Religion (Chapter 10)

1. Religion(Chapter 10)

2. The BIG Questions • What is religion and what are the basic features of religions? • How do world religions illustrate globalization and localization? • What are some important aspects of religious change in contemporary times?

3. Religion in Comparative Perspective • What is religion? • Magic versus Religion • Theories of the origin of religion • Religious beliefs • Religious practices

4. What is religion? • Religion is beliefs and actions related to supernatural beings and forces • Includes both beliefs and behaviors • Religion is related to people’s worldview, or way of understanding how the world came to be, its design, and their place in it

5. Magic versus religion • Magic is seen as people’s attempt to compel supernatural forces and beings to act in certain ways • Religion, in contrast, attempts to please supernatural forces or beings

6. Magic versus religion • Magic and religion have been focuses on anthropologists’ attention since the late 1800’s. • They developed an evolutionary model. Science – most “rational” and civilized Religion Magic – originally viewed as less spiritual and ethical, and therefore more “primitive”

7. Another early religious evolutionary model… Monotheism – belief in one deity Polytheism – belief in many deities Animism – the belief in “souls” or doubles • Often a belief that animals, plants, and other entities have souls in addition to humans

8. Evolutionary Models Today • Today anthropologists do not believe in the evolutionary model of magic to religion to science or from animism to polytheism to monotheism. • Why?

9. Evolutionary Models Today • Today anthropologists do not believe in the evolutionary model of magic to religion to science or from animism to polytheism to monotheism. • Why? • Is not very culturally relative • Does not account for the fact that people in a society (and even in a “modern” society) may believe in magic, religion, and science! • Does not take into account religious pluralism • Can find truth in different religions

10. Contemporary Examples of Magic in “modern” society • Curses – most dreaded form of magic, placed upon people with the intention of harming them • Cubs curse! • Lucky rabbits foot

11. Contemporary Examples of Magic in “modern” society • Professional Sports • http://www.cbc.ca/sports/columns/top10/superstition.html • 2005 study of 77 professional baseball players in the U.S. and Japan found 74% of the players engaged in at least one superstitious behavior before or during a game

12. Theoretical Perspectives on Religion • Religion may provide ways of explaining and coping with universal human problems of life and death, illness, and misfortune • Religion may help reduce anxiety and uncertainty • Religion may provide a way to maintain group continuity through shared symbols and rituals

13. Theoretical Perspectives on Religion • Religion may provide a model of life (how to understand the world) and a model for life (how to behave in the world) • Religion is a “projective system” that expresses people’s unconscious thoughts, wishes, and worries • Religion may provide a superficial form of comfort to the poor, preventing uprisings against the rich

14. Theoretical Perspectives on Religion Religion provides ways of explaining and coping with universal human problems - Tylor Religion serves society by giving it cohesion through shared symbols and rituals – Durkheim Religion is a “projective system” that expresses people’s unconscious thoughts, wishes, and worries – Freud Religion offers a “model of and for life” – Geertz Religion provides a superficial form of comfort to the poor, preventing uprisings against the rich - Marx

15. Expressing Beliefs • Religious beliefs are expressed and transferred over the generations in two main forms • Myths • Stories that convey messages about supernatural forces or beings indirectly through the story itself • Doctrine • Direct statements about religious beliefs

16. Myths • Myths express core beliefs and teach morality, often in a form understandable and accessible to all (including children) • Often exist in oral form • Myths may contain both moral lessons and practical ones • Myths may store and transmit information related to making a living and managing economic crises

17. Doctrine • Doctrine is written and formal • It links incorrect beliefs and behaviors with punishments • Associated with institutionalized, large-scale religions rather than small-scale religions • May not be accessible to all • Doctrine is often guarded by the powerful and highly educated – e.g. Catholic popes have the power to change doctrine

18. Beliefs about Supernatural Forces and Beings • Supernatural forces and beings range from impersonal forces to those that look just like human • Supernatural forces and beings range from being all-powerful creators to mischievous annoyances

