Itwr Lesson 1

INTRODUCTION
TO WORLD
RELIGIONS
AND BELIEF
SYSTEMS
1
LESSON ONE:
UNDERSTANDING
RELIGION
2
What is religion?
3
Meaning and Key Elements
In examining the meaning of religion,

we shall look into the etymology (the origin of
the linguistic form of the said word) of the word
religion, the definitions given to religion by
some scholars from different disciplines, and
the key elements of religion (the common
characteristics of religions).
4
ETYMOLOGY
There are at least three closely related accounts
on the etymology of the term religion.
5
ETYMOLOGY
First Account
 the term comes from a Latin word that means
“to tie or bind.”
 Some identify this Latin word as religare while
some identify it as religio.
6
ETYMOLOGY
First Account
 In any case, this etymological meaning of
religion, to tie or bind, indicates the two
objectives of religion:
o first, to bind humanity and the divine
together;
o and second, to bind humans into a
community that is bound with the divine 7
ETYMOLOGY
Second Account
 the term religion consists of two Latin words,
namely, re, which means “again,” and lig-,
which means to “join” or “connect”.
 Religion, based on the combination of these
two Latin words, therefore means “to join
again” or “to reconnect.”
8
ETYMOLOGY
Second Account
 What is being joined again or being
reconnected, in this context, is humanity and
the divine, or the human world and the sacred
world.
9
ETYMOLOGY
Second Account
 This meaning of religion suggests that there
was originally a unity between the human
world and the sacred world which was
somehow lost or strained; and religion is the
way for humans to recover or reestablish that
unity.
10
ETYMOLOGY
Third Account
 the word religion derives from the Latin word
relegare which literally means “to tread
carefully” and which indicates “respect and
care for both the natural and supernatural
worlds”
11
ETYMOLOGY
Third Account
 This further suggests that a primary concern of
religion is to provide guidance on how humans
ought to live.
12
Questions:
1. What can be observed in these three

etymological accounts of the meaning of
the word “religion”?
2. What do these etymological accounts

suggest?
13
Definitions From Some Scholars
1. Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834):
 “The essence of religion consists in the

feeling of absolute dependence.”
14
2. James Martineau (1805-1900):
 “Religion is the belief in a Divine mind and

will ruling the universe and holding moral
relations with mankind.”
15
3. C. P. Tiele (1830-1902):
 “Religion is . . . that pure and reverential

disposition or frame of mind which we call
piety.”
16
4. F. H. Bradley (1846-1924):
 “Religion is the attempt to express the

complete reality of goodness through every
aspect of our being.”
17
5. James Frazier (1854-1941):
 “Religion is a propitiation or conciliation of

powers superior to man.”
18
6. Emile Durkheim (1858-1917):
 “Religion is a unified system of beliefs and

practices relative to sacred things which
unite into one single moral community.”
19
7. Rudolf Otto (1869-1937):
 “Religion is that which grows out of, and

gives expression to, experience of the holy
in its various aspects.”
20
8. Paul Tillich (1886-1965):
 “Religion is the state of being grasped by

an ultimate concern, a concern which
qualifies all other concerns as preliminary
and which itself contains the answer to the
question of the meaning of our life.” 21
9. J. Milton Yinger (1916-2011):
 “Religion is a system of beliefs and

practices by means of which a group of
people struggle with the ultimate problem
of human life.”
22
10. John Hick (1922-2012):
 “Religion constitutes our varied human

response to transcendent reality.”
23
11. Ninian Smart (1927-2001):
 The six characteristics or dimensions of

religion are: “the ritual, the mythological,
the doctrinal, the ethical, the social, and the
experiential.”
24
12. Peter Berger (1929- ):
 “Religion is the establishment through

human activity of an all-embracing sacred
order, that is, of a sacred cosmos that will
be capable of maintaining itself in the ever-
present face of chaos.” 25
13. James C. Livingston (1930- ):
 “Religion is that system of activities and

beliefs directed toward that which is
perceived to be sacred in value and
transforming power.”
26
14. Roy A. Clouser (1937-):
 “A religious belief is any belief in

something or other as divine. ‘Divine’
means having the status of not depending
on anything else.
27
15. Roland Robertson (1938- ):
 “Religion pertains to a distinction between

