Title: What is Religion? - Vincent van Gogh's Café Terrace at Night Notes: * Café Terrace at Night painting: * Outdoor café scene in the evening * Small round tables, some customers, and a waiter * Dark blue sky filled with luminous stars, drawing attention * * Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890): * Intensely religious, initially planned to be an ordained minister * Struggled with studies, had a falling-out with church authorities * Lived as a lay preacher, worked with poor miners * Took up painting at the age of 27, encouraged by brother Theo * * Van Gogh's view of religion and painting: * Continued to consider himself a minister, preaching through his art * Subjects included simple things of life, ordinary people, and everyday objects * Paintings express quiet awe and sense of sacredness in the world * * Café Terrace at Night symbolism: * Depicts ordinary town activity with focus on the stars * Heavenly realm illuminates van Gogh's vision of sacredness in the world

Title: Key Characteristics of Religion Notes: * Language and origins of the term 'religion' * Latin roots: re- (again) and lig- (join/connect) * Suggests joining the human world to the sacred world * May not be suitable across cultures; alternative terms like 'spiritual path' * Defining religion * Many attempts and definitions, often with limitations and exceptions * No single definition suitable for all religions

1. Eight elements commonly found in religions:

2. a. Belief system: systematic interpretation of the universe and human's place in it

3. b. Community: shared belief system and ideals practiced by a group

4. c. Central myths: stories expressing religious beliefs, retold and reenacted

5. d. Ritual: beliefs enacted and made real through ceremonies

6. e. Ethics: rules about human behavior, often considered revealed or socially generated

7. f. Characteristic emotional experiences: dread, guilt, awe, devotion, rebirth, etc.

8. g. Material expression: statues, paintings, music, ritual objects, clothing, architecture, etc.

9. h. Sacredness: distinction between the sacred and the ordinary

10. Each religious tradition exhibits most of these characteristics in different ways and at different times.

Title: The Sacred in Religion Notes:

1. Religions concerned with the deepest level of reality

2. Core or origin of everything considered sacred and mysterious

3. Various names for the sacred: Brahman, Dao, Great Mother, Divine Parent, Great Spirit, Ground of Being, Great Mystery, the Ultimate, the Absolute, the Divine, the Holy

4. Different experiences and explanations of sacred reality across religions

6. Familiar term for sacred reality: God

7. Monotheism: belief in one God

8. God often seen as a Cosmic Person with will, intelligence, justice, compassion, and infinite virtues

9. Omnipotent: having total power over the universe

10. God as pure spirit, beyond full definition in words

11. Transcendent: God is active in the world but also distinct from it, unlimited by ordinary reality *

    • Sacred reality as energy or mysterious power

    • Immanent within the universe

    • Pantheism: universe as a manifestation of the sacred nature, nature is holy

    • Polytheism: worship of multiple coexisting gods

    • Separate entities or multiple manifestations of the same sacred reality

    • Other views on sacred reality

    • Atheism: denial of the existence of God or gods

    • Agnosticism: belief that the existence of God cannot be proven

    • Nontheism: taking no position on the existence of God or gods

12. Broad definition of religion as a "spiritual path" can include atheistic, agnostic, or nontheistic systems

Title: Symbols in Religion Notes: * Religions express truth symbolically

* Common in religious art and rituals * Symbols and dream interpretation * Historical belief: dreams as messages from a supernatural realm * Freud: dreams as doors into the subconscious mind, revealing hidden needs and fears * Carl Gustav Jung and religious symbolism * Extended symbol-focused dream interpretation to religion * Caution against turning everything into symbols or equating religions based on shared symbols 1. 2. Many scholars and religious leaders recognize the importance of symbolic interpretation 3. Use of religious symbols may point to an underlying structure common to all religions * Repeated symbolic images and actions across religions * Water: used in rituals by Hindus, Christians, Jews, Muslims, and Shinto followers * Ashes: represent death and the spirit world, used in tribal religions, Hinduism, and Christianity * Holy mountain: religious buildings on hills or raised on mounds, suggesting a place to encounter the sacred * * Recurrence of symbolic stories of transformation * Original purity degenerates into disorder or pollution * Sacrificial death resulting in renewed purity and order * Symbolic use of words in religions * Divine as "up above," insight as "awakened," feeling "reborn" * Potential universal symbolic language across religions * Understanding this language may help uncover universally important aspects in all religions

