Chapter 6

Religion

PPT by Abe Goldman

An Introduction to Human GeographyThe Cultural Landscape, 8e

James M. Rubenstein

Distribution of Religions

• Universalizing religions– Christianity– Islam– Buddhism

• Ethnic religions– Hinduism– Other ethnic religions

Religion

• Varies in it’s cultural role: dominating/unimportant

• All societies have value systems• Religion has influenced economics,

politics and landscape

Secularism: indifference to or rejection of religion and religious

beliefs

World Distribution of Religions

Fig. 6-1: World religions by continent.

Universalizing

• Christianity• Islam • Buddhism• Attempt to be global, appeal to all,

seek to convert

World Population by Religion

Fig. 6-1a: Over two-thirds of the world’s population belong to Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, or Buddhism. Christianity is the single largest world religion.

Christianity

• Roman Catholic: 50%• Protestant 25%• Eastern Orthodox 10%• 15% Miscellaneous

Christian Branches in Europe

Fig. 6-2: Protestant denominations, Catholicism, and Eastern Orthodoxy are dominant in different regions of Europe—a result of many historic interactions.

Eastern Orthodox

• 14 self governing sectors• Tend to be located in East Europe• 40% belong to Russian Orthodox• 20% Romanian Orthodox• 10% Bulgarian , Greek, Serbian

Western Hemisphere

• 90% Christian• Roman Catholic: 95% LA/ 25% NA• Protestant 50% US

– Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal and Lutheran

Christian Branches in the U.S.

Fig. 6-3: Distribution of Christians in the U.S. Shaded areas are counties with more than 50% of church membership concentrated in Roman Catholicism or one of the Protestant denominations.

Other Christian sects

• Coptic Church• Ethiopian Church• Armenian• Maronites in Lebanon• Mormons

Islam

• Fastest growing• Middle East and North Africa:50%• Other areas: Indonesia, Pakistan,

Bangladesh, India, Philippines and Nigeria

Branches of Islam

• Sunni 83%• Shiite or Shia16%

Iran, Pakistan, Iraq, Turkey, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan

• 90% of Iran is Shiite• Europe: 3% France largest %

Nation of Islam

• Born in 1930• Desire of American blacks to be

freed from White oppression• Members of lost Islamic tribe• Founded by Elijah Muhammad

Buddhism

• Mahayana: China, Japan and Korea

• Theravadists: Southeast Asia• Tantrayanists: Tibet and Mongolia

Other Universalizing

• Sikhism: combines Hinduism and Islam/rejects formalism

• Jainism: revolt against authority of early Hindu doctrines

• Baha’i: founded in Iran universal faith

Ethnic

• Strong territorial and cultural ID• Member by birth or adoption of life

style• Distinctive closed community• Does not seek converts

Hinduism

• Oldest religion• 97% India • Up to individual best way to

worship• Mono/Poly? All related to Brahma • No founder or single holy book

Hinduism

• Allegiance to a particular god • 70% Vishnu/Krishna• 25% Sivaism

Coexist with Buddhism

• Confucius: Correct behavior/roles in society

• Daoism (Taoism) in harmony with nature/ mystical and magical aspects: balance yin/yang

• Shintoism: Japan forces of natureancestor worship/ emperor deity

Judaism

• 17 million• Three branches Orthodox,

Conservative and Reform• 6 million in US/mostly in cities• 4 million in Israel

Variations in Distribution of Religions (1)

• Origin of religions– Origin of universalizing religions– Origin of Hinduism

• Diffusion of religions– Diffusion of universalizing religions– Lack of diffusion of ethnic religions

Origin of Christianity

• Founded upon teaching of Jesus• Born Bethlehem 4 BC died 30AD• Four gospels of followers document• Pope heads the Church hierarchy• Grace through sacraments• Belief in body and blood of Jesus in

Eucharist

Christianity split

• Eastern Orthodox: rivalry between Pope of Rome and Patriarchy of Constantinople: final 1054

• Protestantism: ReformationMartin Luther posts theses in Wittenberg: grace through faith rather than sacraments

