Religion Accroding to Class Structure :: Islam Religion Religious Class Essays

Religion Accroding to Class Structure In The Arab World: Society, Culture and State, Halim Barakat discusses the effect religion has on society within the Arab world. â€Å"Religion is the most significant force shaping Middle Eastern societies,† For Barakat (119). This is because religion is both revolutionary and pacifying. The Middle East is divided into rigid social and economic structures, which creates tension between upper and lowers classes. One tries to perpetuate a system of inequality, which forces the other to cope with poverty. Religion is used to serve the needs of both classes, â€Å"to repress and to resist repression,† in this way (130). The duality of religion can help explain the way modern societies in the Middle East function. Over the course of time, â€Å"Islamic conquests resulted in the accumulation of a great deal of money in the hands of Muslims, so they lost the purity of the prophet† (133). This divided society into classes: the rich were content with their status but the poor were not. Religion was used to,perpetuate the rich’s existence as a class. The economic hardship the poor faced was justified through religion and the possibility of a better afterlife. Egypt’s twenty four districts, for example, were divided between the king, the military and the princes, leaving no land for the people. To justify his class’ status, the king told the people they did have land: â€Å"It was the twenty fifth district, and its place is in the kingdom of heaven† (134). In this instance the king used religion as a â€Å"coercive and repressive force,† to serve his intentions (129). Rationalizing the poor’s poverty and the rich’s power through religion wa s a way Muslim rulers â€Å"legitimize(d) and maintain(ed) the prevailing order† (129). The way classes in the middle east practice religion is highly illustrative of class difference. Barakat makes a distinction between what he labels â€Å"official religion,† and â€Å"popular religion†: the former is practiced in rich, urban areas, and the latter in less affluent, rural ones (126). He says official religion stresses the value of strict interpretations of religious texts, monotheism, an absence of intermediaries between believers and God, and a close connection between religion and the ruling class. Popular religion, on the other hand, values interpretations of religious texts, personified sacred forces, spiritual inner selves, and does seek intermediaries between believers and God. Religion Accroding to Class Structure :: Islam Religion Religious Class Essays Religion Accroding to Class Structure In The Arab World: Society, Culture and State, Halim Barakat discusses the effect religion has on society within the Arab world. â€Å"Religion is the most significant force shaping Middle Eastern societies,† For Barakat (119). This is because religion is both revolutionary and pacifying. The Middle East is divided into rigid social and economic structures, which creates tension between upper and lowers classes. One tries to perpetuate a system of inequality, which forces the other to cope with poverty. Religion is used to serve the needs of both classes, â€Å"to repress and to resist repression,† in this way (130). The duality of religion can help explain the way modern societies in the Middle East function. Over the course of time, â€Å"Islamic conquests resulted in the accumulation of a great deal of money in the hands of Muslims, so they lost the purity of the prophet† (133). This divided society into classes: the rich were content with their status but the poor were not. Religion was used to,perpetuate the rich’s existence as a class. The economic hardship the poor faced was justified through religion and the possibility of a better afterlife. Egypt’s twenty four districts, for example, were divided between the king, the military and the princes, leaving no land for the people. To justify his class’ status, the king told the people they did have land: â€Å"It was the twenty fifth district, and its place is in the kingdom of heaven† (134). In this instance the king used religion as a â€Å"coercive and repressive force,† to serve his intentions (129). Rationalizing the poor’s poverty and the rich’s power through religion wa s a way Muslim rulers â€Å"legitimize(d) and maintain(ed) the prevailing order† (129). The way classes in the middle east practice religion is highly illustrative of class difference. Barakat makes a distinction between what he labels â€Å"official religion,† and â€Å"popular religion†: the former is practiced in rich, urban areas, and the latter in less affluent, rural ones (126). He says official religion stresses the value of strict interpretations of religious texts, monotheism, an absence of intermediaries between believers and God, and a close connection between religion and the ruling class. Popular religion, on the other hand, values interpretations of religious texts, personified sacred forces, spiritual inner selves, and does seek intermediaries between believers and God.