AP Human Geography Chapter 6 Religions

Key Concepts of Religion

• Religion: Involves belief and worship of a superhuman power, particularly a personal deity.
• Branch: Represents major divisions within a religion.
• Denomination: Subdivision of a branch that ties together local congregations under a legal and administrative body.
• Sect: A smaller group that has separated from an established denomination.

Types of Religions

• Universalizing Religion: Aims to attract all individuals regardless of location.
• Ethnic Religion: Has a concentrated geographic presence, rooted in specific physical characteristics of its origin.
• Syncretic Religion: Blends multiple religious beliefs into a new system or incorporates beliefs from unrelated traditions.

Religious Structures and Beliefs

• Hierarchical Religion: Governed by a central authority with significant control over practices.
• Autonomous Religion: Lacks a central authority but shares beliefs and cooperates informally.
• Monotheism: Belief in a single god.
• Polytheism: Belief in multiple gods.

Spiritual Aspects

• Sacred Space: Places that invoke reverence and spiritual connection.
• Atheism: Denial of the existence of God.
• Agnosticism: Belief that it is impossible to know if God exists.

Specific Religions

• Animism: Belief that non-human entities possess a spiritual essence.
• Baha'i: A monotheistic faith that promotes the unity of humanity.
• Buddhism: A religion founded on the teachings attributed to Gautama Buddha.
• Christianity: The largest religion, with over 2.4 billion followers, believing in Jesus Christ as the savior.
• Confucianism: Philosophical and ethical system initiated by Confucius.
• Hinduism: Major religion from South Asia with deep cultural roots.
• Islam: A monotheistic faith revealed through the Prophet Muhammad.
• Judaism: The monotheistic religion of the Jewish people.
• Shintoism: Indigenous Japanese religion focusing on the worship of natural deities.
• Sikhism: Religion founded in Punjab by Guru Nanak in the 15th century.
• Taoism: Chinese philosophy advocating for humility and religious devotion based on Lao-tzu's writings.

Concepts Related to Religious Practices

• Diaspora: The dispersion of a religious group from their original homeland.
• Missionary: An individual committed to spreading a universalizing religion.
• Pilgrimage: Journey to sacred places for religious significance.
• Sectarianism: Bigotry stemming from the differences within subdivisions of a group, including religious factionalism.
• Fundamentalism: Adherence to strict interpretations of religious texts and principles.

Social Structure

• Caste System: Social hierarchy within Hinduism determined by religious law.
• Pagan: Term for followers of ancient polytheistic religions.