Religion: Crash Course Sociology #39

Today we’re turning our sociological eye to another major social institution: religion. We’ll use symbolic interactionism to help us understand the dichotomy of the Sacred vs. the Profane. We’ll compare the perspectives of structural functionalists and conflict theorists on whether religion improves social cohesiveness or increases social stratification. We’ll also explore how religious practice in the US differs across race and class lines.
Crash Course is made with Adobe Creative Cloud. Get a free trial here: www.adobe.com/creativecloud/c...
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References:
Sociology by John J. Macionis, 15th edition (2014)
Pew Research Center Religious Landscape Survey (2014) www.pewforum.org/religious-lan...
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[@perer005]

It's always mindboggling to read that 70% of US citizens consider themselves religious (or that religion plays a major part in their life) as someone from a secular country, in my whole life I've maybe met a handful of people here that were actually religious.

[@Joeobrown1]

i imagine this was difficult to write without causing offence to everyone, religious or not - impressively done.

[@nunnyahbixniz6709]

213 BUTT-HURT CREATIONISTS!

[@Lifeskeyishappiness]

As an Agnostic I love learning about different religions. Thanks for this informative video from an open-minded perspective! :)

[@bubbercakes528]

Agnostics are those who haven’t finished their homework.

[@pranjal967]

I love your sociology videos, since you take on topics from different perspectives and theories, hence producing a more logical argument, instead of following the trend or finding faults in everything. Great educational videos.

[@Jeff-bm4lb]

Literally have an exam tomorrow for this, thanks!

[@Mr.Pine.]

CoolDudeHD good luck

[@ayycardinal6802]

Did you pass?

[@Vospader21]

Hey Nicole I just want to let you know these videos helped me study for my CLEP exam. This video was especially helpful, there were several questions related to religion on my test the answers to which you give in this video. Very lucky for me that you dropped it two days before my test.

[@LifeAsRick]

I LOVE YOU AND YOUR VIDEOS! I am a sociology major in my senior year and you always help me with my assignments. Thanks crashcourse, she needs a raise! 👏🏾👏🏾

[@OBear07]

great stuff! difficult to do a brief overview of such a complex topic, and you nailed it! thank you for these great videos.

[@moonlightray8493]

When you think about it, Churches are actually just really extensive book clubs 😂

[@MakeMeThinkAgain]

And tax shelters.

[@Saint_nobody]

They are the original, social networks. ☺

[@AbbeyRoadkill1]

A book club that only ever studies one book. Zzzzz 😪

[@Saint_nobody]

AbbeyRoadkill1 no. The Bible is not _one_ book per se. It's a collection of, on average, 66 books.

[@ayycardinal6802]

@@Saint_nobody Who said anything about the Bible?

[@Tselel]

Oh hey. The comments are relatively tame. I think that's the sign of a well made video and healthy community. Good job, CC. To contribute to discussion, wherever you fall on the religious spectrum, remember that your greatest love informs your life direction as a whole.

[@Garland41]

I feel you missed a big opportunity in this video, especially near the end in the section called "How religious practice in the US differs across race and class lines," where you could have mentioned Auguste Comte's understanding of religion as being a thing in which people orient their life in which he attempted to create the secular _Religion of Humanity._ It may be the case that you may have a video on the sociological aspect of what practicing religion does for people with the secularization of young people. Similarly, the author bell hooks has written that an aspect of Feminism is for people to have a healthy spiritual life, so there seems to be an aspect of practice there as well beyond the simple (badly formulated) question of God or no God.

[@crashcourse]

This is the only video we're doing on this topic, and certainly there is far more to the sociology of religion than we could cover in ten minutes, but these are solid recommendations for further reading. (Obviously less for you, the commenter, than for anyone else who might happen upon this comment!)

[@timothymclean]

The effects of religion on society could make for an entire Crash Course series of its own. Of course, its comments would make the comments for Crash Course Sociology look like a mom texting her kids...

[@drenrin2120]

I really wish you would all consider doing more episodes on the impact religion has on society. Both good and bad and all in between.

[@lakrids-pibe]

A mom texting her kids: Well That's Fine

[@mohammadtausifrafi8277]

I think religion is anything with followers claiming authority over inter subjective morality, as other characteristics mentioned are probably not universal: there are religions without deities or the sacred. This is just my personal opinion.

