Why is it important in the study of religion?
THESE ARE THE RELIGIONS WE TALKED ABOUT THIS SEMESTER
WORLD RELIGIONS – REL 212 World Religions
HINDUISM & JAINISM
WEEK 2
Cosmogony – Origin of the Universe
No specific origin or founder
Nature of God/Creator
Gods are in male and female form and represent many different things
View of Human Nature
Karma, what comes around goes around
View of Good & Evil
good actions have good effects, bad actions have bad effects
View of Salvation
Moksha is when an enlightened human being is freed from the cycle of life-and-death (the endless cycle of death and reincarnation) and comes into a state of completeness. He then becomes one with God.
View of After Life
Samsara-reincarnation
Practices and Rituals
Sculptures;images;Home shrines;Meditation;Ayurveda;Hatha Yoga;Kundalini Yoga;Puja (Pooja)
Celebrations & Festivals
Raksha Bandhan;Krishna Janmashthami;Ganesh Chaturthi;Shiv Ratri;The Onam Carnival;Vasant Panchami;Guru Purnima;Karwa Chauth;Bhai Dooj;Vasanta Navaratri;The Kumbh & Ardhkumbh
Week 2 – Sources
http://www.hinduwisdom.info/Hindu_Cosmology.htm
BUDDHISM
WEEK 3
Cosmogony – Origin of the Universe
Beginning of this world and of life is inconceivable, since they have neither beginning nor end
Nature of God/Creator
do not believe in the concept of a personal God
View of Human Nature
Dependent origination, or dependent arising, is a formulation that is central to Buddhist philosophy
View of Good & Evil
Conditions which arise in the mind, producing results initially in the mind, and from there to external actions and physical features. Good and evil are innate, inseparable aspects of life.
View of Salvation
Salvation is liberation from such bondage through the transformation of our consciousness and our awakening to our true nature. The Buddhist path to salvation does not go through prayers, but is rather based on deeds including mental culture through meditation. For a Buddhist salvation is reaching Nirvana.
View of After Life
The Buddhist view is that there is no soul, as it is understood in the Judeo-Christian or scholastic philosophy traditions. after death one is either reborn into another body (reincarnated) or enters nirvana
Practices and Rituals
Meditation;Mantras;Mudras;Prayer wheels
Celebrations & Festivals
• Buddhist New Year
• Buddha’s Birthday is known as Vesak or Visakah Puja
• Songkran-(essentially a cleansing of life by cleaning homes and washing clothes etc.)
• The Ploughing Festival(May, when the moon is half-full, two white oxen pull a gold painted plough, followed by four girls dressed in white who scatter rice seeds from gold and silver baskets. This is to celebrate the Buddha’s first moment of enlightenment)
• Loy Krathong: When the rivers and canals are full of water, this festival takes place in all parts of Thailand on the full moon night of the twelfth lunar month. Bowls made with leaves, candles, and incense sticks, are placed in the water, and represent bad luck disappearing.
Week 3 – Sources
http://www.urbandharma.org/udharma5/goodevil.html
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Buddhism/Beliefs/Human-Nature-and-the-Purpose-of-Existence
http://shindharmanet.com/salvation2/
DAOISM & CONFUCIANISM
WEEK 4
Cosmogony – Origin of the Universe
It makes some reference to the origin of the world through the interaction of the forces of Ying and Yang. There are no stories about the origin of human beings.
Nature of God/Creator
They believe that God is loving and benign
View of Human Nature
The purpose of existence is to reach one’s highest potential as a human being. Through a rigorous process of self-cultivation that lasts a lifetime, one may eventually become a “perfected person.”
View of Good & Evil
Suffering and evil are inevitable in human life, and can promote learning and growth. A mistake is not a “sin,” but an opportunity to learn and do better next time.
View of Salvation
Confucians don’t ordinarily hold convictions about the individual salvation or condemnation of persons past this life. Death is neither dreaded nor desired in Daoism rather a person appreciates living.
View of After Life
Confucianism regards both life and death as a responsibility to society, while Daoism (Taoism) holds that both life and death should be in conformity to nature.
Practices and Rituals
Aside from its important ethical principles, Confucianism does not prescribe any specific rituals or practices. These are filled by the practices of Chinese religion, Taoism, Buddhism, or other religion which Confucians follow.