Origins of Islam

• Trace lineage through second wife of Abraham and son Ishmael

• Wandered the desert reaching Makkah

• Muhammad born in Makkah:570 revelation from God through Gabriel

Islam

• Quran: God’s words as revealed to Muhammad

• Suffered persecution flee to Madina• Accepted in Madina: returns to

Makkah with army and establish religion

Differences branches

• Disagreement as to line of succession in Islamic leadership

• Shiites claim Ali descendents as leaders: cousin and son in law of Muhammed

• Sunnis claim leadership by qualified not by lineage

Differences

• Sunnis: effectiveness of family and community in solving life’s problems

• Shiite believe that imam sole source of true knowledge

Buddhism

• Siddhartha Gautama: 563 BC in Nepal: son of a Lord; easy life

• Encountered aged, disease, corpse• Left age 29: enlightenment through

meditation• Theravada: wisdom: monastic: personal

salvation: good behaviorMahayana: compassion: Salvation can

aided by superhuman sources of merit

other

• Sikhism: Guru Nanak traveled 500 years ago

• Nine other Gurus succeed• Fifth guru complied/edited book of

scriptures• Remains clustered in Punjab• When India divided prefer to live in

Hindu dominated India

Baha’i

• Begun in Iran• Strong opposition from Shiite

Muslims: Bab executed • Baha’u’llah prophet arrested and

exiled to Baghdad• Appointed his son/leader and

interpreter of teaching

Hinduism

• Not originate from specific founder• Term: 6th century BC refers to

people in India

Prior to written history/earliest documents 1500BC

• Aryans from Central Asia brought

Hinduism

• More of a way of life: worship in home is common

• Pilgrimages, rituals, festivals• Fundamental doctrine karma• Ideal to move up hierarchy/ escape

cycle of rebirth through union with Brahman

• Reincarnation

Diffusion of Universalizing Religions

Fig. 6-4: Each of the three main universalizing religions diffused widely from its hearth.

Diffusion of Christianity

Fig. 6-5: Christianity diffused from Palestine through the Roman Empire and continued diffusing through Europe after the fall of Rome. It was later replaced by Islam in much of the Mideast and North Africa.

Christianity Diffusion

• Relocation diffusion: missionaries

carry along Roman Empire routes

Commercial towns and military settlements: Paul of Tarsus

• Contagious diffusion: Contact with believers

Diffusion

• Hierarchical diffusion: Emperor Constantine encouraged 312

• Period of decline/fall of Roman empire

• Kept alive in Ireland and Scotland

Diffusion

• Contagious diffusion: Eastern Orthodox from Constantinople north and northeast

• Protestantism: both contagious and hierarchical as political leaders would convert

Diffusion

• Era of European colonialism

• Missionary activity: conversion and marriage

Diffusion of Islam

Fig. 6-6: Islam diffused rapidly and widely from its area of origin in Arabia. It eventually stretched from southeast Asia to West Africa.

Diffusion of Islam

• Muhammad’s successors organize armies: Conquer Africa, Asia and Europe

• Extends from Morocco to India and from Turkey to Ethiopia

Diffusion

• Relocation: to Sub Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia

• Hierarchical: Arab traders to Indonesia and other areas: economic ties and cultural influence with leaders

Diffusion

• Spread into Christian strongholds creates conflict

• Iberian peninsula, Southeast Europe, Crusades

Diffusion of Buddhism

Fig. 6-7: Buddhism diffused gradually from its origin in northeastern India to Sri Lanka, southeast Asia, and eventually China and Japan.

Diffusion

• Buddhism 6th century: reaction to social hierarchy of Hinduism

• Siddhartha Gautama: Salvation attained by anyone

• 3rd century: Asoka a convert• Asoka leader of large and powerful

state

Diffusion

• Rule country in accordance with teaching of Buddha

• Sent missionaries to carry message• Spread to Sri Lanka, Tibet, east to

China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam etc over span of 10 centuries