[@dr.helanadarwin7929]

This is such a great video! Thank you for making it so much easier to teach soc of religion!

[@gracebrown3733]

I was waiting for this topic to crop up. I'm so happy! I love studying religion.

[@mohdnadeemqureshi1557]

Loved your videos, densely packed with relevant information. For those who are heated, she is just sharing some ideas of the anthropologist.

[@gabrielenriquemartinezllan479]

Simply thank you, Crash Course!!!

[@juliaprohaska9295]

Everyone's excited for the non-existent war in the comments😂😂😂

[@Lucanoptek]

Julia Prohaska yes we're waiting for it to beggin while eating pop corns xp

[@jeffbrownstain]

We're too good here

[@jeffbrownstain]

+

[@NelsonFunez-hk9zu]

anyone else watching this for a class ???

[@cassandra820]

i love you for the work you do. My sociology professor is a quack and if not for you, I would be screwed.

[@megerbig]

These videos always match up perfectly with my notes. I love Crash Course

[@benling5756]

just...thank yall for making this info accessible and doing your best to share sociology, sorry for all the commenters who apparently believe that opinions formed on personal experience and prejudice outweigh decades of empirical research

[@maybenotme1994]

Small correction - the Star of David is not considered sacred in Judaism. It's a symbol of the Jewish people, much in the same way that the rainbow flag became a symbol for LGBT people. But unlike the cross, it has no real religious meaning.

[@jtrlatinist2227]

I've brought this up before of this channel but, I will do it again mostly good info here! But when you get it wrong you get it really wrong. I want to thank you for the content.

[@samanthah1436]

A level sociology on this next week :(((

[@sarahViofriend171]

Mine is in october a level sociology 😭😭

[@mhamzamoosa]

​@@sarahViofriend171 Mine just got postponed.

[@seemoremoreable]

your lesson is perfectly concise compared to other recturer in this Ch. thx for this great course.

[@drunkgirls111]

Very informative video. Thanks for sharing.

[@StephenGoff777]

Correction: Eve didn't sin because she 'tempted' Adam. Eve sinned because she ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil which was the one thing that God told them not to do. Both acted on their own will. Both are equally colupable. You need a different example.

[@LauraDFTBA]

I don't know if you're going to continue or expand on this topic but it would be interesting if you explored a little on 'civil religion' - displays of nationalism and patriotism acting in place of displays of traditional piety. I know of it in theory but a CrashCourse to touch on the finer points and implications would be great.

[@BowserGaming1985]

Nice video I learned something new

[@IgorNaverniouk]

Great! Did you learn anything correct?

[@ronsapien4212]

thanks, your videos are gonna get me through exams🙄

[@inspiration28]

This was a very amazing and Insightful video. Thanks so much!

[@kavyasekar2853]

Thanks for the beautiful explanation,!!

[@VandrefalkTV]

Brilliant video, cheers!

[@schlondpoofa529]

wow the comment section is peaceful i love it i love you smart people who dont like wars

[@raghavkohli520]

it would be really helpful if you consider entire world instead of just keeping US at center stage. videos content and graphics are amazing.

[@chitradhanraj3047]

Very helpful, Thanks

[@lGalaxisl]

If you focus on the skin colour of abel and kain, you are both seeing things that aren't there in the text, and missing the point of the story

[@ayycardinal6802]

If you ignore it, than you are ignoring facts. You are a weak snowflake, she wasn't targetting anyone, just speaking truth.

[@juliecastin]

I'm a Christian and theologian (pre-doc now) and this video was pretty interesting (in some cases a bit biased), nonetheless helpful! Thanks a lot! :) But where is Weber? (Or did I miss it?) God bless (Yes I do believe in the 'invisible guy' please let's not be childish here

[@claytongriffith8323]

Again great timing

[@andrewthomas3253]

Can we get a Crash Course Religion please...?!

[@LesNasesdu38]

There's already a Crash Course Mythology.

[@abdulazizrushdi9154]

Lohmra gondein You don't know that difference between religion and mythology? If you watched that you'd have known. I think it was explained in the first episode.

