The Psychology of Religion
Psychology and the Importance in Churches
Wednesday May 29th 1013
I believe psychology is important in churches today because when I look at the attitude and conduct of church members, it exhibits the function of one’s mind, social behavior and development. Specifically when dealing with the mechanics of reception.
Religions and churches face different possible reactions from its members or visitors which are directly correlated to the human behavior of the mind. It is easy to see how the Muslims by their social behavior are so fanatical and often times all-consuming in their faith. Muslims are more inclined to say that their religion is an important part of their daily lives. It is said that nine out of ten Muslims said their faith was more important in their lives, while the figure was 85% for Hindus and 66% for Christians. We see that there are various levels of reaction; other religions could fall into the category of having strong and mild attachment, proving that the human mind is a key ingredient into how people react and consume religion.
This not only plays a role in people with religious beliefs, it’s also displayed in non-believers of faith such as agnostics and atheist. This is so because religion will not have an impact on some individuals; they will be indifferent, having no particular interest or sympathy. While others may be observant, willing to learn but some will still be unmoved to come to faith or beliefs. These are just a few arguments as to why I feel psychology plays a pertinent role, because people that help make up all religions will have different reactions from their minds, thus leading to various behaviors and level of belief.
Along with actions and reaction, the mind will also contemplate upon past experiences, this enables one to either come to faith or not at all, based on what someone had said or done to them. This is known as locking or unlocking the mind.
In conclusion, Behaviors and reactions are a state of one’s mind based upon life experiences. Psychology and the human mind play an intricate role in the growth or stunt of a Religion or a Church.
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