Title: Speculations on the Sources of Religion Notes: * Serves human needs * Coping with mortality and questions about soul, afterlife, or rebirth * Comfort through religious rituals * Desire for practical benefits * Good health, regular supply of food, suitable weather conditions * Reliance on religion before modern science, and continued reliance in some cases * * Fulfilling social needs * Companionship, sense of belonging, caring for the needy * Stimulating artistic expression * Inspiration for art, music, dance, and architecture * Responding to natural wonder * Answering questions about self, origins, and purpose * Various theories on origins of religion * E. B. Tylor: spirit worship and fear of the spirits' power * James Frazer: intermediate stage between magic and science * Sigmund Freud: projection of parental images and dealing with anxiety * William James: fulfilling psychological needs and positive influence * Rudolf Otto: response to mysterious aspect of reality causing awe * * Carl Gustav Jung * Religion as a path to personal fulfillment and individuation * Symbols of personal integration and human wholeness * Religion as a noble human response to complexity and depth of reality * Karl Marx * Religion as an opiate of the masses * Emerged due to poverty, powerlessness, and alienation * Consolation and hope for a suffering-free life after death * Need for religion would dissolve when society improves * Stages in religious development (various theories) * Wilhelm Schmidt: simple monotheism to polytheism * Evolutionary view: animism to polytheism to monotheism * Critics argue these views are biased and oversimplified * Current approach in religious studies * Focus on studying individual religions * Recognition of the unique insights and contributions of every religion * Assumption that all religions are equally worthy of study

Title: Patterns Among Religions and their Dynamic Nature Notes: * Comparative and historical study of religions * Aims to comprehend each religion thoroughly * Understands the experience of people within each religion * Identifies patterns of similarity and difference among religions * Religion and culture * Religion as the substance of culture * Culture as the form of religion (Paul Tillich, theologian) * Complexity and dynamism of religions * Religions with long histories and extensive followings are complex * Religions constantly change, influenced by various factors such as: * Religious leaders * Governments * Historical events * Changing technology * Shifting cultural values

First pattern: Life Notes: * Religions provide answers to fundamental questions: * Origin and purpose of the universe * Nature of time * Relationship with the natural world * Human existence and purpose * Suffering and death * The sacred * Nature of sacred reality * Transcendent or immanent * Personal or impersonal attributes * Nature of the universe * Created by an intelligent, personal Creator or eternal * Implications for the center of sacredness and human actions * Human attitude toward nature * Nature as evil forces (dualism) or sacred and perfect * Middle ground: nature originated from divine action but requires human shaping * Time * Linear (limited and unrepeatable) in creation-centered religions (e.g., Judaism, Christianity, Islam) * Cyclical (endless changes) in other religions (e.g., Buddhism) * * Human purpose * Some religions: humans part of a divine plan (e.g., Judaism, Christianity, Islam) * Other religions: humans part of larger realities (e.g., Daoism, Shinto, Confucianism) * Different emphasis on individual rights and actions guided by moral systems or societal traditions * Words and scriptures * Importance of words in some religions (e.g., Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam) * Mistrust of words in others (e.g., Daoism, Zen Buddhism) - value silence and wordless meditation * Exclusiveness and inclusiveness * Exclusive religions: separation from non-sacred elements (e.g., Judaism, Christianity, Islam) * Inclusive religions: emphasize social harmony, accept multiple beliefs and practices (e.g., Buddhism, Daoism, Confucianism)

Title: Second Pattern: Focus of Beliefs and Practices Notes: * Sacramental orientation * Emphasizes rituals and ceremonies for salvation * Predominant in indigenous religions, Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christianity, Vedic Hinduism, and Vajrayana Buddhism * Prophetic orientation * Stresses proper belief and adherence to moral rules * Human intermediaries (e.g., prophets) may speak on behalf of the sacred * Prominent in Judaism, Protestant Christianity, and Islam * Mystical orientation * Seeks union with a greater reality (e.g., God, nature, universe) * Techniques to lessen individual identity and experience greater unity * Prominent in Upanishadic Hinduism, Daoism, and some schools of Buddhism * Less prominent but present in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

Title: Third Pattern: Views of Male and Female Notes:

1. Gender plays an important role in religious views

   • Male imagery and control often dominate in influential religions

   • Sacred often considered male

   • Full-time religious specialists frequently male

   • Female divinities may have played a more significant role in the past

   • Associated with fertility and motherhood

   • Known by names such as Astarte, Asherah, Aphrodite, and Freia

   • Mother-Goddess statues found in Europe and the Middle East

Title: Deeper Insights - Multiple Images of the Female Notes: * Female roles and images are present in various religions * India: Devi or the Great Mother, other female deities * Catholic and Orthodox Christianity: Mary, the mother of Jesus * Mahayana Buddhism: Guanyin (Kannon), the female ideal of mercy * Japan: Shinto divinity Amaterasu, associated with the sun * Korea and Japan: shamans are frequently female * Africa, India: matriarchal tribal cultures * Wicca: worship of the Goddess, a female deity * Symbolic forms of the female divine are prominent in some religious rites * Common symbols: moon, snake, spirals, labyrinths, egg, yoni, water, earth * Represent generation, growth, nurturance, intuition, and wisdom 1. 2. Female images of the divine may have been more common in the past 3. Female religious leadership might have played a more important role * Male dominance in religion possibly increased with the growth of city-states, which needed organized defense * City-states may have elevated men's status due to their fighting ability 4. In Israel, worship of a female deity was suppressed by prophets and kings 5. The Christian New Testament contains passages that have been interpreted to restrict women's roles in public worship 6. In Asia, Confucianism is distrustful of women and typically denies them leadership roles 7. In Buddhism, although scripture acknowledges that women can achieve enlightenment, most leaders have been men 8. 9. Positions of religious authority increasingly being held by women 10. Technological advancements, such as radio, television, internet, and cell phones, have increased exposure to different beliefs and practices 11. Long-established gender customs are being challenged and changed 12. Changes in gender roles can cause rifts within religious traditions, as seen in the Christian Anglican Communion and other denominations 13. Study of other religions and cultures contributes to growing knowledge and evolving practices 14. Religious traditions are becoming more accepting of women in leadership roles, despite tensions 15. Women are expected to gain widespread acceptance in leadership roles within various religious traditions

Title: Multidisciplinary Approaches to the Study of Religion

1. Introduction

   • Religion influences many areas of human life

   • Studied across various disciplines

   • Can focus on single or multiple religions

2. Psychology

   • Deals with human mental states, emotions, and behaviors

   • Studies religious influences on child rearing, human behavior, gender expectations, self-identity

   • Explores group dynamics, trance states, and comparative mystical experiences

3. Mythology

   • Studies religious tales, texts, and art

   • Uncovers universal patterns, images, and themes in religions

4. Philosophy

   • Originated from a struggle with religion

   • Seeks answers independently, using reason rather than religious authority

   • Differences from religion: individual work, avoids emotion, no ritual

5. Theology

   • Study of topics related to one specific religious tradition

   • Theologians typically study their own belief system

6. The arts

   • Compares patterns in religious art, architecture, and music

   • Examples: symmetry, height, archaic styles in architecture; slow pace, repeated rhythms in music; gold, haloes, equilateral designs, circles in art

7. Anthropology

   • Studies how religions influence various aspects of cultures

   • Addresses family interaction, individual roles, property rights, marriage, child rearing, social hierarchies, and division of labor

8. Archeology

   • Explores remains of earlier civilizations and religious buildings

   • Translates writings, often religious in origin

   • Uncovers connections and influences between religions

   • Example: Excavation of a cuneiform library at Nineveh and the Epic of Gilgamesh

9. Linguistics and Literary Theory

   • Searches for patterns underlying languages and human consciousness

   • Examines religious language for implications and hidden values

   • Studies written texts as reflections of cultural assumptions and values

   • Analyzes non-written material as forms of communication

10. Interdisciplinary Approaches

    • Religion studied in various academic disciplines

    • Examples: Art, psychology, and sociology

    • Each discipline offers unique perspectives to understand the complexities of religions

Title: Recent Theories and Developments in the Study of Religion 11. Shift from "great founder" approach * Sociologists highlight how religions emerge from tribes and peoples * Focus on group values and empirical research 12. Émile Durkheim (1858–1917) * French sociologist * Observed how religions reinforce group values 13. Claude Lévi-Strauss (1908–2009) * Structuralism theory * Studied mythology of tribal groups in Brazil * Identified structural similarities in kinship patterns, languages, and social relations 14. Post-structuralism * Emphasizes individuality of experiences * Challenges grand structures in understanding religion * Michel Foucault (1926–1984) as primary exponent 15. Jacques Derrida (1930–2004) and Deconstruction * Focused on language, meaning, and interpretation * Examines traditional religious texts from new perspectives * Can be applied to religious art, architecture, and music 16. Anthropological Approaches * Relies on researchers living with native peoples and learning their languages * E. E. Evans-Pritchard (1902–1973): Lived among the Azande and Nuer people in Africa * Clifford Geertz (1926–2006): Lived in Indonesia and Morocco * Advocated for "thick description" of rituals and religious objects

Title: Conflict in Religion and Religious Blends 17. Religious Blends * Religions constantly borrow from each other * Examples: * Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexican Catholicism * South American Christianity and native beliefs * Zen Buddhism's influences from Daoism and Confucianism * Shiite Islam's practices traceable to Zoroastrianism * Scientology's similarities to Hinduism and Buddhism * Vietnamese religion of Cao Dai 18. Phenomenological Approach * Emphasizes direct experiential research * Aims to understand religious acts and objects from believers' consciousness * Avoids projecting researcher's beliefs and expectations * Specialists may focus on one religion but incorporate others * Examples: Wendy Doniger (b. 1940) and Diana Eck (b. 1945), both specialized in Hinduism

Shamans, who are sometimes female, work to end sickness and to learn the future. Dance, as here in Mongolia, is frequently used as an element of healing.

