EIGHT ELEMENTS OF RELIGIONS

1. BELIEF SYSTEM or WORLDVIEW: Many beliefs that fit together in a system to

make sense of the universe and our place in it.

2. COMMUNITY: The belief system is shared, and its ideals are practiced by a group.

3. CENTRAL STORIES/MYTHS: Stories that help explain the beliefs of a group;

these are told over and over again and sometimes performed by members of the
group. They may or may not be factual.

4. RITUALS: Beliefs are explained, taught, and made real through ceremonies.

5. ETHICS: Rules about how to behave; these rules are often thought to have come
from a deity or supernatural place, but they might also be seen as guidelines created
by the group over time.

6. CHARACTERISTIC EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCES: Most religions share

emotions such as awe, mystery, guilt, joy, devotion, conversion, inner peace, etc.

7. MATERIAL EXPRESSION: Religions use things to perform rituals or to express or

represent beliefs, such as: statues, paintings, music, flowers, incense, clothes,
architecture, and specific sacred locations.
 8. SACREDNESS: Religions see some things as sacred and some not sacred (or profane).
Some objects, actions, people, and places may share in the sacredness or express it.

Activity 1: THE ELEMENTS OF RELIGION IN YOUR LIFE

Instructions: If you do not feel comfortable answering these questions, or if you do not practice a
religion, you may find a friend or family member who will share his/her beliefs and practices with
you. Or, if you like, find answers from doing your own research on one specific religion (it does not
have to be Judaism, Christianity, or Islam). Write your answers in your CATTLEYA NOTES

1. BELIEFS: What is one central belief of your religion?

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2. COMMUNITY: How is your religion shared with others in your religious

community?
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3. CENTRAL STORIES/MYTHS: What is one of the myths or stories from your religion?
.

4. RITUALS: What ritual do you find meaningful in your religion?

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5. ETHICS: What is one rule from your religion you are supposed to follow?
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6. EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCES: Have you ever had an emotional religious experience?

What was it like?
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7. MATERIAL EXPRESSION: What is one thing used in your religion? What is it used for?
.

8. SACREDNESS: Can you think of a sacred place associated with your religion?
Why is it sacred?
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ANTHROPOLOGICAL STRUCTURES OF RELIGION

Western and Eastern Beliefs (Anthropological Structure of Religions)

 Western Religions Eastern Religions

Buddhism
Judaism

Taoism
Christianity
Shintoism
Islam Hinduism

Confucianism

https://www.google.com.ph/search?q=religious+icon....

Western Beliefs

 MONOTHEISTIC - believe in one God.

 Share a similar view of the world and concept because they both sprang from Judaism (Islam
and Christianity).
 Humans must enter an interpersonal relationship with God.
 Morality is based on learning the will of God, understanding, and living it out individually
and as a community.
 Time is viewed as Linear, from beginning to end.
 The Bible (Christianity, Torah (Judaism), or Qur’an (Islam) are the central books
studied and lived by.

Eastern Beliefs

 POLYTHEISM- belief in more than one god.

 Main concern is to live a good, happier, and have better life.
 Creation contains god within it. All elements of creation from plants to animals have an
animated spirit.
 Meditation is central to these faiths.
 Life is balanced.
 Holy books are not central to the belief and practice.
 Time is viewed in cycles.
 There is a belief in reincarnations and rebirth.
 Things can be made better or worse through karma.

IMPORTANCE OF STUDYING RELIGION

 Understand the difference and see similarities between nations and culture both political
and philosophical.
  Appreciate our own belief by seeing them alongside those of others.
 Work for Ecumenism through a meaningful exchange of ideas between religious groups.

SIMILARITIES OF RELIGIONS (THE STRUCTURE OF RELIGIONS)

 Belief in a power greater than humans.

 Holy places (Ex. Mecca, Vatican, Bodh Gaya, River Ganges).
 Set of religious symbols by which the religion is identified.
 Having a liturgy or observance of Holy Days.
 Having Sacred or Holy Writings and list of rules.
 Number of important people, founders, prophets, missionaries, and historical people.
 Place of worship.
 Belief in the Golden Rule

RELIGIOUS DIFFERENCES

 Their idea of sin or evil

 Their idea of salvation
 Their idea of priesthood
 Their idea of a personal God

Activity 2
Let us do some processing on the concepts learned in this topic. Write your answers in your journal/ CATTLEYA
NOTES.