[@LesNasesdu38]

Yep, I know that. And I'm assuming that if they chose Mythology instead of Religion, it's because by doing so they can keep a distance and prevent people to be offended. But by studying myths, they're also giving people data to gain perspective on their own beliefs without questionning them directly, but somehow implicitely questioning faith and religious insitutions without getting their hands "dirty". For example, the similarities between the the multiple creations of the world or the lives of some important religious figures may allow someone not to take what religions tell litterally. They're smart people at Crash Course, they know what they're doing :)

[@abdulazizrushdi9154]

Lohmra gondein Hhmm I don't know about that. Talking from a personal perspective, I wouldn't mind someone on youtube discussing my religion/beliefs as long as they get their information straight. But I can see how others might be offended though..... After all, people are becoming more of snow-flakes these days.

[@LesNasesdu38]

Absolutely :)

[@cast897]

Im practicing my english with your videos.. Uh i think you speak fast but i believe i can understand without subtitles if i watch your vids everyday I want to make my mind get used to this english vilocity What do you think about it? Im from Brazil

[@AR15ORIGINAL]

Hey! I'm also a Brazillian and youtube videos helped me greatly improve my listening comprehension. Good luck with your learning of the language.

[@kalebnbrown]

Great job!

[@davidcampos1463]

A very well done distillation of religion. But of course, we have to have the effervescence of the commentary section to go with it.

[@BrajanarayanPanda]

Could you do another video on totemic religion as the begining of religion as described by Durkheim. It would be really helpful.

[@Felenari]

Good watch. Thanks.

[@yeabsetotabirru]

Nowhere in the Bible suggests or implies that what God marked Cain by was his skin color

[@jeiku5314]

Parents think you're disrespectful when you don't let them disrespect you.

[@Arombli]

Well power does not equal disrespect maybe.

[@leaveme3559]

Onlyeveryone ....power and respect are part of a same circle...they may not be same...but they depend on each other

[@Saint_nobody]

Respect goes hand in hand with honor. Yet the two are not the same.

[@jamesonstalanthasyu]

Any recommendations on religious topics that have good video quality and hosts? I am partial to those that aren't just someone talking on screen only, which is what I see a lot do. It can be liberal or conservative views. I do like how crash courses video style mixes up the visuals.

[@anttibjorklund1869]

One thing you could have talked about is the idea of "civil religion", that is that certain public rituals (like watching the Super Bowl, which unites many Americans) or symbols (like the flag) can take on a certain type of religious connotation.That isn't to say that they are a part of a religion in the traditional sense, but that these symbols and events can share similarities with them. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_religion

[@pavitech3242]

It's very useful and easy thank you crash course

[@gabbyquin6063]

Awesome video

[@Steven-og8jj]

Could you guys do a video on the history of thorium energy??

[@Homo_sAPEien]

Thanks religion for causing the majority of anxiety in my life.

[@AlexanderZapataIndividual]

I am so close in figuring out the # of angels that can dance in a pin tho.

[@centori2011]

Alexander+ I figured it out and the answer is none sorry to say but then again were much better off with that answer.

[@Saint_nobody]

I've got one angel on 4 tacks. Art for sale, hit me up on Hangouts.

[@uyousyouruieyesi7054]

It’s Pi.

[@kobked-x]

the answer is Zero because fictional characters don't dance in real life...

[@aymawetmerkit6223]

Have to tell you that the picture presented at 4:30 when talking about Chinese emperor is more likely from the Indian culture and have no connection with Chinese emperor.

[@Crazael]

If you go to other parts of the world, those same figures you mentioned as all being 'white' tend to start looking like the people native to that region in the earlier art. In Cuzco, there are lots of depictions of Jesus and Mary and others where they look like the native people there. In Japan, Jesus tends to look more Japanese. The only reason Jesus, God and the rest look 'white european' in those European museums is because that's what the people painting them looked like.

[@varana]

And that's exactly what she meant - religious art tends to reinforce the existing power structure. In Europe, God tends to be a white guy because those were the ones holding power, and others were outsiders.

[@---uf2zl]

varana312 It's not about power but rather an habitude.

[@Ggdivhjkjl]

Have you ever seen Ethiopian Christian art?

[@benjaminlquinlan8702]

Why oh why is the Marxist lense used to look at religion... It didn't even get economics right...

[@patrik5223]

It could be an idea to include more pictures and graphs when you drop these many figures, especially about where how many has what religion.

