Preliminary
Nature of Religion and Beliefs
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Religion has been defined in many ways:
◦ “Belief in, worship of or obedience to a
supernatural power or powers considered to be
divine or to have control of human destiny” Collins
Australian English Dictionary
◦ “Belief in and response to, God or the gods”
◦ “A system of beliefs and practices”
◦ “A state being grasped by an ultimate concern”
Paul Tillich
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Religion often involves
◦ Belief in something beyond the ordinary
◦ The use of ordinary things to help people see the
ultimate concern
◦ A way of helping people through life’s obstacles
and difficulties
◦ Origins, purpose and significance of things
◦ What happens after death
◦ Explanations for things
◦ Beliefs and practices
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The Latin word ‘religio’ translates as
‘religion’
It comes from two other Latin words:
◦ Relegare - to gather up or turn to constantly
◦ Religare - to bind together
Some people think that religion means
constantly turning to and being bound to
some ultimate concern such as God or gods
which bring meaning to people’s lives
Others see ‘religion’ binding people
together as they share a common set of
beliefs and practices
Richard Leakey, a paleontologist
investigated a burial site at the
Shanidar Cave in Iraq
The Shanidar
Cave shows us
something
about religion in
prehistory
Shanidar Cave in Iraq has been the site of
human living and dying for 100 000 years
Looking out from Shanidar
Excavation in
cave
Skull of Neanderthal in cave
A reconstruction of a burial scene at Shanidar Cave.
What evidence of a religious world view can you see here?
Shanidar Cave
Bunches of flowers
were strewn over the
dead man by grieving
members of his tribe.
The amount of pollen
present could not
have been brought in
by the wind or
animals.
Neandethals sensed
the preciousness of
life and that some
elements continues
after death.
Early European people
called the Cro-Magnons
buried people in caves.
They covered the bodies in
red ochre and decorated the
body with bracelets and a
necklace of animal teeth.
This skeleton has been
covered in red ochre earth.
Red may have represented
blood or life. Tools and
ornaments were often buried
with the dead.
Burial Scene
This burial scene from northeast
France was made in about 4500
BCE at the time when farming
had started in the area.
The farmers were buried in small
cemeteries, often with shell
ornaments, adzes and stones for
grinding grain.
What is the significance of these
practices?
Burial Feast
The dead body of an
old man is propped
up against a rock and
sent into the afterlife
with a burial feast.
These events
happened 40000
years ago at La
Chapelle-aux-Saints,
France. The grave of
an old man, propped
against a stone was
found in 1908
together with the
bone from a chunk of
meat. How did this
help Neanderthals to
think about life and
death?
Cave Burial
While the mother
and other child
mourn, the father
places three flint
offerings on the
grave of their child.
The grave later
domed over is one
of nine discovered in
1909 in La
Ferrassie, France.
This scene shows
rituals associated
with the burial of the
dead with meaning
for after life.
What might this
picture tell us about
primal religion?
Skull Cave
Monto Circeo, Italy
Scientists suggest that
the skull had some
particular significance
since it was placed on
a pole and surrounded
by a circle of rocks. It
seems to have been a
shrine of some sort. Its
eyes look over the
family. It may have
been a symbol of an
honoured spirit?
A family grave in southern England built
around 3700 BCE. Not only used for
burying the dead but also for ceremonies
concerning the dead.
Corpses were placed outside to rot
and then skeletons were broken up
and bones placed in tomb. Some
skulls and other bones were
removed for ceremonies elsewhere.
The entrance was blocked and
opened many times.
Hunters carefully
place a cave bear’s
head in a stone
chest. Later they
will place six others
in the chest – all
facing the cave
entrance. They
may have believed
that the skulls
possessed magic
power.
Neanderthal Hunters
Swiss Alpine Cave
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Stone chests with bear heads were not just trophy
cases since other animals would have been much
easier to capture and other food was available in
abundance
Rites involving bears still occur among hunter
peoples, e.g. Siberian tribes worship the bear as the
mythical first man and apologise to the animal
profusely before killing it.
Other consider the bears to be intermediaries
between people and the reigning spirits of the land.
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Ainu hunters of northern Japan capture a bear cub and
treat it as an honoured guest (sometimes the women
even nurse the cub on their own breast milk)
In winter the bear is sacrificed and after a long
ceremony the men drink the bear’s blood while the
shaman (holy man) prays to the creator
The people believe the spirit of the sacrificed bear will
return to the forest and report on the hospitality it
received.
A favourable report from the bear persuades the forest
gods to arrange good hunting next year.
Ainu Hunter
The Ainu
Ainu man
Ainu woman
with young
child
Sending back the
spirit of the bear
A dance is part of the
ceremony of sending
back the bear’s spirit.
In Japanese ‘iyomante’
Ceremony for sending
back the bear spirit
Ancestor Mummy
Some Pacific
islanders still
mummify their dead
ancestors and use
them as part of the
ancestor worship they
practise.