19. Beliefs about Supernatural Forces and Beings • Animatism – refers to belief systems in which the supernatural is conceived of as an impersonal power • Mana – impersonal force that is neither spirit nor deity • Is more like a substance • Something souls are made out of • Manifests itself in objects and people • Luck

20. Beliefs about Supernatural Forces and Beings • Zoomorphic supernaturals – deities in the shape, or partial shape, of animals • e.g Sphinx

21. Beliefs about Supernatural Forces and Beings • Anthropomorphic supernaturals – deities in the form of humans • Have emotions • e.g. ancient Greek gods

22. Beliefs about Supernatural Forces and Beings • Pantheons – collections of deities responsible for different areas, different aspects of life • May have hierarchies

23. Beliefs about Supernatural Forces and Beings • Deceased ancestors can also become supernatural • e.g. Japan ancestor veneration/worship • National holidays in which deceased ancestors are believed to visit living relatives’ homes and when family members visit gravesites • Mexico’s Day of the Dead

24. Beliefs about Sacred Space • Beliefs about sacred space probably exist in all religions, but such beliefs are more prominent in some religions than others • Sacred spaces can include… • Natural sites – rock formations, rapids in a river, etc. • Culturally constructed sites • Marked or unmarked sites • Temporarily sacred site or permanently sacred sites • Contested sacred spaces • Claims to sacred space are frequently the basis of conflict between people of different faiths and between believers and commercial interests

25. Ritual • A ritual is a patterned form of behavior that is focused on the supernatural realm • Many rituals are the enactment of beliefs expressed in myth and doctrine • Ritual is religion in action!

26. Ritual • Secular ritual – patterned forms of behavior with no connection to the supernatural realm • Sorority or fraternity initiation • Some ritual events combine both secular and sacred elements • Thanksgiving • Sacred elements – give thanks to God (originally for the survival of the pilgrims) • Secular elements – watching football

27. Ritual • Rituals can be periodic • Periodic rituals are performed annually to mark a seasonal milestone such as planting or harvesting or to commemorate some important event • e.g. Thanksgiving, Christmas, Buddha’s Day

28. Ritual • …or nonperiodic • Nonperiodic rituals occur irregularly, at unpredictable times, in response to unscheduled events • e.g. funerals, weddings, birth, last rights, puberty ceremony

29. Some Common Types of Rituals • Life-cycle rituals • Life-cycle rituals are rites of passages that mark a change in status from one life stage to another of an individual or group • Usually involves a period of… • Separation • Transition (liminality) • Reintegration • Examples include… • Puberty rituals • Marriage

30. Some Common Types of Rituals • Pilgrimage • A pilgrimage is round-trip travel to a sacred place or places for purposes of religious devotion or ritual • Often involve hardships • Often involves separation, transition (liminality), and reintegration as well • Example • Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca (birthplace of Muhammad) • Every able bodied Muslim is supposed to go on a pilgrimage here at least once in their lifetime • Demonstrates devotion to Allah and solidarity with other devotees of the Islamic faith • communitas – a sense of collective unity out of individual diversity

31. Some Common Types of Rituals • Great Mosque in Mecca • 88 acres & can hold 800,000 worshipers inside!

32. Mecca

33. Some Common Types of Rituals • Rituals of Inversion • A ritual of inversion is a ritual in which normal social roles and relations are temporarily inverted. • Are believed to allow for social pressure to be released and to maintain social order • Examples • Carnival – Brazil, France, Italy • Mardi Gras – New Orleans • Halloween • A night of disguises and reversals • Allows kids to play bad and evil for a night in the dark • Eat lots of candy and get candy from random strangers • Shifts adult-child power balance

34. Some Common Types of Rituals • Sacrifice • Sacrifice is the offering of something for transfer to the supernaturals • Probably one of the oldest forms of rituals • May involve human sacrifice (whole human or body parts), animal sacrifice, offering fruits, vegetables, grains, flowers • Example • Aztec human sacrifice

35. Aztec gods “ate” human hearts and “drank” human blood • Victims were usually prisoners of war or slaves • Once victims were sacrificed, the body was prepared for cooking • Why? A way of showing political strength and feeding the poor (Harris 1977) • Why? To satisfy the gods, based on religious logic that had to sacrifice humans to sustain the sun and the world (Sanday 1986) Aztec Human Sacrifice and Cannibalism