1. What is your new understanding on the concept of religion and spirituality?

2. Are you familiar with the different ways of your religion? Explain.
3. In your present understanding of your religion, how does this affect your everyday life?
4. How does your understanding affect your relationship with others?

Note: If you already finished this activity, proceed reading the next lesson independently and answer the following activities
provided here in your CATTLEYA NOTES.

Interconnectedness of Geography, Culture, and Religion

A.HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

 Prehistoric humans, such as the Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons, have practiced a set
of belief systems like in burying their dead, painting on the walls of caves and carving
 images from stones.

 The existence of humankind for so long a time has resulted in the formation of
religion and belief systems. It is certain that many religions may have been
unrecorded in the past. Others may have gradually died down like Zoroastrianism that
once flourished in South Asia but is now only confined in Iran, India, and Central
Asia

Important Dates on The Origin of World Religions

Date Significance

 c. 2000 BCE – Time of Abraham, the patriarch of Israel

 c. 1200 BCE – Time of Moses, the Hebrew leader of Exodus
 c. 1100 - 500 BCE – Hindus compiled their holy texts, the Vedas
 c. 563 - 83 BCE – Time of the Buddha, founder of Buddhism
 c. 551 - 479 BCE – Time of Confucius, founder of Confucianism
 c. 200 BCE – The Hindu book, Bhagavad Gita, was written
 c. 2 to 4 BCE - 32 CE – Time of Jesus Christ, the Messiah and founder of
Christianity
 c. 32 CE – The Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ
 c. 40 - 90 CE – The new Testament was written by the followers of Jesus Christ
 c. 100 CE – Beginnings of Shintoism (no known founder)
 c. 500 - 580 CE – Time of Lao Tzu, founder of Daoism c. 570 - 632 CE – Time
of Muhammad, who recorded the Q’ran as the basis of Islam

The Patriarch Abraham

 Played a major role in the establishment of the three monotheistic religions: namely,
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, which account for more than half of the world’s total
population. As such, these organized religions are collectively known as
ABRAHAMIC RELIGIONS.

 The importance of Abraham in these three religions lies in the fact that the patriarch
appears as an elemental (primary) figure for monotheistic belief system and a paragon
(exemplar) for extreme devotion.
 The Genealogy of Abraham

Commonalities in Abrahamic Religions

1. They all worship one supreme being.

• Ancient Hebrews – Elohim, Adonai, or Yahweh
• Present day Judaism – “Lord” or “God”
• Muslims – Allah
2. Prophets and apostles play major roles
• Judaism has 48 prophets and 7 prophetesses.
• Early prophets include Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, and Joshua.
• Christianity has 12 apostles, some of whom wrote parts of the New Testament.
• Islam believes that Muhammad is the final prophet or the “Seal of the
Prophets.”
3. Prior to the establishment as organized religions, the role of divine revelation or
intervention is associated among their progenitors (ancestors).
• God instructed Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac at Mount Moriah.
• God presented the 10 Commandments to Moses at Mount Sinai.
• God sacrificed His son Jesus Christ through crucifixion as the plan to
salvation.
• God commanded Muhammad to establish a new religion at a cave in Mount
Hira.

Then and now, the followers of the three Abrahamic religions are presented with a
choice between good and evil.

The Indian Mosaic

 India is one of the oldest surviving civilizations, with its history dating back to at
 least 6500 BCE. The many conquerors that came to India were gradually absorbed
into the native Indian religions.

 The Harappan civilization, Aryan influence, local dynasties, and the Muslim conquest
all had their fair share in building the intricate Indian mosaic. As a result, variety and
complexity characterize Indian culture.

 Four great religions originated in India – Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism
– and a myriad of minor cults and local sects.

Hinduism

 It perfectly reflects Indian heterogeneity with its eclectic (diversified and assorted)
ways of religious expressions that are quite confusing to outsiders.

 It has no specific founder, no one sacred book, and with innumerable gods and
goddesses that any Hindu can venerate. As such, Hinduism can be considered as
museum of religions.

 It was during the Vedic Period that Hinduism or Sanatana Dharma became
systematized as a religion that preached order and purpose to the cosmos and
human life.

 During this period, universal order became equated with a stable society as evidenced
by the establishment of a centralized government and the integration of collective
traditions into Indian lives.

Buddhism

 It centers its attention on the figure of the Buddha, who was not a god but a human
being who came to discover how to terminate sufferings in order to escape the painful
and continuous cycle of rebirth.

