Introduction to Religious Studies
Prof. Felix Just, S.J.
Western Religions Overview
Faith and Belief
Nouns: “faith; trust, confidence”
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Confidence in someone/something:
She has faith in her doctor.
A belief in a supernatural power:
Have faith! He lost his faith.
A religious system or institution: The Christian faith. The Jewish faith.
Verbs: “to believe; to have faith, to trust” (trans. & intrans.)
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To accept something as real or true: I believe this story.
To affirm a statement or assertion: I believe (that) she will come soon.
To grant someone veracity or trust: I believe you; I believe in you.
To assert the value of something: I believe in democracy.
To have spiritual or religious faith. I believe.
Faith and Believing
 Word Derivations (from Latin):
– fides = “faithfulness, firmness”; fidere = “to trust”
• Cf. English: fidelity; infidel; confident, etc.
– credere = “to believe”; credo = “I believe”
• Cf. English: credible, credence, incredulous, credit, etc.
 Scripture Texts on Faith/Believing:
– Judaism: Gen 15:5-6; Josh 24:14-15
– Christianity: Heb 11:1; John 3:16
– Islam: Qur’an 10:99-100; 8:2-4
Types of Belief in God(s) – lots of “isms”
 Theism, Atheism
 Agnosticism, Gnosticism
 Deism, Pantheism
 Polytheism, Paganism/Heathenism
 Henotheism, Monotheism
 Trinitarianism (vs.Tri-Theism)
 Others?
 Hint: Learn these in pairs or groups of similar terms.
Types of Belief in God (I)
 Theism
– Belief in the existence of a God or any gods
– The generic term, of which other –isms are subcategories
 Atheism
– The opposite: Belief that God and/or gods do “not exist”
 Agnosticism
– “Not knowing” whether God exists; overall non-belief
 Gnosticism
– A religious system that believes salvation comes through
“knowledge” (Gk. gnosis) of one’s divine origin and destiny
Types of Belief in God (II)
 Deism
– Belief that God created the world, but no longer influences it
• Based on 18th-century rationalism (e.g. Thomas Jefferson)
 Pantheism
– Belief that divinity is “everywhere” / in “everything” (Gk. pan)
• Whole universe is divine; but there is no “God” apart from the world
 Polytheism
– Belief in the existence of “many” (Gk. poly) gods
• Egyptians & Mesopotamians: many gods, often in animal form
• Greek & Romans: large family of gods, on Mount Olympus
Types of Belief in God (III)
 Monotheism
– Belief in the existence of “only one” (Gk. monos) God
• What others call “gods” are at most spirits, but not divine
– Jews and Muslims believe in one God:
• God is an indivisible unity; “no associates or partners”
– Christians believe in one God, who is a “Trinity”
• One divine “nature” in three divine “persons”
– Father (Creator), Son (Jesus), Holy Spirit
• “Trinitarianism” = “Trinitarian Monotheism”
– not the same as “Tri-theism” (belief in 3 different gods)
Types of Belief in God (IV)
 Henotheism
– Allegiance to “one” (Gk. hen) god over the others
• All nations have their own “gods”; “Our god is better than your gods”
• Assumes polytheistic worldview, but monotheistic worship
 Paganism / Heathenism
– All religions outside of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
• Popular connotation is negative: unbelievers, hedonists, etc.
• Academic meaning is neutral: all non-monotheistic religions
Identifying God (Titles & Names):
 Generic Titles:
– God / god, Deity, Divine Power, El, Elohim, Allah, etc.
– Father, Mother, Creator, Lord, King, etc.
 Proper Names:
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Jewish: YHWH (Yahweh? Jehovah?); Ya/Ja
Mesopotamian: Asherah, Baal; Ishtar, Marduk, Tiamat, etc.
Egyptian: Aten, Horus, Isis, Osiris, Ra, Seth, Thoth, etc.
Greco-Roman / Olympian: Zeus=Jupiter; Athena=Diana; etc.
Talking about God (Philosophically):
 God is Absolute (positive & negative):
– ALL: omnipotent (all powerful); omniscient (all knowing);
omnipresent (everywhere); omni-benevolent (all merciful)
– NOT: invisible (not seen); immutable (unchanging);
immortal (not dying); infinite (not limited); etc.
 Language is Limited (analogies & opposites):
– God is transcendent (beyond) & immanent (internal)
– So God-talk is possible, but always analogical / inadequate
– Both/And Approach: via positiva & via negativa
Classifying World Religions:
 Major Categories:
– “Eastern” & “Western” & “Local” & New” Religions
 Best term for Judaism, Christianity, Islam:
– "Religions of the Book"?
– "Monotheistic Religions"?
– "Religions of Abrahamic Origin"?
– "Religions of Judaic Origin"?
– "Religions of Near Eastern Origin"?
– Advantages & Drawbacks of each of these?
The Three Western Religions
(and their sub-branches)
 Judaism (ca. 15 Million)
– Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist
 Christianity (ca. 2.1 Billion)
– (Eastern) Orthodox: Greek; Russian; Armenian; etc.
– (Roman) Catholic: Latin, Byzantine, and other “rites”
– (Western) Protestant: many “churches/denominations”
 Islam (ca. 1.3 Billion)
– Suni; Shi’ite; [ Sufi ]
The Three Western Religions
(religion / members / adj. //
Book // founder, leaders):
 Judaism / Jews / Jewish
– TaNaK (Hebrew Bible, esp. Torah)
• Abraham, Isaac, Jacob (Israel) -- 2nd mill. BC/BCE
• Moses, David, prophets, priests, kings
 Christianity / Christians / Christian
– Bible (Old Testament & New Testament)
• Christ Jesus -- 1st century AD/CE
• Peter & Paul, apostles, evangelists, bishops
 Islam / Moslems / Muslim & Islamic
– Qur’an (or Koran)
• Prophet Muhammad -- 7th century AD/CE
• Caliphs ("successors"), Imams ("leaders")
Summary / Review
Types of Belief in God (“-isms”)
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Theism vs. Atheism vs. Agnosticism
Deism vs. Pantheism
Polytheism & Paganism
Henotheism vs. Monotheism (and Trinitarianism)
Western / Monotheistic Religions:
– Common Core: Faith/Belief in One God!
– Differences: Judaism / Christianity / Islam?