Social studies, grade 8
Lesson number 14
Religion as one
from the forms of culture
D.Z .: §12 , ?? (p. 101), tasks (p. 101-102). Review §6 -12, terms, creative tasks, ?? (p. 102-104) to Ch. II
Original Russian Text © A.I. Kolmakov
Lesson Objectives:
- Summarize and systematize knowledge about religion gained by students in history and literature courses, as well as their personal social experience.
- To uncover in the amount corresponding to the age-related cognitive abilities of students, specific features of religious consciousness, various functions of religion in society.
- To characterize the main types of religious organizations.
- Explain students the meaning of the constitutional provisions on freedom of conscience and freedom of religion.
- Contribute educating students in the spirit of tolerance, awareness of the importance and responsibility of a person's religious choice, understanding the danger of totalitarian religious organizations.
- Create conditions for the development of the following universal educational actions in students: moral and ethical orientation, orientation in social roles associated with the functioning of religion as a social institution; the ability to find in various sources and apply the necessary information to implement the assigned tasks, fulfill their social roles; ability to cooperate with people of different age, religious views.
Know and be able to (UUD)
- Define essential characteristics of religion and its role in cultural life.
- Explain the essence and meaning of religious tolerance.
- Disclose the essence of freedom of conscience.
- Evaluate their attitude to religion and atheism
Concepts, terms
- religion;
- religious belief;
- rituals;
- prayer;
- church;
- sect;
- freedom of conscience;
- freedom of religion
Knowledge check
- Describe science as a special system of knowledge.
- What features distinguish science as a system of state and public organizations that generate, store and disseminate scientific knowledge?
3. What is the role of science in modern society?
4. How is the moral responsibility of scientists manifested?
5. What is the growing influence of science on modern society?
Learning new material
- The role of religion in cultural development.
- Religious norms.
- Freedom of conscience
Let's remember. Let's think about it.
- REMEMBER. What is religion? When did the first religions appear? Which modern religions have more believers?
- LET'S THINK. Why does a person believe in the influence of supernatural forces on his life and the development of society? Why does the active development of science and the dissemination of scientific knowledge not reduce the number of believers?
Having determined the First Cause of Being, religion must give a clear teaching about Her. But this does not exhaust the essence religions ...
Religion(Latin religare - to bind, to connect) - a certain system of views, conditioned by belief in the supernatural, including a set of moral norms and types of behavior, rituals, cult actions and uniting people in an organization ( church, ummah, sangha, religious community)
- Word " religion ”, Which came from the Latin language, is translated and explained by scientists in different ways.
- Some believe that it comes from Latin relegere , which means "treat with special respect."
- Others derive the word "religion" from the Latin verb religare, which means "to connect", "to connect".
- religion- attitude, special moral standards and type of behavior ...
Religion(from Latin religio - piety, shrine, subject of worship).
- “Although the best minds of mankind were occupied with the so-called proofs of the existence of God, they were unsuccessful; for all this evidence ... cannot provide absolute certainty.
- Both the existence of the external world and the existence of the Divine principle for reason are only probabilities or conditional truths, and they can certainly be affirmed only by faith ...
- Just as external nature is only gradually revealed to the minds of man and humanity, as a result of which we must talk about the development of experience and natural science, so the Divine principle is gradually revealed to human consciousness, and we must talk about the development of religious experience and religious thinking. "
A fragment from the work of the Russian philosopher Vladimir Sergeevich Soloviev (1853-1900)
- Why, according to the philosopher, the evidence of the existence of God cannot be reliable?
- How do you understand the idea of the gradual development of religious experience and religious thinking?
- Why does a person believe in the possibility of supernatural forces interfering in his life?
The state guarantees freedom of religion to all believers the ability to freely send your cult.
Religious organizations and associations, their role in the life of modern society .
Religious organizations and associations, their role in the life of modern society .
Freedom of conscience
The freedom to choose religion is secured by law,
dubbed the right to freedom of conscience.
4. Freedom of conscience and freedom of religion.
The right to freedom of conscience, as well as
the right to freedom of opinion, thought and
word refers to civil rights.
Freedom of conscience presupposes freedom
religions, atheism, lack of a single,
compulsory for all religious
faith or obligatory disbelief
Optional
optional
citizens in any
educational institution
In some
non-state
institutions, private
way at home or
with religious
amalgamation
To
do not infringe on interests
unbelievers exist
2 types of religious
learning
Freedom of conscience is one of the main civil
Human rights and means above all the freedom of the individual
From any ideological control, everyone's right for themselves
Choose a system of spiritual values
check yourself
- What is religion?
2. What is characteristic of religious faith?
3. What is the significance of religion in the life of society?
4. List and briefly describe the main types of religious organizations.
5. What is the principle of freedom of conscience? How is it implemented in our country?
reflection
- What have you learned?
- How?
- What have you learned?
- What difficulties did you experience?
- Was it interesting in the lesson?
Literature
- Social Studies. Grade 8: study, for general education. Organizations / [L. N. Bogolyubov, N. I. Gorodetskaya, L. F. Ivanova and others]; ed. L. N. Bogolyubova [and others]; ... - 5th ed. - M.: Education, 2017 .-- 255 p.
- Kotova O.A., Liskova T.E. Social Studies. Workbook. 8th grade. Textbook for educational organizations. 4th edition. M .: - Education, 2017
- Social Studies. Lesson development. Grade 8: 0-28 textbook, manual for general education. organizations / [L. N. Bogolyubov, N. I. Gorodetskaya, L. F. Ivanova and others]. - 2nd ed. - M.: Education, 2016 .-- 174 p.
- L.N. Bogolyubov, N. I. Gorodetskaya, L. F. Ivanova and others. Social Science. Work programs. The subject line of textbooks, ed. L. N. Bogolyubova. 5-9 grades
- Illustrations from the Internet.
- Krayushkina S.V. Social studies tests: grade 8: textbook ed. L. N. Bogolyubov, A. Yu. Lazebnikova, N. I. Gorodetskaya “Social Science. 8th grade". FGOS (to a new textbook) / S. V. Krayushkina. - 7th ed., Rev. and add. - M .: Publishing house "Exam", 2017. - 191, p. (Series "Educational-methodical set")
© presentation template,
The structure of modern religions
Topic 2.
