What is Truth? Sociology

Sociology is too large of a subject to be contained in the margins of this page, but to simplify, I will offer a definition of sociology, a description of the Myers-Briggs Personality Index, and we will find that sociology, more overtly than psychology, seeks to define the self in relation to the world and to others. Just as psychology can be seen through Sacramental Vision as a sign pointing to a greater Truth of the Authentic Self, Sociology will show more explicitly how we seem to value relationship with “the Other” as essential to happiness.

Sociology explores social beliefs, traditions, and concepts like marriage and engagements. My wife let me put this picture in this blog (photo P. Smith)

Many of my students don’t know this yet, but in just a few years they will declare themselves to be Sociology majors in college. They will study human cultures and societies. They will discuss, in detail, the formation of norms and social codes. They will write papers about how we are all conditioned by our societies to think and to act in particular ways. They will even make promises to not conform to the standards of the societies and cultures and religions that raised them. But for now, I can at least teach them how, on a fundamental level, all social systems really do the exact same thing: all cultures help members of a given society understand who they are and how they can relate to the world around them. The overarching theology that I teach my students is that we have a natural desire to relate to others; sociology really just studies how we go about doing that.

Simply put, sociology is the study of the development, structure, and function of human societies.  Sociology looks at the factors involved in how people or societies become who they are in terms of religion, politics, economics, etc… If one identifies themselves, or anyone else, in any particular way, sociology seeks to discover what factors have led to one doing so. To restate, if a person claims themselves to be a White, Female, Republican (and there are many other descriptors in sociology), sociology studies that individual in an attempt to understand what factors led them to make this assertion. Similarly, if one claims another person to be, for example, educated, compassionate, and responsible, sociology also seeks to understand what factors would lead one to make this claim about another person. Sociology offers a material and scientific approach to understanding how we define ourselves and how we define our relationship to others. Of course, as I have already described, it is precisely with the context of relationship that we can Truly begin to know our Authentic Self. In this way, Sociology can be viewed Sacramentally. But there is more.