GOOD MORNING GRADE 11 HUMSS!

LIVE JESUS AND MARY WITH JOY!

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INTRODUCTION TO WORLD RELIGIONS AND BELIEFS SYSTEM

Module 1:

Understanding the Nature of Religion

INTRODUCTION

 What does it mean to be religious and spiritual? Why is religion linked to

humankind’s quest to search for the real meaning of life and death? As we all know,
when one prays, he or she actively seeks an affinity to divine beings or supernatural
entities that are beyond the purely natural world. Majority of world religions follow a
set of prayers in the form of chants, mantras, or creed. Whether you pray or not, you
may have witnessed the influential roles being played by religions all over the world.
 Understanding the nature of religion enlightens learners about the common grounds
that bind believers into examining the questions of life and death and why or how
persons yearn for spiritual inspiration. Recognizing the inherent characteristics of
religion provides the opportunity to deeply grasp the many beliefs and practices that
mold humankind's spiritual needs.
OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this module are the following:

1. Differentiate religion from spirituality, theology, and philosophy
of religion
2. Infer that: a. a belief system or worldview is a particular way of
ordering the realities of one’s world
3. Prepare character sketches of a person who is spiritual but not
religious and a person who is religious but not spiritual
4. Give an example of a belief system or a worldview
ENGAGE

What do you think?

As an entry point in our discussion, you will be asked to formulate your initial idea on the question:
“Why is it important to differentiate religion from spirituality, theology, and philosophy of religion?”
Are these three concepts related to each other? Why and why not? You may write your answer on the
spaces below.
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FIRST TAKEAWAY

Religion provides people with their first learning

about spiritual matters and things that are beyond
the physical world. However, religions often tend
to be sectarian in nature. A ‘sect’ is a group of
people who usually think that their Path to God is
the best and the preferable one (if not the only one).
SECOND TAKEAWAY

One of the fundamental principles of Spirituality is that there

are as many paths to God as there are people. Just as a
doctor does not advise the same medicine for different
ailments which different people may have, similarly the
same type of spiritual practice does not necessarily benefit
everyone. When spiritual practice is tailor-made as per the
temperament and needs of an individual, it leads to faster
spiritual progress.
THIRD TAKEAWAY

God is expansive, and to experience Him, we

too must become expansive in our spiritual
outlook. A myopic or ethnocentric outlook
about religion or Spirituality often stifles
spiritual growth, thus leading to stagnation.
EXPLORING RELIGION

MONOTHEI
MONISTIC
STIC

POLYTHEIS
AGNOSTIC
UNDERSTANDING BELIEFS AND WORLDVIEWS

 Every individual sees and interprets the world

quite differently from one another. This overall
perspective is also termed worldview which is a
collection of beliefs about life and the universe
being held by people (The Free Dictionary
2014).
For a certain individual, social environment and
upbringing are critical in the development of a
religious life. All these factors have an effect on how
people organize their beliefs and ideas while
eventually creating a comprehensive narrative
through which they look at the world and interrelate
with it.
Belief in god or gods is found in almost all
religions. There is a good reason to
presuppose that religion had existed during
prehistoric times and this has continued to
the modern day.
Human life may have produced hundreds of
religions and belief systems. There could be
more unknown than known religions in the
world since recorded history covers only
several thousand years of human existence.
 DIFFERENT KINDS OF BELIEF SYSTEMS OR WORLDVIEWS

Monism There is no real distinction between god and

the universe
Polytheism The belief and worship of many gods

Monotheism The doctrine or belief in one supreme god

Atheism Disbelief in or denial of the existence of a

personal god
Agnosticism God cannot be known
Theism, often used as a synonym to
monotheism, is defined as “a belief in the
existence of one god viewed as the creative
source of the human race and the world who
transcends yet is immanent in the world”
(Merriam-Webster Dictionary 2014).
Monotheistic religions claim that
there is only one God who could have
designed and created the universe or
may have directed all events that led
to the creation of everything.
Modern-day examples of monotheistic
religions include Judaism, Christianity, and
Islam. On the other hand, polytheistic
religions that are common among early
people recognize many principal gods
among whom no one is supreme.
These include the ancient religions
of Egypt, Greece, and Rome
wherein people worship a multitude
of personal gods.
Monism asserts that there is no genuine distinction between
God and the universe. Two implications arise from this
belief.
Firstly, it contends that God is dwelling in the universe as
part of it. Secondly, the universe does not exist at all as a
reality but only as a manifestation of God. Furthermore,
while atheists deny the existence of God, agnostics deny
the possibility for man to acquire knowledge of the
existence of God.
DEFINITION AND NATURE OF RELIGION

Religion may be defined as “an

organized system of beliefs,
ceremonies, and rules used to
worship a god or a group of gods”
(Merriam-Webster Dictionary 2014).
The Latin word religio refers to
“something done with
overanxious or scrupulous
attention to detail” (Bowker 1997).
This term may have probably
been derived from the Latin
verb religare which means “to
tie together, to bind fast.”
In its original sense, the word
refers to expression of proper
piety, that is, binding to god
(Grassie 2010).
Quite later, religion was
used to designate formal
belief systems and tenets.
The term was eventually applied to what
we now call as religion because of the
manner in which people performed
rituals during those days. While religion
may be universal in all stages of human
history, it does not follow that all
individuals are religious or even religious
to some degree (Parrinder 1971).
SOCIAL SCIENTIST ON THE NATURE OF RELIGION
Name of Social Background View on Religion
Scientist
Edward Burnett English anthropologist; founding The belief in spiritual beings
Taylor (1832- figure of the science of social
1917) anthropology
James George Scottish social anthropologist; A propitiation or conciliation of powers superior
Frazer (1854- one of the founding figures of to man which are believed to control and direct
1941) modern anthropology the course of nature and of human life
Bronislaw Kasper An eminent 20th-century Polish A body of self-contained acts being themselves
Malinowski anthropologist the fulfilment of their purpose; an affair of all, in
(1884-1942) which everyone takes an active and equivalent
part