1. Features of religious faith. Religious consciousness: the ratio of the rational and emotional-volitional sides
2. Religious cult: content and functions
3. Religious organizations. Types of religious organizations
In the previous topic, we established the structure of religious studies, examined the originality in the approaches to the study of religion by representatives of theological, theological, philosophical and scientific thought, identified their views on the source and nature of the religious phenomenon. Now it is necessary to move on to a specific analysis of religion. And, first of all, it is important to establish what constitutes a distinctive feature of religion, on what basis we call these or those views, ideas, actions, organizations religious. Historically, in religious studies, the answers to these questions have acquired the character of a dispute over the so-called "Minimum" religion.
The problem of the “minimum” of religion has several aspects. The first aspect is related to the definition of the sphere of religious life in which this "minimum" should be sought. Three main approaches have emerged here. The first approach asserts that this "minimum" should be sought in the sphere of religious consciousness: in the peculiarities of the views, ideas, feelings and experiences of believers. The second approach asserts that the specificity of religion is associated with cult activity. The third one is with religious organizations.
After a specific area of manifestation of religious consciousness has been selected, the following question arises: what in this area specifically creates the specificity of religion? The answers to these questions in the history of religion have been very diverse. Let us consider specifically how these issues are resolved by representatives of various directions of religious studies. Most religious scholars believe that the "minimum" religion should be sought in the sphere of religious consciousness. They tend to associate religion with by faith. It is no coincidence that in widespread use the word “believer” is identified with the concept of “religious person”. Indeed, in any religion, faith occupies an important place. However, can it be considered that the presence of faith in a person makes it possible to characterize him as a religious person?
After all, faith, as a special emotional and psychological state of a person and at the same time his attitude to certain phenomena of the surrounding world, is inherent in all people. This is a natural property of human consciousness: every person believes in something, although not all people believe in the same thing. So does this mean that all people are religious? Probably not. Apparently, in addition to religious faith, there is also non-religious faith. It is necessary to figure out what these have in common; two varieties of faith, in other words, what is faith in general and what is the peculiarity of religious faith.
Every faith has its own subject. A person does not just believe, but believes in something. This "something" cannot act as an object of faith in the form of an objective reality independent of consciousness.
You cannot believe in an object as such, but you can only believe in one or another of our ideas about this object. For example, to believe that this object exists, that it is endowed with certain characteristics. Thus, faith is an element of human consciousness .;
and it is directly aimed at certain formations of consciousness and knowledge: concepts, ideas, images, theories, etc.; :
Which of the formations of consciousness are the subject of faith? Probably those that are not the subject of knowledge, that is, those. which have not received in the mind of a person the status of objective truths: representations, images, concepts, theories, the truth of which;
proved logically and verified by practice. Scientists note that subject of faith are hypothetical representations, images ;;:;
concepts and theories. However, not all hypotheses become objects of faith. As the researchers of this phenomenon note, faith arises in a person only when he is personally interested in the object of faith, when this object causes an emotional and evaluative reaction in a person. Moreover, this assessment is most often;
sometimes positive. A person first of all believes in what corresponds to his psychological attitudes, beliefs, ideals. Although it is not excluded cases when faith presupposes a sharply negative assessment of any image or concept. For example, belief in the devil as the antipode of God.
It is also important to note that faith as an active emotional ";
and an evaluative personal attitude to one's subject is inevitable;
captures the volitional process and manifests itself in one or another personality behavior. Faith as an integral part of the act of volitional choice, expresses affirmative fortitude. It is necessary for a person to mobilize his spiritual and physical strength in certain problematic situations: lack of information, lack of sufficient logical evidence, in the presence of doubt, etc. In this sense, faith is included in the general system of human knowledge, communication, activity.
We have given a brief description of faith in general. Now it is necessary to understand how religious and non-religious faith differ from each other. According to religious scholars, irreligious and religious beliefs differ your subject. The subject of irreligious faith, as well as religious, is hypothetical, requiring further verification. Concepts, images, judgments or concepts, judgments related to the future. However, they are perceived as something natural, that is, included in the system of laws of the material world, have their own real reasons that can be identified and studied. The subject of religious faith is the supernatural. The supernatural, according to believers, does not obey the laws of the surrounding world, is on the other side and violates their natural course. The religious person believes in the exceptional nature of supernatural beings or forces, and in particular does not apply the usual criteria of empirical validity to them.
Thus, a significant number of religious scholars call the belief in the existence of the supernatural "minimum", an essential characteristic of any religion. For representatives of theological and theological thought of monotheistic religions, religion is a belief in one God. The belief in spirits, gods, devils and other otherworldly forces widespread in early forms of religion, in their opinion, is only a preparatory stage for true faith in God. She contains this faith in God, in the supernatural, in potency, in generation.
This position in defining the "minimum" of religion is inherent not only to representatives of theological and theological thought. The belief in the existence of the supernatural and in the possibility of establishing certain connections with it, relations as a universal, essential characteristic of religion is also recognized by many secular religious scholars. This approach to the study of religion is called preformism. Preformism- This is a teaching that asserts that all the higher forms that a phenomenon achieves in the process of its development already contains potencies, in embryo in the lower forms. The process of development of phenomena is aimed at the disclosure of these potencies, inherent in the phenomenon itself, forms. ...
Based on the methodology of preformism, the statement about the universal nature of belief in the existence of the supernatural is in contradiction with the facts accumulated in religious studies. The study of early forms of religion by ethnographers, as well as close acquaintance with such modern religions as Hinduism, Buddhism, showed that they lack a clear division of the world into natural and supernatural. The idea of the existence of the supernatural is the result of a long development of human culture. In order to develop ideas about the supernatural, one must have an idea about the natural, and this implies the ability to think positively and scientifically. Consequently, giving the belief in the existence of the supernatural a universal character means nothing more than transferring stereotypes, forms of thinking of a person brought up in the conditions of Western Christian culture, to early religious ideas and religious ideas of Eastern religions.
On the basis of such facts and reasoning, the German religious scholar R. Otto (1869-19737 "proposed, when defining the" minimum "of religion, to replace the concept of" supernatural "with the concept "Sacred", "numinous". Religion, according to R. Otto, is an experience of the sacred. The experience of the sacred is assigned to a person from the very beginning. It is being implemented in two main directions. On the one hand, since a person perceives the sacred as something fundamentally opposite to him, it causes him fear, awe, horror. On the other hand, a person treats the sacred as something close, related, it evokes admiration.
