Religion on Earth

Religion on Earth

On my visit to earth, I found that people define religion differently based on their profession, personality, and beliefs. However, some of the definitions seemed to prevail over others (Diener, 1997). Many people identify with various religions, and they define it as a way of life with a common set of beliefs. Religious communities share the same beliefs. They tend to have the same opinions regarding most issues, and they will therefore tend to handle issues the same way. To determine whether people are religious, I will observe their characteristics and beliefs. Religious people have certain characteristics that define them. They have various rituals, practices, and beliefs. They have codified set of beliefs that direct them in the way they should act, worship and live. Religious people are passionate about their beliefs. Many religious people tend to believe in supernatural elements or forces. Religion has a sacred element, which in most cases is a powerful and full of life force (Ibrahim, 2008). This distinguishes it from the ordinary beliefs of people. I found that most people on earth were religious based on these characters. It was however hard to determine whether some of the people were religious because they did not seem to have a firm stand on anything. This only represented a small percentage of all the people I saw.

Religion involves a belief in a supernatural being. Most of the religious people believe in a supernatural being. I observed that some religions were more popular and prevalent than others. I also observed that some countries had dominant religions. Of all the religions I encountered, I discovered that there were four dominant forms of religions, and each of these had different practices. The main forms were Christianity, Islam, Jewish and Buddhism. The Christians believe in a supreme being who they refer to as God. They also have other beliefs that indicate that there are three persons in one God. However, this view varies among the many different groups. The Muslims believe in Allah, who they pray to several times in a day. The Jews believe in God, who sometimes they call Jehovah. In the three religions, the followers believe, follow, and revere their respective supreme beings. The followers believe that the Supreme Being guides their conduct and behavior. They also believe that they should worship the Supreme Being and respect him.

All the religions have different practices of worship, which enhance their religion. Some of the religious practices include prayer and various forms of worship. In all the religions, the followers pray to their supreme being, using different methods. Some of them chant, while others personalize their prayer. For some, they seem to have prescribed set of prayers which they use at appointed times. Some of the religions seem strict on prayer, and the followers ensure that they say their prayers once the appointed time reaches, regardless of where they are. For the Muslims, they pray various times during the day, starting from early in the morning to late in the evening. For the Christians, most of them do not have a set time for prayer. I however found out that most of them have the habit of praying in the morning and at night. Most Jews pray three times a day. They pray in the morning, afternoon and evening.

All the religions have a code of beliefs, which they follow. This is a written set of instructions, which they learn when they are young, and which they refer to when they are older. The Christians use the Bible, which is a collection of different books. They believe that the Bible is the word of God. They believe that it gives them the instruction for daily living, and it teaches them about God. The Muslims use the Koran, which they believe is God’s message passed through Mohammed who they consider their prophet. They also use the Hadith, which are a collection of Islamic laws and traditions. The Hadith contains the teachings of Mohammed and other Islamic sages. The Jews use the Tenakh, which consists of three sets of books, namely the Torah, the Prophets, and the writings. All the three sets contain different information about God, Jewish traditional law, Jewish history, and the way of life. It guides the Jews on how they should live their life. Other religions on earth such as Hinduism and Buddhism have sacred texts that they consult.

Religion serves different functions on earth. Religion gives answers to life’s questions, which otherwise seem challenging to answer. It enhances people’s understanding of difficult questions. It gives people direction and guidance in the way they should lead their lives. Religion seems to give people a sense of purpose. Most people are able to know what they should do with their lives. It educates people on the right and wrong, and good and evil. By reading the sacred texts, people are able to know the practices they should keep, and the ones they should avoid. They are able to know how to treat themselves and others. Religion defines moral and acceptable behavior, and it teaches people how they should relate with others (Haviland et al., 2010).

I think that one can define religion in a better way, other than using the functional definition. Many people tend to look at the functional definition of religion at the expense of the Supreme Being. The raw substantive definition refers to religion as belief in supernatural being. This definition covers the whole aspect of prayer, worship, and sacrifice. It brings back the traditional elements of reverence, wonder, and fear that people once used in defining religion (Swatos, n. d.). I think that these elements are important in the definition of religion, but people no longer use them. Most people no longer see the need of having any of these elements. This has changed the definition of religion over the years. It has incorporated other elements, which people did not consider religious. Religion should not just be another artificial or human made science, but should incorporate a supernatural ideal.

 

References:

Diener, W. P. (1997). Religion and morality: An introduction. Louiseville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press

Haviland, A. W., Prins, E. H., McBride, B., & Walrath, D. (2010). Cultural anthropology: The human challenge. New York, NY: Cengage Learning

Ibrahim, M. M. (2008). Sociology of religions: Perspectives of Ali Shariati. New Delhi, India: PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd

Swatos, H. W. (n. d.). Definition of Religion. Retrieved from http://hirr.hartsem.edu/ency/defreligion.htm

 

 

Last Completed Projects

Are you looking for a similar paper or any other quality academic essay? Then look no further. Our research paper writing service is what you require. Our team of experienced writers is on standby to deliver to you an original paper as per your specified instructions with zero plagiarism guaranteed. This is the perfect way you can prepare your own unique academic paper and score the grades you deserve.

Use the order calculator below and get started! Contact our live support team for any assistance or inquiry.

[order_calculator]