As we are focusing on culture and religion, we understand that the study of religion cannot be separated from the study of culture. In lesson 2.1, we get a more profound comprehension of the term ‘culture’, which is just as ambiguous as defining religion. We get the idea that religion is a concept that is embedded within a mainstream society or that popular culture could be immersed in religion. When we analyze religion in popular culture, there are many different categories such as in films, photos, or music to name a few.
One example of religion in pop culture in our contemporary world is Blake Shelton’s song “God’s Country.” This example addresses Nye’s proposition of how religion can be an influence on pop culture. Throughout the entire song, there were numerous mentions of religious diction. He used words like “church”, “baptized”, “heaven”, “saved”, “light”, and even “devil” to describe the struggles of living in America and his faith in God. Specifically, Shelton also continuously states that the land we live on belongs to God even if we live on it and consider it as ‘ours’. Another example of religion present in pop culture is the example introduced in the religious podcast. Meghan Goodwin and Ilyse Fuerst discuss the case study on the book and later made into the cinematic film “Not Without My Daughter” by Betty Mahmoody, where it was an autobiography about domestic violence against women from Muslim men with the overlooked religious racism against those who practiced a foreign religion.
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