Celebrations & Festivals
· The 28th day of September is the birthday of Confucius.
· The Chinese Ching Ming Festival, also called, Ancestor Day
· The Qufu International Confucius Festival is celebrated annually between September 26th and October 10
Week 4 – Sources
http://religions.findthebest.com/q/4/1464/What-is-the-nature-of-god-according-to-Confucianism
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Confucianism/Beliefs/Human-Nature-and-the-Purpose-of-Existence.html#ixzz38hI0maX2
http://www.crvp.org/book/series03/iii-3/appendix_b_theories_of_life_and_.htm
WEEK 5
SHINTO
Cosmogony – Origin of the Universe
In the Kojiki it states: ” At the time of the beginning of heaven and earth” and does not refer to whatever may have preceded the separation of Heaven and Earth, but simply suggests that something already existed
Nature of God/Creator
Kami are the spirits or phenomena that are worshipped in the religion of Shinto. They are elements in nature, animals, creationary forces in the universe, as well as spirits of the revered deceased. Many Kami are considered the ancient ancestors of entire clans, and some ancestors became Kami upon their death if they were able to embody the values and virtues of Kami in life.
View of Human Nature
In Shintō it is commonly said that “man is kami’s child.”
View of Good & Evil
Purity is at the heart of Shinto’s understanding of good and evil.
View of Salvation
The concept of salvation is based on the belief that all living things have an essence, soul or spirit known as “kami.”
View of After Life
After death, a person becomes a spirit-deity, eventually joining in a great ancestral collective which is the manifestation of the great Divine. Shinto followers place little emphasis on death and what happens after it
Practices and Rituals
Shinto rituals are a central component of most of the national festivals in Japan, as well as of the more specialized events at particular shrines and other sacred sites. Most often they are performed by male priests who are assisted by a female shrine functionary called a miko, who often is a shaman.
Celebrations & Festivals
The main Shintō rites and festivals are for celebrating the New Year, child birth, coming of age, planting and havest, weddings, and groundbreaking ceremonies for new buildings
Week 5 – Sources
http://eos.kokugakuin.ac.jp/modules/xwords/entry.php?entryID=1319
http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/shinto-festivals.html
http://lifeafterdeath.com/life-after-death-shinto/
WEEK 6
JUDAISM
Cosmogony – Origin of the Universe
A Divine singular God made all that exists
Nature of God/Creator
He is a single, whole, complete indivisible entity. Judaism completely rejects the dualistic notion that evil was created by Satan or some other deity.
View of Human Nature
Humans were created in the image of God. People have the ability to choose which impulse to follow: the good impulse or the evil impulse. That is the heart of the Jewish understanding of free will.
View of Good & Evil
In Judaism good and evil are spoken of as light and darkness.
View of Salvation
Salvation comes from the Lord and is a favor bestowed upon the nation as a whole.
View of After Life
Jewish teachings on the subject of afterlife are sparse: The Torah, the most important Jewish text, has no clear reference to afterlife at all.
Practices and Rituals
· Circumcision
· Havdalah (includes Havdalah service)
· Kashrut (dietary traditions: keeping kosher)
Celebrations & Festivals
· Shabbat – considered the most important of all Jewish holidays
· Rosh Hashanah – Jewish New Year
· Yom Kippur – Jewish Day of Atonement
· Sukkot – seven–day festival celebrates the fall harvest
· Shemini Atzeret – a festive day after the week-long festival of Sukkot
· Hanukkah – 8–day Jewish winter festival
Week 6 – Sources
http://www.jewfaq.org/g-d.htm
http://scheinerman.net/judaism/Rituals/index.html
http://www.pjcc.org/jewishlife/holidays/jewish-holidays-explained.html
WEEK 7
CHRISTIANITY
Cosmogony – Origin of the Universe
Christianity inherited the Jewish cosmology that God is the creative force, or power, and created everything himself. God created all things through a series of acts, or methodology, described in the Bible.
Nature of God/Creator
God is unique, distinct, and unlike any other concept of God. There is only one God, and God the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are all the same God.
View of Human Nature
Each person is a unique individual and has the power to act under his/her own will. By design, human beings are in relation. They are in relation to their environment, to God, to their neighbors, and to the larger human community.
