Worship

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 468.

Morals

Salvation and the Afterlife

Often primitive religions teach that a messiah will some day come and bring in a reign of peace and prosperity for the tribe. Hopes for salvation generally relate to the group and to this world.

There is little doctrine concerning the next life. A primitive man expects to merge with his ancestors in another world when he dies, but that other world is not vividly described, and it often is seen as just as full of trouble and confusion as this world.

Salvation is thus piecemeal, relating to specific worldly distresses. It is not felt that a state of grace can be reached in any final way: there will always be new problems. Sacrifice--most often blood sacrifice of animals--is the usual means of atonement.

Temporary escapes into the realm of "sacred time" (or "dream time") are possible. Through reenactments of mythological events primitive men mystically participate in the actions of gods and ancestral heroes. In that way they inject a sense of meaning into a chaotic world.

The unenviable position of man without God is seen clearly in primitive man, who can only flee for short periods of time from a terrifying and purposeless existence.

Survival of the group is of paramount importance. Without secular means of control (police, etc.), ways must be found to make group members adhere strictly to codes of conduct. Primitive people have developed communal ways of coping with the world, embodied in religious traditions they are fearful of changing.

In many basic areas moral standards are much the same throughout the world. Lying, cheating, stealing, and murder are generally forbidden. But often those rules apply only within the group.

Generally a sense of conscience is aroused only when some disaster occurs. If it is felt that an illness, for example, is the result of a wicked deed, then the person will repent to the god.

Primitive morality is thus largely a matter of transactions, of acting in ways that will benefit the self and the community. Also, although primitive men are not devoid of natural feelings of love, their morality is largely legalistic. "Sins" are usually a matter of overstepping concrete rules, even when the reason for those rules is not understood.

Worship also has the purpose of binding members of the community together, of giving them a sense of common purpose. (When people from diffeent tribes with different gods meet, they usually speak in terms of the "high" god.)

Totemism, the use of certain animals, plants, and even human artifacts such as skulls to contact the spiritual realm, is common. Idolatry in a strict sense--believing that an image or animal actually is a god--is rare. Most often such worship is symbolic.

Fasting, self-mortification, and drugs are used to attain states of trance. The purpose is sometimes to obtain communication from the world of spirits and at other times actually to participate in the life of the god, to "be" the god for a short period of time.

Each group usually has at least one "holy man," who regularly makes journeys to the land of the gods and heroes for the good of the community.

Power, rather than justice, love, or mercy, most often characterizes the object of worship.

An ethnic religion is a religion that appeals to a specific group of people in a specific area of the world.

Judaism(from the Latin Iudaismus, derived from the Greek Ioudaïsmos, and ultimately from the Hebrew יהודה, Yehudah, "Judah";[1][2] in Hebrew: יַהֲדוּת, Yahadut, the distinctive characteristics of the Judean ethnos[3]) is the religion, philosophy and way of life of the Jewish people.[4] A monotheistic religion originating in the Hebrew Bible (also known as the Tanakh) and explored in later texts such as the Talmud, Judaism is considered by religious Jews to be the expression of the covenantal relationship God established with the Children of Israel.[5] Rabbinic Judaism holds that God revealed his laws and commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai in the form of both the Written and Oral Torah.[6] This assertion was historically challenged by the Karaites, a movement that flourished in the medieval period, which retains several thousand followers today and maintains that only the Written Torah was revealed.[7] In modern times, liberal movements such as Humanistic Judaism may be nontheistic.[8]

Judaism claims a historical continuity spanning more than 3,000 years. It is one of the oldest monotheistic religions,[9] and the oldest to survive into the present day.[10] The Hebrews / Israelites were already referred to as "Jews" in later books of the Tanakh such as the Book of Esther, with the term Jews replacing the title "Children of Israel".[11] Judaism's texts, traditions and values strongly influenced later Abrahamic religions, including Christianity, Islam and the Baha'i Faith.[12][13] Many aspects of Judaism have also directly or indirectly influenced secular Western ethics and civil law.[14]