We have already met the recognition of the sacred as a special characteristic of religion among other religious scholars: E. Durkheim, M. Weber, etc. This interpretation of the "minimum" of religion, in fact, does not lead to overcoming the dichotomy of the natural and the supernatural as a universal defining feature religion, is also present in the interpretation of religion, which many modern scientists adhere to. "Religion is belief in a Being or beings that are not perceived by conventional empirical methods."
There is one more aspect in identifying the specifics of religion. Among religious scholars who recognize religious consciousness as the leading, defining element of religion, two tendencies are clearly revealed. Some interpret religious belief predominantly as an intellectual phenomenon. They emphasize the meaningful nature of religious beliefs. Religion, from the standpoint of this approach, it appears primarily as mythological system.
Proponents of this approach usually draw the following scheme for the formation of religious consciousness: religious ideas initially appear in sensory visual images. The source of figurative material is nature, society, and man himself. On the basis of these images, mental structures are formed: concepts, judgments, inferences. An important place in religious consciousness is occupied by the so-called semantic images, which are a transitional form from sensually visual images to abstract concepts. The content of these images is expressed in parables, fairy tales, myths. Vivid representatives of this position are C. Dupy, C. Volney, B. Bauer and other representatives of the mythological school in religious studies.
Others shift the emphasis to the emotional-volitional element. Religious faith, in their opinion, is primarily religious experiences, religious feelings. This approach to religion is shared by many of its researchers, but it is most vividly presented by representatives of the psychology of religion: W. James, 3. Freud, C.G. Jung, etc. religious experiences, "religious feelings." But what is the peculiarity of religious feelings, how do they differ from other human feelings? Answering this question, the Orthodox theologian A. Men writes: “The specificity of religious experiences cannot be reduced to any other sphere of the human spirit: neither to morality, nor to aesthetics, nor to any feeling taken separately (for example, fear, hope and etc.). Most accurately it can be defined as a sense of awe. " (Men A. History of religion. In search of the Way, Truth and Life. S. 12). A sense of reverence means, according to the Orthodox thinker, reverence for God. Consequently, the peculiarity of this feeling is determined by the nature of its orientation, namely, its orientation to God.
From the point of view of an Orthodox theologian, the founder of the psychology of religion U. Dzheme also agrees, arguing that religious feelings, from the point of view of their psychophysiological manifestations, are ordinary human feelings of love, fear, joy, hope, etc. their special focus on the object their faith. “Religious love is only a feeling of love common to all people, directed towards a religious object. Religious fear is the usual thrill of the human heart, but associated with the idea of divine retribution. The religious feeling of the sublime is the same shudder that we experience at night in a forest or in a mountain gorge, only in this case it is generated by the thought of the presence of the supernatural. In exactly the same way, you can view all the different feelings as they are experienced by religious people. " (Dzheme U. The diversity of religious experience. M., 1910. S. 23-24).
The opinion of A. Me and W. James that the specificity of religious feelings is not in their psychological content, but in their orientation is shared by many religious scholars, since they consider it impossible to single out any one psychological state, one feeling and reduce to it the diversity of the experience of believers. They rightly point out that the emotional experiences of believers depend on the individual characteristics of each person and on the culture in which he was raised, and on the social conditions in which he lives, and on the religion to which he belongs.
Differences between religious scholars begin when interpreting the source of these feelings. Representatives of theological and theological thought in religious studies derive these feelings from a supernatural source, “from the meeting” of the believer with the divine, “sacred”. Representatives of the psychology of religion believe that they should base their judgments on a scientific approach. Psychology as a science of the soul should be limited to its subject and not touch upon metaphysical issues, including the proof of the existence of God. It lies beyond its borders. Thus, the psychology of religion takes the question of the natural or supernatural source of religious experiences "out of brackets", believing that the solution of this problem is beyond the power of scientific methods of cognition. Most often, the psychology of religion associates the presence of religious feelings with innate instincts (3. Freud) or a historically conditioned predisposition (archetypes, K. Jung). Supporters of the atheistic branch of the philosophy of religion argue that any human feelings can become religious if they are associated with religious beliefs and thereby acquire a specific orientation. In other words, these ordinary human feelings acquire a religious character if they are directed towards fantasized and hypostatized beings, connections and relationships.
The problem of the priority of the rational or emotional aspects of religious consciousness gets a new facet when considering the issue of the interaction of various levels of religious consciousness. The fact is that in developed religious systems, religious scholars isolate at least two clearly defined levels: ordinary religious consciousness and theoretically-formed, conceptual (conceptual) religious consciousness. At the ordinary level, religious consciousness exists in the form of images, ideas, attitudes, moods, feelings, experiences, habits, traditions. At this level, there are rational, emotional and volitional elements of religious faith, but the dominant role belongs to the emotional and volitional element. The content of consciousness is clothed in visual-figurative forms. By the nature of its formation, it is largely individual and personal in nature. Therefore, this level is often called religious psychology.
Religious consciousness at the conceptual level exists in the form systematized and codified doctrine. The content of the doctrine is formulated in doctrinal books (the Bible, the Koran, etc.), approved by religious organizations in the form of invariable, canonized formulas (dogmas), the recognition of which, in their once and for all established form, is an indispensable condition for orthodoxy. The content of the doctrine is developed and substantiated in a special branch of religious knowledge - theology or theology, which is a whole set of theoretical and practical disciplines: apologetics, dogmatics, pastoral theology, etc.
The main task of theology is to form orthodox religious ideas, the interpretation of the main provisions of the doctrine in the form dictated by the interests of the church in accordance with the requirements of the time, the fight against heretical deviations. In other words, theology is a tool for the development, protection and propaganda of the doctrine, which is operated by religious organizations, the church. This idea has been repeatedly emphasized in the documents of religious organizations. It was clearly formulated in the encyclical "Redeemer of Humanity" current head of the Roman Catholic Church Pope John Paul II“Each of the theologians should be aware of what Christ himself said:“ The teaching you hear is not mine, but of the one who sent me - the Father. ” (I. p. 14, 24). Therefore, no one can develop theology as a kind of collection of only their own views, everyone must realize that he is in a special connection with the mission of spreading the truth, for which the church is responsible ”. Based on all these principles, this level of religious consciousness is called religious ideology.
