Religious language is concerned with asking ‘what can be said about God’. It is not concerned with whether or not God exists, or what God is like or why there is evil in the world. There are multiple ways in which people talk about God and a large amount of different language is used to do so. The problem for religious believers is the way to use language and word it in a way that is meaningful towards God where as for the majority of people the problem with ‘God-Talk’ is whether it actually means anything.
A philosopher who believes that religious language is meaningful is Pseudo-Dionysius, who put forward the via-negativa. The via-negativa is the belief that as God is transcendent, words limit of understanding of him since he is so vastly different to what we know and understand; meaning that human terms limits him. Due to this Pseudo-Dionysius suggests that we should instead state what God isn’t rather than what he is in order to become closer to understanding God. An example of this, put forward by Moses Maimonides is a ship; he states that by describing what a ship isn’t we get closer to understanding what a ship is. While Pseudo-Dionysius does agree that religious language is
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The basic idea of this analogy is that we were created in God’s image and likeness so possess qualities like those of God but as we are inferior to God we experience these qualities in lesser proportion to God. John Hicks example of the term ‘faithful’ helps to explain this analogy, as he states that men, woman and dogs can be faithful but the faithfulness of a man and woman is clearly very different to that of a dog. However there is a recognisable similarity between the two, otherwise we would not think of a dog as faithful. In the case of the analogy between the dog and human beings, true faithfulness is something we know within ourselves and a dim and imperfect likeness of this is in the dog and is known by
On July 8, 1741 Congregational minister, John Edwards, delivered a sermon entitled “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” before a Massachusetts congregation in order to dismiss some of the colonist’s belief that hell is not real. Edwards’s objective is to abolish any doubts against god and hell that the colonists have. He uses strategies such as anaphora, figurative language, polysyndeton, all while instilling a feeling of angst in his audience through his tone.
When ancient people look to understand religion, it is easier for them to relate to a higher power, also known as a god. Throughout the world and through time, there have been hundreds of different religions that have been established, and in the writings by people of these various groups there are often stories about conversation with the gods. This helps other people in understanding and conforming to the same beliefs. Two of such examples of this style of analyzing what gods are, are found in St. Augustine’s Confessions and The Bhagavad Gita.
Christ resembles Dionysus in many ways. Is it possible that Christ is simply an extension of the Dionysian myth? Though the concepts of wine and faith unite the two, the idea of revenge compared to self-sacrifice separates the two deities. Dionysus fits the Greek understanding of vengeful and selfish God that bear more anthropomorphic traits than Godly traits. Christ, however, transcends human desires for revenge and acts in self-sacrifice. This is the key separation between them.
When speaking about God, we naturally tend to give God characteristics or attributes that otherwise would be considered un proper. Two approaches that we use when speaking about God are Analogical and Metaphorical. Analogical and Metaphorical approaches are all about giving attribution to thing, in this case God. There are three predications, univocal, equivocal, and analogy. The univocal approach talks about the same term for different subjects that have the same exact meaning. The equivocal approach takes the same term, but it has a different subject and meaning. An analogy is a comparison of two things, in this case God is going to be compared to different things. The analogical approach is also called proper proportionality. When speaking about God in the analogical (proper proportionality) approach, we use the same term, but a different subject. For the metaphorical approach when speaking about God, we compare God to something and give him characteristics that he would not normally have. For example, when talking about proper proportionality, I may say that God is heroic. Now God is heroic may seem simple, but if I replace God with the word George Washington, now I have George Washington is heroic. While George Washington may have been heroic, comparing him to God using the same term gives me a different proportion. Now when I talk about the Metaphorical approach of God, I am ...
