Unit 2: Religion and Belief Systems
Unit in Brief Concepts of Religion (important terms and definitions) Major Religions Religion and Human Interaction Expansion/Conversion Conflicts between/within faiths Impact on Culture Secularism Animism Hinduism Buddhism Sikhism Confucianism Taoism Judaism Christianity Islam
Concepts of Religion Unit 2: Religions and Belief Systems
Warm-up With a partner 1. Define monotheism and polytheism. Give an example of each from a civilization we have learned about this year 2. Define theocracy
Important Terms Theism Religion Deity/Deities Atheism Nontheism Agnosticism Deism Secularism
What is Religion? A religion is a set of values, morals, rules, and/or traditions that accompany the supernatural or divine To date, there are around 4,200 different religions practiced around the world
Christianity 2.1 billion Islam 1.3 billion Largest World Religions Hinduism 900 million Buddhism 376 million Judaism 14 million Sikhism 23 million
What is religion? Most religions are theistic, meaning they are based around a deity/deities Theism: Belief in one or more deities Deity: Supernatural being that has divine power over humans
What is religion? Theism and religion often work together, but do not have to There is such a thing as a non-theistic religion Non-theism: Apathy or silence towards the subject of deities Supernaturality is still at play, just not in the form of a deity
What is religion? Deities are responsible for natural occurrences and laws Not all religions believe in direct involvement from deities Deism: A religion that believes God created the universe and allowed it to evolve on its own
This analogy is a common way to describe the beliefs of deism: If you are walking down a beach and happen across a watch, your immediate assumption would be that someone created it it s far too complex for nature to have randomly created it. The universe is like the watch it s far too complex to have been created by accident. Human beings are so fragile, and so complicated, that someone had to have created them. The watch is the universe and everything in it, and the watchmaker is God.
With a partner... What are the purposes of a religion? Brainstorm some different reasons about why human beings have religion
Purposes of Religion Religion is typically used for three main things: Explaining natural events and phenomena Providing a set of ethics and morals Eschatology
Natural Events and Phenomena
Moral and Ethical Rules
Eschatology (ultimate destiny of humanity)
What areas of the world appear to be the most religious? Why might some countries be more religious than others?
Atheism vs. Agnosticism Atheism is the total lack of belief in deities or the supernatural Usually cites lack of evidence Atheism is different than non-theism, because non-theists still believe in the supernatural
Atheism vs. Agnosticism Agnosticism and atheism are not the same Gnosis is knowledge of spiritual mysteries (God s existence, the future, God s will) Agnosticism: The idea that the existence of a deity/deities is unknowable Has nothing to do with whether a deity exists or not So An agnostic Christian still believes in God, but doesn t believe his existence can be proven Becomes a matter of faith
Secularism Secularism: separating religious affairs from non-religious affairs Example: Teachers or other public school officials cannot force students to pray (separation of church and state) Example: Freedom of religion in the 1 st Amendment; the U.S. gov t cannot impose religion on its people nor can it infringe on its people s religions
Philosophy A religion with deities and the supernatural is a theistic religion A religion with the supernatural but no deities is a non-theistic religion But what is a religion called that has neither deities nor supernatural occurrences? A religion with no supernatural element whatsoever is no longer a religion but instead a philosophy Philosophy: a set of values, morality, rules and/or traditions with no accompanying supernatural belief in a divine being or force
Religion can be as simple or complicated as people make it For example