The word religion is derived from the Latin noun religio, which denotes both earnest observance of ritual obligations and an inward spirit of reverence. In modern usage, religion covers a wide spectrum of meanings that reflect the enormous variety of ways the term can be interpreted. At one extreme, many committed believers recognize only their own tradition as a religion, understanding expressions such as worship and prayer to refer exclusively to the practices of their tradition. Although many believers stop short of claiming an exclusive status for their tradition, they may nevertheless use vague or idealizing terms in defining religion, for example, "true love of God," or "the path of enlightenment." At the other extreme, religion may be equated with ignorance, fanaticism, or wishful thinking.
By defining religion as a sacred engagement with what is taken to be a spiritual reality, it is possible to consider the importance of religion in human life without making claims about what it really is or ought to be. Religion is not an object with a single, fixed meaning, or even a zone with clear boundaries. It is an aspect of human experience that may intersect, incorporate, or transcend other aspects of life and society. .
Religion in this understanding includes a complex combination of activities that cannot be reduced to any single aspect of human experience. It is a part of individual life but also of group dynamics. Religion includes patterns of behavior but also patterns of language and thought. It is sometimes a highly organized institution that sets itself apart from a culture, and it is sometimes an integral part of a culture. Religious experience may be expressed in visual symbols, dance and performance, elaborate philosophical systems, legendary and imaginative stories, formal ceremonies, meditative techniques, and detailed rules of ethical conduct and law. Each of these elements assumes innumerable cultural forms.
Why Religion? Has it ever crossed your mind why we have a religion? What about why having a belief in religion is so important to have? ... They remind me of whom I am religiously, and force me to determine who I am in character. ... These faiths and beliefs play a drastic role in a person's everyday life. ...
Why hadn't they tried to save my soul before now if they felt so strongly that I was going to burn? ... These were questions that I could not answer. ... Even though I was despised because of my religion I have faith that my religion is true. ... My religiosity (importance of religion in a person's life) can not by judged and measured by people who have no clue what Mormons are about. I am so proud to have religion as a top priority in my life....
My interest has been peaked and I am curious to understand how all religions relate to each other since most were outgrowths of other religions. ... Many of the teachings of these religions are applied by persons that do not prescribe to these religions. ... However, I soon learned that this was not the case and after studying in this class I am much more knowledgeable on a number of religions. However, despite my increased knowledge I am as much confused about religion and religious beliefs as I am interested in learning more about religion, religious comparisons and the way that peopl...
One God, Not the Same Religion "Nearly everyone has some conception of religion. ... Not only does each person have his or her own way of defining religion; each person has his or her own way of practicing a religion. ... In the Bible one of the Ten Commandments states that, "I am the Lord thy God.....thou shalt have no other gods before me." ... In the first passage Muslims portray Jesus as saying "I am inferior to God," and in the second he calling out to God. ... "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest a...
I am one of those people. ... I asked him to not talk about it at the dinner table and he asked me why. "I don't want you to talk about it because it's not something I believe in and I don't want to hear about while I am eating." ... I now think that the reason I can't believe in God because I"m not a person that believes in faith. To have faith you have to not question something and take it at face value. ...
Religion I don't believe that science and religion have to agree. ... The result is usually a person who has shoe horned a bunch of arbitrarily selected notions from numerous religions into a muddled distortion offensive to anyone really committed to any of the original faiths (Houston Smith, the fellow who wrote the best seller on world religions does this. ... One big problem I have encountered is the failure to distinguish between "how" and "why." ... Whenever I am confronted by a person advocating biblical inerrancy I ask them two simple questions: (1) do you read Greek? ... They p...
"The Truth in all Religions" asks why we define ourselves with labels? ... The most popular of these sayings is probably;"Jesus said: I am the light that is above them all. I am the all; the all came forth from me, and the all attained to me. Cleave a (piece of) wood; I am there. ... I do not believe that I or any other person on this planet will every truly know if God exists, or what our purpose here is, but I do know it is important to believe. ...
Man has always and will always look at the world and ask why. Why does lightning happen, or crops fail? ... This half is dark and can potentially destroy a person or a whole group. ... There are four other religions that have roots in Abraham: Judaism, Christianity, Islam and he Baha'i World Faith. ... The Buddhist religion is not set in stone as it has many local rituals and customs (Kauper, 1964). ...
In The American Heritage Dictionary, faith is defined as a "confident belief or trust in a person, idea, or thing- (308). ... Religion is a crutch, and only the crippled need crutches. ... If I am capable of grasping God objectively, I do not believe, but precisely because I cannot do this, I must believe" (Dembosky, par. 3). ... Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast..." ... I couldn't get by without faith in my life."" ...
