What is religion’s most significant role in the development of a civilization?

Question

we are learning about the civilizations in Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, China, and Africa... I found it interesting how religion affected each civilization.... What are your thoughts about this?

Answer 1

Social control.

Answer 2

It doesn't matter what the religion is, or what cultures believe, the FACT of religion, is that it serves as a civilizing influence!

In the Yin-Yang, Religion represents the passive force, which balances a society. Otherwise men (The active force) will have wars continuously!

In a sense, religion prevents the complete self-destruction of our species!

Answer 3

Religion provides motivation and a basic moral code for a society.

People are at their best when they feel they are working towards something.

Answer 4

It intimidated them, because without fear there is no control and without control there is no power. It made the races backward.

The catholics read the Vaticanus, not the true version, inside the Vatican they read the Vulgate bible, sworn by the Pope as the definitive word of God. which is Aryan, yet there are no documents known of the Aryans! why? because they were all stolen in the Catholic wars with them and in the achieves away from public view.(like another 100,,000 other ones also)

(Only the evil keeps the light from the people!!!)

Seeker of the truth here it is below:

Adam and Eve s not a true story and been distorted in the bible.

Search the "Anunnaki" those who from heaven came and created the "Adamu" earthling in Hebrew.

The Anunnaki females got fed up with breeding the clones, so they decided to give the clones the genes to reproduce(the knowledge of the garden of Eden), when they became to many and rebelled, the anunnaki broke off an ice slab 300k wide, caused a Tsunami and flooded the earth to destroy them(hence the Dead sea was caused-over the mountains thats evaporated) (Zissudra (Enki) son of Anu-known as Noah) took his creation of the clones into the arc) its all in the Sumerian tablets written in cuniform, 2500BC found in Ashurbanipal's (550bc) palace in 1945, read "the lost book of enki" for the full translation of the tablets. also look up Zecharia Sitchin he studied the subject for70 years. the government and church's don't want you to know the truth of creationism, thats why they don't teach it because it undermines their autonomy! also read the Nag Hammadi manuscript found in 1952 (sacred-texts.com) supposedly the actual words of christ, written and hidden by a priest in AD 22 ;) strangely the section called "the origin of creation" is missing" ?? ! I wonder why ! Enlil the other son slept with two of the clones, they had children called Adepa and Titu whio married (as half brother and sisters did then to keep the heirs line) the children they had were called Cain and Abel!!!!!!!!

You have to go back as far as you can to get the actual facts , not the distorted ones they indoctrinate us with through, cultural myth and religious dogma.

now read the other posts and observe how they also bought into that BS as "the truth" when it isn't...sad, seriously sad indoctrinated robots. Seek and ye shall find ;)

Ask you self these 3 questions:

1. If we came here of our own volition, we would be more advanced than we are!

2. If we were brought here, then why are there different races.

3. We were cloned, given there are no paleontological (Bones) records of homos erectus before 120k ago.

I choose 3 and the evidence that stacks up 100% is there

Answer 5

It establishes (usually) the moral code.  In polytheistic societies, it reflected the most important aspects of society, i.e. fertility goddesses.  In india, gods from other religions were assimilated into Hindu, so that's one reason there are thousands and thousands of them.

Answer 6

Religion, when it is a fluid and working aspect of culture, and therefore civilization, serves as a mirror of that culture.  Religion tends to reinforce and reify the values, norms, and traditions of that culture or civilization.  

Religion in the cases of Egypt and Mesopotamia, etc. served to additionally be molded with the political and economic establishments.  In Egypt, the pharaoh was not only a god king, he was the high priest as well.  

Emile Durkheim suggested that religion defines "what is sacred, what is profane".

You could throw in the Olmec, Maya, Aztec, Zapotec, Moche, Inca, Sipan and Sican to the above five civilizations as well..

Answer 7

Law and Social Structure and Moral standards.

An analysis of the laws of religion based civilization shows great coherence with the type of laws that are passed and the morals related to the religion on which these laws are structured. Status of certain entities, is also attributed to worship.

Ex. Laws:

- America, founded as a Christian society, abortion was illegal, due to moral conflicts with "God shalt not kill".

Status:

The Egyptian Pharaoh is a God or incarnation of an Egyptian God.

The Pope represents God on Earth.

Haile Salassie I is an incarnation of God and the main figure among Rastafarian culture.

They are all the head figures, and the social structure then determined once the head figure is established.

Answer 8

Religion answers the unanswerable questions early civilizations had. Now, it is superfluous.

Answer 9

One central role is a hard question but I think that "eternal" came close when he mentioned emotion.  Along with emotion you have human needs.  Early religion was nature based and expressed the gratitude and hope of man for the resources provided.  Early Roman Gods were part animal part human and showed the changing from a nature base to a more human(higher complex thought).  Now, man was in the process of studies: the stars, navigation, monument building and so forth. Religions role was to address curiosity.  Who made the earth, why was there night and day.  Then, man is involved in a complex society and religions role is to provide intellectual development. That's why you have concepts such as the Holy Trinity. Interesting is that being on opposite ends of the world Europe and Asia went in opposite directions.  Europe as more individual experience(personal relationship with Jesus) and Asia a group experience such as Ying/Yang mentioned above. There isn't a right or wrong each having their own advantages and disadvantages. Religion meets the emotional and intellectual needs of humans.

Answer 10

Social order, not control. Excellent answers! The Bible really is a good book!

Answer 11

Religion is a universal phenomenon that appears in all society.  But we are not sure on why it was developed.  It may be used as a form of social control as well as a form of mental development.