an empirical and a super-empirical,
transcendental reality: the affairs of the
empirical being subordinated in
significance to the non-empirical.” 28
Key Elements of Religion
 Worldview  Central Stories
 Spiritual World  Rituals
 Sacredness  Ethical Codes
 Community  Artistic Expressions
29
WORLDVIEW
 A worldview refers to a set of beliefs that is
both coherent and comprehensive.
 As a coherent set of beliefs forms a belief
system, another way of saying the same is
that a worldview refers to a comprehensive
belief system.
30
WORLDVIEW
 First, religion consists of beliefs. Beliefs
generally refer to assertions, claims, or
thoughts about things that are held to be
true. Beliefs are, strictly speaking, mental
states that advance claims or knowledge
about the world, and are expressible in the
form of statements
31
WORLDVIEW
 Second, a set of beliefs forms a system when
these beliefs are coherent; and they are
coherent when they are consistently
interrelated. Being interrelated, the beliefs in
a system influence or affect one another.
32
WORLDVIEW
 Lastly, a belief system is comprehensive
when it accounts for a wide range of
phenomena or when it deals with a wide
range of human concerns. Religious belief
systems are comprehensive in this light for
they address a wide range of human
concerns.
33
SPIRITUAL WORLD
 the spiritual world refers to what is
sometimes also called the transcendental
world or supernatural world. Being
nonphysical, the spiritual world is known or
accessed not by means of scientific methods,
but by other means of knowing such as
visions, revelations, and mystical
experiences. 34
SPIRITUAL WORLD
 the acceptance of its reality or truth is not a
matter of having some objective evidence or
method of verification; rather, it is a matter
of having faith.
35
SACREDNESS
 Religion regards certain things as sacred.
 The sacred is contrasted with the ordinary,
secular, or profane.
 While ordinary things can be used as mere
instruments to satisfy human interests,
sacred things are treated with respect or
reverence.
36
SACREDNESS
 Also, the value of an ordinary thing depends
on human interests, while the value of a
sacred thing does not.
 A sacred thing either has its own value or
derives its value from association with a
sacred thing that has value on its own.
37
SACREDNESS
 In this consideration, we can distinguish
between two kinds of sacredness, which we
shall call inherent sacredness and derived
sacredness.
 Something has inherent sacredness if it has
value on its own, while something has
derived sacredness if its value is derived
from something that has inherent sacredness. 38
ETHICAL CODES
 Religions have ethical or moral codes
referring to guidelines concerning how
humans ought to relate to the divine, treat
one another, or behave towards one another,
God, gods, and revered teachers.
39
ETHICAL CODES
 In some cases, these codes also include rules
about what types of food to refrain from
eating generally, what type of clothes to
wear on specific occasions, and others.
 Some of these ethical codes are revealed by
a God to chosen messengers; while some are
realized through a heightened form of
spiritual activity like meditation. 40
COMMUNITY
 Religions have communities.
 A religious belief system is shared and
practiced by a community of believers.
 The community of believers usually
involves an organization consisting of a
hierarchy of authorities.
41
COMMUNITY
 Each level in the hierarchy has designated
rights and duties.
 How people get to occupy higher positions
vary in different religions.
 The ways include revelations,
reincarnations, blood relations, and elections
by revered members of the religious
42
community.
SACRED WRITINGS
 Religions have sacred writings, which
contain their main teachings or doctrines,
central stories, ethical codes, and prophecies.
 Sacred writings are divinely inspired.
 Their contents are usually revealed by a God
or gods through chosen messengers.
43
SACRED WRITINGS
 Religions have sacred writings, which
contain their main teachings or doctrines,
central stories, ethical codes, and prophecies.
 Sacred writings are divinely inspired.
 Their contents are usually revealed by a God
or gods through chosen messengers.
44
CENTRAL STORIES
 Religions have central stories.
 Some scholars refer to these stories as
“myths,” but due to a connotation of the
term “myth” as being a story that is purely
imaginary or that is historically untrue, we
shall use the (hopefully) neutral term
“story.”
45
CENTRAL STORIES
 The central stories of religions include
accounts of how the world and the human
race began; how God was personified or
manifested in the world; how a great teacher
came to a realization of religious truths or
received messages and instructions from
God, the gods, or the heavens;
46
CENTRAL STORIES
how the important events in the life of a
great teacher came about; and how some
actions of faithful followers (like acts of
martyrdom) became worthy of emulation or
sources of religious inspiration.
47
RITUALS
 Religions have rituals which include
ceremonies that reenact sacred stories, and
various activities, such as songs and dances
that express praise or thanksgiving to God,
gods, or a revered teacher or prophet.
48
ARTIFICIAL EXPRESSIONS
 Religions engage in various artistic
expressions for their beliefs.
 These artistic expressions can be in the form
of music, dance, architectural design,
sculpture, poetry, drama, and others.
 Many of the world-renowned artistic works
were religiously inspired.
49
Questions regarding human
existence
◈ What is the ultimate cause of all things?
What is our purpose in this world?
◈ To what extent are our choices and actions

considered “free”?
50
What are some philosophical questions have
you asked yourself?
What lead you to ponder those questions?
51
Do you think that you will be able to figure out
the answers to these philosophical questions?
Explain.
52
The most notable
ancient Greek
philosophers
53
Pythagoras (570 BCE to 459 BCE)
• A mathematician and scientist.

