The level of influence that religion has on an individual's life has always been in question. People always wonder how much of their actions are the result of their own independent thoughts and how much is the result of external influence from social interactions. This essay discusses the level of impact that religion has on a person's life and whether this impact diminishes with the person's deviation from their religious norm. Religion can therefore be considered to be a social fact. Elwell (2003) defined social facts as behavioral patterns that are capable of exercising controlling power over people. They serve as the guides and controls of conduct and are external to the individual in the form of mores, folkways, and norms. Through education and socialization, the rules become internalized in the person's consciousness. The constraints and guides therefore become the moral obligations to obeying the rules of society (Elwell, 2003).Durkheim, in his study on the sociology of religion, viewed religion as part of the society and recognized its part in influencing the behavior and thoughts of the members of society. Religion discusses the sacred and the profane, both of which are determined externally from the individual, and it also allows them to do certain things while at the same time restraining them from undertaking certain tasks (Elwell, 2003).
Emile Durkheim analyzed religion as a social fact that has an external constraints on individuals. Bancroft and Rogers (2010) referencing Coser wrote that Durkheim believed that religion served four main functions, namely; cohesive, disciplinary, euphoric social forces, and vitalizing. Religious rituals that are performed serve to impose self-discipline with a degree of severity. He also believed that religious observance maintained and revitalized a group's social heritage while helping to pass on its lasting values to future generations (Bancroft and Rogers, 2010).
