Post by Athans on Nov 21, 2014 8:55:20 GMT -6
Contrary to popular belief, religion is not defined as a belief in a god. There actually is no universally accepted definition of religion. So many people, especially atheists believe they know what religion is, but are so often off the mark. Wikipedia has a more accurate definition that most people do…
A religion is an organized collection of beliefs, cultural systems, and world views that relate humanity to an order of existence.[note 1] Many religions have narratives, symbols, and sacred histories that are intended to explain the meaning of lifeand/or to explain the origin of life or the Universe. From their beliefs about the cosmos and human nature, people derive morality, ethics, religious laws or a preferred lifestyle. According to some estimates, there are roughly 4,200 religions in the world.[1]
Wikipedia has a good definition, but it is not perfect. When starting in the scholar field of Religious Studies, the first thing we attempt to do establish a definition for religion. We read the works of many different scholars from many different areas. A book I started with was Eight Theories of Religion by Daniel L. Pals. As the title says, it gives different theories of religion and a definition. One will find that different areas of study (such as psychology, anthropology, or sociology) will have differing definitions of religion.
The reasons the definitions vary is because they are being looked at from different angles. If religion is defined as “a belief in a god” many Buddhists would not be considered religious. There are also atheistic Jews, which adds another level of complexity (is Jewish a religion or a culture?)
Scholars of religion look for similar traits that religious people display and evaluate the claims and definitions from all of the fields that study religion. The reason there is no universally accepted definition is that not all scholars agree. Some have defined it so broadly that being a football fan could be considered a religion. I believe there is a middle ground and I have come to my own conclusion. My definition of religion is very close to how most scholars of religion define religion. I personally use the definition of probably the most popular religious scholar, and also one of the most respected. I use the definition given by Stephen Prothero.
www.stephenprothero.com/
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Prothero
The way he defines religion is called the Four Cs. I will quote a bit found in this article,which describes the Four Cs.
“ ‘Religion is now widely defined, by scholars and judges alike, in functional rather than substantive terms. Instead of focusing on some creedal criterion such as belief in God, we look for family resemblances’ (p. 324). Members of the family of religions typically exhibit Four Cs: creed (statements of beliefs and values), cultus (ritual activities), code (standards for ethical conduct), and community (institutions).”
I will explain the Four Cs at a later time, but what is important to remember is that scholars in this field have come up with definitions and they are very different than what the general population uses. This complicates things on so many levels and changes so many arguments. Check back for updates on this thread.
A religion is an organized collection of beliefs, cultural systems, and world views that relate humanity to an order of existence.[note 1] Many religions have narratives, symbols, and sacred histories that are intended to explain the meaning of lifeand/or to explain the origin of life or the Universe. From their beliefs about the cosmos and human nature, people derive morality, ethics, religious laws or a preferred lifestyle. According to some estimates, there are roughly 4,200 religions in the world.[1]
Wikipedia has a good definition, but it is not perfect. When starting in the scholar field of Religious Studies, the first thing we attempt to do establish a definition for religion. We read the works of many different scholars from many different areas. A book I started with was Eight Theories of Religion by Daniel L. Pals. As the title says, it gives different theories of religion and a definition. One will find that different areas of study (such as psychology, anthropology, or sociology) will have differing definitions of religion.
The reasons the definitions vary is because they are being looked at from different angles. If religion is defined as “a belief in a god” many Buddhists would not be considered religious. There are also atheistic Jews, which adds another level of complexity (is Jewish a religion or a culture?)
Scholars of religion look for similar traits that religious people display and evaluate the claims and definitions from all of the fields that study religion. The reason there is no universally accepted definition is that not all scholars agree. Some have defined it so broadly that being a football fan could be considered a religion. I believe there is a middle ground and I have come to my own conclusion. My definition of religion is very close to how most scholars of religion define religion. I personally use the definition of probably the most popular religious scholar, and also one of the most respected. I use the definition given by Stephen Prothero.
www.stephenprothero.com/
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Prothero
The way he defines religion is called the Four Cs. I will quote a bit found in this article,which describes the Four Cs.
“ ‘Religion is now widely defined, by scholars and judges alike, in functional rather than substantive terms. Instead of focusing on some creedal criterion such as belief in God, we look for family resemblances’ (p. 324). Members of the family of religions typically exhibit Four Cs: creed (statements of beliefs and values), cultus (ritual activities), code (standards for ethical conduct), and community (institutions).”
I will explain the Four Cs at a later time, but what is important to remember is that scholars in this field have come up with definitions and they are very different than what the general population uses. This complicates things on so many levels and changes so many arguments. Check back for updates on this thread.