for even religious theologians to define, and there hasn’t been a clear definition for this term simply because what we know as religion is more than what one word can describe. The academic study of Religion is a major key to understanding this concept. However, in the academic discipline of Religious Studies, there are many theoretical approaches, and other discipline theories that are used to define and understand religion, and that makes it possible for religious, and non-religious…
California State University Northridge is a conglomerate of different cultures, ethnicities, and religions. The students and faculty are a good sample size of the American religious landscape: numerous ethnicities from different locations around the world come together and bring their religious practices with them. This nation holds great pride in its diversity and acceptance of others. This concept of pluralism is something the nation would prefer to have as a common belief, however there are…
In his essay “After the Quotidian Turn: Interpretive Categories and Scholarly Trajectories in the Study of Religion since the 1960s,” Thomas Tweed critiques the redirection in religious studies to the interpretative tradition of lived religion. He defines the subject of this Quotidian Turn as, “The embodied practices and material culture of ordinary people beyond the threshold of worship spaces” (Tweed, 362). In other words, the term Quotidian Turn synthesizes the shift in academia from studying…
H. Edward Pruitt starts 100 Years of Theological Convergence: Edinburgh 1910 to Lausanne 2010 with an introduction. In this introduction, he starts off with his thesis; “This thesis argues that a theological convergence developed out of the ecumenism that existed within the Edinburgh 1910 Global Missions Conference, and that this ecumenism grew from Edinburg 1910 until the Lausanne Movement that began in 1974, at which point it began to flourish” (Pruitt 5). He then defines some terms and lists…
Views on Heaven and Hell According to Christian theology, multiple views of heaven and hell have been explored. Some suggest a metaphorical approach, as others present a more literal perspective of what the Bible says. It is very clear throughout Scripture that there are exclusively two destinations dependent on our faith in God. Knowledge regarding what comes after our earthly lives is essential, so we will be more capable to share with others. God has a well thought out plan for our eternity…
In times of great sorrow, individuals often find themselves drowning. The despair, desperation, and darkness that accompany the tragedy of losing a loved one is engulfing. A life is torn away all too soon and suddenly, family and friends are left to pick themselves back up again. This despondence causes certain individuals to grasp helplessly onto religion as their lifeline. In A Death in the Family, James Agee showcases several characters with attachments to religion, most notably among those,…
Major religions have a form of text, such as the Bible or the Quran, that is deemed sacred. One controversial topic regarding these sacred texts is how they should actually be read. Through discussion of the origins and natures of the Quran and Paul 's letters, it is concluded that how a sacred text should be read is dependent upon various factors such as the origin and the socio-historical context it is written. Some of the major factors that will contribute to deciding how sacred texts read…
Introduction Christians believe that the Bible in its entirety is the inerrant word God; they base their foundation on what the Bible says which is supposed to be inspired by God, and written by man. Some of the reasons Christians believe that the Bible is the word of God are because it gives mankind a sense of purpose, a reason for living. Another reason has to do with simply that it gives the best explanation for the world coming to existence. Due to the fact Christians believe the Bible to…
In Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales religious authority is challenged when the Wife of Bath appropriates male language in the form of a mock sermon to argue against the typical religious ideologies outlined by 14th century anti-feminist literature. The Wife of Bath challenges the Bible by using scripture and employing the genre of a mock sermon - a satirical form that uses scripture to add weight to an argument that has a didactic lesson - to advocate “a message opposite to the kind that preachers…
A spiritual experience is an event or moment that defines or changes a person and is usually experienced within the context of the person’s faith or belief in something. There is no set place or time for a religious experience, it can be in public or private, some are even when the person isn’t even awake. Gini Brumble had her spiritual experience over the course of a year, Jaken Bautista’s was during an afternoon nap, and my own spanned about nine months. Each of these experiences showed us…