Factors of Religiosity

By: Pratama Yoga Nugroho*

According to Emile Durkheim, a prominent expert on psychology, one can be religious or acts religiously due to two factors: internal and external factors. As a psychologist, he used psychological approach to define human religious behavior as he considered human psychology strongly related to religious behavior. Those two factors influence human growth and process of maturity as human grows from a baby to an old person.

Internal factors may include the needs for satisfaction of mental interests and philosophical deliberation. One may see religion not only disposes human transcendental, vertical relation with God but also plays important role as vision of life (weltanschauung). Since religion teaches peace, morality, and harmony with God, mankind, and the universe, one may demonstrate religious attitudes as implementation of desire for peaceful and delighting life.

Philosophical deliberation frequently involves in making a person religious. Thought about who created the sun, the moon, the earth, who keeps the universe running in its harmony, who determines life and death often comes to one’s mind. As one needs satisfying answer to those questions, such questions often lead human minds to deep deliberation over the existence of the most powerful entity called God. Human belief in the existence of God often demands worship and services as the responsibilities of ‘the created’ to the Creator.

External factors include parental, educational, and environmental factors. A person raised in a religious family will definitely differ from that which is raised in a non-religious or secular family. The values and norms, along with religiosity, set in a family would strongly influence one’s mind during his/her growth. Of course, this would affect his/her mindset so that he/she becomes religious or acts religiously.

Educational factor is also one of the most influential factors. We can see the influence of educational factor in Islamic boarding school which is often called pesantren. Since santri (students of pesantren) have to learn the academic matters of pesantren which dominantly consists of Islamic teachings including Islamic belief, laws, morality, in addition to the global knowledge, the principles and attitudes of santri would mostly be much different to those of non-pesantren students.

Besides religious education, pesantren also provides religious environment. All behaviors and attitudes of all elements of pesantren must be conducted in conformity with Islamic rules. This will certainly make santri accustomed to Islamic behavior and attitudes or in other words acting religiously. Here we can see that environment is strongly capable of making someone religious.

Considering all points above, we might want to contemplate on one’s or even our own religiosity. We might observe which factors have been dominant in making us a religious person. As religion is the most important way to implement our devotion to our Creator, it is important to know how religious we are, what will probably make us more religious, and then increase our religiosity.

* Pratama Yoga Nugroho: a student of English Department, Faculty of Letters, Diponegoro

University, Semarang.