• Credited with formulating the
Pythagorean Theorem.
• His work earned him many
followers, and he established a
community of learners who
were devoted to the study of
religion and philosophy. 54
Heraclitus (535 BCE to 475 BCE)
• Proposed that everything that

exists is based on a higher
order or plan which he called
“logos”.
• For him, change is a
permanent aspect of the
human condition.
55
Democritus (460 BCE to 370 BCE)
• Devoted himself to the study

of the causes of natural
phenomena.
• Among the first to propose
that matter is composed of
tiny particles called atoms.
56
Diogenes of
(412 BCE to 323 BCE)
Sinope
• A known advocate of living a
simple and virtuous life.
• For him, one should not talk
of virtue, but should show it in
words and actions.
57
Epicurus (341 BCE to 270 BCE)
• Believed that philosophy

could enable a man to live a
life of happiness.
58
Socrates (470 BCE to 399 BCE)
• Considered the foremost

philosopher of ancient times.
• He was credited with
formulating the Socratic
method.
59
Plato (427 BCE to 347 BCE)
• A student of Socrates;
• Known for his dialectic – a
method of inquiry where two
opposing ideas as discussed in
an attempt to arrive at new
knowledge.
60
Aristotle (384 BCE to 322 BCE)
• A prominent student to Plato;

• His studies in logic led to the
formulation of a formal
process of analyzing
reasoning which gave rise to
deductive reasoning.
61
Why is there a need to philosophize?
62
Sense of Wonder (PLATO)
◈ Whenever we are confronted with an

experience, we always wonder how it came
about.
◈ “Where did we come from?” “Why do we
exist?” “For what purpose are we created?”
63
Doubt (RENE DESCATRES)
◈ Descartes was famous for rejecting or

questioning established ideas, and he even
went as far as doubting his own ideas.
◈ A critical and questioning perspective is
necessary to determine if indeed these ideas
or views are correct or true.
64
Experience (KARL JASPERS)
◈ A man is often confronted by experiences

which challenges his ideas and frameworks.
◈ These challenges are called limit situations,
which are often accompanied by feelings of
hopelessness, anxiety, or dread.
65
Love of Wisdom (SOCRATES)
◈ To love wisdom is to have an insatiable

desire for truth.
◈ A philosopher seeks to continue to question,
to probe, and to discuss in order to get to the
bottom of things.
◈ “An unexamined life is not worth living.”
66
What are some situations that compel
a person to engage in philosophical
thinking?
How can a person benefit from

philosophizing? 67
What are the branches
of Philosophy?
68
Branches of Philosophy
• Aesthetics
• Logic
• Epistemology
• Ethics
• Political philosophy
• Metaphysics
• Philosophy of the human person
69
Aesthetic
• The philosophy which deals with beauty and
what makes things “beautiful”.
70
Logic
• The branch of philosophy which deals with
correct reasoning.
71
Epistemology
• Discusses the nature of knowledge and
knowing.
72
Philosophy of the Human
Person
• The area in philosophy which understands
the human person from a philosophical
perspective – integrating and synthesizing
the different branches of philosophy and
other fields of study to know the truth about
the human person.
73
Review
• What is philosophy?
• Why is there a need to philosophize?
• What are the branches of philosophy?
• What is “Philosophy of the Human Person”?
74
Is it possible for any person to engage
in philosophical discussion?
Why?
75
THAN
KS!
Any questions?
Activity 1
Make a list of 5 “Why?” Questions.
Example:
“Why do we cry when we are sad, and smile
when we are happy?”
77
BIG CONCEPT
Bring the attention of your audience over a key concept
using icons or illustrations
78
YOU CAN ALSO SPLIT YOUR CONTENT
White Black
Is the color of milk and Is the color of ebony and
fresh snow, the color of outer space. It has been
produced by the the symbolic color of
combination of all the elegance, solemnity and
colors of the visible authority.
spectrum.
79
IN 2 OR 3 COLUMNS
Yellow Blue Red
Is the color of gold, Is the colour of the Is the color of blood,
butter and ripe lemons. clear sky and the deep and because of this it
In the spectrum of sea. It is located has historically been
visible light, yellow is between violet and associated with
found between green green on the optical sacrifice, danger and
and orange. spectrum. courage.
80
A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND
WORDS
A complex idea can be

