly source of the Pentateuch|journal=South African Medical Journal|date=2004|volume=11|issue=94|page=870|pmid=15587438}}</ref> Atheistic content is also found to be common with temporal lobe epilepsy.<ref name="Heilman">{{cite book|last1=Heilman|first1=Kenneth M.|last2=Valenstein|first2=Edward |title=Clinical Neuropsychology|date=2011|publisher=Oxford University Press|language=en|isbn=978-0-19-538487-1|page=488|quote=Studies that claim to show no difference in emotional makeup between temporal lobe and other epileptic patients (Guerrant et al., 1962; Stevens, 1966) have been reinterpreted (Blumer, 1975) to indicate that there is, in fact, a difference: those with temporal lobe epilepsy are more likely to have more serious forms of emotional disturbance. This typical personality of temporal lobe epileptic patient has been described in roughly similar terms over many years (Blumer & Benson, 1975; Geschwind, 1975, 1977; Blumer, 1999; Devinsky & Schachter, 2009). These patients are said to have a deepening of emotions; they ascribe great significance to commonplace events. This can be manifested as a tendency to take a cosmic view; hyperreligiosity (or intensely professed atheism) is said to be common.}}</ref>