Date of Award

6-2011

Document Type

Open Access

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Political Science

First Advisor

Matthew Scherer

Language

English

Keywords

religion, politics, institutions, manipulation

Abstract

Religion’s place in political order is a controversial subject. How does the function of religion compare to that of political order? Can it support a society in the same way? My research attempts to answer these questions by investigating three distinct time periods and cultures. I first examine the primitive people of the Azande tribe in Africa, an example of a society based mainly on religion. My research then turns to the fifth and sixth century Greeks, a society in flux, attempting to hold on to religion in the throes of a logical revolution. Finally, I turn to America to discover if religion has any function at all in a society whose Constitution forbids the establishment of a national religion. I conclude that while religion and political order are not identically functioning institutions, they do share many qualities, such as the ability to empower leaders, support morals, and function as a tool for personal manipulation. Through my research, it will be shown that a society based on religion is similar, at the core, to one governed by political order.

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