David Ëmile French sociologist; father of A unified system of beliefs and practices
Durkheim (1858- sociology relative to sacred things
1917)
COMMON CHARACTERISTICS AMONG RELIGION

Religion
 ORIGIN OF RELIGION
Name of Theory Proponent Explanation
Animistic Theories Edward Burnett Tylor (1832-1917), English Primitive people believed in souls or anima found
anthropologist in people (seen in dreams) and in all of nature.
Since spirits could be helpful or harmful to human
beings, early people had to pray to these spirits,
offer sacrifices, and appease or avoid them.
Robert Henry Codrington (1830- 1922), Anglican In his investigation, he found out that the
priest and anthropologist Melanesian people believed in mana, a mysterious
force that inhabited all of nature. All early people
began their religion in cognizance of such force;
the destructiveness of the mana can be avoided
by establishing taboos
Nature-Worship Theory Human beings first developed their religions from
their observations of the forces of nature. Early
people became aware of the regularity of the
seasons, the tides and the phases of the moon,
and began personalizing them by giving them
names, describing their activities with tales that
transformed into mythology. Primitive people
identified the forces in nature, personified them,
created myths, and developed religions around
them.
 ORIGIN OF RELIGION
Theory of Original Wilhelm Schmidt (1868- In Australia and Africa, basic cultures held a common
Monotheism 1954), Austrian anthropologist belief in a distant high god, that originally there had been
and ethnologist one great god above all others, and that he may have been
the creator of the world or the father of the many lesser
deities. This high god went away and had little contact with
the world that resulted in majority of attention and worship
to local deities. Primitive societies were originally
monotheistic, but because it was difficult to worship just
one god, religion was corrupted to polytheism.

Magic Theory James George Frazer (1854- People had gone three phases of development concerning
1941), Scottish social the spirit world: (1) primitive magic (wherein people
anthropologist attempted to control nature in the hope that nature will
cooperate if rituals are done properly); (2) religion
(wherein people implored nature to cooperate since they
have realized that nature can not be coerced); and (3)
science (wherein a rational understanding of nature is
operative).
ORIGIN OF RELIGION
Wish Ludwig Andreas von Feuerbach There were no gods and that belief in gods was simply wish
Fulfilment (1804- 1872), German philosopher fulfilment. Troubled people who could not cope with the difficulties
Theory and anthropologist in life projected their wishes and developed gods and religions.

Karl Heinrich Marx (1818-1883), Religions were developed by the few as a means to control the
German philosopher and sociologist masses and suppress revolution as a result of the continuing struggle
between classes. Rulers and allied priests wished to control all wealth
so they had to create a scheme of gods, heavens, and hell. Masses
were persuaded to accept poverty and be obedient to inherit bliss in
another life.

Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), Religion originated from the guilt that individuals supposedly feel in
Austrian neurologist and founder hating their fathers. All males possess a similar tendency to desire our
father of psychoanalysis mothers and hate our fathers. As a result of this subconscious hatred
and ensuing guilt, a great father image was projected in the sky called
God. A healthy mature person can face problems without the need for
gods or religions.
EXPLORING SPIRITUALITY

A comparative analysis of major

religions reveals that an important
characteristic of their belief system
focuses on the longing for value in life
(Parrinder 1971).
For thousands of years, people have been
searching and yearning to understand the
mystery of life and the universe. There may
come a point in time when an individual
realizes that life is not entirely accidental
and meaningless (Parrinder 1971).
This is where the concept of spirituality
comes in with the term “spiritual” being
defined as “relating or affecting the
human spirit or soul as opposed to
material or physical things” (Oxford
Dictionaries 2014).
One author points out that it is
quite common for people to
say that they are “spiritual,
not religious” (Grassie 2010).
Spirituality may be manifested in quite a
number of ways. For example, a person may
believe in the presence of an overwhelming
power greater than oneself or perhaps a
person can be fully mindful of one’s purpose
in life. That person can also have a feeling of
oneness or a bond with other living beings.
Spirituality is derived from the
Latin word spiritus, its verb
root is spirare which means
“to breathe” literally.
“Spirituality is something an
individual can have without being
implicated in the ambivalent
complexity of human societies and
institutions” (Grassie 2010).
DEFINING CONCEPTS

While religion refers to any set of attitudes, beliefs,

and practices concerning a supernatural power,
Theology involves the systematic study of the
existence and nature of the divine.
Philosophy of religion deals primarily with issues
concerning religion, which includes analysis on the
existence of a divine being or on sacred texts.
DEFINING CONCEPTS

Spirituality can be described as one's

integrative view of life and involves a
quest for the meaning and ultimate value
of life as opposed to an instrumentalist or
materialistic attitude to life. Hence, one
can be spiritual without being religious.