Abstract
There is a preliminary question that must be dealt with: is it true to say that religion has an integrating function? If by this we mean to indicate a consequence of religion—and not its finality—we can in fact say that it has a role to play in society The latter need not necessarily be an integrating role; it may equally be a disfunction. There exist also other social factors which are capable of fulfilling the social functions of religion (parties, ideologies) and which can be consi dered as being substitutes.
By the fact that it is among other things a social reality, religion does have an influence upon social structures, but it acts in the first place on the cultural system. Variables which may be either internal (doctrine, organisation. liturgy, etc.) or external (social groups, social or cultural changes) affect the role which religion actually plays.