Why do you think
these people honour
the dead?
Do we still do this in
perhaps a different
way?
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Do people in our modern Australian society still
wonder about the possibility of life after death?
Do you think people still care about proper
treatment of people after they have died?
What do we do to honour the dead?
What purpose does this serve?
This gigantic outline of a horse, about 100 metres long from
head to tail was cut into the chalk deposit underlying
Uffington in southern England and can be seen in its entirety
from the air. The Celts who carved it here in the 1st century
BCE saw it as a symbol of a horse god.
At dawn Celtic Druids
(priests) celebrate rites to
bring in a fruitful year.
Beneath oak branches
hung with sacred bracelets
offered by faithful people,
the chief Druid lifts his arms
in prayer to an image of the
god.
A younger ‘seer’, kneeling,
divines omens from a
human skull.
The Druids invoked the
gods of herd and harvest to
ensure prolific herds and
abundant harvests.
Ritual Shafts with Divine
Offerings
The Celts dug ritual shafts in the
ground. The one on the right was 10
metres deep and the one on the left
was 13 metres deep and are about
2000 years old. Some were 35 metres
deep.
The Celts believed that some of their
gods lived inside the earth and so they
dug deep shafts in the ground and
filled them with votive offerings to
propitiate the underground gods.
Often many shafts were in one place
suggesting that this was special holy
ground where people came to worship.
Mother Goddess
This baked clay sculpture from
Turkey was made in about
6000 BCE. She may have
been worshipped as a
goddess of motherhood, as
indicated by exaggerated
breasts and stomach. Mothers
were seen as godlike because
they gave birth. The Earth
Goddess or Great Mother
gave life to the world and so
ensured the future of the
human race
The Mother Goddess
Shown here giving birth,
the mother goddess is
monumental in appearance
but is actually only about 17
centimetres tall.
The clay figure symbolised
fruitfulness and was meant
to signify bountiful harvests.
This figure comes from an
area in south-central
Turkey, called Catal Huyuk,
where people lived up to
8500 years ago.
The Norse God Reykjavik
This Norse god from around
1000 CE comes from
Iceland and represents quite
a different tradition to the
Mother Goddess. In cultures
such as the Norse, the
achievements and activities
of men, especially war and
conquest were emphasised
and so the gods reflected
these activities.
As life became more
settled substantial stone
temples were built like this
one on the island of Malta.
This temple was built
between 3600 BCE and
2500 BCE.
Stonhenge in England was built
over many centuries from 2800
BCE to 1400 BCE. The circle of
stones aligned with the
midsummer sunrise and
midwinter sunset and were
used for ceremonies
A special holy person often emerged to oversee religious
matters. This was his special role in the tribe. This is a
modern day shaman (or holy man) of South American
indians. He is the key figure in human supernatural
interaction.
Catal Huyuk
At an altar-like
platform blazoned with
plaster leopards, two
women make a
harvest offering,
placing wheat spears
and a basket of seeds
before statuettes of the
mother goddess of
fertility. This was a
ritual of late summer
when crops began to
ripen.
A massive structure built
by King Ur-Nammu in
2100 BCE, testifying to
his power and to the glory
of Nanna, the moon god.
The huge religious centre
rose three tiers to a
height of 20 metres above
shrines, storehouses,
courtyards and homes of
the temple staff.
Only the crumbling lower
tier survives. It is 70
metres long, 50 metres
wide and 15 metres high.
The terraced Ziggurat of Ur
Southern Iraq
How may this have been
used?
Im-dugud, the Sumerian god of storms, with a stag
Sumerian culture (2800 BCE Middle East) was dominated by
many gods – more than 3000.
Originally the gods were
associated with natural phenomena (like storms) and were
depicted in non-human form, like Im-dugud, the god of storms – a
lion headed eagle.
The temple of Ramses II at Abu Simbel in Egypt was part of the
worship of the god-king known as the Pharaoh.
The Pharaoh were mummified after death in preparation for the
afterlife.
The ancient Greeks and Romans built temples for their
gods. This temple in Rome called the Pantheon still
exists and is now used a Christian Church.
Professor Ninian Smart
was the Professor of
Religious Studies at
Lancaster University
in England.
He spent a lifetime in
the study of religion.
His work established a
theory of seven
dimension of
religion.
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Ninian Smart is the pioneer of modern religious studies.