• Sri Lanka longest tradition

Diffusion

• Merchants along trading routes• Chinese rulers allow monks and

translations• Declines in region of origin

Diffusion of Ethnic Religions

• Lack missionaries devoted to conversion

• Universalizing mingle with them• African traditions added to

Christianity and Islam• Buddhism mingle with Shinto and

Daoism

Diffusion of Hinduism

• Born in Western part of India (Pakistan) and spread eastward

• First attach itself to traditional faiths and then supplant them

• Assimilate teachings into own • Emergence of compromise religion

Hinduism

• Did disseminate into Southeast Asia but was overtaken by others

• Island of Bali remains Hindu refuge when Islam engulfed Java

• Developed Syncretic faith: Hindu, Buddhist, animist and ancestor

• Few nonIndian conversions

Shintoism and Buddhism in Japan

Fig. 6-8: Since Japanese can be both Shinto and Buddhist, there are many areas in Japan where over two-thirds of the population are both Shinto and Buddhist.

Judaism

• Most Jews not lived in Eastern Med since 70AD

• Romans force Diaspora• Most to Europe a few to North

Africa and Asia

Variations in Distribution of Religions (2)

• Holy places– Holy places in universalizing religions– Holy places in ethnic religions

• The calendar– The calendar in ethnic religions– The calendar in universalizing religions

Holy places

• Ethnic: less widespread/derive from physical environment

• Universalizing: cites and places associated with founder’s life

• Pilgrimages both sacred/Hindus and Muslims especially

Holy places in Universalizing

• Buddhism and Islam place emphasis on identifying shines

Holy Sites in Buddhism

Fig. 6-9: Most holy sites in Buddhism are locations of important events in Buddha’s life and are clustered in northeastern India and southern Nepal.

Lumbini

Mecca, Islam’s Holiest City

Fig. 6-10: Makkah (Mecca) is the holiest city in Islam and is the site of pilgrimage for millions of Muslims each year. There are numerous holy sites in the city.

Places of Worship

Makkah

• Birthplace of Muhammad• Holiest object: Ka’ba• Built by Abraham and Ishmael• Contains black stone given to

Abraham by Gabriel as a sign of covenant with Ishmael and the Muslim people

Madinah

• Muhammad received his first support

• Muhammad’s tomb here• Every one is expected to undertake

a pilgramage to Mecca

Hindu Holy Places

Fig. 6-11: Hierarchy of Hindu holy places: Some sites are holy to Hindus throughout India; others have a regional or sectarian importance, or are important only locally.

Hinduism

• Tied to physical geography• Natural features among holiest shrines:

riverbanks or coastlines• Pilgrimage: act of purification: achieve

redemption: bathing in holy rivers• Ganges: connection to Siva• Importance of shrines by tradition not

doctrine

Cosmogony: set of beliefs concerning the origin of universe

• Chinese: balance of yin and yang• Christianity and Islam: God created

the universe: physical and human• Christians: Earth given to finish

task of creation• Islam: Humans representatives of

God but not partners

Some views

• Development of wilderness way to serve God/ Use of Earth’s natural resources

• May regard natural disasters as punishments for sins

• Or view environmental hazards as normal and unavoidable

Calendar in Ethnic

• Celebration of the seasons• Critical for successful agriculture• Rituals for favorable environmental

conditions or give thanks for success

Jewish calendar

• Ethnic: based on agriculture of Israel

• Grains planted in autumn: Time of hope and worry. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur

• Sukkoth: final gathering and preparation for next year

Jewish

• Pesach: Passover: offered God first fruits of new harvest and sacrifice a young animal

• Shavuot: comes at end of the grain harvest

Jewish calendar

Tied to Exodus of Jews from EgyptPesach: liberation/Sukkot:wandering/

booths Shavuot: 10 comandments• Israel: Uses the lunar calendar:

350 days/appearance of new moon• Add extra month seven out of every

19 years for holidays

Jewish

• Pesach: Passover: offered God first fruits of new harvest and sacrifice a young animal

Solstice

• Longest day or shortest day• Significance for ethnic Relgions• Stonehenge: Southwest England:

Druids• Washington DC

Islamic Calendar

• Strict lunar calendar

• Muslim holidays arrive at different seasons

• Ramadan

Christian, Buddhist and Sikh Holidays

• Protestant and Roman Catholic: Gregorian calendar

• Eastern Orthodox uses Julian calendar• Easter: first full moon following the

spring equinox• Christmas: Northern hemisphere winter• Different conditions for different areas