Representatives of theological and theological thought (especially Catholic and Orthodox) insist on the indisputable priority of the dogmatic and doctrinal side of religious consciousness. Achievement of the main goal of religious faith - "union with God", "salvation of the soul", it is possible, in their opinion, only on the basis of the acceptance of the doctrine in the form it is formulated by the church. Deviation from the strict adherence to this doctrine is heresy, apostasy and is subject to condemnation and punishment.
Supporters of scientific religious studies point to the secondary nature of doctrinal formulas and documents. In their opinion, these doctrinal formulas and documents are the result of processing, systematization and codification of the primary religious experience, those ideas, feelings and experiences that believers develop in the course of their life. At the same time, it is noted that the systematized doctrine, developed by ideologists and approved by the church, in turn, has a strong influence on the nature of everyday religious consciousness, shapes it in the direction set by religious organizations. Thus, in developed forms of religion, we can talk not about the priority of any of the levels of religious consciousness, but about their interaction and mutual influence on each other.
2. Religious cult: content and functions
The recognition of religious consciousness as a leading element of the religious complex is dominant, but not the only point of view in religious studies. Already in the 80s of the XIX century, the English anthropologist R. Marett showed that there are religions that are not so much represented (that is, associated with a certain idea), but rather “danced”. In other words, in these religions, beliefs are expressed in ritual movements, dances. Further study showed that this applies not only to primitive religions, but can also be fully applied to advanced religions. This led to the conclusion that the presence of faith in any objects, including the sacred, the supernatural and the possibility of establishing a connection with them, the relationship in itself is not yet an indicator of the presence of religion. Such faith can be present in mythology, in art, etc. This faith acquires a religious character, becomes an element of religion if it is included in the system of religious actions and relations, in other words, it is included in the religious cult system.
According to Marette, the main element of religion, giving it originality, that is, distinguishing it from other forms of social consciousness and social institutions, is cult system. Consequently, the specificity of religion is manifested not in the special character of belief, or in some special object, or object of belief, but in the fact that these ideas, concepts, images are included in the cult system, acquire a symbolic character in it and function as such in social interaction.
It follows from this that there is an organic relationship between religious consciousness and religious action. Religious cult there is nothing else but a social form of objectification of religious consciousness, the implementation of religious faith in the actions of a social group or individual individuals. These or those views and ideas that form worldview constructions, being included in the cult system, acquire the character of a doctrine. And this gives them a spiritual and practical character.
The cult system, first of all, is a collection of certain rituals. Therefore, in order to understand the features of a religious cult, it is necessary to understand what the rituals are. Rite- a set of stereotyped actions established by the custom or tradition of a particular social community, symbolizing certain ideas, norms, ideals and ideas. The rite performs important social functions in society. One of the main social functions of the rite is the accumulation and transfer of experience both by individuals to each other and from generation to generation. In the rite, the experience of the social activities of many generations is accumulated and becomes clear, as if human activity and communication are concentrated. But the rite is not the only form of consolidation and transfer of experience. There are other traditional ways of broadcasting culture:
direct teaching, instrumental (subject), linguistic-sign, etc. In the general system of social interaction, the rite fixes the most important, key moments in the life of a social group. Apparently, the rite functions primarily where, to ensure the life of the community, the usual methods of transferring experience, familiarizing with collective customs and traditions are not enough, where special means of interaction and special sanctions are required. In this regard, an important role is played by the emotional side of the ritual action and its normative nature associated with the rules of ritual action and social sanctions developed by society.
Researchers of this social form call it the most important feature of the rite. symbolic character. Let's figure out what a symbol is? There is a tradition in philosophical literature to consider symbol as a special kind of signs - "iconic sign", which has a partial resemblance to the designated object. Sign and symbol have a similar structure, including: 1) material form, 2) substituted (designated) object, 3) meaning or meaning. The main functional property of these social forms is also similar, They are intended to represent (to represent outside) content that is different from their forms. At the same time, the sign and the symbol have significant differences. Signs are artificial formations. Their material form is largely arbitrary and does not significantly affect their functioning. The sign does not reproduce the object, but only replaces it. On the contrary, the shape of the symbol has a partial resemblance to the designated object. It plays an important role in the disclosure of content, as it informs about the content itself, influences the perceiver. And this fact significantly changes the functional property of symbols.
Sign systems only designate an object. The designation with a sign is of an external, formal nature. It is the process of external expression of the formalized meaning. In the symbol, on the other hand, the designation is largely meaningful. This is a figurative designation, to a certain extent reproducing the symbolized content. Consequently, at the level of the symbol, a qualitatively new process takes place, which can no longer be characterized simply as a designation, but should be called symbolization. Symbolization can be defined as the ability of consciousness through certain sensually perceived objects to represent (represent outside) other objects or phenomena of reality.
From these positions, in our opinion, and rite can be seen as a kind of symbol. The purpose and content of ritual actions is not in these actions themselves, not in their material and material expression, but in the ideal content that stands behind these actions. In the rite, any movement, gesture, word, all material objects are filled with certain meanings, which outside this relationship, that is, outside the sign-symbolic situation, cease to be ritual actions. Therefore, the meaning, meaning and function of the rite can be determined only if it is deciphered, translated from the sign-symbolic to the meaningful form of its meaning, that is, the images, representations, ideas that it represents are identified.
Rituals cover all spheres of human life and are not a specific element of religion. But in the religious system, as noted above, they play an important role and here they have their own qualitative characteristics. The specificity of religious rites is their ideological content, that is, what kind of images, representations, ideas, values they embody in symbolic form. Each religious organization, in the process of its formation and development, develops its own specific system of cult actions. Therefore, the same, from the point of view of their natural, material content, cult actions acquire in different religious systems a fundamentally different ideological, symbolic and figurative content. So, for example, cleansing rituals associated with immersion in water or dousing with water existed in primitive society and exist in modern societies. As noted by the prominent Soviet ethnographer S. A. Tokarev, in ancient societies, many tribes interpreted them as a special way to "cleanse" of filth in connection with a violation by one or another person of a taboo - a social prohibition. In Christianity, this cleansing water rite acquired the meaning of baptism. Baptism, on the other hand, symbolizes in Christianity the cleansing from original sin and communion with the church.
