INTRODUCTION TO

WORLD RELIGION
AND BELIEF SYSTEM
`

MADLANG FELSAY!
 TRUE OR FALSE.

Write MAHUSAY if the statement is True

and MABUHAY if the statement is False.
1. Social environment and upbringing
can affect a person’s religious life?
MAHUSAY

2.Monotheism is defined as a belief in

the existence of one GOD.
MAHUSAY
3.Agnosticism believe in the existence
of Holy Trinity.
MABUHAY

4.The world religion is from the

Latin word religare.
MAHUSAY
 5.Karl Marx believed that religions
were developed by the few as a means
to control the masses and suppress
revolution.
MAHUSAY
Understanding the Nature of Religion

Origin of World Religions

Positive and Negative Effects of

Religion
Why is there a need to study religion?
Presently, we are all witness as to
how religion continues to play crucial
roles in world politics in the twenty-
first century as can be seen from the
various political conflicts that have
their roots in religious differences.
Understanding the Nature of Religion

UNDERSTANDING BELIEFS AND WORLDVIEWS

Every individual sees and interprets the

world quite differently from one another. This
overall perspective is also termed worldview
which is a collection of beliefs about life and
the universe being held by people (The Free
Dictionary 2014) .
Understanding the Nature of Religion

UNDERSTANDING BELIEFS AND WORLDVIEWS

Belief in god or gods is found in almost

all religions. There is a good reason to
presuppose that religion had existed during
prehistoric times and this has continued to the
modern day. Human life may have produced
hundreds of religions and beliefs system.
What does it mean to be religious and
spiritual?

Why is religion linked to

humandkind’s quest to search for the
meaning of life and death?
Understanding the Nature of Religion

Theism, often used as a synonym to

monotheism, is defined as a belief in the
existence of one God.

Monotheistic Religions, claim that there is

only one God who could have designed and
created the universe or may have directed all
events that led to the creation of everything.
Understanding the Nature of Religion

Modern-day examples of monotheistic

religions include Judaism, Christianity,
and Islam.

Polytheistic Religions recognize many

principal gods among whom no one is
supreme.
 Definition and Nature of Religion

Religion may be defined as “an organized system

of beliefs, ceremonies, and rules used to worship
a god or a group gods” (Merriam-Webster
Dictionary 2014).
The Latin word religio refers to “something done
with overanxious or scrupulous attention to
detail” (Bowker 1997).
 Definition and Nature of Religion

This term may have been derived from the

Latin verb religare which means “to tie
together, and bind fast”. In its original
sense, the word refers to expression of
proper piety , that is binding to god
(Grassie 2010).
 ORIGIONS OF RELIGION

Archaeologist believe that they have

discovered elements of religious belief by
Homo sapiens almost 60,000 years ago.
Apart from burying dead, various items
such as foods, tools, and other objects were
placed inside the sight.
 ORIGIONS OF RELIGION

All these rituals imply reverence to

their loved ones and perhaps the
thought that the dead will utilize these
materials in the afterlife.
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Animistic Theory

Proponent
Edward Burnett Tylor (1832-1917), English anthropologist.

Primitive people believed in

souls or anima found in people
(seen in dreams).
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Nature- Worship Theory

Human beings first

developed their religions
from their observations
of the forces of nature.
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Nature- Worship Theory

Primitive people identified the

forces in nature, personified
them, created myths, and
developed religions around
them.
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Theory of Original Monotheism

Proponent
Wilhelm Schmidt (1868-1954), Austrian anthropologist and
ethnologist.

There had been one great

God above all others.
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Magic Theory
Proponent
James George Frazer (1854-1941), Scottish social
anthropologist.

People had gone three phases

of development concerning
the spirit world:
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories
Magic Theory
Proponent
James George Frazer (1854-1941), Scottish social
anthropologist.

1. Primitive magic ( wherein

people to control nature in the
hope that nature will cooperate
if rituals are done properly).
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Magic Theory
Proponent
James George Frazer (1854-1941), Scottish social
anthropologist.

2. Religion ( wherein
people implored nature
to done properly).
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Magic Theory
Proponent
James George Frazer (1854-1941), Scottish social
anthropologist.

2.Science ( wherein a
reational understanding
of nature is operative).
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Magic Theory
Proponent
James George Frazer (1854-1941), Scottish social
anthropologist.

2.Science ( wherein a
reational understanding
of nature is operative).
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Wish Fulfilment Theory

Proponent
Ludwig Andreas von Feuerbach, (1804-1872), German
philosopher and anthropologist.

There were no gods and that

belief in gods was simply
wish fulfilment.
 ORIGINS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Wish Fulfilment Theory

Proponent
Karl Heinrich Marx, (1818-1883), German philosopher and
sociologist.

Religions developed by the few

as a means to control the masses
and suppress revolution.
ORIGIONS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Wish Fulfilment Theory

Proponent
Sigmund Freud, (1856-1939), Austrian neurologist and
founder father of psychoanalysis.

Religions originated from

the guilt that individuals
supposedly feel in hating
their fathers.
 ORIGINS OF RELIGION
The Different Theories on the religion and the major proponents
of these theories

Wish Fulfilment Theory

Proponent
Sigmund Freud, (1856-1939), Austrian neurologist and
founder father of psychoanalysis.

A healthy and mature

person can face problems
without need of s god or
religion.
 EXPLORING SPIRITUALLY

Spiritually comes in with the term “spiritual” being defined as

“relating or affecting the human spirit or soul as opposed to material
or physical things” ( Oxford Dictionaries 2014).

Spirituality derived from the Latin word spiritus, its verb is spirare
which means “to breathe” literally. There is an impression that
people are surrounded by a “ divine reality as pervasive, intimate,
necessary, and invisible as the air we breathe “ which is similar to
Hindu prana and Chinese chi. ( Grassie 2010).
 ELEMENTS OF RELIGION

The sensation of brain we have beliefs in one God,

Beliefs Dooms day, Angels, Sacred books, good and bad
luck, while Hindu believe in more that one God.
Every religion has its own structure and function
Religious Organization
and every individual performing his role is that
organization.

Emotions Emotions of hope, fear, reverence and humility are

the products of religious rituals.

These are the emotional and ceremonial practices.

Ritual & Ceremonies
 ELEMENTS OF RELIGION

For Hindus idols, temples, cow, river of Ganga and

Sacred Objects Jamna are sacred. For Christians the cross, Church,
and bible are the sacred objects while for Muslims,
the holy Quran, Mosque, Baithullah, Crescent are
sacred objects .
Symbol Symbols give meaning to human behavior.

In Christianity , there are Catholics while is Islam

these sects are Shias, Sunnis, Ahle Hadith,
Sects Wahabies etc. Among them every one claims to be
true but one of them is on the path of
righteousness which is the true religion Islam.