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Lesson 1
Lesson 1
Lesson 1
Batoc)
INTRODUCTION TO WORLD RELIGIONS AND BEL IEF SYST E M S
MODULE 1
L E S S O N 1:
Differentiate the concept, elements and characteristics of belief system and
world view religion.
• understand the dynamics of the different elements and characteristics of
the belief system, world view and religion.
• appreciate the importance of one’s own beliefs and views as a believer of
God and;
• apply these beliefs in your interaction with your fellowmen, the world,
nature and God.
Worldviews are not all about God, but these are also about our views about
reality, m an, truth and values. There are also economic, political and social
worldviews. Worldviews and belief systems are necessary for religions in order to
protect and spread their own particular belief as a way of “keeping the faith” through
generations. Catholic Christians keep in their hearts the “Apostles’ Creed”, the
Muslims practice “the five pillars of Islam”, the Shinto reveres the dead ancestors or
“Kami”, the Confucians hold dearly the necessity of past traditions, and the Taoists
embrace the importance of being close to nature.(Cornejo et al, 2019). Your beliefs
shape your worldviews but your beliefs and worldviews are oftentimes shaped by
religion. There is a complex interplay between religion, belief and worldview. Religions
have different elements and characteristics which are non-negotiable. Members should
follow or undergo the process to become a genuine believers.
The elements of religions written by Maria Perpetua Arcilla-Serapio lay-down
these basic characteristics at least for the major religions. They are;
1. Belief in supernatural powers: the power which is beyond h u m a n powers. The
h u m a n sufferings enable h u m a n being to seek God’s help for their problems.
2. Belief in the holy or sacred: This is the heart of every religion. Every religion has
sacred books or texts. For example, Scriptures and the Bible are sacred for the Jews
and so with the Christians, Qur’an for Muslims, and Tripitaka for Buddhists and
Vedas for Hindus. Bu t something sacred is not just books but also places, symbols,
animals, rocks and many more. Hindus for example believes that cows are sacred
because of their beliefs in reincarnation.
3. Systems of rituals: these are the different ways each religions expresses their faith.
Catholic Christians have the seven sacraments which include ceremonies and rituals.
For example, Baptism. A child must be baptized at an early age in the church with the
presence of parents, God parents, priest as celebrator and the community that
supports the child. The most important symbol of baptism is –water. It symbolizes
cleansing from sin. The child also has to wear white dress to symbolize purity.
4.Sinful acts : usually a violation of the laws established by God which each
members has to follow. For example the Ten Commandments for J u d a i s m and
Christians and the Five Pillars of Islam which when violated the believer commit a
grievous sin.
5.The Method of salvation: the belief in the afterlife or the idea of heaven and hell. If
you are a good believer you will go to heaven but if not, you will go to hell. Islam went
further by believing that if one’s life is sacrificed against the enemies of Islam, their
soul go straight to heaven.
6.Mode of worship: each religions has different expressions of worship which include
praying, kneeling, dancing, singing to name a few.
7.Liturgy and Ideology: Liturgy is described as public worship. It is a gathering of
believers with ceremonies su c h as wedding ceremonies, worship services or bible
studies.
8. Place of worship: E a c h religion has holy places which they believe God is present
su c h as churches, temples, mosques and other sacred places. The elements or
characteristics of religions mentioned above are necessary for a particular religion to
perpetuate their worldviews and belief systems
3. How does faith in God provide answers to life’s questions? Give example from
your concrete experiences.
Faith in God provides answers to life’s question by providing peace, love, and
comfort. There are many questions in life we may not be able to answer right
away but faith provides an assurance of something great despite the unknown.
There are so many instances that God revealed Himself to me in times of faith
and even during the times of little faith. However, what matters most to Him is
the presence of faith no matter what size because He knows He is able to grow
this faith if we keep this in Him. There was a point in my life where I thought so
m uc h about the mountains of life, mountains that seem insurmountable or too
difficult to move. Yet even with the littleness of energy and mustard sized faith
laid down to His feet during a body battled prayer, He has already something in
mind and He has placed these mountains. Little did I know, He planned it out
before I even encountered it, and it only requires faith to bear all other things.
He used people in my life and He has given me a person so dear to my heart
that I will be with to be able to help me in life.
C H E C K YOUR UNDERSTANDING
MONOTHEISTIC
If someone
throws a stone
at you throw a
bread.
Critical Thinking Questions:
1. What did you discover after accomplishing the task?
I have a clearer view of the purpose of my beliefs, views, and religion –
enabling me to realize the reasons of many actions of mine. Also, I rediscovered
that I value unconditional love and gives direction to my life.
2. What did you feel when you encountered these situations? Which specific part
of our discussion did you apply in your situation?
I have felt the need to be more grateful about things. In my current
situation, I am applying my faith/belief system on my worldview and still
continue to choose the good or lovely things I believe in to be the basis of my
thoughts and actions.
3. As a student, how does your own belief system help you to become who you are
at the moment?
It helps me be reminded of the things I must do or think of in life. My
own belief system provides me how I must handle things or react to things even
if I may not be aware of what the future holds.
REMEMBER
•Worldview – worldview is a set of beliefs used to understand the world. The basic
way of interpreting things and events that pervades a culture so thoroughly that it
becomes a culture’s concept of reality-what is good, what is important, what is sacred,
what is real.