Religious cult is based on the belief in the possibility of establishing certain relationships between a person and the object of his faith. The example of a cleansing rite given by us is one of the varieties of such relations. But most clearly these relationships are found in propitious actions, ranging from primitive forms of sacrifice to highly spiritual prayers. Sacrifice appears at the dawn of human society. Ethnographers have recorded various forms of sacrifices to spirits and gods. From time to time they were “fed”: smeared with blood, fumigated with the fumes of burning meat or fat, etc. As the development and complication of religious systems, the system of sacrifices also becomes more complicated. In the religions of the Ancient East, sacrifice was seen as the core of a religious cult. How important sacrifice was in Judaism can be seen by reading some books of the Old Testament Bible, in particular the book "Leviticus".
Christianity refuses direct sacrifice. In the cult system of Christianity, former sacrifices acquire an increasingly transformed, secondary symbolic form. A typical example of this is the ritual of lighting candles and lamps in front of icons and other sacred images.
The evolution of religious rites followed the line of their spiritualization, spiritualization. The pinnacle of this path is prayer- verbal (verbal) appeal of a person to the object of his faith. Ethnographers argue that prayer as a specific religious rite developed on the basis of pagan conspiracies and spells, as an element of verbal magic (magic of the word). As a verbal component, it was originally included in the rite of sacrifice. Subsequently, prayer was separated from sacrifice and became an essential component of the cult of many religions. In Christianity, for example, several types of prayers are distinguished, depending on what feelings and aspirations of the praying person they express: praising, grateful, forgivable, etc. rituals - sacraments, worship of saints, icons and sculptures, observance of fasts. In order to constantly maintain religious feelings, to satisfy the religious needs of believers in many developed religions, it is established liturgical canon, which includes a "circle of annual worship", "a circle of daily worship." "Year circle": every day of every month, every day of the year is dedicated either to the memory of special events or to the memory of various saints. In honor of this event or person, special chants, prayers and rituals are established.
In the weekly - "seventh" circle, every day of the week is dedicated to "special memories". So, on Sunday, the resurrection of Christ is remembered, on Monday - the angels of God, on Tuesday - the prophets, on Wednesday - the betrayal of Christ by Judas, on Thursday - the saints of Christianity, on Friday - the crucifixion of Christ on the cross, on Saturday - all the saints of the Christian church and “the dead in the hope of eternal life. " There are special prayers and chants for each day of the week. On Saturday and Sunday they are solemn, on Wednesday and Friday they are sad.
The circle of daily worship in Orthodoxy includes nine services: Vespers, Vespers, Midnight, Morning, as well as four daily services: the first, third and sixth hours. The central divine service in Orthodoxy is called the liturgy. The Liturgy is celebrated on all Sundays and holidays.
American psychologist J. Leuba distinguished two types of prayer. The psychological basis of the first type is a kind of "deal with God", begging him for certain benefits, and, accordingly, a promise to fulfill all divine prescriptions. The purpose of the second type of prayer is the very "communion with God", the convergence and dissolution of the believer in God.
Prayers are collective and individual. Prayers are performed during services in temples, prayer houses, cemeteries, etc. They are performed in an orderly manner. In the process of these prayers, the participants in the service experience both psychological and controlling influence on each other. Participation in collective prayer can occur for various reasons, including non-religious ones. A person can join such a prayer in the process of worship, as they say "for the company", so as not to seem like a "black sheep" or simply because he came to the temple, to the prayer house, to some solemn event, such as the consecration of a newly built building, structure ... Individual, solitary prayer usually only occurs on the basis of religious motivation. Therefore, many sociologists consider it an important sign of genuine religiosity.
During the service, the reading of sacred books, choral chants, sermons, collective prayers, rituals, kneeling, bowing, etc. are carried out. A significant role in the cult system is played aesthetic side. As a rule, cult actions take place in specially built and decorated cult buildings. The architecture of the temples, their interiors are designed to mobilize religious feelings. Entering the cult building, a person finds himself in a specially organized social space, in which his attention is con-
centered on religious objects, actions, images, symbols, etc. The very building of the temple, its lighting and interior decoration in a certain way affect a person, form his religious feelings. These feelings are enhanced by collective prayers, chants or organ music, the ceremonial actions of the clergy, and the behavior of the people around them.
As researchers of religion note, in the process of divine services, with the help of cult actions, religious images, symbols, thoughts are reproduced in the minds of believers, and corresponding emotions are aroused. As a result, negative emotions are transformed into positive ones: the state of depression, anxiety, dissatisfaction, internal discomfort disappears, and they are replaced by feelings of relief, satisfaction, calmness, joy, a surge of strength.
The subject of religious studies
Religious studies is a special kind of humanitarian knowledge that studies the religious behavior of a person in relation to the transcendent, God or gods, or to anything considered as sacred or sacred, and knowledge that takes into account both external (sociocultural) and internal (psychological) factors.
Religious studies as a complex, relatively independent area of knowledge have been developing since the 19th century, although the corresponding knowledge has been accumulating over the centuries. It was constituted at the junction of general and social philosophy, history of philosophy, sociology, anthropology, psychology, general history, ethnology, archeology and other sciences. Religious studies studies the laws governing the emergence, development and functioning of religion, its structure and various components, its diverse phenomena, as they appeared in the history of society, the relationship and interaction of religion and other areas of culture. With this version of the definition of the subject of religious studies, we are talking about the fact that religion is perceived not as a specific studied reality, but rather as an abstract construct; Thus, at the Department of Religious Studies, Faculty of History, Art and Oriental Studies, Leipzig University: "The subject of religious studies is the systematic study of religion as a part of human culture and the historical study of religions in the past and present."
The object of religious studies is religion, but there are different points of view on the subject. The problem, first of all, is that religion is also studied by history, philosophy, sociology, psychology, cultural studies, ethnography (anthropology in the Western sense of the word), ecology, geography and other sciences. Religious studies differs from them in that it examines religion in accordance with the methods, approaches and attitudes that have been developed in its history.
So, in the world scientific community, religious studies have been considered an integral science for more than a hundred years, while in modern Russia it is still referred to the field of philosophical sciences.
