World Religion
What is Religion?
According to the American College Dictionary, religion is a noun defined as the quest for the values of the ideal life. This definition is vast and general, allowing for a variety of interpretations by people from all cultures. There is no single path to follow in order to lead an ideal life, only personal beliefs and experiences. Religion is non-finite so there is no way of determining a boundary (Smart, 5). In my quest for a true understanding of what religion is I explored my own traditions and religious beliefs as well as life experiences. Slowly, with the added insight from the text and videos, my own definition of religion has begun to take shape.
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Every religion holds truth to the believers, and gives them a sense of identity. There is no right or wrong answer to the question of which religion to follow, only interpretations and behaviors according to what makes sense to the individual. People will behave as they believe (Beliefs and Believers, Class 1).
Another equally important remark I came across in my studies was one by the Methodist pastor Rev. Cecil Williams. Williams' main topic of discussion was that of toxic religion and inspiring social action. Williams begin the interview by saying, "Be careful of religion because religion is toxic" (Williams Interview, Class 2). He means that believers are not focusing on the actions, but the outcomes instead. You cannot genuinely identify with a religion or call yourself a religious person unless you relate to other human beings or form relationships that work to ease human suffering (Simmons Study Guide, 15). Again, I was reminded of my own beliefs and the history of my religion when I explored the meaning of this statement. Contrary to popular belief, this nation was not founded on the basis of religion. America was founded by men in search of power and money who used their religious beliefs, predominantly Protestant Christian, as an excuse for their brutality. Not all believers act on their beliefs, creating a fine line between which are factious and which are not. The first attempts at
Religion as defined by Merriam-Webster is, “the belief in a god or in a group of gods; an organized
The term spirituality comes from the word, spirit, and a suffix -uality. Spirit has a general meaning of entity or life force, which is not physical. Spirituality thus means anything that has a relationship with spirit and its features or qualities. However, spirituality in human beings has two main components a primary component, spirit and human entities, that is, will and conscience. Spirituality in human beings is what leads to other desirable and undesirable qualities such as integrity and selfishness respectively. It is the only way in which human beings gain hope, comfort, inner peace, and meaning in their lives. Spirituality has been wrongly associated with religion since time immemorial. To me, spirituality is more than what we can simply call religion or faith. Religious beliefs are made of individual spirituality, which are mostly universal. Spirituality is developed outside religion itself.
Religion is universal. Although people may have different ideologies and practices, everyone believes in something, whether they deem it their religion or not. In this way, religion is a powerful connection between all of humanity; thus, it is important to understand the people behind religion and how their unique characteristics correlates with and influences religion—whether that be their social class, ethnicity, gender, or politics. However, ethnicity and gender, along with the closely linked topics of sexuality and politics, are the most significant concepts to understand religion in our modern world.
Religion is constructed on faith and belief of an individual even though it is the individual choice to follow it or not. It has stirred a lot of debates for years; those who are trying to prove that God exists throughout history and follow to modern day. While, those who are atheist are trying to prove their point of God does not exist. There are still more and more theories and debate over the subject of religious view. It is a matter of theism versus atheism; new and old philosophers have joined the debate and all with different sides to another philosopher’s theory or view on the matter. In this paper, I will attempt to illustrate the reasons given by Louis Pojman of why religion is good or bad, as well as evaluating Bertrand Russell argument about religion. This can define the meaning of life and the creation of life as we know it. It can change views or switch sides for there is always another explanation to exactly what religion is all about and having a superior ruler that created all.
I swung from my brightly colored hammock, camouflaged amongst the other teenagers in their enos. I was famished, uncomfortably hot, and drenched by the pouring rain that fell from the sky and dripped down the bridge of my nose. I didn’t mind though, and neither did the other eleven campers that also futilely attempted to keep their bibles dry while listening to our counselors over the rain. There at Camp Lake Stephens, I learned that sometimes giving up your life can help you find it. The Holy Spirit reigned at camp, and people came there to worship him. For eleven years, I have been growing there, and it’s changed me as a person.