Jews are an ethnoreligious group[15] and include those born Jewish and converts to Judaism. In 2010, the world Jewish population was estimated at 13.4 million, or roughly 0.2% of the total world population. About 42% of all Jews reside in Israel and about 42% reside in the United States and Canada, with most of the remainder living in Europe.[16] The largest Jewish religious movements are Orthodox Judaism (Haredi Judaism and Modern Orthodox Judaism), Conservative Judaism and Reform Judaism. A major source of difference between these groups is their approach to Jewish law.[17] Orthodox Judaism maintains that the Torah and Jewish law are divine in origin, eternal and unalterable, and that they should be strictly followed. Conservative and Reform Judaism are more liberal, with Conservative Judaism generally promoting a more "traditional" interpretation of Judaism's requirements than Reform Judaism. A typical Reform position is that Jewish law should be viewed as a set of general guidelines rather than as a set of restrictions and obligations whose observance is required of all Jews.[18][19] Historically, special courts enforced Jewish law; today, these courts still exist but the practice of Judaism is mostly voluntary.[20] Authority on theological and legal matters is not vested in any one person or organization, but in the sacred texts and rabbis and scholars who interpret them.[21]

Judaism is a religioustradition with origins dating back nearly four thousand years, rooted in the ancient near eastern region of Canaan (which is now Israel and Palestinian territories). Originating as the beliefs and practices of the people known as "Israel," classical, or rabbinic, Judaism did not emerge until the 1st century C.E. Judaism traces its heritage to the covenant God made with Abraham and his lineage — that God would make them a sacred people and give them a holy land. The primary figures of Israelite culture include the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the prophet Moses, who received God's law at Mt. Sinai. Judaism is a tradition grounded in the religious, ethical, and social laws as they are articulated in the Torah — the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. Jews refer to the Bible as the Tanakh, an acronym for the texts of the Torah, Prophets, and Writings. Other sacred texts include the Talmud and Midrash, the rabbinic, legal, and narrative interpretations of the Torah. The contemporary branches of Judaism differ in their interpretations and applications of these texts. The four main movements within Judaism today are Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist, respectively ranging from traditional to liberal to religiously progressive in their application of Torah. While diverse in their views, Jews continue to be unified on the basis of their common connection to a set of sacred narratives expressing their relationship with God as a holy people. Judaism tends to emphasize practice over belief. Jewish worship is centered in synagogues, which completely replaced the Second Temple after its destruction in 70 C.E. Jewish religious leaders are called rabbis, who oversee the many rituals and ceremonies essential to Jewish religious practice.

Quick Fact Details:

Formed: Though the Jewish calendar goes back more than 5000 years, most scholars date the beginning of the religion of the Israelites to their forefather in faith, Abraham, whose life is generally dated to circa 2000-1800 B.C.E.

Origin: Canaan is the biblical name for the area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean, approximately the equivalent of what today comprises the state of Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Followers: The worldwide count of adherents of Judaism is difficult, as some Jewish movements dispute the legitimate Jewish identity of others. Many do not affiliate with any particular branch, and may then be left out of census reports.

Sacred Texts: Tanakh is an acronym of Torah, Nevi'im, and Ketuvim. Torah is the name given to the first five books — Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy — also called the Pentateuch. The Nevi'im and Ketuvim are the books of history, prophecy, poetry, and other sacred writings. The Talmud is also called the Oral Torah, and is comprised of rabbinical commentary and interpretation on the Torah.

Headquarters: While Jerusalem remains the center of Jewish spirituality, the lack of a Temple or any administrative or jurisdictional authority prevents it from being an organizational center.

