After today’s lecture I have learned that Religion is a way of life and religious culture is a form of identity. There are material claims which provide people in need with material resources; claims of community which also provide material rescourses for people of a wider community and spiritual claims which influences its believers live on earth to prepare for the afterlife. In addition the definition of Religious Diversity is that there is differences between religious groups in society and that it has become the a large cause of conflict.

I also acquired knowledge about spirituality that I didn’t know before. I learned that there are different forms of spirituality that aren’t associated with organised religions and this can be defined as a sectular society. These secular societies believe in something but do not belong to an organised religion therefore are outside the churches. Due to sectularisation there has been a decline in religiousness as there is an increase of people not attending church. This can be seen as the west becoming more spiritual and less religious.

In the tutorial when trying to answer exam style questions at the start we found it difficult to expand on the information given and link it in with the scholars to try and achieve the 25 marks needed. Although after group discussion we found it clear how to answer the questions and realised we were going off on tangents and that wider reading plays a major role in fully understanding the concepts which helps answer the questions to gain more marks.

My knowledge developed a lot after today as I had very little knowledge about spirituality and all of its characteristics. I was also unaware that organised religion is on decline and spirituality is on the increase. This knowledge has helped me as I now understand how to apply it to the questions and how to answer them.

From the lecture I have learned about what religion means and that there is no specific definition but that it is based on a community of people that are united by having the same beliefs. In addition to this we explored the difference between established religions, sects and cults and what the key aspects of these different types of religions are.

In the tutorial we looked at three specific key scholars ; M.C.F Bourdillon, Emile Durkheim and Bronislaw Malninowski and researched what they are known for and the impact that there work has had on society. I researched the famous sociologist M.C.F Bourdillon which identified the main functions of religion. These function include ; dealing with life crises, social relations, united people within the group, sentiments and structure, peace in the community, basic needs, identity and explanation and meaning. In one tutorial my group looked at the challenges of religious diversity in society and we came up with possible exam style answers.

My knowledge has vastly developed from today’s lecture as I was unaware of the differences between religions, cults and sects and now I fully understand the ways in which they differ and how they impact society as cults use more radical ideas and practices compared to established religions which have been going for a long time and have established roots. My knowledge has also been enhanced as I was unaware that religions had specific functions and that most religions are based on the same functions therefore are very similar.

After today I plan to work towards relating what I have learned in the lecture and tutorials to the seen question and how I would answer it based on the functions of religion and their impact on society. Also I wish to improve on my knowledge of the different theorists and apply their works to the content of the course and try make links between them.

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