Reflection On Religion And Religion

My thought paper is based on the presentation of identity and religion, with an emphasis on my reflection of the role of religious identity in modern Western context. I think this is an important topic because understanding the link between religion and identity is essential for understanding both intragroup and intergroup conflicts that would inevitably arise through our interaction with others. Regardless of what our individual identity is, we have to be conscious about our position and responsibility when interacting with a diverse group of people.

During class, we had a very interesting discussion about Leong’s definition of “negative identity” (Leong, 2015). I learnt from my social psychology class that the more social categorization

For example, if a negative identity were defined as an opposition or a reaction to the mainstream, then in an irreligious society such as China, theist would be considered as a negative identity and in a monotheist society, minority religion would be considered as a negative identity. Moreover, within religious groups there are strict adherent, flexible adherent, and pragmatists who practice their beliefs in different ways (Madge et.al, 2014, p.91); within atheist group, people can believe in the existence of higher power that is not a god. One classmate also mentioned that there are examples where people convert to another religion when they get married. Therefore, because of the multifaceted and constantly changing meanings that identities could incur, no definite answer could be given to which identity is more positive and which is more negative. Also, the presentation has compelled me to think that a sense of belonging and spiritual support are probably the most important aspects about religion, and many