Abstract
The article focuses on "we-feeling" — a concept which blends aesthetic and sociological elements — as an index to a prime function of religious institutions. Employing Torgny T. Segcrstedt's suggestions regarding "we- feeling," it assesses and refines the proposals of a recent study, To Comfort and to Challenge, by American authors Glock, Ringer, and Babbie. From both standpoints it contends that "we-feeling" is an indispensable charac teristic of religion. It argues that groups retain a religious identity to the measure that they sustain "we-feeling" in the other functions in which they might also be engaged.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.