The Relationship Between Religion and Social Institutions: A Functionalist Approach

Abstract

The institutions consisting a society can be classified sociologically by six basic institutions such as family, education, religion, economy, politics, and spare time. A society can only exist through complemented relations between these institutions. Each institution meets a basic need of society. When all these institutions fulfill their duties, all societal needs are met in a balanced way. For this reason, it is expected that a harmony should be between these institutions that serve to the same aim. If any society can exist as a whole, this situation shows that there is naturally a harmony between those institutions. Therefore, there should be a complemented quality between these institutions. In case of social changes, it is seen negatively that religion is generally abstracted by other social institutions. In fact, it is expected that those who perform these applications should act according to the scientific realities. Social and historical realities have indicated that the institution of religion is not an institution that contains discourses against to the society called as superstructure, but it is an institution that provides an ontological legitimacy to which all institutions need. For this reason, in case we act in accordance with these social realities in all of our social arrangements, we take advantage maximum from all of those institutions, especially in the institution of religion. Hence, there is a complemented relation between religion and society or between religion and the world or between the world and the next world.