Intro To World Religions General Terms

Front 1

Religion is defined as?

Back 1

A system of:

• doctrines
• ethics
• rituals
• myths
• symbols

for the expression of ultimate relevance

Front 2

Doctrines

Back 2

• statements about deities, afterlife, and salvation.
  
• doctrines are accepted or rejected, not believed in!

Front 3

Ethics

Back 3

• Specific rules for governing behavior
• Ethics are not believed, ethics are followed!

Front 4

Rituals

Back 4

• Ceremonies which dramatize symbols.
• Rituals are not believed, rituals are performed!

Front 5

Myths

Back 5

• Stories about the past that are retold because of their relevance for expressing certain values.
• Myths are not believed, they are retold!

Front 6

Symbol

Back 6

• A sensory representation which conveys relevance
• Symbols are not believed, they are revered!

Front 7

Interaction between myths, symbols, and rituals?

Back 7

Myths explain the origins of symbols and rituals.

Front 8

Interaction between symbols and myths?

Back 8

Symbols are used to make myths more relevant.

Front 9

Interaction between rituals, symbols, and myths?

Back 9

Rituals use symbols to reenact myths.

Front 10

Monotheism

Back 10

One deity

Front 11

Polytheism

Back 11

Several deities

Front 12

Animism

Back 12

Spirits are in many things

Front 13

Two types of monotheism?

Back 13

1. Theism: God is personal, answers prayers, and intervenes.
2. Deism: God is impersonal, created world and then left it alone

Front 14

Pantheon

Back 14

Refers to structured hierarchy of deities.

Front 15

Henotheism

Back 15

Refers to a system in which some deities are more important.

Front 16

Monolatry

Back 16

Refers to a system in which only one deity is worshiped.

Front 17

Three forms of deities?

Back 17

1. Anthropomorphism
2. Theriomorphism
3. Pantheism

Front 18

Anthropomorphism

Back 18

Gods with human form.

Front 19

Theriomorphism

Back 19

Gods with animal form.

Front 20

Pantheism

Back 20

Everything is God; God is everything.

Front 21

Atheism

Back 21

"No Gods exist"

Front 22

Agnosticism

Back 22

"God's existence cannot be proved, so we must doubt."

Front 23

Ultimate Relevance

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• Found in religion
• Relating to deities, salvation, and eternity

Front 24

Utilitarian Relevance

Back 24

• Found with technology
• Relating to health, wealth, comfort, and convenience

Front 25

Ulterior Relevance

Back 25

• Found with magic
• Relating to neurotic, rigid, inhibits other values

Front 26

Magic

Back 26

The attempt to manipulate spiritual forces in order to attain utilitarian or ulterior relevance

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Sect

Back 27

A denomination or smaller religious group

Front 28

Sectarian

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Pertaining to a specific denomination

Front 29

Secular

Back 29

Non-sectarian (neutral between sects)

Front 30

Theocracy

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System of government which enforces one particular religion.

Front 31

Pro-religious government

Back 31

Favors one religion

Front 32

Secular Government

Back 32

Neutral, fair to all sects

Front 33

Anti-Clerical Government

Back 33

Seeks to limit power of religious leaders

Front 34

Scripture

Back 34

Sacred writings

Front 35

Canon

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Official list of scripture

Front 36

Aporcrypha

Back 36

Refers to books not selected into canon

Front 37

Hermeneutics

Back 37

Techniques for interpretation of scripture

Front 38

Exegesis

Back 38

The act of coming up with the most relevant interpretation.

Front 39

Fundamentalism

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• The attempt to apply scripture to daily life
  
• the tendency to interpret scripture literally
  

Front 40

Humanism

Back 40

• Idea that assumes that people are basically good and can work out their own salvation
  
• Accused of being anti-religious

Front 41

Homology

Back 41

A comparison of different religions

Front 42

Morphology

Back 42

Study of the structure and change of religious forms

Front 43

Syncretism

Back 43

The tendency of religious traditions to assimilate other traditions and blend in other myths, symbols, doctrines, ethics, and rituals.

Front 44

Laypersons

Back 44

• Adherents or followers of a given religious denomination that do not have leadership roles.

Front 45

Shaman

Back 45

• Major religious figure in most tribes that subsist mostly by hunting and gathering.
• Are the intermediaries between the tribe and the world of the spirits.

Front 46

Priest

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• Major religious figure in societies that have developed a pastoral or agricultural economy.
• Officiates at regularly scheduled rituals.

Front 47

Rabbis (teachers)

Back 47

• Jewish religious leader, who are distinguished for their knowledge of the Jewish tradition.

Front 48

Bishop

Back 48

• Member of higher level of leadership in the Christian church that is in charge of several priests or ministers within a geographic area.

Front 49

Pope

Back 49

• In the Roman Catholic Church
• the Bishop of Rome and is the head of the entire Catholic Church

Front 50

Cardinals

Back 50

• Archbishops that are selected by the Pope who meet in large councils to proclaim church doctrine and to select a new pope upon the death of the old one.

Front 51

Psychic (or medium)

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• A person who claims abilities such as:
• divination
• clairvoyance
• telepathy
• psychokinesis
• contacting spirits of the deceased

Front 52

Mystics

Back 52

• Seek to attain an altered state of consciousness that they understand as intimate union with the Deity.

Front 53

Monasticism

Back 53

• Tradition in which monks and nuns live in separate communities where they are freed from the everyday concerns of utilitarian relevance such as earning a living.
• These monks and nuns are usually required to be celebate

Front 54

Theologians

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• Attempt to use philosophy and rational elaboration in order to explain or argue religious doctrine or clarify ethical guidelines.

Front 55

Apologetics

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• A branch of theology in which theologians are engaged in trying to defend the doctrines of their denominations against atheists or the doctrines of other sects.

Front 56

Cosmological argument

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• Argument offered by theologians that states that: everything is caused by something else that must have come before it--but how then could the first cause get started?

Front 57

Teleological argument

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• Also known as the design argument
• States that: Since there is so much structure and apparent purpose in the natural world, there must be a God who set the planets in their orbits and designed the organs of the body in all their intricacy.

Front 58

The Ontological argument

Back 58

• Is based upon a logical syllogism: God is defined as a perfect being, and since existence is one of the qualities of perfection, God must exist, by His very definition!