• Belief system
- are the stories we tell ourselves to define our personal sense of ‘reality’ (the way
things actually exist)
• Religion- Etymologically, the word came from ‘Religare’ - a Latin word which means
to bind fast or hold together, to secure, to bind,to fasten together, to create a system of
attitudes and beliefs.
• Naturalism- denies the existence of God. All that exist is the material universe.
•Deism- believes that God or gods created the universe but God or gods no longer actively
involved in the continuous process of creation.
•Theism- It means that God or gods created the Universe and continued to actively participate of the
world’s activities and in human history.
• Panentheism- means that God or gods are the inner spiritual essence of everything in the Universe.
• Monotheism- a belief in one God.
• Polytheism - a belief in many gods
• Sacred – something that possesses holiness.
•Religious Rituals – religious rites," which are the sacred, customary ways of celebrating a religion or
culture
Lesson 2
Religion Spirituality
For religion the questions are: What is For spirituality the questions are:
true or false? What is right or wrong? Where do I find meaning? What is my
Where do I belong? What rituals, purpose? Where do I find my direction
sacraments should I do? in life? What are my values?
From the questions above you can deduce that religion and spirituality
have different concerns. Spirituality is more of a personal experience concerns with
what are the essentials in life while religion focuses more on membership, rituals,
right and wrong or truth and falsity. Religion is more legalistic in terms of practice of
beliefs while spirituality entails more freedom in exercising what they believed. For
Dejan Davchevski, religion and spirituality are two different phenomena
( lifecoachcode.com)
Religion Spirituality
Religion makes u s vow Spirituality sets u s free
Religion shows u s fear Spirituality shows courage
Religion tells u s the truth Spirituality allows us to discover the
truth
Religion separates from other religions Spirituality unites them
Religion makes u s dependent Spirituality makes u s independent
Religion applies discipline Spirituality applies destiny or faith
Religion makes u s follow its journey Spirituality allows u s to create our own
personal journey.
Objective: Ponder on the difference between a religious person and a spiritual person
through a sketch.
Directions: 1. Sketch an image of a person who is “religious” but not spiritual” and a
person who is not religious but a “spiritual” person.
Use separate coupon bonds (short) in your illustration and then answer the following
guide questions below the illustration.
2. What important realization/s did you encounter while doing the task?
I’ve realized again the vast numbers of religious people that forgets to
really nourish their spiritual being. This may be due to being pressured to do
su ch obligations or practices or maybe the lack of fully understanding the
concepts of what they practice.
RELIGIOUS UKAY-
UKAY
How are you now? Are you
ready to continue?. At this point let u s focus on your own religion. Regardless of what
religion you belong, there are symbols, rituals which convey meanings. Hence you will
discover what are these symbols, rituals and their meanings found in your religion.
Directions:
1. Depending on what is your religious affiliation, interview a priest, minister,
imam, rabbi, or guru about what is the most important symbols, rituals in their
respective religions or if they are not available any believer of the mentioned
religions.
CHRISTIAN:
a. CATHOLICISM:
According to one of my interviewees, the most important symbol for them is the
the corpus cross. This is because it symbolizes J e s u s Christ and is also used in
prayer which is the ‘sign of the cross’. If someone has the cross means they believe
in J e s u s Christ. The most important ritual for Catholicism is baptism because it
cleanses you from the sin of the first generation which is Adam and Eve.
b. ISLAM
As stated by one of my respondents, the
most important symbol for Islam is the crescent
and star symbol. The moon means progress and
the star as light and knowledge. This
symbolism is said to be used as the guide for
navigation of travellers from Arabia, resembling
the guidance to Allah. In rituals, the
respondent said that prayers are the most
important ritual in Islam and it is done 5 times
a day. This is because it is the keys or way to
get into J a n n a h , or the Islamic Heaven.
c. BO RN -AGAIN CHRISTIAN
As a born-again
Christian, I say the
most important symbol
for u s is the bare cross. This is because it signifies the death of Christ on the cross but
also conveys that He h as risen. The same way with other Christians, baptism is also
as important to u s because it is one of the first steps for rebirth, after accepting Christ
through prayer and through orientation sessions. Another most important practice for
u s is the daily devotional prayer, a time it is needed to ‘be alone with God’. It has
prayers/intercessory prayers and reading the Gospel which can be done through
writing or journaling. It should be done out of willingness or desire to know and build
a relationship with your Creator. We also honor the act of obedience because it shows
your soundness of heart or love for God.
d. IGLESIA NI CRISTO
REM EMBER :
•Religion- etymologically came from the Latin word ‘religare’ which means “to bind”
or “to tie” or some authors use the word ‘relegere’ meaning to read again.
•Spirituality – tends to be more personal compared to religion which is more
organized and institutional.
•Theology- Is defined as the systematic study of the nature of the Divine and, more
broadly, of religious belief.
•Philosophical Theology – is the study of knowing God through the use of logical
reasoning.
•Sacred – something that possesses holiness. It could refer to things, places, symbols
or divine entity,
Religious Rituals – religious rites," which are the sacred, customary ways of
celebrating a religion or culture. • Animism - is defined as the belief in numerous
spiritual beings concerned with h u m a n affairs and capable of helping or harming
h u m a n interests