Hinduism is the predominant religion[3][4] of the Indian subcontinent, and one of its indigenous religions. Hinduism includes Shaivism, Vaishnavism and Śrauta among numerous other traditions. It also includes historical groups, for example the Kapalikas. Among other practices and philosophies, Hinduism includes a wide spectrum of laws and prescriptions of "daily morality" based on karma, dharma, and societal norms. Hinduism is a conglomeration of distinct intellectual or philosophical points of view, rather than a rigid common set of beliefs.[5]

Hinduism is formed of diverse traditions and has no single founder.[6] Among its direct roots is the historical Vedic religion of Iron Age India and, as such, Hinduism is often called the "oldest living religion"[7] or the "oldest living major religion" in the world.[3][8][9][10]

One orthodox classification of Hindu texts is to divide into Śruti ("revealed") and Smriti ("remembered") texts. These texts discuss theology, philosophy, mythology, rituals and temple building among other topics. Major scriptures include the Vedas, Upanishads, Purāṇas, Mahābhārata, Rāmāyaṇa, Bhagavad Gītā and Āgamas.

Hinduism, with about one billion followers, is the world's third largest religion, after Christianity and Islam.

Hinduism is a collective term applied to the many philosophical and religious traditions native to India. Hinduism has neither a specific moment of origin nor a specific founder. Rather, the tradition understands itself to be timeless, having always existed. Indeed, its collection of sacred texts is known, as a whole, as Sanatana Dharma, "The Eternal Teaching." It is thus a complex tradition that encompasses numerous interrelated religious doctrines and practices that have some common characteristics but which lack any unified system of beliefs and practices. Hinduism encompasses a number of major sects, as well as countless subsects with local or regional variations. On one level, it is possible to view these sects as distinct religious traditions, with often very specific theologies and ritual traditions; on another level, however, they often understand themselves to be different means to reach a common end. The Hindu worldview is grounded in the doctrines of samsara (the cycle of rebirth) and karma (the universal law of cause and effect), and fundamentally holds that one's actions (including one's thoughts) directly determine one's life, both one's current life and one's future lives. Many, but not all, Hindus hold that the cosmos is populated by numerous deities and spiritual beings — gods and goddesses, or devas — who actively influence the world and who interact with humans. The tradition is typically divided into four major sects: Shaiva (devotees of the god Shiva), Vaishnava (devotees of the god Vishnu), Shakta (devotees of the goddess), and Smarta (those who understand the ultimate form of the divine to be abstract and all encompassing, Brahman).

Quick Fact Details:

Formed: The exact beginnings of Hinduism are impossible to determine, since they evolved as time and culture impacted the religious ideas of early India.

Deity: Many Hindus recognize a vast diversity of gods and goddesses; others believe in a Hindu "trinity" (trimurti): Brahman, Vishnu, Shiva; yet others claim an essential monotheism, believing that all the gods are manifestations of one.

Christianity - 30+ CE

Christianity started out as a breakaway sect of Judaism nearly 2000 years ago. Jesus, the son of the Virgin Mary and her husband Joseph, but conceived through the Holy Spirit, was bothered by some of the practices within his native Jewish faith and began preaching a different message of God and religion. During his travels he was joined by twelve disciples who followed him in his journeys and learned from him. He performed many miracles during this time and related many of his teachings in the form of parables. Among his best known sayings are to "love thy neighbor" and "turn the other cheek." At one point he revealed that he was the Son of God sent to Earth to save humanity from our sins. This he did by being crucified on the cross for his teachings. He then rose from the dead and appeared to his disciples and told them to go forth and spread his message.

Since Christianity and Judaism share the same history up to the time of Jesus Christ, they are very similar in many of their core beliefs. There are two primary differences. One is that Christians believe in original sin and that Jesus died in our place to save us from that sin. The other is that Jesus was fully human and fully God and as the Son of God is part of the Holy Trinity: God the Father, His Son, and the Holy Spirit. All Christians believe in heaven and that those who sincerely repent their sins before God will be saved and join Him in heaven. Belief in hell and satan varies among groups and individuals.

There are a multitude of forms of Christianity which have developed either because of disagreements on dogma, adaptation to different cultures, or simply personal taste. For this reason there can be a great difference between the various forms of Christianity they may seem like different religions to some people.