RELIGION

1. RELIGION

5. Geographers center on the elements of religions that are geographically significant

6. The Function of Religion: • It is part of the adaptive strategy —the unique way in which each culture uses its particular physical environment, especially those aspects of culture that provide the necessities of life: • Food • Clothing • Shelter • Defense • Religion

7. TERMS: • Universalizing religion: one which actively seeks to attain new members and convert everyone in the world, using persuasion and on occasion violence. AKA a proselyticreligion. • Ethnic Religion: one identified with a particular ethnic or tribal group; does not seek converts.

8. Syncretic religion: one which is a combination of elements of two or more distinct religions. • This would include some religions practiced in the Caribbean, Latin America and Africa. • Orthodox religions: emphasize purity of faith, are not open to blending with other faiths. • Fundamentalism: a desire to return to the religion as practiced by the founders.

9. Classifications of Religions • Monotheistic religions – worship a single deity. • Polytheistic religions – worship more than one deity, even thousands. • Animistic religions – belief that inanimate objects posses spirits and should be revered.

11. World Distribution of Religions Fig. 6-1: World religions by continent.

12. World Population by Religion Fig. 6-1a: Over two-thirds of the world’s population belong to Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, or Buddhism. Christianity is the single largest world religion.

13. Christian Branches in Europe Fig. 6-2: Protestant denominations, Catholicism, and Eastern Orthodoxy are dominant in different regions of Europe—a result of many historic interactions.

14. Christian Branches in the U.S. Fig. 6-3: Distribution of Christians in the U.S. Shaded areas are counties with more than 50% of church membership concentrated in Roman Catholicism or one of the Protestant denominations.

15. Regions of Christianity in America • Baptists in the South • Lutherans in the upper Midwest • Catholics in the Northeast • Mormons in the West • But isn’t this changing? Many Americans have turned away from traditional churches toward Eastern philosophies.

16. Meanwhile…. • Even though Europe is nominally a Christian continent, in reality it has become very secularized. • In fact, the number of secularized people in the world is estimated at 913 million, including some 30 million in the US.

18. Hearths and Diffusion The five major religions of the world all began in two basic hearths:

19. HEARTHS

20. Diffusion of Universalizing Religions Fig. 6-4: Each of the three main universalizing religions diffused widely from its hearth.

21. From the Eastern Mediterranean Hearth Judaism – • Originated in Southwest Asia about 4000 years ago. * first major monotheistic religion, covenant between • God (one God) and Abraham (the chosen people) • Sacred text: Torah • Founder: Abraham • Sacred sites: Jerusalem (Western Wall), land between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River • Social manifestation: Zionism • Diffusion: relocation • into European cities during the diaspora, • into N. America during WWII, • into Israel over last 50 years

22. Western Wall, Jerusalem

23. From the Hearth of the Eastern Mediterranean Christianity – • Originated in Southwest Asia about 2000 years ago. • Monotheistic religion, follow teachings of Jesus to achieve eternal life • Sacred text: Bible • Founder: Jesus (son of God) • Sacred sites: Bethlehem, Jerusalem • Split in the church: * split into Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches in 1054 * Protestant sect split off in 1400s and 1500s • Diffusion: into Western Europe, and then world wide during colonialism and after. Proselytizing

24. Diffusion of Christianity Fig. 6-5: Christianity diffused from Palestine through the Roman Empire and continued diffusing through Europe after the fall of Rome. It was later replaced by Islam in much of the Mideast and North Africa.

25. Diffusion of Christianity in Europe

26. Diffusion of Christianity In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus said: “Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you.”

27. Diffusion of Christianity • Early missionaries, such as Paul, traveled from place to place. • Later missionaries would convert kings or tribal leaders first and their people would follow. (Hierarchical diffusion.) • Some conversion was militaristic: the reconquista and the invasion of Latin America. • Christianity would then spread by contagious diffusion, called contact conversion.

