Religious Beliefs, Meanings, and Symbols Analysis

Religious Beliefs, Meanings, and Symbols
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Religious Beliefs, Meanings, and Symbols
Religion is a socio-cultural practice marked by a range of different features, including beliefs, meanings, and symbols. Various religions hold almost similar and diverging religious beliefs. Symbols represent meaning that often denote humanity's relationship with gods, God, supernatural powers, or spiritual practice. Religious beliefs, meaning, traditions, and symbols often demonstrate a great sense of variability and shared similarities. This paper illustrates how and why people develop beliefs and get meaning to their lives through religion and non-religion.
Although religion remains important in most Americans' lives, the survey findings show that Americans are becoming less religious over recent times (Pew Research Center, 2015). For example, fewer U.S. adults cite religious beliefs as highly essential in their lives than did seven years ago, and Fewer adults lack entire certainty belief in God (Pew Research Center, 2015). This survey can imply that the younger population is losing interest in religious beliefs, leading to a recent decline in religiosity (Smith, 2011). According to Pew Research Center (2015), fewer report believing in God, heaven, or hell.
Religious belief and affiliation serve the various purpose, meanings and provide importance to people’s lives. Religion is a much-institutionalized system serving dual ideology at the level of individual and institution. First., religious belief can create significance in a person's life by servicing as a cultural identity. Thus, it is marked by conventional practice, festivities, and stories that represent behaviors, practices, and expectations. Cultural identity gained from religious belief provides meaning and relevance to individual’s life. Second, religious beliefs act...