The Catholic Church, in other words, exists for many members on both a primary and secondary mode of membership and association. "Primary groups tend to be informal in nature and dominate the structures of traditional societies. Often organized around kinship ties, these groups regulate the activities of their members through informal norms and folkways of the culture. Secondary organizations are much more formal in structure and are usually coordinated through bureaucracy" (Elwell, 2008). The secondary organization of the Catholic Church is quite formal, organized, and bureaucratic in structure, but the informal social rules of the neighborhood church -- how much participation is demanded at the church bake sale, for example, is quite informal and based upon social and kinship ties. A parallel could be drawn with the American Heart Association, another organization I am a member of. The American Heart Association is a nonprofit charity, led by all of the...
[ View Full Essay]