AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY CH 11 CLASS NOTES Religious Origins and Distributions

What is Religion??? What is Faith??? What role does Religion play in Culture?

According to Stoddard and Prorak, religion is “A system of beliefs and practices that attempts to order life in terms of culturally perceived ultimate priorities.” Religions set standards for how people “should” behave. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. What Is Religion, and What Role Does It Play in Culture?

Religions manifests itself in many ways: Worship / Prayer Morals / Values Rituals Take place through regular intervals Birth, marriage, and death Attainment of adulthood © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. How does Religion manifest itself in Culture?

The Major World Religions Where did the Major religions Originate? How do religions diffuse???

The LEVANT Region (Palestine Land)

On the Landscape How is Religion seen on the Cultural Landscape???

St. Peter’s Basilica – Roman Catholic Church

Mormon Church – Salt Lake City, Utah

Al-Haram Mosque - Mecca

SENSOJI TEMPLE OLDEST BUDDHIST TEMPLE IN TOKYO, JAPAN

Sacred sites Places or spaces people infuse with religious meaning – Intersection between MORTAL and DIVINE Pilgrimage: Adherents voluntarily travel to a religious site to pay respects or participate in a ritual at the site Sacred Sites of Major Religions Sacred to Jews, Christians, and Muslims Wailing Wall, Temple Mount, Dome of the Rock © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. How Is Religion Seen in the Cultural Landscape?

Sacred Sites TEMPLE MOUNT WESTERN WALL Judaism DOME OF THE ROCK AL-AQSA MOSQUE Islam Muhammed ascended to heaven

UNIVERSALIZING RELIGION – (aka: Global religions, Proselytic, or EVANGELICAL religions) Christianity, Islam, Buddhism More likely to diffuse Actively seek converts (missions) Universal truths & characteristics apply to all One true religion claim

ETHNIC RELIGION – Hinduism, Judaism, Animism, Tribal Particular to one, culturally distinct group of people Do not actively seek converts Spatially concentrated Many more Ethnic than Univ.

Religion in a Globalized World Religion Membership / Belief in decline??? Enlightenment, Scientific Rev., Urbanization, Modernization, Consumerism, Secularization, Scandals, Fundamentalism - Extremism… Secularism / Agnostic / Atheist

After Protestant Reformation in 1517, priests lost some influence & power States began assuming power previously held by church Political Division of church & state Technological Revolution - can research and choose religion regardless of place

2008, the American Religious Identification Survey

Christianity and Islam hold allegiance of ½ the world’s population World’s fastest growing major religion? Islam

MAJOR RELIGIONS In Order of # of Followers Most major contemporary religions originated in small area on E. Mediterranean Sea Shore (Israel)

1. CHRISTIANITY Offshoot of Judaism 3 Major Divisions: Roman Catholic, Protestant, E. Orthodox

2. ISLAM Youngest of Major Religions Offshoot of Judaism 2 Major Divisions: Sunni & Shiite N. Africa, Middle East, Asia, Indonesia

3. HINDUISM Recognized as world’s oldest religion No divisions / branches (Sikhism, Jainism) Not centrally organized (no single book) Asia (India)

4. BUDDHISM SE Asia, China, Japan Mahayana Buddhism in E. Asia Theravada Buddhism in SE Asia Mixes with many local / other religions

JUDAISM 3 main branches: Orthodox, Conservative, Reform Middle East (Israel) & scattered throughout the world Torah (5 books)

SHINTOISM Japan Practices to establish connections in life to past / spirits / forces Kami – spiritual essence Nature and ancestor worship

CHINESE RELIGIONS Also Buddhism mixed with local Not involve supernatural omnipotence CONFUCIANISM – A philosophy of life concerning morality and ethics (Humanism, Family) Taoism – (Way, Path) Happiness lies with maintaining a balance

SHAMANISM- African Traditional religions Community faith Follow a shaman, (teacher, healer, priest) Spirit World

SECULARISM The indifference to or rejection of organized religion Atheist (Theist) Agnostic (Deity)

Polytheism – Belief in many Gods Animistic Religion – belief that inanimate object (trees, mountains, rivers) possess spirits & thus revered Most religions throughout ancient history one of these UNTIL…

Middle of 1 st Millennium BC Monotheism – Belief in only one God Zoroastrianism – developed in SW Asia Maybe first mono religion 6 cen. BCE (God Zarathustra) Maybe basis for Christianity, Judaism, & Islam Judaism was first???