Chapter 7: Religion

1. Chapter 7: Religion Alex Matthews

2. What is Religion? • “A system of beliefs and practices that attempts to order life in terms of culturally perceived ultimate priorities”. • Religion answers the question of how a person “should” behave on a day-to-day basis.

3. The Purpose of Religion • Religion normally projects the idea that a “good” life has rewards and that “bad” behaviors have punishments • For many people, religion defines who they are and how they understand the world around them

4. The Opposite of Religion • Secularism – “the idea that ethical and moral standards should be formulated and adhered to for life on Earth, not to accommodate the prescriptions of a deity and promises of a comfortable afterlife.” • Basically stating that religion should be excluded from daily life and the main concern is to focus on life on the physical Earth.

5. Categories of Religion • Monotheistic – “a belief system in which one supreme deity is revered as creator and arbiter of all that exists.” • Key Phrase: One deity • Example: Christianity • Polytheistic – “a belief system in which multiple deities are revered as creators and arbiters of all that exists.” • Key Phrase: Multiple deities • Example: Hinduism

6. Animistic – “a belief system in which inanimate objects and elements of the natural landscape possess souls and can help or hinder human efforts.” • Key Phrase: Inanimate objects and nature • Example: Shamanism

7. Hearths of Religion • By 500 BCE there were four main hearths of religion and philosophy that were developed: • Greek Philosophy: Shores of the Mediterranean Sea • Hinduism: South Asia, along the Indus River valley • Judaism: Eastern Mediterranean • Chinese Philosophy: Huang He River Valley in China • These religions/philosophies influenced other religions that we know of today.

8. Hearth Religious Influence on Other Religions • Christianity has influence from both Judaism and Greek Philosophy. • Islam has influence from Judaism, Greek Philosophy, and Christianity. • The monotheistic beliefs that Christianity and Islam share are derived from the monotheistic beliefs that Judaism displays.

9. Hearth of the Three Main Monotheistic Religions • Around 3,500 years ago there was a monotheistic religion that developed in Southwest Asia called Zoroastrianism. • Some believe that this religion is the original hearth of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. • However, some others believe that Judaism itself was the first monotheistic religion.

10. Universalizing Religions • “A belief system that espouses the idea that there is one true religion that is universal in scope.” • Members of universalizing religions actively seek people to be a part of their religion. (Missionaries) • Examples: Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism.

11. Ethnic Religions • “A religion that is particular to one, culturally distinct group of people.” • Followers are normally born into the religion. • Followers do not actively seek out converts like in universalizing religions. • Ethnic religions tend to be spatially concentrated but not always. • Examples: Judaism, Shamanism, traditional religions in Africa

12. Hearths of Different Religions • Hinduism: • Originated 4,000 years ago in the Indus River Valley which is now part of Pakistan • Does not have a single founder or single theology • Based on ancient practices of the Indus River cities of Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa

13. Buddhism: • Derived from Hinduism over 2,500 years ago • Created as a reaction to Hinduism’s strict social hierarchy • Prince Siddhartha of what is now Nepal founded Buddhism and was known as the Buddha • Shintoism: • Buddhism was mixed with a local religion in Japan creating Shintoism • There is no official founder • Taoism: • The exact beginnings are not known • Can be traced back to an older contemporary of Confucius, Lao-Tsu • Lao-Tsu published the Tao-te-ching, “Book of the Way”, which focused on the proper form of political rule and the oneness of humanity and nature

14. Confucianism: • Started by Confucius in China • Confucius denied the divine ancestry of the aristocratic rulers, educated the landless and the weak, disliked supernatural mysticism, and argues that human virtues and abilities not heritage should determine a person's position and responsibility in society. • Confucianism is a philosophy not really a religion. • Judaism: • Grew out of the belief system of the Jews, one of the several nomadic Semitic tribes in Southwest Asia about 4,000 years ago. • The teachings of Abraham are the roots of the Jewish religious beliefs • Christianity: • Can be traced back to the same hearth as Judaism in the Mediterranean • Jesus was the founder of Christianity

15. Islam: • Can be traced back to the founder Muhammad in Mecca • Muhammad admired the monotheism of Judaism and Christianity • Traditional/Shamanist: • Can be traced back to many different tribes scattered all around the world • These faiths could be found in early African, Native American, Southeast and East Asian civilizations.

16. Sacred Sites • “Place or space people infuse with religious meaning.” • The ancient city of Jerusalem is sacred to the Jewish people, Christians and Muslims. • The Western Wall and The Temple Mount are other examples of sacred sites

17. Sacred Landscapes • How religion is prominent through an areas landscape • Since the erection of a temple in the Hindu culture bestows merit on the builder, there are many temples within the Hindu cultural landscape. • In a Christian landscape a church is always present and sometimes is the focus of the whole town.

18. Interfaith Boundaries • “Boundaries between the world’s major religions” • Social division in a country based on religion can cause conflict and interfaith boundaries • Examples: • The Christian and Muslim faith presences in Africa • Israel/Palestine Conflict

19. Intrafaith Boundaries • “Boundaries within a single faith” • Different sects of a religion could engage in conflict with each other based on diverging beliefs. • Example: • The Protestant/Catholic conflict in Northern Ireland

20. Israel and Palestine • After World War I, the British, who controlled Palestine, wanted to create a national homeland for the Jewish people within Palestine. • The British assured the world that the non-Jewish people of Palestine would have protected religious and civil rights • A peaceful result was not achieved by the policy and by 1947-1948 Jews and Palestinians engaged in open warfare.

21. Yugoslavia • The Catholic and Eastern Orthodox divisions of Christianity existed in Yugoslavia divided by the Balkan Peninsula. • The Slovenians and Croats in the west of the peninsula were Catholic. • The Serbians and Montenegrans in the east and south of the Peninsula were Eastern Orthodox • Also, the people in the west of the peninsula used the roman alphabet and the people in the east and south used the Cyrillic alphabet

22. Yugoslavia (Continued) • The already present religious and linguistic tension that existed in Yugoslavia followed by the forceful take over by the Muslim Ottomans caused more tension and conflict.

23. Religious Fundamentalism • “Religious movement whose objectives are to return to the foundations of the faith and to influence state policy” • A fundamentalist group holds it religious beliefs as nonnegotiable and uncompromisable.

24. Religious Extremism • “Religious fundamentalism carried to the point of violence” • Fundamentalists can be extremists but not the other way around.