Distinctive features of theology and religious studies
Religious studies and theology differ from each other, the object of consideration and the very way of this consideration. If religious studies as its subject studies religion, which is the object of its analysis, then theology considers only God as its object. The very term "theology" ("theology") was first encountered by early Christian apologists, but already Aristotle used it, albeit in a verb form - to theologize, investing in it the meaning of myth-making. The allegorical interpretation of myths and an in-depth philosophical interpretation of mythology found among the Stoics are called "philosophical theology." Neoplatonism, considered in this aspect, appears as the theology of polytheism, which clothe religious content in a philosophical form.
Thus, theology in one form or another already existed in the pre-Christian period and was an attempt to explain and substantiate the existence of pre-Christian (pagan) gods.
Development of ideas about religion
The religious system of representing the world (worldview) is based on religious faith and is associated with a person's relationship to the superhuman spiritual world, a kind of superhuman reality about which a person knows something and on which he must orient his life in some way. Faith can be reinforced by mystical experience.
Of particular importance for religion are concepts such as good and evil, morality, the purpose and meaning of life, etc.
The basics of religious concepts of most world religions are written down by people in sacred texts, which, according to believers, are either dictated or inspired directly by God or gods, or written by people who have reached the highest spiritual state from the point of view of each specific religion, great teachers, especially enlightened or initiated, saints, etc.
In most religions, the clergy occupies a prominent place (ministers of a religious cult
Fundamentals of the concept of the essence of religion
In modern religious studies, five basic concepts can be distinguished, explaining, based on various worldview positions, the essence and origin of religion: objective-idealistic, subjective-idealistic, naturalistic (biologizing), atheistic, esoteric.
1. Objective-idealistic concept
The objective-idealistic concept in one form or another is the philosophical basis of all theology. Therefore, it is she who dominates theological and religious-philosophical literature.
The initial premise of this concept in explaining religion is the recognition of its supernatural source: God, the Absolute, in general - transcendental.
2. Subjective-idealistic concept
The subjective-idealistic concept of explaining the essence of religion originates in the writings of the German Protestant priest and theologian Friedrich Schleiermacher. The center of the religious problem is transferred by him to the sphere of consciousness of an individual individual, primarily to the area of his feelings. From Schleiermacher comes the tendency developed by many of his followers to regard religion as an individual psychological phenomenon, as a certain state of human consciousness, human experiences.
3. Naturalistic (biologizing) concept
According to this concept, religion is born by the internal needs of the human body - its instincts, drives, physiological reactions. Thus, the American religious scholar R. Barhou believes that religious symbols have a "genetic, that is, a biochemical basis, which is embedded in the complex structures of the brain and which manifests itself in the sphere of the unconscious."
4. Atheistic concept
The atheistic concept of religion received its most consistent, complete development in Marxism. According to Marxism, religion has a social nature, since “the essence of man is not an abstract inherent in a separate individual. In its reality, it is the totality of all social relations ”.
5. Esoteric concept
Currently, there is an increasing need for an integral concept of the origin and essence of the Higher Knowledge, which would represent an organic synthesis of scientific, philosophical and religious approaches. The concept that claims this role is the esoteric concept of the origin and essence of religion.
Religion concept. Traditions of religion
Religion is a complex of beliefs and practical actions through which people communicate with a reality that lies outside of everyday experience.
All the variety of existing directions of spiritual development, religions, traditions, spiritual currents - this is one huge, Integral Knowledge, scattered across our planet. In the form of its particles, it is adapted for different groups of people or entire nations, taking into account their mentality, lifestyle, perception capabilities.
Being so different and, at the same time, echoing with each other, all religions, traditions and trends are intended only for one thing - to restore a person's connection with the Lord, to help people reveal their essence and fully realize their destiny ...
Features of religious faith
The basis of any religion is belief in the supernatural, i.e. into the inexplicable with the help of laws known to science, contrary to them. Faith, according to the Gospel, is the fulfillment of the expected and confidence in the invisible. She is alien to any logic, and therefore she is not afraid of atheists' justification that there is no God, and does not need logical confirmation that He exists. The Apostle Paul said: "That your faith should not be based on human wisdom, but on the power of God."
What are the features of religious faith? Its first element is the belief in the very existence of God as the creator of everything that exists, the ruler of all deeds, actions, thoughts of people. Does it mean that the higher powers governing him are responsible for all the actions of a person? According to modern religious teachings, a person is endowed by God with free will, has a freedom of choice, and because of this he is responsible for his actions and for the future of his soul.
But on what basis is this belief possible? Based on knowledge of the content of religious myths and Holy books (Bible, Koran, etc.) and trust in the testimonies contained in them of those who happened to be convinced of the facts of the existence of God (appearance to the people, revelations, etc.); based on direct evidence of the existence of God (miracles, immediate phenomena and revelations, etc.)
History shows that there are practically no cases of direct manifestations of higher powers that were not previously described in myths and sacred books: the churches are extremely cautious about any manifestation of a miracle, rightly believing that a mistake or, worse, dishonesty in describing it will cause disbelief in people. and can undermine the authority of churches and creeds. Finally, belief in God is based on some logical and theoretical reasoning. For centuries, theologians of all religions have sought to prove the existence of God. However, the German philosopher I. Kant convincingly showed in his reasoning that it is impossible to prove either the existence of God or his absence by a logical way, all that remains is to believe.
The idea of the existence of God is the central point of religious faith, but it does not exhaust it. Thus, religious faith includes:
- norms of morality, norms of morality, which are declared to come from divine revelation; violation of these norms is a sin and, accordingly, is condemned and punished;
- certain legal laws and regulations, which are also declared or occurred directly as a result of divine revelation, or as a result of the God-inspired activity of legislators, usually kings and other rulers;
- belief in the divine inspiration of the activities of certain priests, persons declared saints, saints, blessed, etc.; so, in Catholicism, it is generally accepted that the head of the Catholic Church - the Pope - is the viceroy (representative) of God on earth;
- faith in the saving power for the human soul of those ritual actions that believers perform in accordance with the instructions of the Holy Books, priests and church leaders (baptism, circumcision of the flesh, prayer, fasting, worship, etc.);
- belief in the direction of God in the activity of churches as associations of people who consider themselves adherents of a particular faith
Religious Consciousness
Religious Consciousness- it is belonging to certain religious ideas and values, as well as belonging to a certain religion and religious group .
