Chapter 11 Religion

Chapter Outline Cargo Cults Defining Religion Some Functions of Religion Characteristics of Religion Religion and Change Bringing it Back Home: Religion, Art, and Censorship

Cargo Cults Cargo cults often began with a prophet who announced that the world would end in catastrophe, after which God would appear and bring a paradise on earth. In the United States and Latin America, millions of followers of prosperity theology, or the Word-Faith movement, believe that God wants Christians to be wealthy.

Religion A social process that helps to order society and provide its members with meaning, unity, peace of mind, and the degree of control over events they believe is possible

Characteristics of Religion Composed of sacred stories that members believe are important Make extensive use of symbols and symbolism Propose the existence of beings, powers, states, places, and qualities that can not be measured scientifically Include rituals and specific means of addressing the supernatural

Functions of Religion Provides meaning and order in people’s lives Gives people a feeling of control over their destinies Reinforces or challenges the social order by transmitting cultural values and knowledge

Animism The belief that all living and non-living objects are imbued with spirit

Cosmology A system of beliefs that deals with fundamental questions in the religious and social order

The Search for Order and Meaning Religions provide a cosmology for interpreting events and experiences. This may include the creation of the universe, the origin of society, the relationship of individuals and groups to one another, and the relationship of humankind to nature.

Reducing Anxiety and Increasing Control Religious practices, such as prayer, sacrifice, magic, and other rituals, call on the help of supernatural beings, particularly where forces appear unpredictable and risky. These practices can alter the emotional state of those who practice them and reduce or increase their anxiety.

The Social Order Through religion, dominant cultural beliefs about good and evil are reinforced. Sacred stories and rituals provide a rationale for social order and give social values religious authority. Religious ritual intensifies social solidarity by creating an atmosphere in which people experience their common identity in emotionally moving ways.

Sacred Narratives Stories of historical events, heroes, gods, spirits, and the origin of all things Have a sacred power that is evoked by telling them or acting them out ritually Validate or legitimize beliefs, values, and customs

Religious Symbols Religious symbols include many different and sometimes contradictory meanings in a single word, idea, or object. Example: The Christian cross Means life, death, love, sacrifice, identity, history, power, weakness, wealth, poverty The cross carries so many meanings, it has enormous emotional and intellectual power for Christians.

Religious Symbols Some religious symbols may have supernatural power in and of themselves, such as the masks used in African ceremonies. What symbols do you know that contain supernatural power?

God Term used for a named spirit believed to have created or to control some aspect of the world High gods, gods understood as the creator of the world, are present in only about half of all societies. In about one-third of these societies, such gods are distant and withdrawn, having little interest in people.

Polytheism The belief in many gods In India, there are millions of gods; yet all Indians understand that in some way they are all aspects of one divine essence.

Monotheism Belief in a single god In monotheistic religions, one god may have several aspects. In Roman Catholicism: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are all part of a single, unitary god.

Mana Mana is religious power or energy that is concentrated in individuals or objects. Mana gives one spiritual power, but it can also be dangerous. Belief in mana is often associated with an elaborate system of taboos, or prohibitions.

Ritual Act involving the manipulation of religious symbols Certain patterns of religious behavior are extremely widespread, if not universal.

Addressing the Supernatural Prayer Sacrifice Magic Divination

Rite of Passage Three phases: Separation – Participants are removed from their community or status. Liminal – Participants have passed out of an old status but not yet entered a new one. Reincorporation – Participants return to their community with a new status.

Anti-structure Rituals and symbols that put people in a temporary state of equality and oneness Communitas are communities in which the wealthy and the poor, the powerful and the powerless are, for a short time, equals.

Rites of Intensification Rituals directed toward the welfare of the group or community rather than the individual Structured to reinforce the values and norms of the community and to strengthen group identity In some groups, they are connected with totems.

Totem An object, an animal species, or a feature of the natural world that is associated with a particular descent group Totemism is a prominent feature of the religions of the Australian aborigines.

Prayer Communication between people and spirits or gods People believe results depend on the spirit world rather than on actions humans perform. Prayer may involve a request, a pleading, or merely praise for the deity.

Sacrifice People try to increase their spiritual purity or the efficacy of their prayers by making offerings to gods or spirits. People may sacrifice the first fruits of a harvest, animal lives or, on occasion, human lives. Many Americans are familiar with giving up something for Lent, a form of sacrifice intended to help the worshipper identify with Jesus, show devotion, and increase purity.

Magic An attempt to mechanistically control supernatural forces When people do magic, they believe that their words and actions compel the spirit world to behave in certain ways.

