The sociology of religion is primarily concerned with the structure within, and the effects on, society. To answer these and other spiritual questions, early philosophers developed the notion of the soul, which is a spirit being and therefore capable of leaving the body during dreams and finally at death. Animism originated to satisfy humanity s intellectual needs. Naturism arose from the belief that nature is endowed with supernatural powers, deriving from people s experiences with nature. Where animism locates the origin of religion in people s intellectual needs, naturism locates it in their emotional needs.
Naturism is a response to the effect of the power and influence of nature upon human emotions.
However, both these evolutionary approaches are hard to prove, the first indication of a possible belief in the supernatural dates back more than 50,000 years. Both animistic and naturistic theorists have based their ideas on speculation and guesswork to development of possible scenarios through which belief systems originated, but they do not explain why those beliefs developed. Also, both animism and naturism do not explain why different religions develop different beliefs in different ways. The modern sociological study of society and religion can be split into three distinct theoretical camps. The functionalist perspective changes the emphasis from individual human need to the need of society.