Religion has always been of great importance for the development of culture in the process of civilization of mankind. Religion and culture are closely and inextricably linked, and a change in beliefs affects the development of culture in the most direct way. For example, the influence of religion on ancient culture revealed to the world ancient Greek mythology, which, in turn, gave rise to ancient theater and had a great influence on European culture. Titian, Shakespeare, Mozart, Rubens have repeatedly appealed to her in their creations. Biblical myths gave birth to ever new images in art, and gospel stories became an inexhaustible inspiration for many artists, poets and musicians.
Religion and culture are united together from the very beginning of the history of mankind. And the impact of changing religion on the development of culture is very clearly demonstrated by the adoption of Orthodoxy in Russia, which brought the country to a whole new level of development. Orthodoxy has left its legacy in culture in the form of temple construction, printing books, writing icons, making vestments. All this relates to material culture. In addition, the church left a big mark in the spirituality of the people. Here, great influence on the formation of consciousness was provided by sacred music, sermons and creeds.
Religion as a form of culture is reflected in Rublev's “Trinity”, “Last Supper” and other subjects in painting; in many beautiful temples in architecture; as well as in sculpture and music. As for literature, the influence of religion is especially evident here, especially for the greatest books - the Bible, the Koran and the Vedas, which are the repository of wisdom, kindness and truth, a source of creative inspiration. In ancient Russian literature, the lives of the righteous were described, later images of people who were examples of holiness began to appear in fiction.
The role of religion in culture is undeniable and there is an opinion that without religion there can be no real culture. A Christian of high culture should be likened to Jesus Christ, who did not see the differences between nations, for him there were only people as such. He must have true mercy, which is the movement of the soul, and not the fulfillment of his duty and the path to salvation. He should be a highly moral, tolerant and humble person, the main one in life is love for all people, not condemnation and forgiveness.
We have already found out that religion and culture have common roots. Culture is a connection of generations; it is a cult of ancestors. Ancient culture had a great influence on the Christian church, the Roman, in turn - on the Catholic, Byzantine culture took a significant place in the Orthodox. This affects the architecture of temples, in the writing of icons, in religious music and literature. Through religious culture, the church introduces people to the world of art, develops artistic perception in them.
Religion and culture are inseparable, since religion has a rather large influence on secular culture, which gives artistic images and plots from its history. The absence of these images would significantly impoverish this very culture and deprive it of artistic expression. Since ancient times, man realized that he does not go through life himself, that there are those supernatural forces that direct and control the world. That is, from the very beginning, culture was influenced by religion, first primitive and purely intuitive, then higher and more conscious.
Religion holds society within certain boundaries of the cultural model; it is the key to history. It is impossible to understand the culture of society without knowing the religion that is behind it. Religious inspiration created the first artistic images in literature, in the construction of temples and the manufacture of sculptures. The desire for higher powers and their patronage in primitive religions gave rise to shamans and sacred dances, in the higher - the creation of temples, icons and divine liturgy. Therefore, each great culture is a tandem of the divine movement and the human.