28. From the Hearth of the Eastern Mediterranean Islam • Originated on Arabian peninsula about 1500 years ago. • Monotheistic religion, revelations Muhammad Received from Allah, Five Pillars. • Sacred text: Qu’ran • Founder: Muhammad • Sacred sites: Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem: • Split into Sunni Muslims (great majority) and Shi’ite Muslims (concentrated in Iran) • Diffusion: across Arabian peninsula, across North Africa, into Spain and also east into Southeast Asia

29. Minaret (for call to prayer)stands on the Sabah State Mosque in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia

30. Islam • The Quran says “Do battle against them until there be no more seduction from the truth and the only worship be that of Allah.” • Muslims made an effort to convert anyone with whom they came into contact. • Spread hierarchically as Muslim missionaries went on the trade routes to convert people in the Philippines, Indonesia and China.

31. Diffusion of Islam Fig. 6-6: Islam diffused rapidly and widely from its area of origin in Arabia. It eventually stretched from southeast Asia to West Africa.

32. From the Hearth of South Asia Hinduism • Originated in Indus River Valley over 4000 years ago. • Ritual bathing, karma, reincarnation • Sacred text: Vedas • Sacred sites: Ganges River • Social manifestation: caste system • Diffusion: through South Asia and into Southeast Asia

33. Hindu Temple – Angkor Wat, Cambodia. This temple suffers from neglect and destruction now, as Buddhism has supplanted Hinduism in most of Cambodia.

34. From the Hearth of South Asia Buddhism – • Splintered from Hinduism 2500 years ago. Originated in a region from Nepal south to the Ganges River area. • Anyone can achieve salvation, reach enlightenment • Founder: Siddartha (the Buddha) • Sacred sites: stupas • Diffusion: most strongly into Tibet in the north and into East Asia

35. Buddhist Stupas - 72 stupas, each containing a sculpture of the Buddha in meditation were built around 800 CE and still stand in Borobudur, Indonesia.

36. Diffusion of Buddhism Fig. 6-7: Buddhism diffused gradually from its origin in northeastern India to Sri Lanka, southeast Asia, and eventually China and Japan.

37. Buddhism Shintoismis mixed with local religions in some places. In Japan, Buddhism is mixed with the local religion, Shintoism. Shintoism is a syncretic religion Shinto Shrine In Kyoto, Japan, this Shinto shrine is visible after walking through a torii – a gateway usually formed by two wooden posts and topped by two horizontal beams.

38. From the Hearth of Huang He (Yellow) River Valley

39. From the Hearth of Huang He (Yellow) River Valley • Taoism – • Originated in China more than 2500 years ago • Oneness of humanity and nature • Founder: Lao-Tsu • Sacred text: “Book of the Way” • Social manifestation: Feng Shui • Diffusion: East Asia

40. From the Hearth of Huang He (Yellow) River Valley Confucianism • Originated in China about 2500 years ago • Real meaning of life lay in the present • Founder: Confucius • Sacred text: “Confucian Classics” • Diffusion: East Asia, Southeast Asia

41. Barriers and Time-Distance Decay • Religious ideas can weaken with increasing distance from the hearth and with the passage of time. • Barriers: though permeable, they can weaken and delay the spread of a new idea, in the process changing it. • Many indigenous groups in Latin America partially accepted Christianity but also allowing many aspects of their own religion to remain.

42. There are also absorbing barriers (one that halts the spread of an innovation) in religious diffusion. For example: • Chinese people didn’t agree with the idea of original sin; they had long ago adopted the attitude that man is inherently good. • Even the idea of the fall from grace through ‘too much knowledge’ was totally against their basic beliefs. • Snakes as evil? Not in China! • Rice Christians—just wanted the food from the missionaries!

43. Models of the Universe

44. Models of the Universe • Model 1 represents the traditional Judeo-Christian, biblical, teleological (Earth was created solely for people) view, in which humankind is central to creation and autonomous from the natural world. • Model 2 shows the modern, scientific, elitist view, coming from Darwin and others.