Introduction to Religion

• A response paper requires picking a religion that is not your own.
• A reading and book review should be 400-600 words, and you should refrain from using Chat GPT.
• A letter grade will be deducted for every week that work is late.
• Notes will be checked to ensure lecture attendance.

What is Religion

• Religion involves beliefs, behavior, or institutions relating to the structure of the universe or divine beings.
• Religion creates a thought system around the non-scientific.
• Morals in religion define what is appropriate.
• Myths address the identity of God or gods.
• Practices include praying and going to temples or churches.
• Holy places are temples, cities, or specific locations.
• Relics include crosses and cemeteries.
• Phenomenology is a particular or personal religious experience.
• The Greek word for religion means "binding."
• Religion is defined as self-binding to a God or gods.

Phenomenology and the Study of Religion

• Linga resembles a genie lamp and serves as a shrine in Hinduism, symbolizing power and the creation of humans.
• Studying religion as phenomenology involves objects, teachings, rituals, and behaviors.
• Enlightenment led to the documentation of religious phenomena.
• Qualified documenters must be objective, critical, honest, and consider real encounters with deities, providing explanations that make sense to insiders.
• Linga is based on divine power.
• Having a linga at home provides access to divine power.
• Religion can empower the powerless.
• Conversion through logic is possible.
• Personal faith differs from communal faith.
• Faith can be treated like ethnicity.
• Embedding can provide a good sense of religion but gaining trust can be difficult.

Bias in Religion

• It's important to understand bias and be critical about one's own faith, but not necessarily to get rid of it entirely.

The Anthropology of Religion

• Anthropology studies how humans behave and function within their culture.
• Religions draw on social structures, pastoral language, and monarchy.
• Ritual and symbols, such as the human body, marriage, wedding dresses, and amulets (rings, earrings, bracelets), are important.
• Myths are sacred stories that attempt to explain the world and phenomena like "Why am I here?".
• Creation stories often involve divine beings.

Sociology of Religion

• Sociology of religion views religion as a social structure.
• It examines a person's worldview and pillars.
• Religion can be seen as a social construction, categorized to explain things, with judgment on truth claims suspended.
• Methodological Agnosticism acknowledges that many truth statements are beyond proof or disproof.
• Intellectualism suggests religion will be surpassed as knowledge grows.
• Emotionalism views religion as arising from fear and unknowingness.
• According to Carl Marx, religion is both a sedative for the oppressed and a form of protest against oppressors.
• Ruling classes promote religion to maintain peace.
• Emile Durkheim sees religion as an essential integrating force fulfilling basic societal needs.
• Max Weber asserts religion gives meaning to life amid suffering and helps cope with emotional trauma.
• Rational choice theory suggests new religious movements compete in the market of religion, with individuals picking aspects.
• Despite advances, people are not abandoning religion.

Psychology of Religion

• The idea of religion as an individual matter is a more Western concept.
• Freedom of religion means the ability to believe as one chooses.
• William James scientifically studied religion, viewing it as an individual matter.
• Sigmund Freud had a negative view of religion.
• Carl Jung saw religion as an illusion to help with stress.
• Religion is generally favorable, with ego as the center of conscious life and self as the whole personality.
• Individuation involves becoming less ego-centered and more self-centered, with religion as a means.
• Intrinsic religion is more judgmental, while extrinsic religion is less so.
• Religious patterns are predictable based on a person's age or stage of life.
• Actively religious people tend to have better mental health.
• Conservative Christianity is seen as black and white, while charismatic Christianity includes shades of grey and involves speaking in tongues.
• Christian counseling includes pastor care and psychological counseling.

Theological Approaches to the Study of Religion

• The scientific study of religion has developed over the past 250 years.
• Scientific study involves application and theology, objective observation, and they don't have to be mutually exclusive.
• Saint Anselm believed theology is faith seeking understanding.
• Empathy involves understanding different religious experiences.
• Cultural anthropology includes emic (embedding in the religion) and etic (examining religion externally as a reporter/scientist) perspectives.
• An insider is a believer, and an outsider is a nonbeliever.

Hinduism

• What is now known as Hinduism didn't exist until Christians started studying it.
• Christians began organizing various practices, which was then picked up by India.
• Other say religions shift and change, and there is no pure form of religion.

Indigenous Religions

• Indigenous religions are at the seed of religion, originating from the development of society and a lack of control.

Questions About Religion

• The questions about religion include considerations of:
• Afterlife
• Origin of life
• Gods
• Morality
• Humanity, birth
• Attraction
• Actions of religion
• Philosophy/ethics
• Character formation
• Sacrifice
• Story telling
• Meditation
• Songs
• Visions

Cave and Origin of People

• The cave had wind blowing through it.
• The source of wind could not be found.
• The cave may have been thought of as the underworld, which some considered where humanity came from.

The After Life

• Birth is regarded as migration from the spirit world to the real world
• Children are seen as a reminder of unity
• Death is returning to the spirit world where spirits need to be honored

Indigenous Religions 2

• Cosmogeny is the study of the creation of the world.
• Myths are considered divine stories that explain the unexplainable, using imagination to explore the interaction between humans and the divine.
• Poetry expresses aspects of humanity and divinity, acting as the language of emotion.
• Legends are stories of great people who achieved much through divine power.
• Rites are specific points in one's life.
• In indigenous cultures children are not named until they can walk and when they start forming sentences they are considered human beings.
• Puberty rites include Barmitsvah.
• Young men learn hunting skill regarding spirit animals while women get separated from society to be closer to the divine
• Aspects of religion entail contacting the divine to control the future.
• Tribes give identity.
• In Native American tribes, women owned the tipis and could divorce.
• Storytelling was originally reciting, then experience turning into story.
• Writing made it impossible for writers to adapt for their own context.
• Reading ancient text should be done out loud to give it life.
• Sacrifice must have rituals, honor the animal's death, and involve eating what is not used.

