Introduction to World religions

and Belief Systems

MODULE 1: WHAT IS
RELIGION AND BELIEF
SYSTEM?
Morning Prayer
 Energizer: What Describes Your Religion?

Materials:
A. Pen
B. Paper
Instructions: Draw anything that represents your
interpretation/definition of your own religion.

Time Allotment: 10 minutes

 Module 1: What is Religion and Belief System?

In this module, you will be able to:

1. Give an example of a belief system or a worldview,
2. Communicate one's understanding of religion;
3. Differentiate religion from (a) spirituality, (6)
theology, and (c) philosophy of religion; and
4. Discuss the nature and value of religion and its
importance in relation to (a) one's self, (b) society,
and (c) nature environment (enrichment).
 Some Definitions of Religion

According to the Oxford English Dictionary,

religion is an "action or conduct indicating belief in,
obedience to, and reverence for a god, gods, or
similar Superhuman power, the performance of
religious rites or observances."
This lexical definition emphasizes two important
essential components of religion:
1) belief in a supernatural being; and
2) effort or commitment. The first component
describes one's attitude toward the object of one's
belief, while the second component is performative
in a sense that one has to show his or her belief by
practice.
By etymology, the word religion comes from three
Latin variants: relegere, religari, and re-eligere.
relegere, which means "constantly return to, speaks
about religious observance such as Holy Week
(Christianity), Ramadan (Islam), or Passover (Judaism).
religari, which means "to be tied into, reters to the
commitment to ones own religion.
re-eligere, which means "to choose again, refers to
conversion or going back to one' s roots or goals.
These meanings can help you better grasp the concept of
religion.
 Definitions respected experts tfrom various disciplines

1. Friedrich Schleiermacher (1778-1834) Religion

is "the feeling of absolute dependence.“

2. Rudolf Otto (1869-1937)- Religion is that which

grows out of, and gives expression to, experience of the
holy in its various aspects. We are dealing with
something for which there is only one appropriate
expression: mysterium tremendum. The feeling of
it may at times come sweeping like a gentle tide,
pervading the mind with a tranquil mood of deepest
worship.
3. Paul Tillich (1886-1965) - Religion is the
"ultimate concern for the ground of Being.“

4. William James (1842-1910) - Religion is "the

feeling, acts, and experiences of individual people in
their solitude as they stand in relation to whatever
they may consider the divine.“
5. Victor Frankl (1905-1997)- Religion is a
"function of the spiritual unconscious, which is the
source of the will to meaning.

6. Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) - Religion is "a

unified system of beliefs and practices relative to
sacred things which unite into one single moral
community all those who adhere to them.
The definitions given by various scholars and experts in
the field or religion can be categorized into three:
substantive, functional, and family
resemblance definitions.

A. Substantive definition excludes or limits the

subject matter of religion to simply about beliefs,
institutions, and practices. This definition is content-
oriented, in the sense that it tries look into essential
characteristics of religion.
B. Punctional definition accommodates other
important ideas such as creeds and principles, which
are common in religions. The functional definition
does not specity necessary content or elements as
conditions for qualitying as religion unlike what the
substantive approach does. Instead, it focuses on
how religions(s) functions in the lives of the
adherents.
C. All religions, to use Ludwig Wittgenstein s
concept, belong to a family of resemblances.
Wittgenstein explained the concept of family of
resemblances as follows: a. The use of the word
"game” has no common essence because each game
has a character.
b. some are solitary while others are team and
competitive,
c. other games depend on chance while some on
skill,
d. some games are for amusement only while others
require winning or losing.
Still, we use the word "game" to refer to such
activities because each is similar in important
aspects. Applying this concept to religion, we do not
have a set of defining characteristics but what we
have is a network of similarities overlapping each
other, or crisscrossing of similar features and
resemblances just like resemblances of physical
features among the members of the natural family.
 Relationship between Religion and Philosophy of Religion

Philosophy comes from the Greek words "philos"

and "sophia", which together mean "love of
wisdom".
lt is the study that tries to critically examine the
nature, meaning, structure, and value of things by
the use of reason and logic. Philosophy is a broad
discipline that seeks to answer fundamental
questions of being and other issues related to it
 Philosophy of Religion

is a branch of philosophy that deals with the philosophical

analysis, reflection, and examination of the central issues,
themes, topics, and problems about religion.
The function of philosophy of religion is to provide
Illuminating insights on some religious concepts, beliefs,
arguments, and religious practices. Among the most
important themes which Philosophy of religion tries to
examine are religious diversity; theological concepts such
as grace, faith, and salvation; arguments for and against
the existence of God, and the problems of evil, among
others.
As a discipline, philosophy of religion differs from religion in
four counts.
A. First, philosophy of religion is a method useful in
understanding some complex issues about religion such as
God's existence; God's attributes such as omnipotence,
omniscience, and omnibenevolence, the problem of evil; and
miracles.
B. Second, philosophy of religion primarily uses reason as
the source of making judgments.
C. Third, philosophy of religion is purely an intellectual
enterprise.
D. Lastly, philosophy of religion cannot substitute religion.
 The following are some more characteristics of philosophy of
religion:

1. It is not apologetics. This means that philosophy of

religion does not provide arguments in defense or faith.

