RELIGIONCamila Restrepo and Sam Osorio

What is religion?

• A belief system and a set of practices that recognizes the existence of a higher power

• Helps people make sense of what their place is in the world

• Most complex and controversial aspects of human condition

• Core component of culture• Root of conflict

Different types• Universalizing (Proselytic)

– Seeks new members and tries to convert many• Ethnic

– Identifies with a specific ethnic or tribal groups, doesn’t seek converts and has no missionaries

– One place or one ethnicity• Syncretism

– A combination of two or more belief systems (hybrid)– Common in areas of colonization where Christianity blended with

indigenous beliefs• Orthodox

– Emphasizes purity of the faith– Each religion has an Orthodox branch

• Polytheistic– Belief in more than one god or goddess

• Monotheistic– Belief in one god or goddess

• Animistic– Belief that inanimate objects (mountains, boulders, rivers, trees)

have spirits

Religion Families

• Abrahamic – Christianity– Islam– Judaism

• Indian– Hindu– Buddhism– Sikhism

• African– Primal

indigenous– African

traditional– African Diasporic

• Far East– Taoism– Confucianism– Shinto

Must know

!

What is fundamentalism?

• Intolerance of other religions– Movements in Christianity, Judaism,

Hinduism, Islam– Wants to return to founding principles,

or the literal interpretations of the text– Leads to violence!– Connected to Orthodox branches

Universalizing Religions

• Christianity• Islam• Buddhism• Sikhism• Baha'i

People that practice a

religion are known as adherents

not followers

ChristianityFounder Jesus of Nazareth, 30 CE

Origin Palestine (Jerusalem) now Israel

Doctrine 10 Commandments

Diffusion 1. Relocation2. Contagious3. Hierarchical

Branches 1. Roman Catholic2. Protestant3. Eastern Orthodox

Holy Book Bible

Holy Places Churches, Jerusalem

Landscape Impact

1. Churches2. Cemeteries3. Administration

1. Paul, Mary, disciples, early missionaries

2. Spread to a couple of people

3. From the Roman Empire to the people

Christianity (con’t)• Branches

– 1. Roman Catholic• SW/East Europe, NE/SW

North America and all of South America

• Sacraments: Eucharist…body and blood of Christ (go through pope)

– 2. Protestant• NW Europe, highly

clustered in North America

• Individuals can directly communicate with God (Martin Luther, Reformation)

– 3. Eastern Orthodox• SE Europe, Middle East• Ruled by Patriarchs from

each region• Split from RC teachings

•Landscape Impact–Churches

•RC: more elaborate and cathedrals•Protestant: plain•Orthodox: cathedrals with domes, Byzantine style

–Cemeteries•Bury the dead•Not everyone is buried the same way, hierarchy

–Administration•RC: hierarchical

PopeArchbishops

BishopsPriests

IslamFounder Muhammad, 622 CE

Origin Arabian Peninsula, Mid-East, now Saudi Arabia

Doctrine 5 Pillars of Islam1.Allah one true God2.Pray 5x a day facing Mecca3.Charity work4.Fast (Ramadan)5.Hajj: pilgrimage to Mecca

Diffusion 1. Contagious2. Relocation

Branches 1. Sunni2. Shiite

Holy Book Quran

Holy Places 1. Mecca2. Medina3. Jerusalem

Landscape Impact

1. Mosques2. Administration3. Calendar4. Art

World’s fastest growing religion

1. Military conquest

2. Missionaries

Islam (con’t)• Branches

• 1. Sunni• “people following the

example of Muhammad”

• Succession: from the community

• 2. Shiite• “sectarian”• Succession: from the

family line of Muhammad

• Holy Places• 1. Mecca: birthplace of

Muhammad• 2. Medina: Muhammad’s

tomb• 3. Jerusalem: Muhammad’s

ascension to heaven

• Landscape Impact• Mosques• Minaret tower: call to

prayer• Cemeteries: bury the

dead• Administration

• Local autonomy, no formal hierarchies

• Calendar• Holy month of

Ramadan• Art

• Calligraphy

BuddhismFounder Siddhartha Gautama, 563 BCE

Origin India/Nepal

Doctrine Four Noble TruthsEight fold path

Diffusion No rapid diffusionBrought to China by trade routes

Branches 1. Mahayana2. Theravada3. Tibetan

Holy Book None

Holy Places Shrines• 8 sacred sites

Landscape Impact

1. Pagodas: relic of Buddha2. Calendar

• Holidays of Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death

1. Mahayana 56%, less demanding, more encompassing

2. Theravada 38%, oldest branch, full time occupation as monks

3. Tibetan 6%

Other Universalizing Religions

• Baha’i– Grew out of Babi faith– Founder: Siyyd ‘Ali

Muhammad– Doctrine: Believe that

one of Bab’s disciples was a prophet of God

– Function: overcome disunity in religions and establish a universal faith

– Temple on every continent

– Calendar 19 months with 19 days, 4 “extra”

– Diffusion: Adherents persecuted and exiled to Iraq

• Sikhism− Founded in late 15th

century− Follows teachings of

Guru Nanak− Monotheistic− Blend of Hinduism and

Islam practices and beliefs

− Diffused outward from Pakistan

− High concentration in Punjab region of India

− Holy site: Golden Temple

− Holy book: Guru Granth Sahid

Ethnic Religions

• Hinduism • Judaism• East Asian: Taoism, Confucianism,

Shintoism• Shamanism

Hinduism• Largest ethnic religion• Localized in India and Nepal• Polytheistic• No single founder• Different paths to reach God:

– Path of knowledge– Path of renunciation– Path of devotion– Path of action

• No central authority or holy book, no specific founder, no agreement on origins