A person considers himself a believer, and then he considers himself to be a certain religion: I am a Buddhist or I am Orthodox. Members of one religious group also define themselves, for example: we are Muslims. This is already a collective level of religious identity.
Religious consciousness can be formed in a person at different periods of life and under different circumstances. This happens through the inclusion of a person in the system of religious relations and through the perception of religious ideas, values, emotional norms. Most often, religious consciousness is formed under the influence of the family environment (upbringing in a religious family) and the local environment, as well as under the influence of religious mentors and preachers.
Sometimes a person becomes a believer as a result of internal shock (or crisis) and the subsequent emotional, psychological choice. Much depends on the individual personality traits. This process of acquiring and maintaining a religious identity is called a religious experience. The religious experience of a person and a group over time is formed into a stereotypical picture of the world and into an idea of what it means to be, for example, a Christian or a Muslim, how and why members of this group differ from followers of other religions.
Religious cult
Religious cult occupies a significant place in any religious system. The very word "cult" (from Latin sIiz - worship, veneration) says what constitutes the content of this concept. A cult is understood as the religious veneration of various objects, supernatural beings, in the form of rituals, sacraments, holidays, sacrifices, etc. With their help, as believers believe, one can "come into contact" with God, "saints" or other supernatural forces , to appease them, to enlist their support in earthly affairs.
All churches attach great importance to the ritual side. Even sometimes advocating the simplification of rituals (like, for example, Protestant churches), they do not abandon it, but continue to use it as one of the effective means of influencing believers. Indeed, the rituals of divine services, ceremonies, sacraments, which have developed over many centuries, accompanied by church music, chants, are solemn in nature, have a strong emotional impact on people. That is why the church accompanies various rituals throughout a person's life from birth to death.
There are many differences between the rituals of different religions. But no matter how different the Christian cult from the Jewish, and the Buddhist from the Muslim, ritualism ultimately serves one purpose - to consolidate religious ideas in the union of believers, to strengthen faith in the omnipotence of supernatural forces, to make it easier for people to perceive the ideas that religious preachers instill in them. This is the main meaning of a religious cult, which in no small measure contributes to the preservation of religious relics in our days.
The problem of the typology of religion.
Types of religious organizations.
Church: a complex hierarchical system of relationships. A large number of followers, lack of permanent membership, belonging to a certain tradition, free choice of the individual.
Sect: attracts new members, but does not release. It arises as a result of the separation from the church of a part of the believers, on the basis of a change in doctrine. Traits: few followers, constant control over them, the desire to separate from worldly life. No prof. Priests.
Charismatic cult: a kind of sect. The traits are similar, but different: adherents are united around the personality, the presence of divine qualities, Satan is the bearer of supernatural power. The cult is few in number. Inherent in mysticism, fanaticism.
Dynamization: an intermediate position between the church and the sect. From the church: the highest degree of centralization, from the sect: voluntariness, control of members.
The integrating function of religion.
It unites people within the framework of the worldview. Promotes social, ideological and political integration. Promotes the consolidation of the society and confessional unity, other forms of people rallying. Develops common values and norms, strengthens the structure of the society, concentrates people's attention and hopes on common beliefs and objects of worship. NR: sacrament of communion (wine and bread) - Char. The blood and body of christ.
Disintegrating function of religion.
- can be used to divide people, incite hostility, wars, between different religions and faiths and within the religious group itself. Contrasting with other faiths. Conflicts are often deliberately provoked, since they contribute to the strengthening of the religions of the groups, strengthening the authority of their leader.
Shamanism.
Comes from the Ivengrs. Purpose: treatment of the mind and body, for a good hunt, the prosperity of the tribe, has existed for 20-30 thousand years. Hypotheses occur: 1) one of the other religions 2) is associated with magic 3) arose due to mental illness traits: 1) a shaman should feel comfortable in both worlds 2) penetration into that world to the sound of a tambourine 3) usually shamans are a husband. 4) the spirit chooses the shaman functions: healing, religious needs, negotiating with the spirits, but not the fact that it fulfills, the shaman has fear.
Paganism - etymology, main features.
There is no concept in modern science. Etymology: paganism from church-glories - "language", that is, "people", in European languages from lat "paganus" - rural; later it received the name "redneck", because in Rome, the imp Christ is widespread in large cities.
Traits: polytheism, mythology, the principle of unity and harmony, the concept of tradition, the category of genus (one's own and someone else's), animation of objects,
Religion of the Slavs. The principles of paganism.
Principles: 1) the cult of ancestors (connects the earthly world and the sacred, the burial rite is important, the afterlife depends on it, there were burials: according to the rite of corpse, cremation, burial in a funeral boat, "naf" is a dead man, those who are sent on a journey on a boat, " Iriy "is that world. 2) belief in the immortality of the soul (reincarnation into the body of a relative was allowed), the soul could return in a zoomorphic form 3) the posthumous existence of the soul 4) the spiritualization of the non-living (stones). They believed in the sacredness of the mountains, focused on harmony with nature ...
Religion of the Slavs. Sources. Pantheon.
Paganism is a polytheistic religion. Each tribe has its own main deity. Dualism - the division into good and evil gods. Sources: 1) axes: information about the gods is incomplete, there is no look from the inside, it is given from the point of view of an external voter. 2) Procopies of Caesarea (6c), descriptions of Arab authors, PVL, chronicles, mainly European authors, relied on ancient sources, their imagination, which relied on antiquity. Cabinet mythology is the creation of new characters as a result of conjecture. The researchers relied on folklore and ethnographic materials.
Pantheon:-the highest level of sacred deities, defined by the word god. Perun is the thunder, the patron saint of warriors, khorse is a solar deity, not of Slavic origin, simargl is a parallel with the Iranian god, veles is the patron saint of the house. Animals, wealth, dazhbog-sun, stribog - god of wealth, mokosh, fret, lel - female deity, svarog - heavenly fire. Yerilo - god of spring fertility.
Creatures of a lower order - spirits and demons, demon - disgusting (spirits of the forests, goblin, swamp); ghouls, ghouls - evil spirits.
Scandinavian paganism. Sources. Ancestor cult.