Pei was asking me the biggest decision that makes me started studying again. I shared about how God saved me when I was in my lowest point and He was the One who brought me into the light. She was surprised as she said that she would only find someone to express her sadness, instead to Buddha. They would only go to the Chinese Temple when they need money or asking for peace and health upon them. I was happy that finally I got the chance to share the main point of my faith! I shared her some Bible verses about Christ carries our burdens and sadness, especially John 14 where Jesus comforts His disciples.
Growing up, church was never a huge aspect of my life, but it was always around me. My grandmother was a deeply religious Catholic, and many of the kids on my street went to the church around the corner. Despite this, my mother never forced my sisters and I to go. She wanted us to choose our own beliefs. The proximity to Christianity influenced what I believe in today. I believe in God and that he created everything in the observable universe. The rest of the Bible, well, is debatable to me. Some call me an agnostic Christian, but the label doesn’t matter. As long as I can find faith and solace in something when I need it, I’m happy. What I ponder the most is the final chapter: death and the afterlife. What I hope is that everyone is delivered what they
Religion is defined and thought of in many different forms. When I think of the word religion, and the role it has in my life, I create a definition of what religion basically is in my head, from my personal experiences. Religion is a set of beliefs and values that one can base their life around. I also believe religion could be defined as something that one can base their thoughts and perceptions off of, meaning the way one thinks or understands something can originate from their religion. Religion can be defined by many different definitions, but I believe a person creates their own definition of religion by what they believe in and how they practice those beliefs.
What is theology? What does it explain if anything? According to the encyclopedia, it is related to the Greek Religion. In Christianity, the systematic study of the nature of God and God's relationship with humanity and with the world. Although other religions may be said to have theologies, this is a matter of controversy within, for instance, Judaism , which holds that God is unknowable. This article will therefore confine itself to Christian theology. The development of theology in Christendom arose from the need for educated Christians of the ancient world to express their ideas in terminology familiar in current thought. Hence arose the close relation of Christian theology with Greek philosophy formulated by the Greek and Latin
feels that other religions of the world are important and are held true by their
Since the dawn of human life, people have eternally been searching for the purpose of existence. Humans are innately curious beings, and are blessed to have the capabilities of higher thought processes. Humans use these thought processes to ponder the question of existence. Unfortunately, the evolution of man has not brought the human race any closer to actualizing its purpose on earth. In fact, this issue is such that the more one feels he or she understands it, the more questions concerning it arise. This problem perpetuates itself by the confusion of religion and spirituality, and the roles they hold in society. As the human race evolves, it feels the need to designate structure to its world. As
Religion. Whenever I hear people talking about that word, I draw a blank. I start to question what really is religion, why is it so talked about, and why is it such a big deal to our society. Recently I learned that religion was a concept that was created by mankind a long time ago. Yet religion isn’t something that has one specific definition, because people have different religious constructs within their cultures around the world. Before taking this class, I never had a definition that I liked for the term religion until now. This definition is one that I can understand and agree with, “religion is a system of beliefs about the nature of the forces ultimately shaping human destiny, and the practices associated therewith, shared by members of a group” (Gerhard Lenski). My personal stance on religion now is that I don’t believe in any gods or any religion at all. It has been a journey for me to get to this stance about religion.
All in all, there is a particular definition that considers numerous past endeavors, modifies some of the regular mistakes, and arrives at a definition that incorporates the majority of the assortment of religion without unintentionally including exercises that have a few similitudes yet not really religious in nature. For that matter, everyone who is interested in study of religion ought to dependably be careful about brief meanings of religion (Best, 2016). Religion is an umbrella term for numerous things and in that capacity, it is hard to characterize religion without setting aside opportunity to
What is religion? Each person’s definition of religion is different. Each person’s faith is different. This is a question that has been asked for centuries, and regardless of the answer given there is no right or wrong answer. Religion can be defined as a group of people who have shared beliefs who feel their life has purpose or meaning. This feeling or belief that their life has meaning can come from outside of themselves, as well as within. Taking this one step further, these shared beliefs put into action in the form of worship, can be easily identified because they happen regularly. It can be said the Primal religions were in fact not religions. Some may argue Confucianism is not a religion. Others may say Taoism is not a
The Problem of Definition of Religion The study of religion is problematic. There are so many dimensions to religion (belief, practice, experience, knowledge and consequences) that it is impossible to provide a conclusive definition. Most sociologists do not believe in God. Functionalist views on Religion -------------------------------