Religion How is religion understood geographically?

Religion What is religion? What are some of the contexts in which religion manifests itself? How do we view religion as geographers (elements that are spatially important)? – Where are religions located – hearth, distribution, and diffusion? religion.html religion.html – What are practices that lead to distribution?

Religion How do we view religion as geographers (elements that are spatially important)? Religious tension in scale: Globalization and local diversity People care deeply Derive core values and beliefs Some religions appeal globally and others locally How people identify themselves and organize the landscape

Universalizing and Ethnic Universalizing Attempt to appeal to people throughout the world Individual historical founder Message diffused widely Followers widely distributed Attempt to convert Holidays based on founder’s life events Ethnic Appeals to people in a particular place exact origin unknown Content highly concentrated in place of origin Followers highly clustered Born in faith and converts not sought Holidays based on local climate and agri. calendars

Religion – Monotheistic – belief that there is only one God – Polytheistic – belief in a collection of gods – Animist – objects and events in the environment are “animated” No separation between physical and spiritual worlds – Indigenous – local and passed on by family and tribe (no shared tenet among groups) – Shamanist – community faith: follow shamans

Religion – Branch – large and fundamental division within a religion – Denomination – division of branch, unites local congregations in admin. Body – Sect – small group broken away from denomination

Buddhist Holy Places: Lumbini, Nepal – Birthplace of Buddha

Dodh Gaya, India – Buddha reaches Enlightenment

Bodh (Bo) Tree Mahayanists Japan Theravadists Cambodia

Leshan Giant Buddha - China

Islamic Holy Places: Mecca Al Harim Al Sharif Mosque - The Ka’ba

Islamic Holy Places: Medina’s mosques

Hindu Holy Places Mt. Kailas, Source of Ganges (home of Shiva) Ganges River bathing Hierarchy… National Regional/Sectarian Local

Holy Places in Conflict: Jerusalem Christian Quarter Church of the Holy Sepulchre – significance Jesus (mosque next door)

Holy Places in Conflict: Jerusalem Armenian Quarter David’s Tower of the Citadel Jaffa Gate and Citadel (built by Romans 2000 years ago)

Holy Places in Conflict: Jerusalem Muslim (Arab) Quarter Temple Mountain – Dome of the Rock – built on 2 nd temple and where Muhammad ascends to heaven, Al Aqsa Mosque

Holy Places in Conflict: Jerusalem Jewish Quarter Western Wall (only remaining section of the Second Temple)

Places of Worship Religious elements on the landscape

Vatican Basilicas

Basilicas St Mary’s – Krakow, Poland Church of St. Patrick – Dungannah, Ireland Basilica of St. Francis Xavier – Dryersville, Iowa

Eastern Orthodox - Russian St. Basil’s Cathedral - Moscow St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral - Howell (Lakewood), NJ

Eastern Orthodox - Greek Athens, Greece Dayton, OH

Coptic Cathedrals –Egypt

Ethiopian Christian Church Trinity Cathedral – Addis Ababa

Armenian Christian Church

Maronite Christian Church - Lebanon

Buddhist Temples Temple of Emerald Buddha - Thailand Tibet

Buddhist Temples China Japan

Buddhist Temples KoreaNepal

Buddhist Temples Burma Laos

Buddhist Temples Angkor Wat Temple, the world's largest religious monument - Cambodia Ho Chi Minh City

Buddhist Temples Los Angeles

Buddhist Pagodas

Hindu Temples

Chicago Pittsburgh

Muslim Mosques Zahir Mosque, Malaysia Faisal Mosque Islamabad, Pakistan Sultan Ahmet Mosque Istanbul

Hagia Sophia

Islamic Holy Places: Mecca Al Harim Al Sharif Mosque - The Ka’ba

&feature=relatedhttp:// &feature=related (Anthony Bourdain Indonesia – call to prayer BK4&feature=relatedhttp:// BK4&feature=related (journalist in city)