[@jmcadoesvids359]

i dont know, personally the concept of becoming a celestial slave does not motivate me to want to go to heaven

[@abdulazizrushdi9154]

Lol then you have no idea what heaven is or what it has. Honestly neither do I, which makes it exciting xD

[@jmcadoesvids359]

abdulaziz rushdi i dont like worshipping and i cannot imagine doing it forever

[@abdulazizrushdi9154]

juan manuel mc You probably didn't even try it :/

[@jmcadoesvids359]

abdulaziz rushdi i was in a seminary

[@Prototype9871]

Great video

[@trafalgarwaterlaw5223]

how can we measure religiosity ? i'm currently working on a paper. Can someone provide 'scales' to measure them?

[@GodsCommunity]

*Immense blessings.* 🌷🌷

[@geoffreywinn4031]

Educational!

[@hassenfepher]

i had a tough time keeping my attention on all the religious statistics. perhaps some graphics would help keep attention when putting out so many numbers at once.

[@Light-Love11]

You misquoted the Old Testament about Adam and Eve. Eve was created to 'help' Adam because he was alone (Genesis, Chapter 2 Verse 18), not to 'serve' him. Also, if Eve was created from Adam's body, then she too was in the image of God. Chapter 5 Verses 1-2 implies this by saying that Adam and Eve were one unit called 'Man'

[@quantumking1724]

Thank you

[@absurdhero144]

Her outfit is so cute in this episode😍

[@anibaljesusdelgadillo2091]

These videos are 👌

[@clairepia4514]

Love it😚

[@bogdantabacaru1122]

Thank you for a wonderfully informative video! What's your take on the "Mormon" Church and Church of Scientology? Are they indeed Churches or Sects? Are they even worth mentioning seeing as they are, in lack of other words, newer than well established Churches such as Christianity and Islam?

[@Saint_nobody]

Bogdan Tabacaru I don't know about Scientology. But, as a Mormon, I can easily tell you, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is Christian.

[@Norimarisu]

The IRS says they are religions

[@lduych]

Faith is the pinnacle of arrogance, rooted in the cowardice of denying one's ignorance when confronted by mystery. Faith is the deadliness of all vices, a kind of brain death elevated to the status of virtue; and worse even than war, because with faith there can be no reasoning, no negotiating, no compromise, no peace. *"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the universe."* _~Albert Einstein_

[@TytoAlpha]

pretty good video but placing vajrayana buddhist iconography alongside "Chinese emperors were believed to have a mandate from heaven..." looks really bad. This sort of channel should not be making these kinds of mistakes. Further, the distinction between Churches as Durkheim understood them is contrasted here with "sects" in a way that is new to me and doesn't make much sense, especially because the sects that you list are perhaps better understood as denominations within a Church (Christianity).

[@fangjiunnewe3634]

+

[@oscarfellows6709]

+

[@JustHorseyMie]

I would say religion is a social construct based upon societal norms, to further drive home the need to behave a certain way to get a society to be cohesive and not disruptive. Common sense lead to the birth of religion as a tool to instill these values in people.

[@NOLUTHANDOCHILI]

Love her 👏

[@enochlee3024]

Hi, I really like the way of this analysis and I did learn a lot from this series. I agree with most of the content expect for the inequality of man and woman in the bible. In modern theology and teaching in church, it is said that women makes man(or the creation of mankind) complete in the same way as man (or the creation of mankind) makes God's creation complete. Please refer to Genesis and "Systematic theology" by John Frame. Thank you.

[@AbearhamLincoln]

Hey, incorrect detail here (and I don't mean to be pedantic), but not all Methodists and Baptists are Evangelical, and some Lutherans and Presbyterians are Evangelicals. Evangelicalism is an interdenominational movement, not a category of denominations at large.

[@bobbywassabi4929]

question, how many states of matter are there?

[@buzwenombewu2868]

THANKS

[@AndrewAttard78]

Without getting into conspiracy theory I think this episode should have also talked about secret cults and the elites. There is enough evidence that it could have been a sub-topic.

[@topherchris76]

Damn she talks too fast

[@staci80]

This is totally unrelated and a little weird, but I think your teeth are super cool!!

[@rachelkimball312]

"...To serve and obey Adam?" Your show is great and seems to be mostly non-bias however, this is an ignorant statement. Might I suggest that your show research this further to get an accurate definition of the creation of man and the original marriage relationship.

