»What Is Religion?«

I'm very interested to see what ideas you guys come up with...

posted by fatpie42

in-my-opinion.org -> Religion and Mysteries, from worship to werewolves -> Religious & Philosophical Topics -> What Is Religion?

preliminary attempt

The social expression of a relationship with god / sharing that relationship with society.

posted by ralph_angelus

Religion

Here's my attempt White laugh

A personal or institutionalized belief/beliefs for a higher power/s regarded as creator/s and ruler/s of the universe.

posted by zesja

Belief in higher powers + application

ralph_angelus:

The social expression of a relationship with god / sharing that relationship with society.

No, a personified god is not needed.

zesja:

A personal or institutionalized belief/beliefs for a higher power/s regarded as creator/s and ruler/s of the universe.

This is much better but also wrong, since a BELIEF alone is not enough. A belief alone would be philosophy or theology or ideology.

You have to have APPLICATION (= rites and/or weekly meetings and/or buildings etc)

So religion has 2 parts: the philosophy part (= where we come from, the purpose of life...) and the APPLICATION/PRACTICE.

MOREOVER, the philosophy part needs to be religious (= there is more that just matter and space) otherwise it would be merely a "world view" or "ideology".

So it's at least:
religious philosophy + practice/application

Why at least? Because you may also demand some more things:

•	tradition & art (music, songs, ...)

•	codified behaviour rules (don't do this, don't do that)

•	organized church structure (priests, mother churches, ...)

But basically it's "belief in higher powers/principles + application"

posted by knn

ebooks-download.com

definitions...

Sorry but my first reaction to this interesting topic was to look up the definition in a dictionary. Yes, oh yes.. keep going

en.wikipedia.org…

Quote:

Religion is commonly defined as belief concerning the supernatural, sacred, or divine, and the practices and institutions associated with such belief.

This is indeed a very broad definition of religion.

I would say that any religion is an attempt of man to have some (theoretical) basis for his strong inner belief that he is an immortal being good by nature
and to set some guidlines of how he has to behave in order to stay such a being.

Different people chose different approaches, but basically it's always the same - that people want to believe that they don't live this life only.

posted by mymla

One major mistake

All of you mentioned God or a creator (except Mymla who cheated).

Yes - even you Knn. You dismissed a 'personalised' God but had no problem with a creator, suggesting that you are still stuck in the Christian paradigm. (No religion cares about the creation story as much Christians do - not even the Jews and it's a story in their own holy book!)

You have all basically dismissed Buddhism as a religion (as well as Confucianism). What is so special about a God that means that there can't be a religion without one? Buddhists feel a belief in a God leads to an attachment and hinders ones progress towards divine salvation.

Another thing to notice about Mymla's definition is that it says "beliefs concerning" rather than 'beliefs IN'. Although most religions will describe some kind of divinity they don't always have to consider these things to 'actually exist' (first noted by Ninian Smart)

Strange thing concerning Mymla's personal comments. Hindus take it as red that they will live over and over again. A kind of immortal cycle is taken as self-evident. What Hindu's are trying to do is 'escape' from the cycle of death and rebirth. Simply staying human is only the second best option for the Hindu.

Any comments on this?

posted by fatpie42

"The beauty of the Superman came to me as a shadow. What are the gods to me now!"

Human frame

An important question there is... What is spirituality? Spirituality perhaps is like a subtle painting. Some can sense it. But for some it helps to have a frame of religion there to bring attention to. So religions are useful. But when the frame becomes all too important, it tends to obscures the very picture.

In a hindu perspective even a worldly existence is such a frame and human frame is the one where there is an opportunity to really un-cloud the picture. The picture comes the first, it is the very purpose of the frame being there.

posted by blueSky

Just some higher powers

fatpie42:

Yes - even you Knn. You dismissed a 'personalised' God but had no problem with a creator

Nope, a religion does not need any kind of god. That's why I mention "higher principles" or "higher powers". Otherwise Buddhism and some "nature religions" would not qualify.

fatpie42:

You have all basically dismissed Buddhism as a religion

I certainly didn't.

Let me repeat: You don't need god(s) to have a qualified religion.

fatpie42:

Any comments on this?

Any comments on the birth-death-birth-death cycle? Would be offtopic.

posted by knn

Belief in higher powers + application

Isn't that pretty accurate? For a belief in a Higher power/s or energy a system grounded in such belief and worship has got to be the key hasn't it?

Quote:

That is a good point, I'd say Spirituality is belief or sense/feelings of what people call the soul, that exists seperately to the physical parts of life.

posted by zesja

the theoretical and the specific

All of you seem to be trying to define a general, all-encompassing definition of religion. Is that really feasible? Isn't it better to define your own paradigm?

posted by ralph_angelus

Re: the theoretical and the specific

ralph_angelus:

All of you seem to be trying to define a general, all-encompassing definition of religion. Is that really feasible? Isn't it better to define your own paradigm?

Religion is just one word so is shouldn't be that hard to define it. I see you point though but What if you don't have your own pardigm? I learned something new, I guess

posted by zesja

A bit more

zesja:

Religion is just one word

aha, but it isn't.

posted by ralph_angelus

Own paradigms are too limited

ralph_angelus:

All of you seem to be trying to define a general, all-encompassing definition of religion. Is that really feasible? Isn't it better to define your own paradigm?

Why should our own definition differ from the real definition?

OK, I could define religion as "The Truth" or "Religion is if you go to church on sunday" but that would be very limited.

posted by knn

me, me, me

fatpie42:

All of you mentioned God or a creator (except Mymla who cheated).

Huh? Cheated? I learned something new, I guess

where? how? By quoting a dictionary or by giving my own opinion? If you only wanted to give that beautiful comment about all of us mentioning God, and I spoilt it, it's not cheating Very Happy

Nah, I very seldom cheat, and this certainly is not the case.

fatpie42:

definition is that it says "beliefs concerning" rather than 'beliefs IN'. Although most religions will describe some kind of divinity they don't always have to consider these things to 'actually exist'

And what's the problem with the definition than? Sorry, don't see any. There isn't much difference between beliefs "concerning" something and "in" something. "I believe in higher powers" and "I have beliefs concerning higher powers". The second one sounds weird, but still valid.

fatpie42:

concerning Mymla's personal comments. Hindus take it as red that they will live over and over again. A kind of immortal cycle is taken as self-evident. What Hindu's are trying to do is 'escape' from the cycle of death and rebirth. Simply staying human is only the second best option for the Hindu.

Boah, have I ever been mentioned so many times within one and the same post? Very Happy

So? I am pretty sure this still fits into my "personal comment" frame. Still, this is a system of beliefs about human as a spiritual immortal being. Still, it sets guidlines of what to do to reach a higher spiritual state.

posted by mymla

I believe in

ralph_angelus:

All of you seem to be trying to define a general, all-encompassing definition of religion. Is that really feasible? Isn't it better to define your own paradigm?

What do you mean by "own paradigm"? To define what I personally believe in? I guess everybody is trying to be polite here and give a definition that will suit his own beliefs and everybody else's. Not to offend anyone Smile

posted by mymla

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