Religious Philosophy is complex and mutual.
Rev. Dianne Theil McNinch, Minister ULC
Religion, the Latin verb, religare, to tie back, can be said to mean: to tie back humans to God. The majority of humans on our planet, belonging to the 5,200 documented religions, ‘tie-back’ to divine source. Depending upon the location of their birthplace, family and culture, the Divine source comes equipped with various names. Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, Hanuman, Ganesh, Lakshmi, Shakti are a few of the Hindu names. Jesus is the name Christians prefer. Apollo, Aphrodite, Venus, Thor, Mercury were popular among the Greeks and Romans. Buddha is the name of the Divine Teacher of the followers of Buddhism. These deities are primarily geographical in their origins.
Rev. Dianne Theil McNinch, Minister ULC
Religion, the Latin verb, religare, to tie back, can be said to mean: to tie back humans to God. The majority of humans on our planet, belonging to the 5,200 documented religions, ‘tie-back’ to divine source. Depending upon the location of their birthplace, family and culture, the Divine source comes equipped with various names. Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, Hanuman, Ganesh, Lakshmi, Shakti are a few of the Hindu names. Jesus is the name Christians prefer. Apollo, Aphrodite, Venus, Thor, Mercury were popular among the Greeks and Romans. Buddha is the name of the Divine Teacher of the followers of Buddhism. These deities are primarily geographical in their origins.
Faith is part of religion. Recent writings by Dr. Dean Hamer, point to science to show that our human self is biologically designed to believe in God. Dr. Hamers’ book, The God Gene, How Faith is Hardwired into our Genes is convincing on this view.
Religion is an accumulation of meaningful rituals, historic events and culture. Religion had four distinct faith forms, according to Dr. A. Wallace, University of Pennsylvania. They are, Individual, Communal, Shamanistic and Ecclesiastical faiths.
There are instances, where various Religions have tales, ie: stories, myths, parables in common. One example: the tale of Noah appears with various names starting back in 2200 BCE, as Ziusudra, 1900 BCE as Atrahasis, 1600 BCE as Utnapishtim, and finally Noah 570 BCE. Additionally, many Religions have foundations that are similar, beliefs as to how to treat/take care of our fellow humans. The schism occurs when an examination of individual dogmas happens.
Scripture, (to scribe, to write); it seems to me that when looking at Religions, once beliefs are written, they become immutable truth. Books containing major beliefs are The Bible, Book of Mormon, Tao Te Ching, Tanakh, and The Koran to name a few. These beliefs, written by humans, may have been explorations of thought. However, some followers turn these into dogma. Other followers choose to interpret the same writings, generally to prove a personal point of view.
Religion is helpful to many, or it would not be so very powerful. Religion helps us to make sense of the world, and our place in it. Faith helps us resolve the great problems of life, and gives reassurance that a higher power will help us, giving us a sense of control of life. Religion is also a cultural tool to help us share values and feel a part of community. Religious philosophy is as varied as each of the 5,200 documented religions, yet each religion does have philosophy. Religious philosophy is a colorful and varied weaving of the common and uncommon elements that influence the majority of humans that inhabit our planet.
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