What is Religion?

Religion is difficult to define. Everyone has a different idea of what it is. Most
people simply look in the dictionary or use something else equally simplistic.
That might be fine for everyday conversations, it isnt sufficient for the sort of
discussions that appear here. Religion is a human creation and as such can
vary as widely as human imagination allows.

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2 SUBCATEGORIES IN DEFINITION OF RELIGION: HOW

IS RELIGION DEFINED? WHAT DEFINITIONS OF
RELIGION ARE USED?
Religion Types (8)
Religion v. Non-Religion (6)

10 ARTICLES IN: DEFINITION OF RELIGION: HOW IS

RELIGION DEFINED? WHAT DEFINITIONS OF
RELIGION ARE USED?

Religion is: Belief in Supernatural Beings How Religions Involve Theism

Belief in the supernatural, especially gods, is one of the most obvious characteristics
of religion. Some people mistake mere theism for religion itself.
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Read articles and news on atheism and agnosticism to understand the philosophies,
skepticism, and critical thinking of the free-thinking community.
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What is Religion? Defining the

Characteristics of Religion
Definitions of religion tend to suffer from one of two problems: they are either too
narrow and exclude many belief systems which most agree are religions, or they are
too vague and ambiguous, suggesting that just about anything and everything is a
religion. A better way to explain the nature of religion is to identify basic
characteristics common to religions. These characteristics may be shared with other
belief systems, but taken together they make religion distinct.
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Religion 101: Examining the Definition of

Religion and Religious Beliefs

Academic literature is filled with attempts to describe what religion is and many of
those attempts are very unhelpful. Definitions of religion tend to suffer from one of
two problems: they are either too narrow and exclude many of the belief systems
which most people will agree are religious, or they are too vague and ambiguous,
leading one to conclude that just about any and everything is actually a religion
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How Do Atheists Explain Religion?

Religion is difficult to define. Everyone has a different idea of what it is. Most people
simply look in the dictionary or use something else equally simplistic. That might be
fine for everyday conversations, it isnt sufficient for the sort of discussions that
appear here. Religion is a human creation and as such can vary as widely as human
imagination allows.
Share

Defining Religion: Older Dictionaries on the

Definition of Religion
Every dictionary has a definition of religion, but not every definition is equally good.
Some are decent, but others are horrible. Sometimes older dictionaries have better
definitions than newer ones, but more recent comprehensive dictionaries tend to
have the better overall definitions of all. It's easier to understand what religion is if
you understand the advantages and disadvantages of some of the more commonly
cited definitions found in dictionaries.
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Defining Religion

Although people usually go to dictionaries first when they need a definition,

specialized reference works can have more comprehensive and complete definitions
- if for no other reason, than because of the greater space. These definitions can
reflect greater bias, too, depending upon the author and the audience that it is
written for.
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What is Religion?
Many scholarly and academic attempts to define or describe religion can be
classified into one of two types: functional or substantive. Each represents a very
distinct perspective on the nature of function of religion. Although it is possible for a
person to accept both types as valid, in reality most people will tend to focus on one
type to the exclusion of the other.
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Substantive & Essentialist Definitions of

Religion
The basic problem with substantive definitions of religion is that when they are
general enough to perhaps apply to all religions, they are too vague to be very useful
and end up being applicable to belief systems or beliefs which just shouldnt be
labeled religions. Once they are no longer too vague, however, they describe as
'essential' to religion something which not all religions actually have and which is not
alone in structuring religious beliefs.
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Functional Definitions of Religion

Functional definitions are so common that most academic definitions of religion can
be categorized as either psychological or sociological in nature. Psychological
definitions focus upon the ways in which religion plays a role in the mental,
emotional, and psychological lives of believers. Sociological definitions define
religion by the ways in which it either has an impact upon society or the ways in
which it is expressed socially by believers.