Buddhist holidays

• Birth• Enlightment• Death• Not everyone celebrates on same

day

Organization of Space• Places of worship

– Christian worship– Places of worship in other religions

• Sacred space– Disposing of the dead– Religious settlements– Religious place names

• Administration of space– Hierarchical religions– Locally autonomous religions

Christian churches

• Gathering of believers• Expression of religious principles• Attendance considered important• Traditionally: prominent position in

community• Expense is a factor

Church Architecture

• Modeled after Roman buildings• Gothic: floor plan in form of a cross• Reflect cultural values• Eastern Orthodox: ornate• Protestant may be asture• Availability of materials

Mosque

• Space for community assembly• Not viewed as sanctified • Usually in larger cites• Organized around a central

courtyard• Minaret are distinctive

Hindu

• Sacred structures for collective worship not as important

• Religious functions can take place at home

• Temple: serves as a home to one or more gods

Buddhist and Shintoist Pagodas

• Prominent and visually attractive• Tall many sided towers, tiers,

balconies and slanting roofs• May contain relics of Buddha• Not designed for congregational

worship• Individual prayer or meditation

Disposing of the Dead

• Burial: Christians, Muslims and Jews in a designated area

• May be aligned in a traditional direction

• Traditionally used cemeteries as public open space

• China encouraged cremation

Other Methods

• Hindus: generally practice cremation: act of purification

• Used in Europe before Christianity• Free soul from the body: nomads

unwilling to leave dead behind• Zoroastrians/Tibetans exposure of

dead

Place Names in Québec

Fig. 6-12: Place names in Québec show the impact of religion on the landscape. Many cities and towns are named after saints.

Hierarchical

• Well defined geographic structure and organizes territory

• Roman Catholic Pope, Archbishops, Bishops, Priest

• Individual parishes work closely with centrally located officials

• Latter Day Saints: Strong organization wards, stake, board and president

Growth

• Roman Catholic Southwest and suburbs

• Declining in inner cities and rural areas

• Mormons: wards

Roman Catholic Hierarchy in U.S.

Fig. 6-13: The Catholic Church divides the U.S. into provinces headed by archbishops. Provinces are divided into dioceses, headed by bishops.

Local Autonomy

• Islam: neither religious hierarchy nor formal territorial organization

• Link of religious territory with secular states: more explicit commands

• Governments may include administrators interpret law

Islam

• High degree of communication and migration: pilgrimage to Makkah

• Uniformity is fostered by Islamic doctrine: Islamic schools

Protestant

• Extremely autonomous to somewhat hierarchical

• Baptist and United Church of Christ• Presbyterian intermediate• Episocopalian, Lutheran and

Methodist: similar to Roman Catholic

Ethnic

• Judaism and Hinduism no centralized structure of religious control

Judaism: only 10 adult males

Hinduism in home

Religious Conflicts

• Religion vs. government policies– Religion vs. social change– Religion vs. Communism

• Religion vs. religion– Religious wars in the Middle East– Religious wars in Ireland

Jerusalem

Fig. 6-14: The Old City of Jerusalem contains holy sites for Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

Boundary Changes in Palestine/Israel

Fig. 6-15: The UN partition plan for Palestine in 1947 contrasted with the boundaries that were established after the 1948–49 War. Major changes later resulted from the 1967 War.

The West Bank: Political and Physical Geography

Fig. 6-16: Political control of the West Bank has been split between Palestinians and Israelis (though under overall Israeli control). The West Bank includes many of the higher altitude areas of the region.

Israel’s Security Zone in Lebanon

Fig. 6-1-1: Israel established a security zone in southern Lebanon in 1982. When Israel withdrew in 2000, the UN helped draw the boundary between the countries.

Protestants in Northern Ireland

Fig. 6-17: Percent Protestant population by district in Ireland, 1911. When Ireland became independent in 1937, 26 northern districts with large Protestant populations chose to remain part of the United Kingdom.