Moral concepts are alien. This is the religion of a single principle - the ability to benefit one's own kind. The concept of the soul of the clan passes from ancestors to descendants. Man is responsible for the future of the race. The soul of the clan gives strength, confidence. Pagan gods help only in a particular country. Some Scandinavian countries change religion. In 1000 Iceland receives Christ. Secret use of pagan rituals (throwing out babies, horse meat) is allowed. Gods are humanized with bad features (thieves, libertines). Fatalism - why be afraid if everything is already predetermined.
Sources: XIII century - "Elder Edda" - songs, legends about gods and heroes in poetic form; The Younger Edda (Snorri Sturluson) - prose; structured arrangement of myths. "Acts of the Danes" (Saxon Grammaticus) - gods - deified people.
Kenings are broad metaphors for living things, objects, etc.
Skalds - non-professional poets: vigilantes, warriors - sang heroic deeds;
Ancestor cult: the main idea - the burial reflects the idea of the afterlife, Sweden is a large sanctuary.
The specificity of the Celtic religion.
that much is borrowed from the cult of the Romans. Celtic and Italian mythology are deeply related. The Celts lived according to the laws of a tribal society, it turns out that they had a rather powerful cult of ancestors. They believed in the transmigration of souls, a decrease in the fear of death, many sacrifices, incl. human. Similar gods - Mercury (inventor of all arts, guide to another world), Apollo (god-healer, drives away diseases), Minerva (goddess of skills and abilities), Jupiter (managerial functions, ruler of heaven), Mars (military affairs). Sources on Celtic mythology - notes on the Gallic war, various sagas, records of Suetonius. Priestly estate - druids (cult of trees),
Buddhism in Russia
Buryatia, Tuva, Kalmykia, Chechen region.
Buddhism of Buryatia is a form of Lamaism. Datsan - monasteries. Before the October Revolution - about 46. The Stalinist regime actually destroyed: massive repressions against lamas, datsans were destroyed. Currently - revival: restoration and construction of new datsans. Buddhists of Buryatia establish contacts with foreign Buddhists
Tuva - XIII-XIV centuries. Mobile temples are prototypes of datsans. There is no religious center of its own. There were Tuvan monasteries in almost every administrative region, many of them represented large feudal farms. Displacement of pre-Buddhist beliefs; a shaman took part in the ceremonies. Since 1917. - the protectorate of Russia. Interference in religious affairs. 1927 - Tuva People's Republic. 30s - an attempt to eradicate Buddhism. 90s - revival. Today there are 9 Buddhist communities. Dalai Lama XIV - assistance in revival.
Kalmykia is the only nationality on the European territory of Russia. XVII-XVIII centuries, today - the state religion (14 communities, construction of a Buddhist center).
St. Petersburg - 1909-1914 - the first datsan was built in Europe. They are in Moscow, Yaroslavl. In Moscow - the Institute of Buddhism. In Tomsk - Dzokhcha community - 2002, several people in the community; 2 schools. Center of Buddhism in Tomsk. Lama Ole Nydahl - arrived in 1998, founded the community.
Buddhism in the modern world.
Deep roots in Asian countries, in many it is state. Cambodia, Thailand - Heads of state lead the church. Many monks are preserved (Cambodia - every 20 men). Life in the countryside is closely related to the monastery. The monk does not participate in political power, but has great influence.
Zen Buddhism is popular in the West. 60s - an anti-cultural phenomenon that was accepted by those who protested against capitalism (hippies, artists, writers, anarchists). Today it is supported by adherents of alternative cultures, physicists, programmers, housewives, etc. Several hundred thousand Europeans converted to Buddhism. Gradually he penetrates into various sciences. Development factors:
More and more Asian teachers were sent to the West (lectures or Buddhist centers);
Young people who studied in Asia are returning to their homeland;
80s - Buddhist Western teachers.
With a good standard of living, people have free time for the development of thought;
Relatively high level of liberal education;
Improvement in vehicles and communications.
Early Christian teaching.
More than 2 billion. followers. 400-500 - West, 250 - North America, Asia - about 300, Africa - 300-400, Australia - 400, South - 400-500.
IV. BC. in Palestine. VI century - the order of chronology from the birth of Christ (earlier - from the time of the founding of Rome). 747g. from the founding of Rome. The birth of Christ is earlier than this date (7-6 years BC).
Important features of chrys: equality of people, everyone could become a christ, there is no chosen by God
Sources: 1) Christ: New Testament (27soch), non-canonical literature 2) Non-Christ: Tit Liby, Josephus Flavius, Pliny.
17-18 centuries the emergence of the East and Mythol schools. Basis: humility, perception of life. Belief in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus' mission.
The problem of the typology of religion.
Approaches: normative (false and true religions) and evolutionary (development from the simplest forms).
1. Natural (Hinduism, Buddhism) 2. Religions of individuality (R. O. Gr. - the religion of beauty. 3. Religion of absolute spirituality: Christianity.
Geographic approach: 1) p. Middle East (Islam, Judaism) 2) Oceanic (Australia) 3) African religions 4) America 5) classical (other gr.) 6) Far East (Confucianism, Taoism) 7) p. India (Hinduism)
And also 1) tribal religions 2) national religions (Judaism) 3) world
In relation to the supernatural: 1) the simplest (fetishism) 2) polytheism (r. The presence of gods) 3) dualism 4) supremoteism (r. Other greece-pyramidal division of deities) 5) pantheism (everywhere god) 6) monotheism (one god ) 7) theism
Features of religious faith.
Three approaches 1) the type of religion should be sought in religious consciousness 2) in cult activity 3) in a religious organization. The connection between religion and faith: the subject of religious faith: knowledge without logical evidence, images, ideas, doubts, that is, the influence of faith on the volitional process. The subject is not religious. Faith: will override that does not obey the laws, is on the other side. There are two tendencies: 1) religion faith is an intellectual phenomenon 2) religion faith is religious experiences, feelings.
There are two levels: 1) an ordinary religious meeting 2) a theoretically formulated conceptual
The main thing is ritual actions. The presence of faith in any object is not an indicator of the presence of religion. Cult - the implementation of religious faith in actions, includes a set of rituals. Rite - actions established by custom, tradition and symbolizing norms and ideas. O. is a type of symbol. The cult is based on faith. There is a sacrifice system. The appeal to God is verbal and not verbal.