Does belief in God influence people's lives? (original) (raw)

In God we trust - Organised religion and personal beliefs as resources and coping strategies

Strategies and resources for coping are important for all parents. They are vital for parents raising a child with autistic spectrum disorder. These parents have devised many, often ingenious, ways to deal with the challenging behaviour of their offspring. The strategies employed would seem to be dependent on the resources available. Resources can be classified as internal, such as personality characteristics, health, intelligence, personal beliefs, parenting skills, previous coping experience, and external, support received from others. External sources of support comprise the social support system as defined by Schilling, Gilchrist, & Schinke (1984). Their model consists of three levels of support. The first level of support comes from close family members and friends. The second level includes neighbours, more distant friends and self help support groups. These two levels form the informal social support system. The third level, known as the formal support system, is the help received from professionals. This can include people in the health, social work, organised religion, and education areas, and also politicians and policy-makers. The larger study, of which this paper is a part, aims to approach the family from an ecological point of view. This means looking at the family as nested in it's environment and taking into account the different systems that impinge on it. Organised religion and personal beliefs dwell within these nested systems. Therefore in-keeping with this ecological approach it seemed important to explore these areas. Previous research has recognised the contribution that organised religion and personal beliefs have made to family life. In 1984 Bronfenbrenner, Moen, and Garbarino said that "researchers concerned with the well-being of families would do well to attend to the part played by religious institutions within the community." (p.30). Fewell, (1986) felt that some people derive important support from their inner resources, personal belief systems, and religious affiliation. In 1994 Beresford published a paper which examined the research looking at the resources and strategies used by families caring for disabled children. These included support from organised religion and personal beliefs, which she felt were a potential resource during the continuing process of caring for the disabled child. Organised religion can be seen as fulfilling a number of roles for its' members. It may provide education, emotional support and sometimes financial and material help. Bennett, Delucca & Allen, (1995) suggested that people involved with religious organisations should be sensitive to the needs of families who have children with disabilities and be aware of the ways they can serve as sources of

Elements of Religious Belief and Social Values among the Laity of the Church in Wales

Journal of Contemporary Religion, vol. 12, no.2, pp.215-228, 1997

This paper explores the relationship between religious beliefs and secular attitudes of lay people within a single church, the Anglican Province of Wales (UK). The origins of the data are described and findings as to the distinctive social characteristics of the laity reported. Results of the analysis of the interrelationship between different dimensions of religious belief are reported and discussed. The secular attitudes of the laity are compared with those of the British population, and found to be on the whole more 'liberal'. While some differences between the secular attitudes of the laity and the general population are clearly related to the distinctive social position of the former, social location is unable to explain all of these differences. A number of relationships between belief and secular attitudes are described. Anglicans with more 'catholic' beliefs seem more concerned in their secular attitudes with issues which they perceive as involving rule breaking or attitudes to authority, while 'evangelicals' react more strongly to what can be interpreted as unconscionable behaviour.

A psychological perspective on god-belief as a source of well-being and meaning

HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies, 2010

This article reports on a qualitative exploration of the well-being and meaning that second- and third-generation Christians from an African context experience because of their integration of religion in their life and being. A textured, integrated tapestry is created of the participants’ understanding of God (God-concept), experience of their relationship with God (God-image) and understanding of life as coloured by their belief systems. The contribution of their God-belief to their sense of meaning and psychological well-being frames the tapestry of this article.

Is Belief in God Good, Bad, or Irrelevant? - Edited by Preston Jones

Religious Studies Review, 2007

. This book is a rigorous, yet refreshing, piece of analytic philosophy of religion because Schellenberg analyzes various difficult concepts (e.g., religion, belief, and faith) and draws many intricate distinctions (e.g., between faith-in and faith-that, belief-in and belief-that, assent and belief, and also between several kinds of religious skepticism). Moreover, his book is refreshing in that it concentrates on foundational issues in the philosophy of religion that have received comparatively little attention (e.g., questions about what religion is, what religious belief is, and what is required for faith). Schellenberg's culminating thesis is that faith does not require propositional belief and, more provocatively, that propositional faith is incompatible with propositional belief. A main point in his argument is that propositional faith involves a voluntary mental act of assent, whereas propositional belief is an involuntary mental state. He concludes with an interesting discussion on the general aims of the philosophy of religion as well as on the general principles for evaluating responses to religious claims. The thread that ties together all the various topics in Schellenberg's book is his aim to provide a thorough and systematic treatment of foundational issues in the philosophy of religion. Overall, this book is highly complex and therefore not recommended for beginners in philosophy; but it certainly deserves attention from advanced inquirers inside (and outside) the area of philosophy of religion.

The Relevance of God to Religious Believers and Non-Believers

Religions, 2020

This study presents a review about what great figures of history thought about the existence of God and a worldwide comparison between religious believers and non-believers using the World Social Survey (WSS) database, comprising a sample of 90,350 respondents. Results reveal that most people believe in the existence of God and consider that God is important and very important in their lives. Believers are mainly women; younger than non-believers; mostly married; less educated than non-believers; most of whom work, though fewer hours than non-believers; and perceive themselves as belonging to the middle class. There are more believers with no formal education than non-believers. The diversity of religious believers and non-believers, visible in the perspectives of humanity’s important personalities, mirrors the diversity of ordinary people towards the relevance of God. The results obtained point to a correlation between the belief in God and the studied sociodemographic variables bu...

The Social Construction of Divinity: Understanding the Human Belief in God

International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research (IJFMR), 2025

The belief in a divine being, or God, has been a significant aspect of human life and has been the subject of intrigue in the field of socio-psychology. This research paper aims to explore the reasons behind the widespread belief in God among humans. The paper delves into the origins of this belief and how it has been shaped through social processes. As social creatures, humans have not only sought basic necessities like food, shelter, and clothing but have also developed other needs through socialization. To address these questions, the researcher has developed the "beg, blame, and bear" theory, which is supported by previous research findings. Furthermore, the paper discusses the functions of religion and God, although they are often considered two sides of the same coin, their roles are distinct.

‘Unbelievable: Why we Believe and Why we Don’t by Graham Ward’, Anglican Theological Review, 98.1 (2016), pp. 226-29.

Anglican Theological Review

Unbelievable: Why We Believe and Why We Don’t, Graham Ward, London: I.B. Tauris, 2014, x + 246pp. Hardcover, £20.00, $32.00. Alexander J. B. Hampton | www.ajbhampton.com | hampton.alex@gmail.com Forthcoming Review I have just completed a review of Graham Ward’s latest book Unbelievable: Why We Believe and Why We Don’t for the Anglican Theological Review. Ward’s text aims to show how belief is not awkward, or eccentric, but is instead is a particular form of knowing, and that acknowledging this form of knowing, which includes the intuitive, religious, poetic and creative, is an important part of our understanding the world. Consequently, this book offers its readers a thought provoking consideration of a central and important topic to religion, making Unbelief required reading for anyone interested in belief. A link will be provided here once the review is published.