The concept religion is used today to refer to a wide range of social formations. Some are well-known to most people, such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism and Daoism. Others may not be so familiar, but are still important to communities. They protect and transmit the means to attain a variety of goals. Some are proximate, goals that can be achieved within this life (a wiser, more fruitful, more charitable, more successful way of living) and some are ultimate, relating to the final condition of this or any human person or of the cosmos itself. They also create maps of time and space, helping humans to deal with the many limitations that stand across their projects of life.

They encourage and reward ethical conduct. They promote social unity and stability, and they help people control their emotions and behaviors. They may also motivate people to work for positive social change.

Most religions teach about doing good for one’s family, friends and strangers and encourage participation in things like charity organizations. They can help people to become better parents and spouses, improve their health and education, achieve financial security and reduce the incidence of social pathologies such as out-of-wedlock births, drug and alcohol addiction and mental illness.

Nevertheless, the diverse nature of what is now called religion raises serious questions about how it should be categorized and understood. Some scholars have sought to solve this problem by adopting a “functional” or “ethical” definition, while others have favored a “family resemblance” approach, inspired by Ludwig Wittgenstein’s notion of the crisscrossing and partially overlapping features that are found in a group of practices that share a name.