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Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, And Judaism

Decent Essays

Religion is found within all societies on Earth and plays a major role in the culture of a community. Today I will be defining religion, discussing the three religious beliefs systems that exist, why societies have religion and delving into magic and rituals.
Defining religion is quite challenging, as some definitions are either too vague or too limited. However, anthropologist, Howard, states that religion consists of “A system of beliefs involving supernatural forces or beings that provide shape and meaning to the universe” (Howard 1996:305).

There are many religions present within todays society with the most prominent being; Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Judaism (Rosenberg, 2016). These can then be split into two different groups; Monotheistic and Polytheistic. Monotheistic meaning “The belief that there is only one God” (Crabtree, 2014). This can be seen in Christianity, Islam and Judaism. Therefore Polytheism is the belief and worship of multiple deities, which can be found in Hinduism, Shintoism, and the beliefs of the Ancient Egyptians (Merriam-Webster, 2016).

Anthropologists have come to the conclusion that there are three religious belief systems. These are Animism, Animatism and Totemism (Mugambi, 2010:20) The concept of Animism revolves around indwelling spirits. Those who practice Animism believe everything in existence has a soul (Britannica, 2016). Plants, humans, objects and nature are all incorporated into this. This belief of a soul, which in some

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