Max Weber’s “The Sociology of the World Religions,” explores the perceived origins behind several modern religious concepts. The one that struck me the most was the attempt to explain the presence of suffering here on earth, by developing the concept of a savior and salvation religions, a concept which has evolved throughout history.
In his article, Weber asserts that those who are fortunate are rarely satisfied with the fact that they are fortunate; they need to know that they posses a right to such fortune. Man “wants to be convinced that he ‘deserves’ it, and above all, that he deserves it in comparison with others...” (Weber 278).
Just as the fortunate need to know that their fortune is legitimate, they must know that suffering is too. The primeval attitude toward suffering taught that those who suffered were either “possessed by a demon or burdened with the wrath of a god whom they had insulted” (Weber 271). Such individuals were ostracized by their peers for fear they might bring misfortune to the whole community.
Later, individual suffering evolved into a kind of religious glorification. Individuals willingly endured suffering and self-mortification because they believed these acts would lead them to a state of holiness. Throughout history, individuals have suffered willingly for their beliefs; every religion has its martyrs.
The greatest threat to this belief is the fear that suffering is meaningless. This fear led to the birth of salvation religions, wherein a redeemer or a savior would free them from sickness, poverty, danger and distress.
It is plausible, Weber argues, that suffering and the way it is perceived in the world led to the concept of eternal rewards (for those who suffered greatly on earth) and damnation (for those who profited from misdeeds in this world).
Whether you agree with this idea of the evolution of suffering or not, you must acknowledge that there is logic to it. When people could not explain away their suffering or the great inequities of the world, they created a savior and afterlife, a place in which they would be rewarded for all the pain and anguish they had endured in this life.
Weber, Max. “The Sociology of the World Religions.”
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I believe people today still are having difficulty with this concept. We hear it almost daily people blaming their God for their problems. We all need a scapegoat to lay blame when life throws us a curveball. Religion has taught us that God only punishes those who deserve it and no one ever wants to believe they deserve to suffer.
ReplyDeleteI think most concepts were brought up by human beings, so they also chose which to believe in. People who haven't done anything bad in their life (or not so much) would choose to believe (or hope) that they will be rewarded in some ways, otherwise, there's no point of being good when it is much harder to do than the opposite (which most likely occurs when you just follow your natural instinct). For those with wrong deeds, it is best to choose not to believe in reward, punishment or suffering due to their own behaviours or actions, because they would then have no guts to do so.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I am a religious person myself, I do see the logic with what Weber is saying. I find it very interesting that every one of the five largest world religions all have a savior. I never realized this and I see how it makes sense on a logical level. I'm Catholic, and when I was in the process of making my confirmation one of our group leaders of our class was speaking to me about religion. Although she was Catholic, I remember her telling me that she truly believed that anyone who believed in a "God," no matter what religion, she felt that that God was the same as all the others. Strange to hear from someone leading a Catholic group of teens but it made me think more broadly, just as Weber has made me think.
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