• See the divine in everything and tolerant of other religions

• You are responsible for your own actions and you alone suffer the consequences

• Law of karma• Dharma: duty in life• Reincarnation• Supreme being who

has unlimited forms− Brahman

• Vedas, only written source for understanding religious life in ancient India

Hinduism (con’t)

• Four castes1. Brahmans: priests2. Kshatriyas: warriors3. Vaisyas: merchants4. Shudras: agricultural

peasants

• Untouchables: outcasts• Gandhi pointed out

problems with system• Govt legally abolished

the untouchable caste

• Holy places organized into a hierarchy

• Geography of India: rivers, mountains

• Temples: home to one or more gods, not for congregational worship

• Pool for ritual baths• Worship called Puja• Arranged marriage• Body cremated

(reincarnation)

Judaism• Believed to be the first

monotheistic religion• Founder - Abraham• “parent” of Christianity

and related to Islam• One powerful God• “chosen people”: God

selected them to live according to his ethical and moral principles

• 10 commandments• Rewarded for faith and

punished for sins• Holy book: the Torah

• Synagogue: house of worship, have an ark housing the Torah

• 6-pointed star symbol• Most sacred site is the

Wailing Wall• All that is left of temples• Gather to remember

destruction and offer prayers

Judaism (con’t)• Major holidays based

on events in agricultural calendar

• To conduct full service: 10 adult males must be present

• Most Jews don’t live in Israel, most migrated to Europe

• Jews were persecuted by other nationalities

• Largest pop of Jews live in the U.S. (northeast)

• Branches− Orthodox: original

teachings− Reform: adjust religion

to more modern times− Conservative: most

recent and most moderate

• Subgroups (b/c of Diaspora)− Ashkenazim: lived in

Germany and France before Eastern Europe

− Mizrachim: never left North Africa or Middle East

− Sephardim: Spain or Portugal

East Asian

• Taosim– Laozi: people should

live in harmony with nature and all aspects of their lives

– Ying and yang, feng shui

• Confucianism– Confucius: system of

morals and a way of life for Chinese

– Focuses more on worldly life rather than ideas of heaven and hell

• Shintoism− Forces of nature are

considered divine− From 1800s to post

WW2, religion of Japan− Blends principles of

Buddhism with local Japanese religion

Shamanism

• Follows a shaman: religious leader, healer, or truth knower

• Strongest in Africa• Animism: belief

that objects (trees, mountains, rivers) have divine sprits in them

Religious Issues

• Secularism vs Theocracy– Secular: move away

from religion, indifferent to religion or reject it all together, Western democracies have secular principles

– Theocracy: govt run by a religion, holy law is supreme, today: Iran

Interfaith vs. Intrafaith boundaries

• Interfaith– Divide space

between two or more religions

– Struggle over the same area

– Ex: Nigeria, Islam is dominant in the north and Christianity in the south, lead to tensions for govt control

• Intrafaith−Divide space

within one religion, often among denominations

−Ex: Iraq, Sunni and Shiite Islam, fight for control of politics

Religion vs…Government conflict

Groups oppose govt if policies conflict religious values or promote social change

Social changes Taliban vs. Western values (Afghanistan ’96)Taliban= fundamentalist MuslimsBanned western “leisure” activities, TV and internetBelieved they had been called by Allah to rid Afghanistan of sin and violence

Communism Buddhism vs. SE Asian countriesBuddhist hurt by Vietnam war, immolated themselves to protest policies of the South Vietnamese govtCurrent Communist govt have discouraged religion and allowed monuments to decay

Religion vs. Religion

• Rise of fundamentalism– Literal interpretation

and strict and intense adherence to basic principles

– Convinced that its religious opinion/view is THE right way

– Condone violence against those that believe otherwise

• Northern Ireland− Became

independent − North Ireland part of

the UK− Catholics have been

victimized − Joined the IRA:

militant org dedicated to achieving Irish national unity in any way necessary

Conflict in Middle East• Jews, Christians, and

Muslims have fought for 2,000 years for control of Jerusalem and its surrounding region

• WHY?– Jews: “promised land”,

once forced to leave– Christians: “Holy

Land”, major events in Christ’s life

– Muslims: most widely practiced religion in the region, Jerusalem is where Muhammad ascended to heaven

Israel and Palestine Issues• Ongoing struggle between Israelis

and Palestinians that began in the early 20th century

• Ottoman Empire controlled Palestine for 4 centuries (1516-1917)

• After WW1, United Nations voted to partition Palestine and Britain took over, divided into two states: one Jewish, one Muslim

• When the British withdrew in 1948, war was declared on Israel

• In 1949, an armistice was signed that divided control of Jerusalem

• In 1956, 1967,1973: three more wars

• Israel returned Sinai to Egypt and Egypt “recognized” Israel’s right to exist

• Palestinian POV:• Israel’s prime opponent• 5 groups consider themselves

Palestinians• Palestinian Liberation Org:

terrorist group that fights for Palestinians,

• Have been divided by a struggle for power; Fatah party and Hamas party

• Israeli POV:• Considers self a very small

country with a Jewish majority surrounded by a region of hostile Muslim Arabs

• Israelis still divided

BINGO!• Universalizing• Ethnic• Abrahamic• Fundamentalism• The Bible• Roman Catholic• Pope• Hajj• Fasting (Ramadan)• Sunni• Shiite• The Quran• Minaret tower• Buddhism• Siddhartha Gautama• Baha’i• The Golden Temple• Hinduism

Judaism Law of karma Untouchables Wailing Wall Ying and yang Animism Secular Interfaith Intrafaith Jerusalem Adherents Westboro Baptist Church Contagious diffusion Succession of Muhammad Four noble truths Syncretism Nigeria Iran Diaspora