This thesis is shown by John Hick in his article Evil and Soul-Making. As Hick explains, humans already exist in God’s image but have “not yet been formed into the finite likeness of God . . . Man is in the process of becoming the perfected being whom God is seeking to create. However, this is not taking place – it is important to add – by a natural and inevitable evolution, but through a hazardous adventure in individual freedom . . . this involves an accumulation of evil as well as good” (Hick 1-2). In other words, humanity is slowly progressing toward a world in which evil does not exist, as implied by the term “finite likeness of God,” but in order to reach that state, we must first deal with acts of evil, in order to learn what good truly is. On a personal level, this is known as soul-builder
An example of this would be when he compared the man who shot Ronald Reagan, who was John W. Hinckley Jr. with his inner self. The inner self over took Hinckley Jr. and he could not even control himself against the monster, the “anti-self” (Morrow par.8). Another example that is used to express the meaning of the work is when both the bad and the good inner self are explained, by saying, “Daydreams of possibility enlarge the mind. They are also haunting.” (Morrow par. 9). This comparison basically is saying that, the imaginary person inside of us changes just like we do, varying from good daydreams and good happy thoughts to awful nightmares and terrible thoughts as well. The comparison of humans to their inner selves is a common comparison that is exemplified multiple times in order to uncover the author’s
In order to make sense of these inherently opposite features, we must seek a higher authority and focus on God’s beauty, mercy, love, and grace. Our God, who is the creator of the world, has a plan for us all and intends for us to seek out His will. When we look around us and see that God created and feeds the sparrow just as he created and feeds us, we can begin to understand God’s will and His purpose for us. The entire enormity of this world and what God created becomes clearer. God seeks a relationship with us. There are times when reading the Bible, a passage or verse may seem too confusing or unrelatable in our current situation, although a God who created nature and everything in it always reveals the truth in His time for His plan for
Language always conveys a message. Language can convey a message that is full of manipulation. In Robin Lakoff’s essay, “Everybody’s a Politician”, she discusses how manipulation is used in day to day conversations, even if one is not intentionally trying to manipulate. Language can be used to dominate others. In the essay, “the Language of Oppression” by Haig A. Bosmajian, he explains the power of using names to define others. Language can change the way a person thinks. In the same essay, “the Language of Oppression” by Haig A. Bosmajian, he also discusses the way someone thinks can be changed by language. Lastly, language has the power to degrade an individual. In another essay, by Robin Lakoff, “You Are What You Say”, she explains how
The Hymns written by Romanus the Melode in the sixth century provide vivid descriptions of Christians and insight to particular beliefs, customs and traditions of the time period. The hymns were poetic and referred to as kontakia which is a poetic way to articulate the teachings of Christ. The structure of the hymns employs imagery similar to poems using strophes (now called stanzas) with several verses and a refrain which was sung by the congregation instead of a sermon. The purpose of the hymns strophes was to provide imagery using figurative language to create emotion through pathos, logos and ethos to amplify the message. Romanus of Melode delivered the hymns in euphonious phrases which are pleasing to the ear through lyrical sounds.
"So god created man in his own image, in the image of god he created
In my own writing, I find that my beliefs on humanity and God bleed into my words. My symbolism is not always intentional. I have started to believe that just by writing, I will complete the task of putting my views into the world. I believe that man is evil, and that is reflected in each character I create and his imperfection. Man can also be redeemed, visible in the hero’s fall from grace and return in triumph. Finally, man will be judged for his actions, shown by the consequences in each action that cause the plot to unfold. Overall, my beliefs, as O’Connor and Sayers state, intertwine into my work unintentionally as I write it. I do not have to force my reader to read Christian paradigm in order to get a Christian viewpoint into my work.
The word religion literally means connect again, but it also can have many meanings depending on a persons’ spiritual connection or moral outlook that governs their belief system. In the opinion of many, religion is the connection of a higher power for some, a social class for others, and a way to connection with a group who share the same views of a higher being.
...rom the excellent theories of both Otto and Berger: humans create biblical interpretations… they even created the bible. If religion could speak, I believe it would mimic the Wizard of Oz by saying, “pay no attention to that man behind the curtain,” when in truth, without the help of the man behind the curtain, there would simply be no religion at all.
of the Bible, Genesis, we are told we are 'made in the image of God'
“God, in pity, made man beautiful and alluring, after his own image; but my form is a filthy type of yours, more horrid even from the very resemblance” (93).