This past week we were introduced to the question of “what is religion?”  We have learned that religion plays a significant aspect of many people’s lives and although there are many different types of religions that people believe in, there are four key elements that all religions have in common: experience, image, story, and community.  During class we used these four points and implemented them while sharing our religious background. There were people who had unique backgrounds and who still believed in their religion till this day. There were also others who didn’t believe in any type of religion but a some kind of spirit.  However, the majority of the class had one common thread; they were no longer associated with their religion.

The reading this week was the first chapter of McGuire’s book.  She introduces us to what religion is and explains some of the important aspects to religion.  For example, she explained how every religion has different religious beliefs, rituals, experiences, and last but not least community.  Now that I am aware of the sociological perspective of religion, I am curious to learn about what religion means to others. What made people still stick with their religion?  What made others drift away from it? What makes others believe that there is a spirit in their world? I also wondered what if religion didn’t exist? Would people still have the same outlook on life?  These are just a few questions that I have always wondered about religion that I hope to find answers to in the next few chapters.