RELIGION AND BELIEF

SYSTEMS
UCSP-CSS12
BELIEF SYSTEM

 is a set of beliefs regarding what is true and false, what is good or bad, what
is beautiful and ugly, what is acceptable by society and what is considered as
unacceptable.
 A belief system usually possesses the foundational principles on which a
religion, a science, a culture, or a philosophy is based but may not necessarily
be the religion, the science, the culture, or the philosophy itself.
WHAT IS RELIGION?

 Meanwhile religion is a belief system that relates humanity to the

transcendental, and just like culture, it has its own set of rules, norms,
values, and rituals, which are generally accepted by its group of believers.
WHAT IS RELIGION?

 The word religion comes from the latin word religionem which means “respect for
what is sacred, reverence for the gods”.
 It also comes from the latin word re which means again and ligare which means to
connect.
 Put together, re–ligare therefore means “to reconnect”, in this sense, to the to the
divine, the sacred, the supernatural, and the spiritual.
 According to Emile Durkheim, “Religion answers all the unanswered questions of
human existence.” Most of the things that human reason cannot comprehend as of the
moment can find answers in transcendental ideas such as religion.
What is Animism?

 During the old days when science was not yet dominant, our ancestors could not
understand many things in nature. When the lightning struck or when the volcanoes
erupted, there were no reasonable or scientific explanation available to them.
What is Animism?

 Thus, our primitive ancestors were compelled to come up with mythical explanations
to many things they saw in nature.
 Most, if not all, of ancient cultures are animistic, that is, the belief that all things found
in nature are guided and inhabited by spirits and deities.
 Basic questions such as: how does the sun rise? Where do the rains come? How far is the
sea? What is thunder? are all answered by spirits residing in those elements in nature.
 Thus, primitive cultures attribute the rising of the sun to the sun god; that the
lightning and thunder are ruled by deities and gods; that the trees and the land are all
animated by spirits.
 In order for nature to be kind to them, our human ancestors performed sacrifices and
rituals to ensure the good favor of the gods.
What is Animism?

 In the olden times, people had to contend with many spirits, gods, and deities. This is
the reason why animism is usually polytheistic or the belief in many gods.
 Our ancestors usually had a hierarchy or a pantheon for gods and goddesses. In
Ancient Egypt, their highest god is Ra or Re. Meanwhile, in ancient Greece, their
highest god among many gods is Zeus. In early Philippines, we have bathala as the
highest god even as we have diwatas (goddesses of the land) and anitos (spirits of
nature) all around
MONOTHEISM & POLYTHEISM

 Monotheism is the belief in one god while polytheism is the belief in many gods.
 The foundation of polytheism is the belief that there are different gods and goddesses
that typically have physical bodies, and have human characteristics. Such deities are
representations of forces of nature, and are accorded with their own supernatural
capacities.
 According to history, polytheism was the typical form of religion during the Bronze
Age and it dominated until the Axial Age, a period of history which occurred during
the 8th to the 3rd century BCE.
MONOTHEISM & POLYTHEISM

 Unlike polytheism, monotheism purposes that there is only one god who was
all-powerful and who had the capacity to intervene in the world. Monotheistic
religions are believed to have developed out of Abraham and his descendants.
Some of the largest monotheistic religions today include Christianity, Judaism,
and Islam.
MONOTHEISM & POLYTHEISM

 Some of the common characteristics of monotheistic religions include:

• God is omnipotent (all-powerful) and omniscient (all-knowing).
• God is a creator who sustain and maintain order in the world.
• God is incomparable to any image or representation.
WHAT IS A CHURCH?

 An institutionalized or organized religion is called a church. Unlike religious

traditions, organized religions have beliefs and rituals which are formally established
and systematically arranged. Religions become institutionalized when they have the
following elements, also referred to as the five Cs of organized religion:
1. CULT
2. CREED
3. CODE
4. COMMUNITY OF BELIEVER
5. COMMUNITY SERVICES
CULT

 is the set of rituals and sacred places, items, and objects, religious practices that
believers do and adhere to. It usually refers to some supernatural, superhuman, or
transcendental power or promise that attracts followers. The beginning of religion
usually starts with the cult.
CREED

 As the cult expands and develops, the members are questioned and challenged from
the outside. They also need to assure the next generations that their message will be
transmitted in its original form. Thus members of an organized religion are compelled
to come up with a written set of beliefs that would unite all members. This is their
profession of their faith.
CODE

 As the organization of the community of believers progress through time, it cannot be

prevented that some organizational issues and processes need to be systematized.
They need to come up with a set of standard processes, organizational procedures and
laws that would govern the whole membership. Questions pertaining to the
organizational structure of the church, what constitutes the church hierarchy, what
constitutes the laity and other things need be answered in legal form. This is the code
of the church.
COMMUNITY OF BELIEVERS

 All individuals who adhere to the set of beliefs of a certain religion are members of that
religion’s community of believers.
COMMUNITY SERVICES

 Are the things that the church does for its members and for the outside world. These
include such activities as having regular services for the believers, putting up schools
and hospitals, and doing humanitarian services, among other things
QUIZ

 1. is a set of beliefs regarding what is true and false, what is good or bad,
what is beautiful and ugly, what is acceptable by society and what is
considered as unacceptable. BELIEF SYSTEM
 2. do you call the beginning of a religion? CULT
 3. It is a belief system that relates humanity to the transcendental, and just
like culture, it has its own set of rules, norms, values, and rituals, which are
generally accepted by its group of believers. Religion
 4. It is the belief in one god? MONOTHEISM
5. It is the belief in many gods. POLYTHEISM
6-10 5 C’S of Organized Religion.