Religion Using material from Item A and elsewhere, briefly examine the extent to which religion can still be functional for individuals and society. Religion is a social institution which is present in all societies and provides the basis for any society's belief system. Human societies have always had some form of religious belief system in place to help guide them through their existence in this world. <Tab/>According to many writers, …showed first 75 words of 742 total…

…showed last 75 words of 742 total…provide different interpretations of the (social and natural) world. <Tab/>Secondly, conflicts within the established belief system are magnified and, with the existence of alternative belief systems, the monolithic nature of the universe of meaning is gradually destroyed. This is not to say that belief systems simply disintegrate (people still have to follow some kind of script to their lives), but rather people start to have more choice in the matter.