conveyed with just a single still
image, namely making it
possible to absorb large amounts
of data quickly.
81
Want big
impact?
USE BIG
IMAGE
82
USE CHARTS TO EXPLAIN YOUR IDEAS
White Gray Black
83
AND TABLES TO COMPARE DATA
A B C
Yellow 10 20 7
Blue 30 15 10
Orange 5 24 16
84
MAPS
our office
85
89,526,124
Whoa! That’s a big number, aren’t you proud?
86
That’s a lot
89,526,124$ of money
And a lot of
185,244 users users
Total
100% success!
87
OUR PROCESS IS EASY
first second last
88
LET’S REVIEW SOME CONCEPTS
Yellow Blue Red
Is the color of gold, butter and Is the colour of the clear sky Is the color of blood, and
ripe lemons. In the spectrum of and the deep sea. It is located because of this it has
visible light, yellow is found between violet and green on the historically been associated
between green and orange. optical spectrum. with sacrifice, danger and
courage.
Yellow Blue Red

Is the color of gold, butter and Is the colour of the clear sky Is the color of blood, and
ripe lemons. In the spectrum of and the deep sea. It is located because of this it has
visible light, yellow is found between violet and green on the historically been associated
between green and orange. optical spectrum. with sacrifice, danger and
courage.
89
You can insert
graphs from
Google Sheets
90
MOBILE
PROJECT
Show and explain
your web, app or
software projects
using these gadget
templates.
91
TABLET
PROJECT
Show and explain
your web, app or
software projects
using these gadget
templates.
92
DESKTOP
PROJECT
Show and explain
your web, app or
software projects
using these gadget
templates.
93
CREDITS
Special thanks to all the people who made and
released these awesome resources for free:
◈ Presentation template by SlidesCarnival
◈ Photographs by Unsplash
94
PRESENTATION DESIGN
This presentation uses the following typographies and colors:
◈ Titles: Oswald
◈ Body copy: Tinos
You can download the fonts on these pages:
https://www.fontsquirrel.com/fonts/oswald · https://www.fontsquirrel.com/fonts/tinos
You don’t need to keep this slide in your presentation. It’s only here to serve you as a design guide if
you need to create new slides or download the fonts to edit the presentation in PowerPoint®
95
SlidesCarnival icons are editable
shapes.
This means that you can:

● Resize them without losing
quality.
● Change fill color and opacity.
Isn’t that nice? :)
Examples:
96
DIAGRAMS AND INFOGRAPHICS
97
Now you can use any emoji as an icon!
And of course it resizes without losing quality and you can change the color.
How? Follow Google instructions

https://twitter.com/googledocs/status/730087240156643328
✋👆👉👍👤👦👧👨👩👪💃🏃💑❤😂😉😋😒😭
👶😸🐟🍒🍔💣📌📖🔨🎃🎈🎨🏈🏰🌏🔌🔑 and
many more...
98
Free templates for all your presentation needs
For PowerPoint and 100% free for personal or Ready to use, Blow your audience
Google Slides commercial use professional and away with attractive
customizable visuals
99

Itwr Lesson 1

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Itwr Lesson 1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

INTRODUCTION

In examining the meaning of religion,

1. What can be observed in these three

2. What do these etymological accounts

 “The essence of religion consists in the

 “Religion is the belief in a Divine mind and

 “Religion is . . . that pure and reverential

 “Religion is the attempt to express the

 “Religion is a propitiation or conciliation of

 “Religion is a unified system of beliefs and

 “Religion is that which grows out of, and

 “Religion is the state of being grasped by

 “Religion is a system of beliefs and

 “Religion constitutes our varied human

 The six characteristics or dimensions of

 “Religion is the establishment through

 “Religion is that system of activities and

 “A religious belief is any belief in

 “Religion pertains to a distinction between

◈ To what extent are our choices and actions

What lead you to ponder those questions?

• A mathematician and scientist.

• Proposed that everything that

• Devoted himself to the study

• Believed that philosophy

• Considered the foremost

• A prominent student to Plato;

◈ Whenever we are confronted with an

◈ Descartes was famous for rejecting or

◈ A man is often confronted by experiences

◈ To love wisdom is to have an insatiable

How can a person benefit from

A complex idea can be

White Gray Black

first second last

Yellow Blue Red

This means that you can:

Isn’t that nice? :)

How? Follow Google instructions

You might also like