1. Nature of Religion and Beliefs Flashcards
- The Nature of Religion - The Dreaming
What does worldview mean?
A worldview represents the most fundamental beliefs and assumptions an individual or community has about the universe.
What distinguish different religions of each other?
Religion as a worldview:
Religions promote their own worldviews, and provide a source of meaning for believers through a specific set of beliefs and practices that give meaning to life.
(For example, in Buddhism and Hinduism time is seen as a cycle; whereas for Christianity, Islam and Judaism, time is seen as linear)
What do you mean by a transcendent worldview?
- A transcendent world view is one that is beyond the human experience ‘out there’.
- The transcendent dimension allows humans to move beyond their earthly concerns to the
heavenly or spiritual matters.
What do you mean by an immanent worldview?
An immanent world view refers to the ‘inner’ aspects of spirituality.
* Emphasis is placed on God or gods in human existence in day to day life.
What is central in all religions?
- The belief of the supernatural.
(Religious Theory Summary: - Belief in supernatural dimension central to all religious traditions.
- Most significant element of a religious worldview is belief in a divine being or power.
- This divine being is believed to be responsible for creation, life framework, and ultimate destiny.
- Different religions have unique responses to the supernatural dimension.
- Despite differences, belief in supernatural powers is the defining element of a religious worldview.)
What is monotheism? polytheism?
- Belief in one god.
- Belief in or worship many gods.
What does transcendent mean?
Beyond the normal human physical experience.
What are the 4 key features of a religious tradition?
- Beliefs
- Sacred texts & writings
- Ethics
- Rituals and ceremonies
What is belief? believer?
1/ Belief (n.): Trust, faith or confidence in someone or something.
2/ Believer (n.) : an adherent of a particular religion; someone with religious faith.
What sustains all religions? Given an example? What instills law into religion? Give an examples?
- Beliefs and believers sustain all religions, maintaining unity and identity.
- Examples include Judaism’s belief in one God, moral law, and covenant.
- Sacred texts and writings are central to all religious traditions, instilling law, character, and spirituality.
- The Bible, a collection of Old and New Testaments, is the central sacred text in Christianity.
- In Islam, the Qur’an and Hadith are the two sacred texts, the Qur’an being the holy book and the Hadith detailing the life of Prophet Muhammad.
What are ethics?
Name examples of ethics in Christianity?
Ethics are central to all religious traditions and are philosophical, encompassing what is right and wrong for believers
Ethics in Christianity
* Based on Christian Bible, Church Councils, Conferences, and Pope.
* Core ethical teachings include The Ten Commandments, The Beatitudes, and Jesus’ Commandment of love.
What are ritual and ceremonies? Give 2 characteristics of them. Give an example.
1/
Rituals and Ceremonies in Religion
* Customary ways of celebrating religious beliefs.
2/
* Directly linked to supernatural beings or forces.
* Involves a sequence of activities including gestures, words, and objects.
3/
Muslim Prayer
* Obligatory and performed five times a day.
* Unites mind, body, and soul in worship
* Judaism:- Shabbat
What is a dynamic religion?
A living religion is practical, real, and deeply rooted in everyday human existence, evident in society and culture, and expressed in the lives of its adherents.
Meaning of dynamic?
- A force that stimulates change or progress within a system or process.
How has religion contributed to people?
- Religion has contributed to individuals and society throughout
human history through attempting to answer the fundamental
questions of human existence, such as: - Why am I here?
- Is there a supreme being?
- Why do evil and suffering exist?
- Is there life after death?
Religion helps to construct meaning, provides ethical guidance and provides a sense of belonging
How has religion contributed to an individual?
Religion provides life guidance through complex ethical systems and sacred texts, enhancing an individual’s sense of self, understanding, and belonging.
(“Christianity’s Potential Contribution”
* Religious organizations offer structures, beliefs, and goals.
* Encourages personal spirituality, meaning, and purpose.)
How has religion contributed to society and culture?
Religion shapes and develops human culture, creating social cohesion through rituals and ceremonies, and contributes to understanding existence’s meaning and sustaining knowledge of a deeper life purpose.
What is the Dreaming?
The Dreaming is a fundamental Aboriginal religion, encompassing spiritual and physical aspects of life. It is the spiritual dimension of reality, establishing relationships between people, land, and associated life. Experienced through songs, stories, rituals, and symbols.
What are the aspects of Dreaming belief?
- Origins.
- Sacred sites.
- Diversity.
- Stories of Dreamtime.
- Art and Symbolism.
What is an overview of Aboriginal Dreaming? What do the rules establish? How are these rules experienced?
Aboriginal Dreaming Overview
* A complex network of knowledge, faith, and practices. The most fundamental idea in Aboriginal religion.
* Central and deepest reality of Aboriginal world.
* Establishes rules linking Aboriginal people, land, and associated life.
* Experienced through songs, stories, rituals, and symbols.
Where is the foundation of the Aboriginal religion? Who created the natural world in Aboriginal Religion? What is enraptured in Dreaming stories? How are living creatures created?
Origins of the Universe and Aboriginal Religion
1/ * The Dreaming stories of creation are the foundation of Aboriginal religion.
2/* The first beings, the spirit ancestors, created the natural world.
3/ * Every land feature in the environment has a story from the Dreaming.
4/ * Each spirit brought all living creatures, each founding a line of descendants.
What do Indigenous people believe ancestral spirits leave behind?
How are theses trackes created?
Name a sacred site?
- All ancestral spirits left behind Dreaming tracks, which are marked in geography and tribal lands monuments.
- These tracks are recreated in traditional songs and ceremonies.
- Sacred sites, such as Kata Tjuta, are places within the landscape with special meaning under Aboriginal tradition.
- Knowledge of sacred sites is limited and rarely shared with the wider community.
1/How are Aboriginal Dreaming stories passed down?
2/To what are these stories linked to?
What aspects do ceremonies and songs cover(3)
3/What do aboriginal art incorporate into that describes their life?
4/What is their art used for?
5/ What is diverse in Indigenous culture?
6/ What are the totems for Aboriginal people? 7/ What do totems provide for their Aboriginal people?
Aboriginal Dreaming Stories and Art
- Aboriginal Dreaming stories are an accurate oral history, passing onto young people through interwoven stories and ceremonies.
- These stories are linked to the Australian environment, explaining aspects of Aboriginal lifestyle, law, and the creation of the land, animals, and people.
- They cover all aspects of life, including male and female roles, sacred and public activities, and the natural world.
- Aboriginal art is an essential part of Aboriginal life, incorporating all elements of the Dreaming, including law, values, customs, ceremonies, and obligations.
- Art can be used for rituals or to identify ownership of Dreaming and strengthen kinship ties.
- Indigenous cultures, languages, kinship structures, and ways of life are diverse across Australia.
- Specific plants and animals are associated with ancestor spirits and are totems for Aboriginal people.
- These totems provide kinship with the spirit, providing a relationship with the land of that region.
What are the 4 things the Dreaming impacts in life?
What is aligned with Aboriginal Spirituality?
What do totems provide?
What could lead to spirituality loss?
Importance of the Dreaming for Aboriginal Peoples
* The Dreaming impacts all aspects of life for Aboriginals, providing ethics, hunting methods, creation, and art.
* Aboriginal spirituality affirms the highest reality of the Dreaming, aligning daily life with it.
* Totems provide meaning and purpose, reminding of the harmony of the universe.
* Broken relationships with the land can lead to spirituality loss.
