WORLD RELIGIONSPART I: POINTS OF DEPARTURE

A PRIORI*Theology (the-ol-o-gy)

-the field of study and analysis pertaining to God & God’s attributes and relations to the universe-the study of divine things or religious truth

*Religion (re-li-gion)-a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons-something one believes in and follows devotedly-a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe; especially when considered as the creation of superhuman agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs

Christianity 33%

Islam 21%

Non-religious 16%Hindu 14%

Primal-Indigenous 6%Chinese Traditional 6%

Buddhism 6%Sikhism 0.4%

Judaism 0.2%

Other

World Religions

I. STUDYING THE WORLD’S RELIGIONSA. Journeying to New Horizons

1. Studying religions enriches our understanding of humanity

B. Religious Tradition1. “Religious Tradition” = combination of doctrine, sacred stories, rituals, etc.2. “Religious Questions” = fundamental, universal questions asked by spiritual beings

a. Human spirituality asking religious questions 1). Spiritual = having the ability of self-reflection; the ability to ponder nature & existence

3 a. What is the Human Condition?1. Are humans by nature good? Were humans originally good, but are now flawed? A). Charged by question/capacity for suffering b. What is salvation?1. The general deliverance from the shortcomings of the human condition A). Transcendence = a form of salvation in this lifetime; overcoming the limitations of the human condition1). Allows us to live fully in the human condition, with all its joys and sorrows, while maintaining an underlying state of joy and tranquility2). Is salvation attained in this lifetime, or in another lifetime?

c. What is our Destiny?1. Where are we going ultimately? A). Often closely linked with salvation B). Two common forms of destiny: “salvation” or “condemnation” d. What is right and what is wrong?1. Ethics = basic element of religions that deal with how we are to act while living in the world

A. Often closely linked with destiny and salvation e. What is the nature of the World?1. From what/where did the world come? Is it sacred? Is it living? Is it simply matter? Is it a help or hindrance on the religious quests of humans?

A). Cosmology = the understanding of the nature of the universe1). Issues of science & faith

f. What is ultimate reality & how is it revealed?1. Does god exist? Who/What/Where is god? A). Monotheism = belief in one god B). Polytheism = belief in more than one or many gods C). Pantheism = belief that god is in all D). Non-theistic Religions = religions that do not hold a belief in a personal god or gods; often teach that all reality is essentially one thing & that humans are part of the ultimate reality 2. Revelation = ultimate reality; the transmission of the divine will or knowledge to human beings; typically taught through myths and attained through a religious experience

g. Basic Elements of Religion1. “Religious Experience” a. Faith = experience of the divine or holy presence b. Belief = conviction of the truth of religious assertions such as a tradition’s creeds, doctrines, or teachings c. Mysticism = a category of types of religious experience characterized by communion or union with the divine through inward contemplation1). Typical of non-theistic religions2. “Religious Beliefs & Teachings” a. Belief combined with doctrines, texts, etc.

3. “Sacred Stories and/or Myths” a. Myth = a story that is passed along & tends to answer questions of origins & serves as a source of sacred truth1). Both non-historical & non-rational4. “Ritual & Worship” a Ritual = formal worship practice, often based on the re-enactment of a myth

5. “Religious Communities” a. Provide sense of organization, belonging, and shared experience6. “Sacred Entities, Art, & Architecture” a. Structures of worship; as churches, cathedrals, temples, shrines, etc.

C. A Student’s Approach to the World’s Religions

1. Can there be more than one true god?

2. Can there be more than one true religion?

3. Do all monotheistic religions basically say the same thing? a. “To know just one religion, is to know none.”

b. Empathy = the capacity for seeing things from another’s perspective

D. Destinations and Discoveries1. Overall Goals for the course a. Become knowledgeable about the

answers each of the religions we study offers to the previously mentioned religious questions

b. Become better acquainted with the basic elements of the world’s major religions

c. Obtain an enhanced understanding of the people who follow the religions we study

II. PRIMAL RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS

A. The Nature of Primal Religions 1. The Australian Aborigines

a. The Dreaming: The Eternal Time of Ancestors

1. Largely unaffected by Europeans until late 1600s/early 1700s

2. 40+ aboriginal languages from groups of different customs & climates

3. “The Dreaming” = formless world until arrival of the Ancestors

A). Supernatural beings who roamed the earth during the “Dreaming”; gave shape to the landscape & created various forms of life

1. Created the first human beings; tribal territory, ages,

languages, social behaviors, & customs2. Left landmarks as symbols of

their presence before departure a). Most hold sacred meaning & power

3. Continually nourish and provide for the natural world

4. Unborn children are believed to be animated by the Ancestors A). Personally connects Aborigines to the Ancestors

B). Totem = natural entity such as an animal or a feature of the landscape that symbolically represents an individual or group and that has special significance for the religious life of that person/group

(1). Animals, rock formations, feature of the

landscape, etc.

b. Animating the Power of the Dreaming: Aboriginal Religious Life

1. Religion is based on the process of re- creating the mythic past of the Dreaming in order to tap into its sacred power