2. It is not a comparative religion. Philosophy of

religion does not only examine belief systems descriptively
but also critically. It critically evaluates religions" belief
systems whether they are sound and rational.

3. Philosophy of religion tends to be evaluative in its

analysis of religious themes rather than descriptive.
Philosophy of religion examines the nature and other
intricate issues of religion in philosophical point of
view, whereas religion provides the material or
object of study to philosophy.
Relationship between Religion and Theology

How is theology related to religion? How are they

different?

Theology comes from the Greek words theos, which

means "deity" or "god," and logos, which means "word"
or "discourse." It is the study or discourse about god or
gods.
Theology functions as a method in forming a
reasoned expression of faith. More than a method, its
objective is to critically examine and understand the
content of faith.
 Why is it important to rationally examine and understand the
content of faith?

One cannot have a strong belief or faith-that is, a

personal conviction and commitment on something
one cannot fully understand. Hence, must at least try
to Justify and adequately provide rational
explanation of in order to make sense of what one
believes in, he or she must at least try to justify and
adequately provide rational explanation of it.
The relationship between faith and theology is seen in the
role that faith plays in theology. Faith gives form to
theology, while theology sets the intellectual mode of
believers for faith to be understood.
Furthermore, faith provides theology various modes to
understand its own content. For instance, a Christian
believes that Christ is the Son of God. This belief must be
supplied with sound rational justification guided by a
proper theology. Any reflection as a result of this inquiry
should strengthen one's own reasons for believing it.
Therefore, a critical knowledge of faith is required in
theology.
 Relationship between Spirituality and Religion

One of the basic principles of religion is the belief that humans have
material and nonmaterial dimensions.

Spirituality is connected with the nonmaterial dimension of man. Its

root word, spirit, is primarily thought to refer to the incorporeal
substance of any animate beings like humans. In Christian context,
"spirit" is used interchangeably with "soul" because both are thought to
be non-corporeal or nonphysical substances. However, "soul" is
thought of as a different substance from that of "spirit." The word spirit
comes from the Latin word spiritus, which means "breath (in Greek:
pneuma). In Greek, "spirit" is pneuma while "soul" is psyche. While
pneuma refers to "breath, psyche is different. For the Greeks, psyche
refers to the human mind and personality.
"Spirit," unlike "soul," has a wider range of uses depending
on the context. For example, in Christian context, the word
"spirit" can be used to describe God (but not the word "soul).
Christians believe that God is a spirit but do not believe that
God is a soul or has soul. The semantic use of both terms
reveals the difference in meaning and connotation. The use of
the word "soul in English complements the way the Hindus
use the word. For Hindus, "soul is equivalent to atman, which
roughly speaking means "self" or "consciousness". While one
cannot use the word "soul without any reference to a body, the
word "spirit" can be used without a rererence to a body. For
example, some people speak about disembodied spirits,
ghosts, or spirits of trees. Spirit is an attribute that
develops as an integral aspect of an animate thing
and is part of the soul of all animate beings.
Spirituality, Just like its root word, is also ambiguous
because of its internal connection and relationship with
words like "religious or religion. Traditionally, spirituality is
understood simply as an activity that deals with recovering
what has been lost from the original self. The original self is
considered the self without tarnish-full of goodness and
love. The recovery is done by turning one's back from his
tarnished self-a going back to the roots-a radical turning
from and of rejection of the decaying self. That is why the
word "spiritual" emphasizes or connotes that a person could
have undergone a thorough and tedious process or
cleansing, reforming, or recovering of the authentic self.
In such cases, a spiritual person is able to see himself
or herself no longer just an isolated individual but
rather someone who is not just connected to a
complex web of relationships but also someone who
can affect others and the entire cosmos as well. He or
she has able to reach that point where he or she has
established a strong communion with all things. He
or she is able to elevate himselt or herself and
connect to a higher power. A spiritual person has a
revolutionary spirit and possesses radical beliefs.
We see this kind of persons in the likes of Jesus
Christ, Buddha, Dalai Lama, Socrates, Confucius,
and Lao T zu. These spiritual giants of different
religions are spiritual models. They were radical and
revolutionary; they made a strong impact on the lives
of innumerable men and women of the world. The
most significant and concrete evidence of their
tremendous impact to numerous individuals around
the world are the religions that were established
because of them.
Spirituality and religion are considered by some to be either
the same or strongly linked because spirituality as a meaningtul
human activity centers on one's quest for meaning and purpose,
which is touched on by religion. However, many argue that
religion and spirituality are two distinct subjects and activities.
The modern sense of spirituality points to a subjective or
personal quest without any influence from religion. This is what
we call as spiritual but not religious (SBNR). They try to explain
spirituality in secular (nonreligious) rather than in religious
terms and reject the relevance and value of traditional religion in
helping people in their spiritual growth. Adherents and
proponents of SBNR are also known as unchurcned, eclectic,
unaffiliated, spiritual seekers, or freethinkers.