Title: Do Religions Oppose Science? 19. Common belief of conflict between science and religion * Examples: Condemnation of Galileo Galilei and early rejection of the theory of evolution 20. Contradictory examples * Dating system proposed by a monk * Nicolaus Copernicus, a cleric and cathedral canon * Gregorian calendar promulgated by Pope Gregory XIII 21. Religions open to investigation of the physical world * Confucianists in 17th-century China * Daoists' openness to empirical observation * Buddhists' openness to new conceptions of the world 22. Resolving the conflict * Science and religion governing separate domains * Interpreting religious statements symbolically instead of literally * Increasing emphasis on conversation instead of conflict

Title: Key Critical Issues in the Study of Religions 23. Problems and questions in research-based approach * Difficulty in genuinely listening to practitioners' voices * Objectivity and the influence of observer's culture * Contamination of the observed culture * Informants potentially providing false answers 24. Moral questions * Respect for different cultures and religions versus domination and colonialism * Introduction of new ideas and objects, altering traditional cultures 25. Complexity within major religions * Unique hybrids due to blending with earlier religions * Questioning the existence of single great religions 26. Different experiences within religious traditions * Gender-based differences, such as in Islam * Differences in experience for children, teenagers, and adults * Variation based on culture and period 27. Recognizing diversity and change within religions * Treating world religions as grand patterns * Acknowledging the complexity and change within religious traditions

Title: Why Study the Major Religions of the World?

1. Insight into religious traditions

   • Understanding the complexity and richness of each religion

2. Insight into what religions share

   • Recognizing shared patterns, beliefs, and practices across religions

3. Insight into people

   • Enhancing understanding of others' attitudes and values through their religious background

4. Tolerance and appreciation of differences

   • Developing tolerance and enjoyment of variety in religious traditions

5. Intellectual questioning

   • Engaging with challenging questions and conflicts between religious beliefs

6. Insight into everyday life

   • Recognizing and appreciating the pervasive religious influences in modern culture

7. Appreciation for the arts

   • Exploring the connection between religion and various art forms, such as painting, sculpture, music, and architecture

Title: Travel and Pilgrimage

1. Enriched experience of travel

   • Studying religion allows for a deeper understanding and appreciation of cultural forms during travel

   • Visiting religious sites enhances the experience and understanding of various beliefs

2. Insight into family traditions

   • Understanding the religious influences on cultural values and attitudes in one's family

3. Help in one's own religious quest

   • Studying world religions can enrich an individual's beliefs and practices or contribute to a spiritual search

Title: The Journey

1. Explore various living religions

   • Native religions, Indian subcontinent, Chinese and Japanese religions, Middle Eastern religions, and new religious movements

2. Intellectual and emotional growth

   • The study of world religions may provoke doubt, insight, and strong emotions for some readers

3. Discovery and personal transformation

   • The journey of exploring world religions can lead to an appreciation of human experience and personal growth

Embarking on an intellectual pilgrimage to study the world's religions allows for a deeper understanding and appreciation of various beliefs and practices. This journey may invoke strong emotions and lead to personal transformation, as well as the possibility of a future physical pilgrimage to religious sites. Through this exploration, you can gain a greater appreciation for the human experience and the diverse ways people understand and connect with the universe.

Title: The Warmth and Light of Fire - Symbolism in Religious Imagery

1. Fire as a symbol of the mysterious and great

   • Fire represents not only its physical effects but also something beyond this world

2. Tatewari, the Fire

   • The Huichol people believe in Tatewari as an ancient and vital force that provides warmth, cooks food, and helps in hunting and gathering

3. Fire's transformative effect on the darkness

   • The story illustrates the comfort and safety provided by fire in the cold and dark wilderness This indigenous description highlights the significance of fire as a symbol of something mysterious, great, and even otherworldly in religious imagery. The Huichol people believe in Tatewari, the Fire, as an essential force that warms them, cooks their food, and helps with hunting and gathering. The passage emphasizes the transformative power of fire, turning cold and dark surroundings into a warm and illuminated space, providing comfort and safety.