His work concentrated on the characteristics common
across various religious traditions – this is called the
phenomenological approach
Religion is so vast that this approach allows us to break it
down a little and understand it
Smart described this as “getting to know the trees before
trying to depict the forest”
We become familiar with the bits and pieces (the
phenomena or characteristics) of religion so that we can
understand the whole religion
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Practical and Ritual Dimension
◦ Practices of religion – worship, preaching, prayers and
rituals
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Experiential and Emotional Dimension
◦ Experiences and emotions of adherents
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Narrative or Mythical Dimension
◦ ‘story’ – experience expressed through ritual, sacred
narrative or myth – e.g. creation narrative
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Doctrinal and Philosophical Dimension
◦ Doctrine and philosophies are organised system of beliefs
and values – an intellectual statement of the basis of faith
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Ethical and Legal Dimension
◦ A set of commands or rules which guide the behaviour of
adherents of religion
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Social and Institutional Dimension
◦ This refers to the way the religion is in place in the world
– e.g. the Church for Christians or the Umma (the Muslim
Community) or tribes
◦ Also sacred people, such as saints, gurus, mystics or
prophets
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Material Dimension
◦ Social or institutional – visible and symbolic forms of
religion – buildings, art, special places
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Practical and Ritual
Experiential and Emotional
Narrative and Mythical
Doctrinal and philosophical
Ethical and Legal
Social and Institutional
Material
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The phenomena of religion have been categorised
as:
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Rituals
Stories
Beliefs
Space and time structures
Persons
Experiences
These phenomena are the ‘vocabulary’ of religion –
they are the raw data with which analysis of
religion is carried out
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Scientific – tries to find out in an objective and
impartial way what are the ‘bits’ of religion
Educationally oriented – tries to break a huge topic
down in smaller pieces which people can manage in
their attempt to understand what religion is
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Religion is complex but some perspectives
are often common to all religious
experience:
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Something beyond the ordinary
Supernatural
Natural
Transcendent
Immanent
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Typically religion speaks of ‘something’
beyond the ordinary - it connects people
to and binds them to this ‘something’
This ‘something’ is complex and difficult
to define - often referred to as God
It is this ‘something’ that helps people to
map a course through life and its
obstacles
This ‘something’ looks beyond the
limitations of human existence and helps
to provide meaning both in the world
‘beyond’ and the world ‘here’
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‘super’ means ‘above’ or ‘beyond’ so
‘supernatural’ means above or beyond
the natural
Supernatural power is above or beyond
the power of humans and ordinary
human existence
Supernatural power is not explained by
natural or scientific laws
Supernatural sometimes involves the
miraculous or beyond the ordinary
In 2003 people went to Coogee Beach to see an
apparition of the Virgin Mary reported to be seen in a
fence post - thousands flocked to see it.
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‘natural’ refers to created or human thoughts
or practices
Objects or this world are natural, e.g. trees,
rocks, rivers, mountains, water, bread and
wine
Sometimes natural objects can help people
come close to God or the divine
In Buddhism
Buddha if often
shown touching
the earth with his
right hand. The
touching of the
natural (the
earth) is meant to
show the reality
of the Buddha’s
religious
experience.
In Christianity natural
things like bread are
used to show the
presence of God with
people in the
Eucharist. Christians
believe that when
they eat the bread
Jesus is present with
them.
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Pointing towards and beyond the natural or
earthly world is called the ‘transcendent’
dimension
Transcendence enables people to go
beyond their own world into the world of
God or the gods or into the heavenly or
spiritual worlds
God is above and beyond this earthly or
natural world
This artist’s representation of Jesus baptism by John the
Baptist shows a distinctly transcendent view with God
above and people below.
Architecture often reflects a view of God. Chartres
Cathedral in France shows a transcendent view of God
with high ceiling and lofty vaults as well as spires
pointing to the heavens.
This Islamic mosque in Indonesia creates a transcendent
image of God or Allah through the use of architecture how does it do this?
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Immanence suggests that the presence of
God or the gods is found within human
existence rather than above or beyond it
God is near (immanence) as well as far
(transcendence)
God is in things and people in the here and
now
Modern church architecture is less transcendent and
more immanent creating the idea of God with us rather
than God above us.
In John chapter 13 Jesus is said to have washed his
disciples feet - in this act of being a servant he was
God with them in an immanent way.
The Jewish Passover Meal is an intimate family event where
God is present with people in an immanent way in the
ordinary things of this life and in the normal place of living.
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Judaism, Christianity and Islam sometimes
emphasise the transcendence of God - God
exists beyond the human yet guides
humanity from afar
Judaism, Christianity and Islam do not
however deny the immanence of God - God
can be near in people, things, sacred texts,
actions and rituals
Hinduism and Buddhism typically
characterise the divine as being within the
individual in an immanent manner
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Religion has often helped people find answers
to some of the great questions of life questions like:
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Is there a God or supreme being?
Who am I?
Why is there evil, pain, suffering and death?
Is there a life after death?
The ordinary
 Beyond the ordinary
 In the supernatural
 In the natural
 In transcendent ways
 In immanent ways
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Religion has helped people find answers to
these great questions through:
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Beliefs
Sacred texts and stories
Ethics
Rituals and ceremonies
Religion has often been intimately linked
with the lives of individuals and their
society and culture - discuss some
examples