Responses when Confronted with the Sacred and Secular Thought System

Stephen Prothero’s “God Is Not One” is a survey of world religions, comprising vital information on a vast array of different sets of belief. As someone who has never studied religion before, nor belongs to a particular faith, the variability within these religions is staggering. One might be satisfied to define religion as “how a person goes about believing in God,” but soon finds that even that definition has its holes. Thankfully, “God Is Not One” does an amazing job of cluing its reader into the nuances that are sometimes forgotten about the religions it approaches.

Religion is a universal term that is widely used for a human’s belief system. The views on how religions compare to one another can be defined differently. One view explains religions using a united belief system by their common goals. Another view explains that different religions are just a shared essence and have vast differences between their specific traditions and customs. This shared essence, but vastly different theory, is explained by Stephen Prothero, using the term “pretend pluralism”. There are many major and minor religions that have guided people in their morals and beliefs. Religions, such as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, and Buddhism. All five of these current, major religions have vast differences, but may have common goals in their morals, traditions, etc. Two of the most practiced religions, of these five, are Christianity and Islam. These two religions are constantly at battle with one another, but what many people don’t see is that there are just as many similarities between these two religions as there are differences. Through this paper we will discover the underlying similarities and differences between these two religions and, hopefully, conclude that supports either the common goal theory or the “pretend pluralism” theory.

I understand what you mean when you note that your focus was on a spiritual and non-secular; however, I operate through a different lens. In doing so, I contend that

Differences in culture, history, geography, and collective temperament all make for diverse starting points. . . . But beyond these differences, the same goal beckons” (Prothero 1). This is a great approach because it puts the differences in religions in perspective while still showing they all show a common goal. The second scholarly approach is the ‘4 Step Process’ which is also by Stephen Prothero. First, there must be a problem. Second, there must be a solution to this problem, which also serves as a religious goal. Third, there must be a technique for moving from this problem to this solution. Fourth, there must be an exemplar who chart this path from problem to solution. This is a great approach because it helps to point out the differences across and inside religious traditions. The third scholarly approach is the ‘Question of Ultimate Meaning’. William Portiers approach deals with the deep or great questions about the human condition that we can only answer ourselves. “Why are we here? What becomes of us in the end? What is our final purpose? What is a human being and how ought we to behave toward one another?” (Portier 17). This is a great approach because it makes you personally come up with answers to those questions and to answer those questions, you must look at many different religious traditions. The fourth scholarly approach also written by William Portier deals with ‘The Dialectical

Using proven facts and methodologies, the author supports her argument that various faiths can coexist outside of a singular perspective. Ward acknowledges every faith has defining guidelines followers must embrace, but maintains the

The question as to what it means to be human is often thought of as being the foundational question for almost all religions. Indeed, it can be argued that the religious impulse itself is first and foremost an impulse to understand the nature the meaning of life, and therefore of what it means to be human. Despite the importance of this question, the Bible provides relatively few answers, other than the idea that to be human is to be in some way close to God and to have been created by Him. This closeness and the nature of having been created has a variety of consequences which this paper will explore. These consequences that can be seen to be intensely positive but which also come with a heavy price and with a strict legality. Finally, they may also be shown to be entirely arbitrary and to position their unfathomable nature on the fact of having the 'created ' nature of a person.

There are many religions and sacred texts that have shaped complete civilizations and cultures. They have varied in their theories of creation and how man should live and act towards each other and nature. The more I study religions and sacred text the more I see that for the most part they are alike. Most of them share a view of love and peace towards all things living. What varies between them are simply deities. It is these minor differences that cause their followers to completely abstract their sacred text to the point where they have completely deviated from their text and do the opposite of what their text commands. For example

Pluralism is found in many ancient Indian traditions including Jainism, Buddhism, and the Advaitic interpretation of the Upaniṣads and the Bhagavad Gītā. Each tradition’s core values internally ground non-violence. In all of these traditions there is a multiplicity of world views and individual needs, overcome by a common goal of breaking free from bondage to reach enlightenment. At face value, these traditions appear to have opposing metaphysics. While the conceptions of what is achieved by freedom from bondage differ in form, these traditions all recognize a pluralism of paths to a common goal. This not only promotes tolerance, but transcends this to reach a fuller form of respect. It should be clarified that this respect does not, however, mean that these views are entirely tolerant or relativistic. These conceptions of pluralism simply require that each view must considered as one of the many sights which potentially have some truth to

The modern society is a highly pluralistic society. Rapid transmission of information in the modern era and the ability of people to travel around the world on a larger scale has created awareness that the world and the modern society has a multitude of diverse and contrasting viewpoints on a variety of issues. This pluralism is evident in the realm of religion than in any other realm. Human awareness of the existence of the many religions in the world, today, is unprecedented. Christians are aware of the existence of many other smaller religions apart from the mainstream Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Judaism.

“A Suspension of (Dis) Belief: The Secular – Religious Binary and the Study of International Relations” by Elizabeth Shakman Hurd is an intriguing chapter that questions the relations between the secular and religion. Shakman Hurd argues that most individuals have unchanging meanings of what the secular is and what religion is. Shakman Hurd states that the analysis of the secular and religion in world politics needs to be re-examined in terms of the beliefs (political and religious) that support the secular – religious binary. To clarify her argument, Shakman Hurd uses instances that have took place in world politics to address her argument. By looking at the relationships between the United States and other countries, Shakman Hurd claims that the secular-religious binary should be considered as being a concept that is

Spirituality and religion hold different values and truths depending on your personal beliefs. Being religious is a belief or practice that contains certain values one should follow. When looking deeper into religion you can find spirituality which is the part of religion that effects our spirit and soul, it is not tangible. “The Sacred within” is spirituality and pertains to God dwelling inside of our heart and soul. When looking at “the sacred within” there are certain senses that we can tap into so, we may obtain that sort of spirituality. Through solitude, silence, imagination, and nature, we can have a better sense of spirituality.

Humans are not born into this world knowing anything. Everything we know is from experience or observation. A person does not come into the world knowing anything of religion or God, it is something he has been exposed too. If someone were born into this world and not told anything about God he would not consider the idea of being religious and would most certaintly never arrive to similar conclusions as Christianity. I am highly skeptical of there being a god and am most definitely not a theist by any standard defniition.

Hick claims that these disagreements can be resolved by applying the historical method but it proves to be difficult. One reason is because many historical claims have no independent historical support outside the religion that makes the claim. Hick reasons that historical differences just must be accepted, especially when they are not over central articles of faith. Hick’s basic argument is that most historical disagreements cannot be resolved and since many of these disagreements are not related to the essence of any religion, concludes that resolving them is not critical and ultimately they do not create a problem for his pluralistic hypothesis.

Even among religious scholars, ideologies differ. In the following pages I will employ both Haught and

On this vast planet religions are becoming more prevalent and are being studied more frequently in recent times. Many individuals want to study and learn about the origins of some religions, on where they were developed and what was the cause of this glorification of a divine. The art of religion is processed by many ideologies, background, beliefs, myths, and rituals. The five major religions of the world include: Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism are solely based on these ideologies, and ultimately leads to one goal, to follow the path of god, or to seek a euphoric state of salvation. In spite of all the differences among the world’s five major religions, they have very similar ethical constructs, which should encourage more mutual respect among them.