Elements of Religion

 Reflects an effort to elevate their whole self to a

higher dimension or existence
 Framework of transcendent beliefs
 Text or scriptures
 Rituals
 Sacred spaces (church, temple, mosque,
synagogue)
Spirituality
- Comes in with the term “spiritual” being defined as
“relating or affecting the human spirit or soul as
opposed to material or physical things”
- Derived form the Latin word “spiritus”, its verb
root “spirare” which means “to breathe” literally
- “…the search for transcendent meaning” – can be
expressed in religious practice or …expressed
”exclusively in their relationship to nature, music,
the arts, a set of philosophical beliefs, or
relationships with friends and family” (Astrow et al.
2001).
- “the search for meaning in life events and a
yearning for connectedness to the universe” (Coles
1990).
- “individual search for meaning” (Bown and
Williams 1993).
- It is something an individual can have without
being implicated in the ambivalent complexity of
human societies and institutions
Positive Effects of Religion
 Promotes social harmony
 Promotes moral values
 Provides social change
 Explains the Unknown
 Gives positive goal in life
 Gives people a sense of belongingness
Negative Effects of Religion
 Affirms social hierarchy
 Causes discrimination
 Triggers conflicts and fights
 Serves as an economic tool for controlling the
masses
 Impedes scientific success and development
 Obstructs the use of reason
HISTORICAL EVENTS CAUSED BY RELIGION
 Self-Immolation of a Buddhist Monk in Vietnam
 Widow Burning or Sati among the Hindus in India
 The Inquisition
 The Godhra train incident in 2002

Elements of Spirituality ORIGIN OF WORLD RELIGIONS

 Holistic
 Quest for meaning
 Quest for the sacred  Religion is universal
 Suggests a self-reflective existence  Various theories have
been formulated to
explain the origin of
religion

HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONS
SIGNIFICANT DATES ON THE ORIGIN OF WORLD
RELIGIONS

Date (circa) Significance

c. 2000 BCE Time of Abraham, patriarch of

What is faith? Israel
When you have come to the edge of all the light you know,
c. 1200 BCE Time of Moses, the Hebrew
and you are about to step off into the darkness of the leader of the Exodus
unknown,
c. 1100 – 500 BCE Hindus compiled the holy
Faith is knowing one of two things will happen: There will texts, the Vedas
be something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how
c. 551 – 479 BCE Time of the Buddha, founder of
to fly. Buddhism
Theology involves the systematic study of the existence
c. 200 BCE Time of Confucius, founder of
and nature of the divine. Confucianism
Philosophy of Religion deals primarily with issues c. 2 to 4 BCE – 32 CE The Hindu book, Bhagavad
concerning religion, which includes the analysis on the Gita, was written
existence of the divine being or in sacred texts. It seeks to c. 32 CE Time of Jesus Christ, the
analyze various concepts such as god, spirit, karma, Messiah and founder of
Christianity
creation, immortality, heaven, hell and purgatory among
others Date (circa) SIGNIFICANCE

c. 32 CE The crucifixion and the

Resurrection of Jesus Christ
 c. 40-90 CE The New Testament was  Arabian Peninsula consists of countries that are
written by the followers of predominantly Islamic in character
Jesus Christ

c. 100 CE Beginnings of Shintoism (no

known founder)
SACRED MOUNTAINS IN THE JUDEO-CHRISTIAN
TRADITION
c. 500-580 BCE Time of Lao Tze, Founder of
Taoism Holy Mountain Location Significance

c. 570 – 632 CE Time of Muhammad, who

recorded the Q’uran as the Mount Ararat Eastern part of Traditional landing
basis of Islam Turkey place of Noah’s ark
as narrated in the
book of genesis

Mount Sinai Sinai Peninsula in The peak where

The Patriarch Abraham
 Abraham played a major role in the establishment
of the 3 monotheistic religion: Judaism, Christianity
and Islam
 Jewish people regard Abraham as the ancestor of
the Israelites, through his descendants Isaac and
Jacob
 Christians view Abraham as the father of faith and
the ancestor of Jesus Christ
 Muslims consider Ishmael, Abraham’s son, as the
ancestor of the Arabs
 For ancient Hebrews, they call their God as
“Adonai, Yahweh, or Elohim
 For present day Judaism, they use Lord and God
 For Muslims, they call their god as Allah
 Judaism has 48 prophets and 7 prophetesses
 Christianity has 12 apostles
 Islam belief includes Muhammad as the final
prophet or seal of the prophets
The Indian Mosaic
 4 great religions originated in India: Hinduism,
Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism – and a myriad of
cults and sects
 Hinduism is considered as the museum of religions
 Buddhism centers itself on the figure of Buddha
The Way of the Tao/Dao
 Confucian ideals aspire to harmonize human
relations and serve as guide to social behavior
 Tao Te Ching or the Book of the Way and its Power
was written by Lao-Tzu while the Analects was
written by Confucius
 Confucius and Lao-Tzu were followers of the Dao
 Daoism centers on the Dao as a way or path
signifying appropriateness of one’s behavior to
lead other people
Shintoism
 It is a loosely organized local belief of Japan,
somewhat an ardent religious form of Japanese
patriotism.
 Japanese people literally believes that their
emperors descended from the sun goddess
Amaterasu
 It originated from Chinese words “shen” and “tao”
translated as “way of the gods”
 Kami – defined as gods or deities of heaven and
earth
GEOGRAPHICAL CONTEXT
Geography of Faith
 West Asia is home of three great religions;
Judaism, Christianity and Islam
 In 1948, Israel was established and it remains to be
the only country in the world with a Jewish-
majority population
Egypt Moses received the
10 commandments
Mount Zion/Mount Jerusalem Known as the city of
Moriah David and Temple
Mount
Mount Tabor Israel Site of
transfiguration of
Jesus
Temple Mount
 It is one of the most sacred sites in the world
revered by the Jews, Christians and Muslims
 Three structures are found here: Al-Aqsa Mosque,
Dome of the Rock and the Dome of the Chain
Jerusalem
 First Temple (King Solomon’s Temple)
 Second Temple
 Wailing Wall or Kotel
 Mount Zion
 Church of the Holy Sepulchre (Golgotha)
INDIAN SUBCONTINENT AND EASTERN END
 Hindus revere the sun (Surya) and fire ( Agni) as
well as celestial oceans (varuna)
 Chinese culture practically influenced all other
countries including Japan and China with Confucius
CULTURAL MILIEU
> Exclusive religions: monotheistic
Judaism, Christianity and Islam
> Non-exclusive religions: polytheistic
Hinduism, Confucianism, Taoism and Shintoism
On Monotheism and Universality
 Trinitarian creed vs. unitarian creed
 Five Pillars of Islam
 Christianity and Islam are universalizing religion
 Judaism is an ethnic religion
On the Concept of Dharma
 Hinduism – dharma means duty, righteousness and
ethics
 Buddhism – it means cosmic law and order, or the
teachings of Buddha and the truth of the things are
 Dharmic religions do not compel their adherents to
profess their devotion to be a believer or a
practitioner.
 Hindus believe in the trimurti or 3 forms of god,
Buddhists do not believe in the existence of any
god
On Nature and Ancestors
 In Confucianism and Daoism, lesser deities are
apparent with the presence of the atmospheric
gods, gods of locality and functional gods
 In Shintoism, divinities are closely linked to nature
and natural forces. (Mt. Fuji)