In the last two class periods we have talked about the four theorists Frazier, Freud, Marx, and Durkheim. These four men were unique in the way they thought about religion and what it meant to them in a spiritual way and as an outsider looking in. I believe the reason Frazier, Freud, and Marx have such unique thoughts about religion is that they were either atheist or at one time an atheist so it allowed them to have an emotional attachment to a religion and they could look at it for what it truly was. I went to a catholic school for K-12 so I agree with Durkheim over the other three theorists.
I can see where Freud is coming from when he said, “religion is an illusion that we desperately want to be true” because everyone at sometime in their life wants to believe in something. I don’t agree with Marx at all when he says that religion “provides reasons for keeping things in society the way that oppressors like them.” Frazier talks about religion being an intermediate step towards science, which is a touchy subject when you talk about religion, and science together. I do not think science will ever take the place of religion because it is a large step to take.