View of Good & Evil
All goodness flows from God’s inherent character, and evil is refusing to submit to His authority and love and serve Him. Christians hold that moral evil stems from rebellion against God, which results in injustice, vanity, pride, dishonesty, aggression, violence, greed and more.
View of Salvation
Salvation is made possible by the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ by crucifixion. As the judge of all, God will assess each individual’s relationship to Christ; people risk a sentence of eternal punishment and spiritual death, forever separated from God.
View of After Life
Majority of Christians believe in some kind of heaven, in which the deceased enjoy the presence of God and loved ones for eternity. A small majority of Christians believe in hell, a place of suffering where unbelievers or sinners are punished. Catholic Christians also believe in purgatory, a temporary place of punishment for Christians who have died with unconfessed sins.
Practices and Rituals
Nearly all Christians will have been baptized, either as an infant or as an adult, and regularly participate in communion. The cross is important to Christianity as well as Jesus Christ’s depiction of being hung upon that cross.
Celebrations & Festivals
Lent, Easter and Christmas are the main religious festivals of the Christian Year. The most important Christian holiday is Easter, a spring festival that celebrates Christ’s resurrection from the dead. The 40 days prior to Easter form the Lenten season, a time of fasting and repentance. Christmas commemorates the birth of Jesus on December 25.
Week 7 – Sources
http://www.themystica.com/mystica/articles/c/cosmology_christian.html
http://worldreligions2.tripod.com/id7.html
http://www.christinyou.net/pages/understandgod.html
http://people.opposingviews.com/christianity-beliefs-good-evil-2926.html
WEEK 8
ISLAM
Cosmogony – Origin of the Universe
Allah, the supreme being created everything and everyone
Nature of God/Creator
Although the God of Islam has revealed his will through the prophets, his actual nature remains ultimately unknowable. He is transcendent and not a part of his creation, and is most often referred to in terms and with names that emphasize his majesty and superiority.
View of Human Nature
Muslims believe humans are the greatest of all creatures, created with free will for the purpose of obeying and serving Allah.
View of Good & Evil
The Islamic definitions of good and evil are based on the purposes of creation and the meaning of human life. The ultimate goal of human life is to become perfected spiritually through belief in God, the knowledge of God, the love of God, and the worship of God. Whatever brings a person closer to God and will benefit him in the Next World is good, and whatever takes a person away from God, and incur His anger is evil.
View of Salvation
In Islam, the purpose of life is to live in a way that is pleasing to Allah so that one may gain Paradise. Unbelievers (“those who are ungrateful”) and sinners will be condemned, but genuine repentance results in Allah’s forgiveness and entrance into Paradise upon death. Islam teaches that no one can gain salvation simply by virtue of their belief or deeds, instead it is the Mercy of God, which merits them salvation.
View of After Life
Islamic doctrine holds that human existence continues after the death of the human body in the form of spiritual and physical resurrection. Faith in life after death is one of the six fundamental beliefs required of a Muslim to complete his faith. Rejecting it renders all other beliefs meaningless.
Practices and Rituals
The Five Pillars of Islam (Arabic arkan ud-Din, “pillars of the faith”) are the five religious duties expected of every Muslim.
· Shahada – The first of the Five Pillars Shahada is the Muslim profession of faith, expressing the two simple, fundamental beliefs that make one a Muslim: There is no god but God and Muhammad is the prophet of God.
· Salat – ritual prayer which is performed five times a day: at dawn, midday, afternoon, sunset and evening.
· Alms tax (zakat)
· Sawm – fasting, commemorates the revelation of the Quran to humanity during Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic year.
· Hajj – At least once in his or her lifetime, each Muslim is expected to undertake a pilgrimage to Mecca, the sacred city of Islam.
Before performing certain rituals, most importantly before prayers, Muslims are expected to perform a form of purification
Celebrations & Festivals
Eid al-Fitr (1 Shawwal): The Celebration concluding Ramadan. Ramadan, the month of fasting, ends with the festival of Eid al-Fitr. Literally the “Festival of Breaking the Fast,” Eid al-Fitr is one of the two most important Islamic celebrations (Eid al-Adha is the other). Al-Hijra, the Islamic New Year, is celebrated on the first day of Muharram, the month in which Muhammad emigrated from Mecca to Medina. Ashura is an Islamic holiday observed on the 10th of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic year.
