Scupin's Religion And Culture

The first chapter in Scupin’s work “Religion and Culture”, lays the groundwork for the topics that will be discussed in the coming chapters. The chapter begins with a quick note from Scupin in which he claims that religion is on the rise in the United States, despite predictions made in the New York Times, that “God was dead”. It should be noted however that since the publication of the book religious affiliation as decreased significantly. Comparing statistics from The Pew Research Center, taken in both 2007 and 2014, those who have an affiliation with a Christian religion has decreased to 70.6% nearly an 8 point change. On the other hand, those who are not affiliated with any religion has jumped to 22.8% or a gain of nearly 7 points. Such a dramatic change in such a short amount of time is unfounded, and cannot be easily attributed to a single factor. In my opinion, I would attribute both an issue with the church system and the vilification of Christianity. When speaking with others about their beliefs and churches I am often told that their church has lost the ability to connect with the perishes daily lives. In todays wold of …show more content…
It recommends anthropologists to keep an open mind when studying other cultures. Unlike the rationalist approaches, who placed societies in a hierarchal system of modernization. This approach stemmed from ethnocentric roots, and projected prejudices on societies that differ than the anthropologist. This approach does not allow for a full understanding of a culture because mores, rituals, and beliefs, can be cast aside as insignificant. The adaption of cultural relativism has allowed anthropologists to gain a better understanding of other cultural by casting aside and judgments. The practice of cultural relativism coincided with the progression away from a linear approach, and away from words such as “primitive” and