After the presentations on Wednesday and the multiple readings for class, it is clear to see that we are learning about many opposing views. Many sociologists have different ideas about how religion affects society and this helps us shape our own views. Understanding the opposing views on certain things can be beneficial in making decision about personal views. It is interesting to see how Dr. Spickard’s views are different than McGuire’s or other sociologists that we have read. It is also interesting to see where a person’s bias is and how that may effect thoughts or results of studies. Reading the articles felt slightly unsettling because after reading one article and feeling good about it, it was weird reading another and not quite agreeing with it–I almost felt like I didn’t want to read any more of the articles I did not resonate with. Will there ever be something that everyone agrees on? Life and education would be so boring if all views were the same, and it wouldn’t even seen worthwhile, would it?

If we don’t understand opposing views, how can formulate our own? If we do not know what others believe and why they believe it, how are we then able to understand and formulate our own thoughts on the matter? As students, having the blog to post on and read each other’s work is very beneficial because it allows us to understand how our peers are thinking about the material we are learning together.

The four narratives in the sociology of religion presented by McGuire and Dr. Spickard are extremely important and understanding the American religious landscape and how it has evolved throughout the years. How dynamic are the four narratives? How often to things change? Exploring ways in which the four narratives in the society of religion are present in today’s dynamic society is something that seems important to do often. With the recent election of President Donald Trump, it seems as though many new and old religious issues are coming up. As students in this class, we are able to use Secularization, Religious Reorganization, Religious Individualization, and The Supply Side of Religious Markets in order to understand the American religious landscape today, and how current events are effecting it. We can see how the history of the American religious landscape compares to current events in the world and how that changes the United States. The approaches to secularization are also important factors: how do these change with society? Have the changed? Comparing ways in which the narratives are present in the United States and the ways in which they are in other countries is important in understanding differences between the societies.

Seeing ways in which the four narratives that are used in the sociology in religion have been present within the American religious landscape is something that can be very valuable to understand. The ways in which religion is changing society in America is something that seems extremely relevant, especially right now with the political situation we have.

In this day and age, it definitely feels relevant to discuss how religions influence “social change”. “Social change” is described by McGuire as “any alteration in the social arrangements of a group or society”, and chapter 7 dives into how religion can impact a society, creating social change.

When thinking about America’s history–and the world’s history, for that matter–it is really interesting to see how specific religions, and religion as a concept, have impacted the given society. Specifically today we can see ways in which religion is impacted American politics and social stratification, which we have been able to discover more about with the Religion in the News write-ups. People discriminate toward others because of the religion that they practice and what their beliefs are. Some also choose to live their lives free of religion, which impacts the society as well. Not in a good or bad way, necessarily, but that is also an interesting aspect of “religious climate” and how it can impact a society and its people. I also think it is interesting to explore the trends we study, and to try and foresee future changes: being able to understand history and ways in which we can improve our society is extremely important. I don’t think it is a good idea to try and force social change per se, but I believe it is good to understand history and how religions have effected society, to try and understand why our society is the way it is today.

I have really been enjoying listening to the case study presentations. The Sacred Stories, Spiritual Tribes presentation really triggered my interest, as it began with a meditation, reminding the class to focus on breath and consciousness. I took a meditation practicum class last semester and I am currently taking a class called Compassion, which teaches students to be consciously compassionate beings. I have been trying to find ways to make myself be a more conscious person. I feel like I am able to enjoy myself and be fully engaged if I am more conscious of what I am doing and feeling. I always find it fascinating when content from my classes overlap and intertwine. The guided meditation on Wednesday was very similar to what we do in the compassion class that I am in, and the meditation class from last semester. 

Spirituality and living a spiritual life are interesting topics for college students and young people to discuss. In my meditation class we spoke about whether or not a meditation and consciousness class should be mandatory for freshmen in college. Starting the presentation with a guided meditation made me realize that it could be a good idea for a meditation class to be mandatory for incoming college freshmen. I found myself to be more engaged in the conversation and more focused on what the presenters had to say. It is important for people in today’s society to take some time out of their day to focus on breathing and consciousness.