Although people usually go to dictionaries first when they need a definition, social science reference works can have more comprehensive and complete definitions — if for no other reason, than because of the greater space. These definitions can reflect greater bias, too, depending upon the author and the audience that it is written for.
The Blackwell Dictionary of Sociology, by Allan G. Johnson
- In general, religion is a social arrangement designed to provide a shared, collective say of dealing with the unknown and unknowable aspects of human life, death and existence, and the difficult dilemmas that arise in the process of making moral decisions. As such, religion not only provides responses to enduring human problems and questions but also forms a basis for social cohesion and solidarity.
Because this is a sociology reference work, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the definition of religion emphasizes the social aspects of religions. Psychological and experiential aspects are ignored completely, which is why this definition is of only limited use. The fact that this is an appropriate definition in sociology reveals that the common assumption of religion being primarily or solely a “belief in God” is superficial.
A Dictionary of the Social Sciences, edited by Julius Gould & William L. Kolb
- Religions are systems of belief, practice and organization which shape and ethic manifest in the behavior of their adherents. Religious beliefs are interpretations of immediate experience by reference to the ultimate structure of the universe, its centres of power and destiny; these are invariably conceived in supernatural terms. ...behavior is in the first instance ritual behavior: standardized practices by which the believers enact in symbolic form their relationship to the supernatural.
This definition focuses the social and psychological aspects of religion — not surprising, in reference work for the social sciences. Despite the assertion that the religious interpretations of the universe are “invariably” supernatural, such beliefs are regarded as only one aspect of what constitutes region rather than the sole defining characteristic.