[@TheAfc93r]

Rachel Kimball you are correct my lady. It just said Adam needed a helper to harvest the land. I guess Chapter 2 verse 18 The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” is up to each interpretation.

[@hadeslive8081]

You know considering there is a huge number of people not living in US, you could have used world wide references rather than just American references. It was a great start to the video which ended on a bit confusing note.

[@judemartinfernandeznaca1497]

solo-learning, approved!

[@dcseain]

You said "Unitarians" was that a calque for Unitarian Universalist? I ask as Unitarianiam, Universalism, and UUism are three different things, thougn UU is descended of Unitarians and Universalists

[@yingkouzen]

i missed how they used to put a slide of the key contributors to the theory while presenting the theory e.g. a slide of Karl Marx face while the presenter talks about their theories and observations.

[@timothymclean]

I'm a little disappointed that you didn't go into the differences between organized Abrahamic religions and other, less-organized faiths operate. But I guess 11 minutes only lets you cover so many topics...

[@emilymylove5806]

they all sucks the same

[@timothymclean]

Not really. I see where you're coming from, but the effects of, say, Catholicism are _vastly_ different than Buddhism. Catholicism was an institution with power, with the ability to force its own view of itself on the world and directly compete with other dominant institutions. Less-organized religions like Hinduism and Buddhism are more subject to individual or local interpretation, preventing them from having as much direct influence.

[@emilymylove5806]

well! I don't care.... Its just foolish.... The thing they all agree on is just philosophy like do good, be good, think good ... blah blah...

[@gingercore69]

Emily MyLove well, that depends, certain "sects" use empiric rituals, wich mean they cant be manipulated as easy as others, so it changes how we experience the spirituality that religion can bring to some people

[@drenrin2120]

Emily, you should care. Whether you're a Dawkin's drooling fan boy or a smart atheist, religion affects every society you could attempt to assimilate into. There's no escaping that fact and the next generation will only have slightly better luck at it than you. I hope they go into the broader differences in later episodes. Over all though, I do think this was a fine introduction to the viewscope of sociologists trying to understand and compartmentalize the affect of religion on societies. There is plenty more to talk about.

[@ZECC101]

You had better show slide form of all this matter. That would do a lot.

[@chrysalizubeth88]

That version of Adam and Eve added a bit to Genesis.

[@pummisher1186]

It's just something to keep everyone on the "same page", as it were.

[@poorplayer9249]

I always felt it was ironical that the accepted use of the words denomination and sect in the modern lexicon, generally mirrors existing positive and negative viewpoints about a given religion. Especially when one considers the evocative association which accompanies each designation and its corresponding religion. Generally positive viewpoints seem to earn that religion's subcategories a more benign descriptor, and vice versa. A bit o' bias maybe? Hmmm?

[@wwedotaew1093]

I don't know why but I love you

[@nocasalexandra]

you're again saving my essays amen

[@tulsaTMR]

As a Catholic, I loved how this video dealt with such a potentially contentious issue in an extremely fair and even minded way. Thanks again for the makers of this series and channel!

[@ibtisammy]

cohesion-control-purpose

[@stjepanduvnjak6396]

Nice

[@1234smileface]

Can someone do a video a video on Homophobia in religions such as conversion therapy

[@starspawn507]

I’m surprised how civil it seems so far in the comments, and the small number of dislikes. I personally like the show, but it has gotten a lot of hate in some previous episodes, and I expected similar hate for this topic, because it is also controversial. It’s nice to see people be civil for once though.

[@devilsadvocate701]

Theren Stormwind you're being to optimistic

[@sohaibmohdyacop]

wheres john green???

[@psychmaestro8528]

Religion = Clickbait/Comment Wars I hope this will be a peaceful comment section this time :)

[@Saint_nobody]

They've actually been rather tame in comparison to the debates I've otherwise been involved with.

[@leaveme3559]

It's actually fun.... reading the hate comments.....where one tries to prove that there version of god is the best...and other stating that it doesn't even exist at all.....I mean common every one loves to fight...I do it some times for fun....

[@Zekushiiido]

yeah hopefully you wont get assassinated here Heneral Luna

[@tuyendiep1371]

How do religion transform civilization?

[@emsavings]

Disappointed that when talking about how religions have helped social movements, Jewish involvement in the civil rights movement was not mentioned at all.