| anti-Semitism |
the belief or behavior that defines Jewish
people as inferior and that targets them for stereotyping,
mistreatment, and acts of hatred |
| brainwashing thesis
|
claims that innocent people are tricked into
religious conversion, that religious cults manipulate and coerce
people into accepting their beliefs |
| charisma |
a quality attributed to individuals believed
by their followers to have special powers |
| churches |
formal organizations that see themselves and
are seen by society as primary and legitimate religious
institutions |
| collective
consciousness |
the body of beliefs that are common to a
community or society and that give people a sense of belonging
|
| conversion |
a transformation of religious identity |
| cult |
a religious group devoted to a specific cause
or charismatic leader |
| denomination |
religious organizations that unite various
congregations into a single administrative structure |
| ethnoreligious group
|
an extreme form of an exclusive religious
group |
| exclusive religious
group |
religious groups with an easily identifiable
religion and culture, including distinctive beliefs and strong
moral teachings; they have little tolerance for diversity |
| ideology |
a belief system that tries to explain and
justify the status quo |
| inclusive religious
group |
religious groups with a moderate and liberal
religious orientation and tolerance for diversity |
| matriarchal religion
|
religions based on the centrality of female
goddesses, who may be seen as the source of food, nurturance,
and love or who may serve as emblems of the power of women |
| monotheism |
the worship of a single god |
| patriarchal religion
|
religion in which the beliefs and practices
of the religion are based on male power and authority |
| polytheism |
the worship of more than one deity |
| profane |
that which is of the everyday, secular world
and is specifically not religious |
| Protestant Ethic
|
belief that hard work and self-denial lead to
salvation |
| rationalization of
society |
term used by Max Weber to describe society
being increasingly organized around legal, empirical, and
scientific forms of thought |
| religion |
an institutionalized system of symbols,
beliefs, values, and practices by which a group of people
interprets and responds to what they feel is sacred and that
provides answers to questions of ultimate meaning |
| religiosity |
the intensity and consistency of practice of
a person’s (or group’s) faith |
| religious
socialization |
the process by which one learns a particular
religious faith |
| ritual |
symbolic activities that express a group’s
spiritual convictions |
| sacred |
that which is set apart from ordinary
activity, seen as holy, and protected by special rites and
rituals |
| sect |
groups that have broken off from an
established church |
| secular |
the ordinary beliefs of daily life that are
specifically not religious |
| secularization |
the process by which religious institutions,
behavior, and consciousness lose their religious significance
|
| social drift theory
|
interprets people as moving into religious
cults gradually, particularly if they have experienced recent
personal strains or have become disenchanted with their prior
affiliations |
| totem |
an object or living thing that a religious
group regards with special awe and reverence |