 Buddhist followers revere Buddha in the same way that the members of other world
religions worship their gods.

 The Mahayana sect of Buddhism differs from Theravada school because of its rich
array of buddhas and bodhisattvas who have attained spiritual enlightenment.
 These beings are already eligible to enter nirvana but choose to delay this glorious
path to guide others to the path of salvation.

 Born near the end of the 6th century BCE, Siddhartha Gautama’s life is closely
linked with the historical and religious development of Buddhism in India. Gaining
 new converts due to its mass appeal as compared to the exclusivity of Hindu beliefs,
Buddhism spread far and wide from India to Sri Lanka and to Southeast Asia.

 The religion was transported to China, Korea, Japan, and Vietnam. Across the
Himalayas, it reached the Tibetan lands.

 Presently, Buddhism has become more popular outside its place of origin while
Hinduism has remained entrenched (rooted) in India throughout many centuries.

Confucianism

 Even during the olden days, the Chinese had already endeavored to establish and
attain good governance. China adopted Confucius’s ideals and ethics as the nation
developed meritocracy (power goes to those with superior intellects) as a basis for
government officials.
 Confucius is regarded as China’s greatest philosopher and teacher who lived at the
same time as Siddhartha Gautama in India.

 Confucian ideals aspire to harmonize human relations and serve as guide to social
behavior. An ideal human society it the utmost concern for the Confucian followers.

 Confucius dwell upon the theme of the Dao as being the truth or way things out to be
done concordant with specific view to life, politics, and customs.

 Confucian Dao concerns human affairs.

Daoism

 Mysteries abound the birth and life of Laozi (Lao-tzu) who may have written Dao De
Jing (Tao Te Ching or The Book of the Way and its Power.

 Believed to be a contemporary (modern version) of Confucius, he once worked as a

record keeper at the time of Zhou Dynasty but soon left the service due to his
frustration with corruption.
 Around 142 CE, Daoism began as an organized religion with the establishment of the
Way of the Celestial Masters sect by Zhang Daoling during the Han Dynasty.

 The writings of Daoism centers on the concept of Dao, as a way or path signifying
appropriateness of one’s behavior to lead other people.

 Dao in Daoism means road, path or way in which one does something.

 Daoist Dao means the way the universe works.

Shintoism
  It is a loosely organized local belief in Japan, somewhat an ardent (dedicated)
religious form of Japanese patriotism. Its mythology highlights the superiority of
Japan over other lands.

 Japanese people believed that their emperors literally descended from the sun
goddess Amaterasu.

 Conscious effort is done to revere the beauty of Japan’s lands, especially mountains.

 The term ‘Shinto’ was coined around the 16th century CE to distinguish native belief
system from the imported religions of China and Korea, including Buddhism, Daoism
and Confucianism.

 The term came from the Chinese words ‘shen’ and ‘tao’ roughly translated as the
‘way of the gods’.

 Of primal importance were the kami that were often defined as the gods but could
also refer to deities of heaven and earth, or even spirits in human beings, animals,
trees, seas, and mountains

B.GEOGRAPHY OF FAITH

The Western Frontier

 West Asia is the home of three great religions (J, C, I).

 Religions have increasingly become involved in domestic politics of West Asia,

resulting in prolonged conflicts among countries that have claimed thousands of lives.

 The Levant: Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Syria, and Palestine.

 Israel remains the only country in the world with a Jewish-majority population
comprising almost 75% of its citizens.

 The Arabian Peninsula, the world’s largest peninsula, consists of countries that are
predominantly Islamic in character. (Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, United
Arab Emirates, Yemen, and Oman). Most West Asian countries follow Shi’a and
 Sunni denominations of Islam. Iran and Iraq associate themselves with the Shi’a sect
while Muslims in Saudi Arabia belong to Sunni branch.

The topography of West Asia is characterized by vast areas of mountainous terrains

which played significant roles in many religious beliefs as these landforms provide
ideal settings where gods live or where gods and mortals meet.

Activity 3: Concept Map

Based on the readings, what are the 3 things that are related to World Religion? Fill
out the concept map below in your CATTLEYA NOTES

World
Religion

Read and answer the following questions in your journal

1. What concepts have you learned from this module?

2. What have you discovered about yourself in relation to the lesson?

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Activity 4: LIVING UP THE FAITH

Instructions: Your life is the witness to your faith/religion. Make a creative presentation of how you live
your faith. (e.g. comic strip, photo essay, poem, song, life story, etc.) Write your answer on your journal.