Intro to Religious Studies PDF

8/26/24 Christianity- Branches 1. Catholic (West, Roman) - 3rd century CE (200) - Jesus: 0-33 - Sacraments: Times & places when “god” is specially present o Baptism o Reconciliation ▪ Confessional ▪ Penance...

8/26/24 Christianity- Branches 1. Catholic (West, Roman) - 3rd century CE (200) - Jesus: 0-33 - Sacraments: Times & places when “god” is specially present o Baptism o Reconciliation ▪ Confessional ▪ Penance o Confirmation o Eucharist o Holy Orders o Anointing of the Sick 2. Orthodox (Middle Eastern) (3rd century)  Same as the Catholic Sacraments, only there’s no pope Each nations has it’s own bishop 12th century “The Great Schism” o Crusades ▪ Muslims took control of the Holy Land ▪ Catholic pilgrimages ▪ Catholic sacked Istanbul 3. Protestant- 16th century Martin Luther o Catholic monks Wanted abuses reformed o Indulged sales All you got to have alone is faith, the bible, and Jesus Started the Lutherans Reformed churches Church of England o Methodists o Anabaptists ▪ 1st baptized adults ▪ Pacifists Catholics & Orthodox & Protestants had a Holy War against Anabaptists Liberation Theology- Catholic o God prefers the oppressed _____________________________________________________________________________ 8/29/24 Historical Critical Method Historical- Has a history o Reading the verses/texts in their time & palce Critical- Analyze & explain o Compare w/ other texts from its own time or earlier ▪ Influences Ideas/Concepts The 5 W’s Genesis Who: Multiple editors Evidence: Vocab changes o Gen. 1- “god” o Gen. 2- “Lord God” Style changes: o Gen. 1- Organized, day-by-day account, repetitive, detailed o Gen. 2- Story/Narrative ▪ Yahwist source/Priest sourced ▪ 1st line- Title Before Creating Gen. 1- Dark watery world Gen. 2- Land o No plants, rain, only a desert Order Gen. 1: o Lights first o Other animals o Humans last Gen. 2: o Male human 1st o Other animals o Female humans last When: Sometime after 586 BCE Vocab changes Where: Babylon/Assyria, Modern Iraq Side Notes El/ohim o El- God o Ohim- S YHWH Elohim- Unpronounceable o Hebrews don’t have vowels  Gen. 1 (Style Changes, Repetitive)- o Let there be, Elohim said it was so, Elohim said, & it was so Liturgy o Worship services _________________________________________________________________________________________________ 9/5/24 Who: Gen.1 & 2 Where: Babylon/Assyria, Modern Iraq When: After 586 BCE What: Genre Why: Babylonian slave resistance stories Ficton Non-Fiction Science Essays Supernatural Auto/Biography Fantasy History Comic Books Memoirs Mystery Science Historic Fiction Politics Literary Fiction o News/Current Events Romance Language Horror Cookbooks/Self-Help Thriller Mythology/Tall Tales/Fables/Fairytales Bible Genres Non-Fiction History: Contradictory o 2 different stories Fiction Myth: Stories that shape an entire nation/culture  o Greek: Mythos- Story ▪ How they see reality ▪ How to behave ▪ How to live ▪ What’s our purpose Who: Priest-Slaves-Immigrants What would be differnt for them? Home Culture o Religion o Clothing o Food o Politics o Economy o Customs/Morals Language Society Community/Individual Stories/Myths Why: They were learning these stories from their slave master. The Babylonian myths told them they were slaves & justified. They created these stories to resist the slave master. __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 9/12/24 The Underworld Greeks --> Hades --> Warriors | All People Elysium Field Pluto Ruler Norse --> Helheim --> Valhalla | Ruler Hell Jewish --> Sheol (The Grave) __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 9/16/24 Image of God (Imago Dei) God | Philosophers & Theologians | + |__ Discuss God Love of Wisdom 2,000 years discuss that only humans have unique traits that other animals may not have Human uniqueness | Verifiable false Humans | | | Animals __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 9/19/24 Human Uniqueness Model Humans | | | Animals Continum Model Less D P.D C Humans More - Not all or nothing + Less & more + Truer to reality In terms of understanding Imago Dei - Doesn’t tell us the meaning or the point To interpret the concept “image of God” - Go to the text - Gen. 1 o Context ▪ Peaceful, creative creation ▪ Loving, Peaceful (Elohim)  - What this image means o To Do (V.) o To be loving, peaceful - Anyone can do this, all have capacity Babylonian Worldview Image of Murduk - King, alone Epic of Gilgamish (1800 BCE) Sumerian text - Southern Iraq - Pre-Babylonian Jewish Worldview Female Male Imago Dei Equality Imago Dei Animal Human To take care of “Dominion” Jewish Law 1. No king 2. No military 3. No rich, no poor--> Jubilee Law Dominion - Looks like domination - “Power over” Hebrew--> “Raddah” Context - Gen. 1- Peaceful Christan Nationalism No Rich, No Poor Jubilee Laws - 7 years- Forgive - 50 years- Economic reboot o Welfare distribution- Land, etc __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 9/23/24 Atrahasis Enuma Elish Genesis 1-2 How are Red clay Blood of Dust- humans Flesh & Blood murdered Adamah created? Murdered Alla/Aliwa god- Kingu (Red clay) (traitor/instigator) God’s breath Why are So that the gods can So that the humans rest gods can rest created? What is To work for the gods- To - Gen. 2: 15 the Priest, king work/serve - Pope purpose To serve the gods gods Francis- To of Feeding the gods Building preserve human Babylon protect & creation? o Gods maintain