Week 8 – Sources
http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/beliefs/human.htm
http://www.islamreligion.com/
http://www.questionsaboutislam.com/
http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/holidays
WEEK 9
SIKHISM
Cosmogony – Origin of the Universe
Sikhism teaches that only the creator knows the origin of the universe.
Nature of God/Creator
Sikhism teaches the existence of one God, Ik Onkar. First Guru Nanak taught that the creator and creation are inseparable in the way that an ocean is made up of its individual drops.
View of Human Nature
Sikhs perceive human life as an opportunity to merge with the divine will. However, the core problem is that human judgment is occluded by a false sense of self.
View of Good & Evil
Only humans know the difference between right and wrong, and can make moral choices
View of Salvation
In order to attain salvation one must live a honest life and meditate on God. Sikhism shows the way to attain salvation and become One with God. Sikhism instructs that you do not have to fast, abstain, go on renunciation or enter a monastery in order to meet God. All you have to do is have faith, recite the Name of God and remember Him for each possible moment.
View of After Life
Sikhs do not believe in an afterlife in either Heaven or Hell. Sikhism teaches that the soul reincarnates when the body dies. Sikhs believe that good or bad actions, in this life, determine the life form into which a soul takes rebirth.
Practices and Rituals
Baptism – Amrit; Marriage – Anand Karaj; Naming of Children
Celebrations & Festivals
Guru Gobind Singh’s Birthday; Maghi; Hola Maholla; Vaisakhi; Martyrdom of Guru Arjan; Celebration of the Guru Granth Sahib; Guru Nanak’s Birthday; Martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur
Week 9 – Sources
http://sikhism.about.com/od/sikhism101/qt/Creation.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/rs/god/sigoodandevilrev2.shtml
http://sikhism.about.com/od/sikhism101/qt/Sikh_Afterlife.htm
http://www.patheos.com/Library/Sikhism/Beliefs/Human-Nature-and-the-Purpose-of-Existence.html
http://www.realsikhism.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1248309169&ucat=7
http://www.sikhismguide.org/rites.aspx
WEEK 10
NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS
Cosmogony – Origin of the Universe
There is a higher being of some form.
Nature of God/Creator
Most believe that God is a higher being that is benevolent and all seeing
View of Human Nature
human nature is that of a multitude of choices in life and choices are made based on one’s beliefs
View of Good & Evil
good and evil exist everywhere, and choices are where we make the choice between good and evil based on our life’s choices
View of Salvation
Salvation can be achieved by attempting to live a modest, humble life and doing as much good as possible.
View of After Life
Afterlife is extremely varied. Some do not believe and others believe in a place similar to the heaven described in Christianity and some also believe in a hell.
Practices and Rituals
Practices and rituals are very different from religion to religion. Some believe in meditation, smoking marijuana, wearing certain colors, etc.
Celebrations & Festivals
The celebrations are small and commonly unheard of.
THIS IS THE ACTUAL ASSIGNMENT:
Choose ONE (1) category (origin of all things, nature of god, view of human nature, view of good and evil, etc.) from the chart to focus on for this assignment. Consider how the selected category relates to all of the religions covered and to your own social or work experiences.
Write a two to three (2-3) page paper in which you:
- Select ONE (1) category from the completed World View Chart. Provide a rationale for choosing this category. What is compelling about this category? Why is it important in the study of religion?
- Describe the selected content and explain the significance of the selected category across all of the religions studied. Show in what ways the category is significant for each religion.
- Give an example of how you have noticed this category in your life, town or country. What impact does this category have in the everyday lives of people who practice religion in your area? (You do not have to give examples of all the religions in your area, just one you have noticed besides any you practice). For example, in Cincinnati, Ohio we have Hindu, Greek Orthodox, Catholic festivals in the summer. So if my category were “Festivals and Celebrations” I could use those events as my example.
- Use at least three (3) quality resources as references for the assignment and document your sources using APA Style for in-text citations and references. Note: Wikipedia and similar Websites do not qualify as quality resources.
- Write clearly and coherently using correct grammar, punctuation, spelling, and mechanics.