A) Done through ritual; re-enactment of the myth

1) Sacred rituals were taught to the first humans by the Ancestors

c. Taboo: The Basis of Aboriginal Social Structure1) Taboo = (tabu) system of social ordering which dictates that specific objects and activities, due to their sacred nature, are set aside for specific groups and are strictly forbidden to others d. Initiation: Symbolic Death, Spiritual Rebirth1. Aborigines possess the spiritual essence of their totemic ancestor; even prior to birth2. Rituals bring about symbolic death of childhood & rebirth into adulthood

A). Teaches about surrounding world and individual place within it1. Example = “Wilyaru”

2. An African Tradition: The Religion of the Yoruba

A. The Yoruba & Their Universe1. Yoruba religion is 1000+ years

old & has several million followers in Africa

A. Typically city-dwellers located in western regions of central Africa

1. Modern-day Nigeria, Togo, Benin

2. Characterized by common language and culture

3. Focused around city of Ife A. Site of where god

Orisha-nla first created the universe

2. Cosmos is divided into 2 separate world: heaven & earth

A. Heaven = invisible home of the gods & ancestors

B. Earth = visible world of normal experience & human beings (descendants of the gods)

1. Also inhabited by witches & sorcerers

3. Main purpose: maintain the balance b/w Heaven & Earth while guarding against the evil deeds of sorcerers & witches

B. Gods & Ancestors: The Inhabitants of Heaven1. Olorun, the High God A. Primary, original source of power in the universe1. Creator of lesser deities B. Distant & remote1. Rarely worshipped on a regular basis (except in prayer)2. Has no shrines, rituals, or sacrifices2. Orisha A. Host of lesser deities in the Yoruba religion (hundreds exist) B. Source of all sacred power (both helpful & harmful)1. Orisha-nla = creator of the earth2. Ogun = god of iron & war A. Originally a human being; first king of Ife3. Esu = contains both good & evil characteristics A. Mediates between heaven & earth B. Trickster Figure = mischievous supernatural being; disrupts the normal course of life

3. The ancestors of the Living A. Deceased humans who have reached supernatural status1. Possess sacred power to help the living2. Worshipped through rituals at shrines A. Family ancestors = worshipped only by their own families; gained supernatural status through having earned a good reputation and by living to an old age B. Deified ancestors = once very important human figures known throughout Yoruba society; are now worshipped by large numbers of people

4. Connecting Heaven & Earth: Ritual Practitioners A. Head of family = responsible for worshipping the family ancestors1. Done at the home or the family shrine B. King or Chief of each city = responsible for annual festivals C. Yoruba priests = oversee the various rituals carried out at the Orisha shrines1. Diviners = ritual practitioners who specialize in the art of divination A. Requires years of training; role is typically passed from parent to child B. Divination = use of various techniques such as throwing bones or shells & then interpreting the patterns in which they fall, for gaining knowledge about various topics 2. Mediators = mediate b/w ancestors & living A. Elaborate ceremonial mask & costume B. Becomes a living representative of the ancestor/s by dancing at festivals & rituals

3. Religion of the North America Plains Indians A. Basic Beliefs of the Lakota

1. First inhabitants of North America: crossed Bering Strait from Asia c.40,000-60,000 years ago

2. North American Plains = Alberta, Saskatchewan, & Manitoba in Canada south to Mexico stretching between the Rocky Mts. & the Mississippi River

A. Numerous tribes of hunters & herders; use of common sign language

B. Typically known as the Sioux throughout

Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, & Dakotas

3. Wakantanka = “Great Spirit” or “Great Mysterious”; Lakota name for supreme reality

A. “Most Sacred” B. 16 deities; 4 directions of the map (4 being the sacred number) multiplied by itself4. Detailed myths explain creation of the world & arrival of first human beings5. “Inktomi” = “spider”; trickster figure; serves as mediator between human and supernatural worlds6. Belief that 4 souls depart from a person at death; the souls meet an old woman who judges it and allows it to continue on to the world of the ancestors or sends it back to earth as a ghost; other 3 souls are reborn as children

SPIRIT OF WAKANTANKA

B. The Vision Quest1. Vision Quest = seeking spiritual power through an encounter with a guardian spirit or other medium, usually in the form of an animal following a period of fasting and other forms of self-denial A. To assure greater success in hunting, warfare, or curing the ill B. Done under the supervision of a medicine man; issues instructions prior to & interprets the events afterward 1. Purification in a sweat lodge typically undergone prior to the quest A. “Sweat Lodge” = hut of saplings and animal skins; dark & airtight; has heated stones in the center with water sprinkled over them by a medicine man- representative of the universe

LAKOTA VISION QUEST

C. The Sun Dance1. Sun Dance = festival that occurs at the beginning of the summer; undertaken for the benefit of the entire tribe

A. Celebration of the new year & preparation for annual buffalo hunt

B. Felled tree chosen as the axis mundi1. Representation of center of the universe2. Link between earth and heaven

C. Features long periods of dance while facing the sun1. Sun is revered as a giver-of-life

D. Features music and drum beats E. Often includes forms of

asceticism & bodily mutilation1. At one time outlawed (then re-instated) by U.S. government

 Lakota Sun Dance