the restin Earth; help g life thrive place (ideol ogy) __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 9/26/24 Gen. 2- After 586 BCE - Primeval Man - Purpose to work for Earth (“God’s Garden”) - 1st woman Atrahasis Purpose to serve the gods Hesiod- Greek poet 750 BCE Ouranos Gaia- Want to castrate Cronos & Ouranos “Heaven” “Earth” | Titans- Hated, pushed them into the Earth Kronos | Zeus- Wanted to create life, ask P & E to create life Pandora: 1st woman Purpose was to punish men Open the forbidden jar (Pandora’s Box) o All evil comes o Only hope stayed in Gen. 2- Taking common motifs & characters 1st woman’s purpose= Partner for men; companion Eve: Eats the forbidden fruit o All evil unleased ▪ Man eats too Snake |__ Trickster Trees (or plants): - Knowledge of good & evil - Life (Immortality) Babylonian Seal (1500-1800 BCE) - Horned person (2 people) (another person) - Snake - Tree- Middle - Fruits - Reaching for the fruit India Ring Velda- 2000 BCE - Darkness - Water - Void - The One (God)  - Wind from God Greek Hesiod- 750 BCE - Chaos - Darkness - Wind - Sea Egypt - Ra - Water - Chaos - Void - Ra speaks to create __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 9/30/24 World Creation Stories India Upanishad- 1500 BCE - The One divides into 2 - Creates humans Rig Veda - Darkness; void - Wind - Water Egypt  - 2500 BCE - Ra o Speaks to create - Chaos - Water Greek 750 BCE - Chaos & Darkness - Water Roman- Ovid - Chaos - Land “unstable”--> Unform - Sea Norse - World is created from Ymir’s body - Abyss o Vast atmosphere - Odin separates night & day - Humans created - God creates - Wind - Mist Africa (West) (Yoruba) - Water - Chaos - Formless void o Water  - Supreme Being - Separates land & sea - Takes 4 days to create - SB rests on the 5th day - Humans created form Earth America (Yuman) - Whirlwind - Two creators - Dark - Watery - Chaotic World - Humans made from clay Theories About Myth Symilarities 1. Psychological a. Carl Jung b. Archetypes c. Patterns in our brains i. Innate to humans 2. Migration a. First humans migrate from Africa b. Stories immigrated with & change w/ time & place i. Some elements might stay __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 10/3/24 Gen. 4- 586 BCE Cain & Abel - Cain kills Abel - Cain’s punishment (consequence) after killing Abel o Never settle down; Homeless; Wander o Builds the 1st city  ▪ Rebellious act o 1st king of the city - Lameh- Next king o Kills a man for slapping him & brags that he’s protected - Tubal-Cain-1st arms dealer o Bronze & iron tools Babylonian City Myth Gen. 4 1st city Opposite of the Babylonian Murduk commends that it be built mythology Heaven- Resting o Jewish- Babylonian slaves o Brings peace & security The kings are great men Atrahasis- 1800 BCE 1. Too many humans; too loud; can’t sleep o Creates a pandemic to wipe out humans Atrahasis- King o Ask Ea/Enki to stop the pandemic ▪ Stop worshipping all the gods Worship the disease god Bake him bread ▪ Pandemic stops 2. Too many people; too loud; can’t sleep a. Cause a famine i. Drought b. Same #1 but w/ Adad 3. Sends another drought a. Same but w/ Ea 4. Pandemic 5. Drought a. Cannibalism 6. Flood Flood Stories Atrahasis Gilgamesh Gen. 6-9 Overpopulation Earth filled w/ violence Babylonian violence Upper & lower deck All the animals Noah & family Family & Atrahasis 2 of every animal (6:19) (Y) 14 animals (7:2) (P) Thunder Up & down Raging winds Darkness Loud Flood Waves Dead bodies Rainbow Gods regret the Elohim blessing- flood Have babies Miscarriages, Barren Kill babies Atrahasis becomes immortal Animals eat people Disease Famine Similarities 1. Flood saves the divine 2. Who’s on the boat 3. Childbirth Contrasts 1. Flood description 2. Aftermath a. Kill babies/Have babies 3. Jewish blames Babylonians (the why) __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 10/10/24 Sargon 1/The Great Most famous king from the ancient world Sargon The Great Moses 2000 BCE After 586 BCE - Mother didn’t want them - Wasn’t wanted - Basket in the river - Basket in the river - Take in by someone (royalty) - Taken in by someone (royalty) (Gardener) (princess) - Marched to or from somewhere - Marched to or from somewhere - Going through mountains - Going through mountains - Divine being - Divine being - Decades long rule - Unknown father - Unknown father - Family connection to priesthood - Family connection to priesthoof Vestial Virgins- Worked for 30 years, couldn’t have sex or bear children, if caught having sex or pregnant they would get executed along with the child Differences - S- Euphrates - M- Nile River (Egypt) o Crocs o Hippos o More dangerous - S- King's garden - M- Pharaoh's daughter o Way better life & upbringing - S- King o Conquer ▪ Killings ▪ Enslaved - M- Mt. Sinai- Active Volcano o Fire o Smoke around the top o Thunder & lighting  o Shaking violently o Loud sounds (trumpets) o Goes up ▪ 40 days & nights ▪ 10 chapters of law ▪ Golden calf Ba’al- Storm God o Marduk o Yahweh threatens to erupt o Moses gets in an argument w/ god & wins ▪ God changes o Liberator Exodus Stories 1.6 mil. Hebrew slaves escaped o Egypt pop.= 3 mil o Huge news o No record of Hebrew/Jewish slaves o No archaeological traces o Pharaoh Ramses I (the Great) ▪ Died in early 90’s ▪ Ruled for 60 ▪ Tooth infection ▪ Not in the Red Sea Mummy- Extant __________________________________________________________________________________________________