Sigmund Freud's Approach To Religion In Relationship To Politics

In this week’s studies, my approach to religion has changed because I never knew or understood the complexity of the subject. I guess because I was born and raised a Catholic, my whole definition and idea of religion was based on my personal thought and experience as a Catholic. I had never really considered all the factors; such has religious behaviors, beliefs, cultures, languages, and so much more.
Further, I never really considered the power and impact religion not only had on people, but the impact it also has on social and political institutions. Personally, I do not see religion in relationship to politics, but as I learned more about my own faith and read this week’s studies, I see that religion does have “the power to reshape political and social institutions” (Cunningham and Kelsay, 2013). An example of where I have found this to be true in my own religion is learning about the origin of eating fish on Fridays during lent. Learning that this was only passed as a rule in the 16th century by the Catholic Church as a way to stimulate and help the fishing industry. This caused me to question and struggle …show more content…
Freud noted that there is a correlation between many religious beliefs and psychological needs—the belief in a God who is all-powerful and who loves human beings, for example, relates to the need to feel secure in an overwhelming and often insecure world. He expanded this point to argue that the religious belief is a function of the psychological need. Thus, belief in God originates in and is explained by this fundamental human need (Cunningham and Kelsay, 2013). Is religion, does the belief in God, originate from the fundamental human need? Is the concept of religion created as a way for humans to feel secure and has something to believe in after death? Do we need religion as a moral compass to keep humans on the right