According to Emile Durkheim, religion is a binding force that unites individuals in a society. "Truly religious beliefs are always common to a specific group, which professes to adhere to them and to practise the rites connected with them (1912). In other words, while religious practices are common to many societies, religion is the unifying force in which many societies are founded. It is the 'glue' that builds a society and furthermore keeps the society together.

While it could be said that religion is a doctrine of beliefs set down and forces its followers to adhere to in order to be a part of a certain religion, Durkheim provides an alternative definition. "...the only characteristic that all religious ideas and sentiments share equally seems to be that they are common to a certain number of people living together, and that they are also normally very intense" (1893).

A religion is not defined as the belief in either a singular or multiple gods, but rather it is the force that unites individuals. Of course, we then get into the problem of the difference between a cult, sect, and religion.

In my opinion, modern druidism would be considered a sect of paganism, mostly because there are rituals and rites observed within it.