Magic In imitative magic, the procedure performed resembles the result desired. Example: voodoo doll Contagious magic is the belief that things once in contact with a person or object retain an invisible connection with that person or object. Example: a person’s hair or clothing added to a voodoo doll to make it more effective

Divination A religious ritual performed to find hidden objects or information

Religious Practitioners Shamans Priests Witches and Sorcerers

Shaman Recognized as having the ability to mediate between the world of humanity and the world of gods or spirits Not a recognized official of any religious organization

Shaman in Indonesia Reading Entrails Why is shamanism such a powerful tool for curing illness? What characteristics make it convincing to the patient?

Priest One who is formally elected or appointed to a full-time religious office

Witchcraft The ability to harm others by harboring malevolent thoughts about them; the practice of sorcery. May be done unconsciously Wiccan – A member of a new religion that claims descent from pre-Christian nature worship; a modern day witch.

Sorcery The conscious and intentional use of magic with the intent of causing harm or good

Religion and Change To begin a new religion or modify an existing religion, prophets must have a code with three elements: Identify what is wrong with the world. Present a vision of what a better world to come might look like. Describe a method of transition from the existing world to the better world.

Religious Movements Nativistic movements aim to restore what its followers believe is a golden age of the past. Example: The Ghost Dance Vitalism is a religious movement that looks toward the creation of a utopian future that does not resemble a past golden age.

Religious Views Messianic This view focuses on the coming of a messiah who will usher in a utopian world. Millenarian The belief that a catastrophe will signal the beginning of a new age and the eventual establishment of paradise.

Syncretism Merging two or more religious traditions and hiding the beliefs, symbols, and practices of one behind similar attributes of the other. Example: Santeria Slaves in Cuba combined African religion, Catholicism, and French spiritualism to create a new religion. They identified African deities, called orichas, with Catholic saints.

Bringing it Back Home: Religion, Art and Censorship A painting by African artist, Chris Ofili, depicts a Black Madonna in a flowing robe, dabbed with a clump of elephant dung and surrounded with images of women’s buttocks and genitals clipped from pornographic magazines

Bringing it Back Home: Religion, Art and Censorship A collage by artist Alma Lopez of the Virgin of Guadalupe clad in a floral garment resembling a bikini was included in the CyberArte exhibition at the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe Singer Madonna staged a mock crucifixion, standing on a mirrored cross wearing a crown of thorns, as part of her concert in Rome in 2000.

Bringing it Back Home: Religion, Art and Censorship You decide: Do you find this kind of art offensive? Have you ever seen a representation of your religion that you found offensive? What, if anything, did you do about it, and why?

Bringing it Back Home: Religion, Art and Censorship You decide: Who should decide if the public representation of a religion is offensive? If the majority in a community find a religious representation offensive, should it be censored?

Bringing it Back Home: Religion, Art and Censorship You decide: Is it relevant that all the artists mentioned are Catholic? What do you think might be the intent of the artists in their various representations of their religion?

Quick Quiz

1. Religions provide a ________, a set of principles or beliefs about the nature of life and death, the creation of the universe, the origin of society, the relationship of individuals and groups to one another, and the relation of humankind to nature. a) ritual practice b) set of rules c) cosmology d) written sacred text

Answer : c Religions provide a cosmology, a set of principles or beliefs about the nature of life and death, the creation of the universe, the origin of society, the relationship of individuals and groups to one another, and the relation of humankind to nature.

2. The liminal stage of ritual is generally a temporary state that may be characterized by all except which of the following? a) temporary state of equality amongst those of other castes, classes or kinship groups b) women and men acting in non- conventional manner c) behaviors that reflect and reinforce the status quo

Answer: c The liminal stage of ritual is generally a temporary state that is not characterized by behaviors that reflect and reinforce the status quo.

3. Trying to develop a definition of "religion" is complicated by all except which of the following factors? a) The distinction between "natural" and "supernatural" varies across societies. b) Ideas on the nature of life vary whether we live once or repeatedly. c) All peoples have beliefs and/or engage in processes that provide meaning to their lives and the world.

Answer: c Trying to develop a definition of "religion" is not complicated by the following factor: All peoples have beliefs and/or engage in processes that provide meaning to their lives and the world.

4. Examples of contagious magic are illustrated by all except which of the following? a) the practice of the Asaro of New Guinea in burying the newborn's umbilical cord b) the reading of a chicken's entrails in seeking a cause of illness c) a sorcerer's obtaining a fingernail clipping of someone he or she wishes to harm

Answer: b The reading of a chicken's entrails in seeking a cause of illness is not an example of contagious magic.