Love, Laughter and Truth

Religion has always been an almost intrinsic part of human life and society in general. All over the world, the pervasiveness of religion is obvious for all to see. Some of the greatest achievements in human history have been the result of religious influence, for example, the Pyramids, St. Peter’s Basilica and of particular importance for us in the 21^st century, the Industrial Revolution, which was undoubtedly not only brought about through technological advancement but also, and more importantly, via the Protestant Work Ethic and the intertwining of the two. It would seem that without religion, there can be no society or a society worth speaking of. This was something in particular that Durkheim wrestled with in his book “The Elementary Forms of Religious Life”. Within this book, he attempted to explain why religion has become such a permanent aspect of humanity; both of them intertwined with the survival of the other. Over the following paragraphs, I intend to elaborate more on this issue and attempt to explain why he referred to religion as “a fundamental and permanent aspect of humanity”.

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