“Does religion matter to you and to our society?” Historically, this kind of question was rarely asked because religion had been largely accepted as an integral part of people’s personal and social lives. However, in contemporary society, the answer becomes increasingly open-ended, as engagement with religion has become more critical and diverse.

To better understand these shifts, our course will primarily draw on sociological and anthropological theories to investigate and understand the roles and significance of religion across traditional and modern societies. Our focus is not on any specific religious faith but on religion as a general social phenomenon. With reference to some real-world case examples, we will explore how religious beliefs, practices, and institutions shape and are shaped by broader social structures and cultural contexts. For instance, we will examine how religion connects and integrates with other dimensions of social lives, including gender, politics, philanthropy and tourism. In addition, scholarly discussions and debates on issues such as secularization, fundamentalism, cults and new religious movements will be addressed.