Critical Theory and Religion

• Teaching is symbolized by two fingers up.

• Thecla, a woman teaching, had her eyes gouged out and hands burnt.

• Critical theory is a philosophical approach that confronts social, historical, and ideological forces.

• Critical theory involves thinking about culture and whose interests are being served by people.

• It involves who is maintaining the power and who created power dynamics.

• The way we view religion is directly tied to power.

• Influencers of Critical Theory includes the following people

• Marx

• Niche

• Frued Focusult

• Derrida

• All knowledge is linked to economic and political ideology.

• All knowledge is linked to the will of Power.

• All knowledge is linked to that which is outside our awareness (the unconscious).

• studied power systems served to certain interests.

• Religion = political force.

• Derrida argues that war is in the page with how we define words.

Knowledge

• There isn't knowledge for knowledge's sake.
• Knowledge is subservient to those seeking power.
• Structuralism believes each religion has underlying structures that give life meaning.
• Post-structuralism says these structures have just been embedded in them.

Religions of Antiquity

• Temples were homes for divine beings and the center point for ancient religions.
• Elevation brings one closer to the heavens.
• The style of pillars indicates when the building was built.
• They serve as a meeting place between the divine and humans.
• Deities in ancient practices were very localized.
• Jewish festivals required travel to Jerusalem.
• Deities were centered around mountains, rivers, cities, and volcanoes.
• Ancient sacrifices involved regional items.
• Some participated in human sacrifices, sometimes lying and slandering others to sacrifice them.
• In some myths, humans tended to the gods.

Marduk and Tiamat

• Tiamat is a snake-like cosmic water darkness creature.
• She brings about younger gods who are plotting to destroy them.
• Marduk rebels against her and separates her body

Marduk and Tiamat

• Marduk takes the dead body of Tiamat and separates her body that creates the heavens and the earth.

Christianity Overview

• Christianity started about 2000 years ago.
• Jesus was born around 4 BCE and died around 26-30 CE.
• First-century landmarks include Jerusalem, Antioch, and Asia Minor.
• Over this period and 150 years afterwards christianity was illegal but thriving
• Contstine legalized christianity
• This led to the Late Antique World (4th to 8th century), Islamic invasions, and the Middle Ages.
• Crusades occurred over the Holy Land.
• Two largest denominations form: Orthodox (east) and Roman Catholic (west).
• The Great Reformation in Catholicism occurred for many reforms.
• Many urged for reforms and it resulted in the pope becoming too powerful and leading to another split (prodistants).
• Catholicism moved to America, China, and Russia in 1492.
• Post enlightenment Christianity is the restoration movement (move back to the origin).
• Evangelical created fundamental documents (early 20th century)
• Recentering of Christianity (late 20th century) in Africa, China, Asia

Religious Affiliations

• Nomenal Christians are all that fall under the umbrella of Christianity.
• The Roman Catholic Church is strongest numerically.
• The Orthodox Church has Russian and Greek Orthodox branches.
• The Protestant Church includes Anglicans.
• The Lutheran Church is in Germany.
• The Reformist Church includes reformers like Calvinism.
• Free churches include Baptist churches.
• Charismatic churches include church of Christ and non-denominational.

Jesus

• Jesus is the son of God who was born to a virgin mother.
• Encarnation = divine born as human
• Jesus was born in Bethlehem and grew up in Nazareth.
• His ministry focused on:
• Israel needing to turn back to God
• The Kingdom of God is at hand
• People are Heavily oppressed
• Teaches about the Kingdom of God
• He traveled from galilee to Jerusalem, where Jewish and Roman authorities crucified him.
• After three days he is raised from the dead by God
• After death and ressurection he taught his disciples before ascending into Heaven
• Disciples had the spirit work through them to write the new testament, the Bible.
• Bibles have different Cannons in different demominational.
• Cotholosism uses artifacts like rosary and candles.
• Protestants usually don't use them.
• However they wear crosses and WWJD.
• Trinity: God the Father (Creator), God the Son (Destroyer), and God the Holy Spirit (Sustainer).
• Sacraments (rituals) comprise baptism, conformation, marriage, ordination, penance, reconsiliation, extreme unction, and the Lord's Supper.

The Church

• The humanity aspect of Christian believe relates to God becoming flesh
• Orthopracy relates to the god spirit working through the church
• Catholics believe their is a need to be involved in the church
• Prodastants believe one must allow God to do his work
• Festivals include:
• Easter
• Christmas
• Lent
• Growth started in Jerusalem, then spread to the Mediterranean, Europe, and East, before Islam stopped it.
• Then it went around the muslim growth, and moved to North and South America.
• The religion is currently growing in Africa and Asia.

Exploring the multifaceted nature of religion, including its beliefs, behaviors, and institutions. Defining religion as a belief system incorporating morals, myths, practices, holy places and relics. Understanding the concept of phenomenology and its role in personal religious experience.