AN INTRODUCTION, ANIMISM AND PAGANISM

Religions

How to study belief systems

How do we define religion?How do we classify religions?

What are their characteristics? How do they evolve?

Cultural character? Shrines, stupas, cathedrals, Grottos,

monasteries?What is their political/social appeal?How do they interact?

How do they travel? Conflict Syncretism

Classification

UNIVERSALIZING RELIGION one that attempts to appeal to

all people, not only those at one location

 ETHNIC RELIGION religion with a spatially

(socially or ethnically) concentrated distribution;

principles of such a religion are likely to be based on physical characteristics of a particular location

TRIBAL OR TRADITIONAL RELIGION small size, localized culture

groups

Universalizing Ethnic

• everywhere• Individual founder

(prophet)• Message diffused

widely (missionaries)• Followers distributed

widely.• Holidays based on

events in founder’s life.

• Has meaning in particular place only.

• Unknown source.• Content focused on place

and landscape of origin.• Followers highly

clustered.• Holidays based on local

climate and agricultural practice.

Tenets or teachings

Are collected in: Books of learning Books of Law

Are taught in/by Monasteries Monks

Actual foundation of the religion

How it spreadsPilgrims

Trade routes

Geographic conduits/crossroads/ obstacles

Stages

Conversion or forced acceptance

Diaspora

Nature of Religion

Who are the leaders? What kind of background

do they have?Degree of aggressionHow are they

organized? Hierarchy Religious Institutions

and bureaucraciesConnection with

political authority

Sacred sites and ceremoniesMeetings/

gatherings

Types of structures

Geographic connections to sites

Tolerance for other religions

Methods used to keep the true nature of their religion Wars Ethnic cleansing Marriage Conversion Persecution

Role of Religiona symbol of group

identity

a cultural rallying point (like language)

influences the spread of languages to new peoples and areas (Arabic, Latin)

may involve prescribed patterns of behavior; prayer, special rites, obedience to doctrine

Animism – the roots of religion

• the belief that all objects, animals, and beings are “animated” or possess a spirit and a conscious life. • Spirits live in rocks, rivers,

mountain peaks, and heavenly bodies

• Each tribe has its own characteristic form of animism

•Also called shamanism because of the prominence of a Shaman.• Common among hunter-gatherers• 10% of Africans follow such traditional ethnic religions.• These beliefs are losing ground to Christianity and Islam throughout Africa.

Nigerian Shaman

Paganism

from the Latin paganus, meaning "country dweller", "rustic"

Refers to polytheistic religions Europe before

Christianization Usually Greco-Roman Also Celtic, Germanic, and

SlavicMost pagan religions

build their rituals around the cycles and seasons of the earth.

No single sacred text

Paganism

Gender: Greek and Roman

society were patriarchal

Greek and Roman mythology honor gods as much as goddesses

Social Class Participation in

religious rituals moral necessary for all regardless of social class

At first, priesthood only open to upper classes

Paganism today

Modern scholars have begun to apply the term pagan to three separate groups of faiths:  Historical Polytheism Folk/ethnic/Indigenous

religions Neo-Paganism