Religion & Philosophy
Topic Overview
21st June 2010
Contents
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
Definitions
What is religion?
Why do religions exist?
Why do we study them?
Conclusion
a) Definitions




Philosophy
pursuit of wisdom
a search for a general
understanding of values and
reality
an analysis of the grounds of
and concepts expressing
fundamental beliefs
the most basic beliefs,
concepts, and attitudes
of an individual or group
Religion
 the service and worship of
God or the supernatural
 commitment or devotion to
religious faith or
observance
 a personal set or
institutionalized system
of religious attitudes,
beliefs, and practices
Why the two together?
• Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems concerning
matters such as existence, knowledge, values – basically the same questions
that religion tries to answer.
• Distinguished from other ways of addressing these questions by its critical,
generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational argument.
• Developments of new religions…Gradual changes based on new ways of
thinking introduced into existing religions
• New religions can be seen as new ways of thinking progressively being
introduced to existing thought systems
• Just like Darwin’s evolution, this is NOT PROGRESS/IMPROVEMENT –
JUST DIFFERENCE
b) What is religion?
• “the relationship between man and the superhuman
power he believes in and feels himself to be
dependent upon”
• “the service and worship of God or the supernatural”
• 3 main groups:
– Monotheistic – e.g. Christianity, Islam
– Polytheistic – e.g. Hinduism
– Ethical – e.g. Theravada Buddhism
c) Why do religions exist?
• Human desire to determine:
– the source of life,
– purpose of life,
– meaning & nature of death.
• Borne out of uncertainty & lack of knowledge
d) Why do we study them?
 Religions are human intellectual constructs, which:
 Form an integral part of lifestyle in the great civilizations of the
past and present
 Underpin the value systems of different cultures
 Enable us to form our own opinions & views of reality – especially
if we don’t fully subscribe to any of the major religions
• Ninian Smart (1989) – identified 7 common
dimensions of the world’s main religions as a
framework for study:
1. Practical & ritual dimension
2. Experimental & emotional dimension
3. Narrative & Mythic dimension
4. Doctrinal and Philosophical dimension
5. Ethical and legal dimension
6. Social and institutional dimension
7. Material dimension
1. Practical & ritual dimension
Regular activities which
show that you follow a
particular religion
These can be very
extreme:
Human sacrifices by the
Aztecs and Incas of
South America
Or very mundane…
 Praying
 Making offerings
 Attending religious
ceremonies and
gatherings
2. Experimental & emotional dimension
Religions tell us amazing stories of the
deeply emotional, life changing
events that have been experienced by
certain individuals and suggest that
we may be able to experience
something similar.
The Angel Gabriel – as seen in a vision
by the Prophet Mohammed
The Buddha’s moment of enlightenment
The conversion of
Saint Paul
3. Narrative & Mythic dimension
 Stories – historical , futuristic, biographical, fights against
evil, moral & ethical tales
 May have a grounding in actual historical events ..or not
 Often get woven into the mythical dimension
4. Doctrinal and Philosophical dimension
Doctrine – answers the ‘BIG’ questions – while the ‘myths’ provide
us with stories concerning people and events, the doctrine sets
out the fundamental beliefs
“A principle or body of principles presented for acceptance or belief, as by a
religious, political, scientific, or philosophic group; dogma.”
Tripitaka (พระไตรปิ ฎ) - 40 volumes (in Pali)
5. Ethical and legal dimension
Either enshrined within the doctrine, or as a separate document,
religions set out a set or rules for our behaviour
5 precepts for ‘lay’ followers and 227 for monks in the
Vinaya code (พระวินัยปิ ฎก)
6. Social and institutional dimension
Religions develop their own social communities and social
structures - how do they interact with the lay population?
7. Material dimension
Buildings, art, music, natural features, landmarks, symbols…
 These 7 dimensions can be used to study, compare and
contrast different types of religious and non-religious
(secular) beliefs
e) Conclusion
 Religion and Philosophy are both essentially a set of
fundamental, underlying beliefs which influence all other
aspects of human intellectual constructions:
‘history, philosophy, languages, linguistics, literature, archeology,
jurisprudence, history and criticism of the arts, ethics, comparative
religion…political theory, international relations…and other
subjects…’ (National Endowment for the Humanities)
 Almost everything that is studied under the scope of
Humanities is influenced in some way by religion an (or)
philosophy