Religion and non-Religion Flashcards
Expression of religious dimension in human history
- Animism
- Polytheism
- Monotheism
Animism is the belief in
innumerable spiritual beings concerned with human affairs and capable of helping or harming human interests. From its earliest beginnings it was a belief that a soul or spirit existed in every object, even if it was inanimate. In a future state this soul or spirit would exist as part of an immaterial soul. The spirit, therefore, was thought to be universal.
Examples of Animism
- Shinto- Mt Fuji as a god
* Ancient religions- Aboriginal Spiritualties
Polytheism
Belief in or worship of multiple gods or deities.
- The Greeks believed that the gods and goddesses lived at a place called Mt Olympus
- Their gods looked like humans but had magical powers that allowed them to change into animals and take on other forms
•These gods were immortal examples of these gods include –
- Zeus – King of the Gods
- Hades – god of the lower world and wealth
- Hera - queen of the gods and Zeus’s wife
- Athena – goddess of wisdom, war, arts, crafts and the city of Athens
Polytheism is the expression of the response to the complexity of the world.
One God only cannot possibly be do everything
• Monotheism is
the belief in the existence of one god, or in the oneness of God. It characterises the traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
context/origin of animism
Inherited from the Palaeolithic age
context/origin of polytheism
Polytheism was facilitated by the development of a new economic and social organization, the use of human energy, the formation of ruling classes, hierarchical organization, and the administrative division of labour.
context/origin of monotheism
abraham
The significance of the religious dimension in human history
- Meaning and purpose for the individual
- Social cohesion
- Social transformation
Meaning and purpose for the individual
personal search of meaning; provides answers to the fundamental questions of human existence (through sacred texts, teachings, stories, ethical teachings), ethical guidance; provides stability in a changing world (on big issues like sexuality, marriage, abortion, euthanasia, environment), sense of belonging; role of community (hajj, baptism), ritual meaning (stages of life, birth, marriage, coming of age, death) and fundamental need of protection; god as a fatherly figureh
Social Cohesion
- Religion is a source of social cohesion
- Social cohesion involves a sense of unity and belonging that goes beyond the family circle. It shows the desire to live together and to share the same sense of value and culture.
- Religious traditions achieve social cohesion through
doctrine, stories, ethics, experiences, rituals, social organisations, special periods of time such as sacred events and holidays, holy places, symbols and sacred scriptures.
Social Transformation
- Social transformation means how a society changes and develops. The religious dimension has often acted as a means of change, but also sometimes as a system that has prevented change.
- Christianity : The world’s largest religious tradition, approx.
2 billion adherents,
- Islam : Second largest
,1.5 billion adherents,
The majority of the world’s Muslims live in
Africa
- Hinduism: Third largest, approx.
950 million