36. Religious Specialists • Rituals may require informal knowledge gained through everyday enculturation or they may require extensive formal training to be done correctly • Some specialists include… • Shaman/shamanka • Priest/priestess • Diviner • Prophet • Witches

37. Religious Specialists • A shaman/shamanka is a part-time religious specialist who gains status through a direct relationship with the supernaturals, often by being “called”

38. Religious Specialists • A priest/priestess is a full-time religious specialist whose position is based mainly on abilities gained through formal training

39. Other Religious Specialists • A diviner is a religious specialist who is able to discover the will and wishes of the supernaturals through techniques such as reading animal entrails • Those in Azande culture who interpret the oracles • Tarot card reader • Palm reader • Tea leaf reader

40. Other Religious Specialists • A prophet is a specialist who conveys divine revelations usually gained through visions or dreams • Attractive and powerful personality • May be able to perform miracles • Status as a prophet might be contentious

41. Other Religious Specialists • A witch is someone who uses psychic powers and affects people through emotion and thought • Mainstream society often views witchcraft as a negative, but there are real life “good witches” • Wicca – religion based on ancient witchcraft practices, neopagan nature-based religion • Strives for harmony, balance, and peace • Spells strive for healing and harmony

42. World Religions • A world religion is a religion with many followers that cross country borders • Major contemporary world religions include… • Christianity • Islam • Hinduism • Buddhism • Other contemporary world religions include… • Judaism • Confucianism • Taoism • Shintoism • African belief systems

44. Hinduism • Around 900 million people in the world are Hindus • About 80% of all Hindus live in India • Hinduism does not actively seek converts • Core sacred texts are four Vedas • Polytheistic religion with a diversity of sacred sites, large and small • A variety of different pilgrimage sites associated with various deities and their shrines • Are varieties (e.g. between the way different castes worship the various deities) but there is a “unity in diversity” of the religion provided by some core elements in the Vedas (e.g. belief in reincarnation and karma – fate determined by previous existence)

45. Incorporates diversity of ways to be Hindu Most Hindus live in India Rich polytheism Core texts: the 4 Vedas “Unity in diversity” Sacred sites range from a pile of stones under a tree to monumental temples Hinduism

46. Buddhism • Around 400 million people around the world are Buddhists • Founding figure Siddhartha Gautama (566-486 BCE) – the Buddha • Started in northern India where the Buddha grew up • First arose as protest against features of Hinduism such as the caste system • Share some shared beliefs with Hinduism, such as the belief in karma and reincarnation • Buddhism is most prevalent today in inner Asia, Southeast Asia, China, and Sri Lanka

47. Buddhism • No accepted single text • Importance of the Buddha shared • Also believe in reincarnation and karma • Goal is to achieve nirvana = enlightenment and the overcoming of human suffering in this life • Doesn’t actively seek converts • Strong tradition of monasticism • Monks and nuns renounce the everyday world and spend their lives meditating and doing good works • Also have important pilgrimage sites • Sarnath – place of Buddha’s first teaching • Gaya – place of Buddha’s first enlightment

48. Buddhism originated in India and spread throughout eastern and southeastern Asia

49. Judaism • There are about 15 million Jews worldwide • Found most often in the U.S., Israel, Europe, and Russia • Share in the belief in the Torah (Pentateuch, Five Books of Moses) as the revelation of God’s truth • Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy • A key feature is the identification of what is wrong with the present and how to escape, overcome, or survive that situation (tension between exile and return) • High regard for human life

50. Judaism • Words, both spoken and written, are important • Monotheistic religion • Distinctive dietary pattern of kosher • Emphasis on truth telling • Pilgrimages are also important • Most sacred place is the Kotel, or Western Wall in Jerusalem • Site where God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac • Site of King Solomon’s the First Temple, King Herod’s the Second Temple • Doesn’t try to convert new members • Dispute about who should be considered a Jew