Stage 3 of religious studies, namely the phenomenological approach, breaks radically from stage 1 and 2, because it suggests that to study religion is to study religion itself, not from the perspective of other disciplines, such as anthropology, theology, or psychology. It thus emphasizes on the uniqueness of religion. (Kanaris, 27 March). There are four components in phenomenological approach that sets it apart from theology and social sciences.
The first component is the irreducibility of religious studies. The phenomenologists argue that religious studies are irreducible: religion is in its own order of truth that we cannot study it rationally or materialistically, instead, we should study religion religiously. For example, Mircea Eliade,
…show more content…
In other words, they do not judge which qualifies for sacred truth and which does not. Eliade achieves epochē through his historical analysis of universal religious symbols (a manifestation of the sacred in human consciousness), because he believes to have epochē is to let history speaks for itself, and reveal the religious truth through a grasping of a religious essence (Kanaris, 27 March). The idea of epochē breaks from the theological approach, because theological approach encourages judgment: theologians understand religious symbols exclusively, and argue that only their religion is the true …show more content…
From transcendence to immanence, from description to explanation, from normative to objective and return to normative, I argue that methods radically determine how we interpret religious traditions and examine religious data, or decide which to report and which not. For example, if one chooses a neurological approach, he will examine the neurological activities in the brain during meditation, but not to pay attention to symbols and cultures. On the other hand, if one chooses an interpretive approach to religion, he will examine the impacts of religion in the society, possibly conducting fieldworks and mingling with religious insiders to look at their beliefs and
The vastly different traditions of religion forms in the United States show that how diversity of worldwide people merged into one society and formed separate traditions all while dealing boundaries between religions in America. The mystery of religious belief beyond the definition is still and will always be a much-debated topic. Regardless of whether these arguments are ever resolved, it is important to bear in mind about the powers from Albanese‘s theory, which is a system of symbols by means of which people orient themselves in a world with reference to both ordinary and extraordinary powers, meanings, and values (Albanese). She also identified
Pecorino, Philip A. "Section 4: What is Religion?" Philosophy of Religion. 2001. 15 November 2007.
As Armstrong (1999: 94) suggests, the origins of mysticism as an “alternative” spiritual movement to orthodox Semitic religion, can be traced back to a time in history that followed the formal development of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. In discussion of this, Bouquet (1962: 288) asserts that the very term, “mysticism” is one that ha...
Molloy, Michael. Experiencing the World's Religions. 5th Edition. New York, NY: McGraw Hill, 2010. 320-322. Print.
Albanese’s definition of religion that focuses on the social (community), the material (symbols), and the mythical (extraordinary) dimensions of religion best incorporates religions from all over the world. Western religions such as Christianity, Islam, and Judaism fit easily into the mold that Albanese lays out, while practices such as Native American, African Diaspora, Chinese, and Japanese religions manage to squeeze into the mold in more obscure ways. Each of these religious practices contain elements of community, symbolism, and interaction with the extraordinary, from the Native American “dama” ritual to Christianity’s creation narrative to Daoism’s Yin-Yang symbol. Although religions from India, such as Hinduism and Buddhism, might be used as counter examples, these religious practices ultimately touch on each aspect of Albanese’s definition. Buddhism and Jainism still acknowledge supernatural forces even though they are not a main focus. Hinduism still is a community of believers even though they accept all religions to be a part of their own. With all this being said, Albanese’s definition of religion is just vague enough. By only focusing on three religious dimensions instead of all seven, all the religious traditions studied in this class can, in fact, be labeled
Systematic theology tends to relate in some ways to the world, which incorporates its historical background and the way it embraces culture (Berkhof, 1996). Its approach permits one to examine all that the bible says as regards an issue. This ensures a natural approach to Christianity, as against a fastidious approach. In AN evolving society, this approach is common in varied fields, in researchers. Indeed, the majority subjects tend to piece along varied theories and topics to return up with a unitary subject.
Smart, Ninian. "Blackboard, Religion 100." 6 March 2014. Seven Dimensions of Religion. Electronic Document. 6 March 2014.
Religions across the globe have conceptualized a belief, generally surrounding the implementations and implications of th...
There are many knowledgeable books that introduce religions as well as specific religious traditions. However, students are naturally introduced to abstract methodological issues such as observer bias, rather than the religions themselves. If religions of the world are not approached with purpose and method, then students are likely to gain “stereotypes… of misinformation supplied by certain sectors of the media” (Chryssides & Geaves, 2014). Thus, in order to see how religion is lived in day to day life, one must “walk a mile in [the] moccasins [of religious people]” as Smart (1998) says. Therefore this essay will attempt to answer why it is important to study religion off campus and how this may challenge traditional understandings of religion.
"EXPLORING THEOLOGY 1 & 2." EXPLORING THEOLOGY 1 2. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 May 2014.
Ludwig, Theodore M. The Sacred Paths: Understanding the Religions of the World (4th Edition). 4 ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 2005.
Religion is an organized collection of beliefs and cultural systems that entail the worship of a supernatural and metaphysical being. “Religion just like other belief systems, when held onto so much, can stop one from making significant progress in life”. Together with religion come traditions that provide the people with ways to tackle life’s complexities. A subscription to the school of thought of great scholars
Molloy, Michael. Experiencing the World's Religions: Tradition, Challenge, and Change. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. Print
“In thinking about religion, it is easy to be confused about what it is.” (Smart, 1992) To combat this, Smart uses seven dimensions to define common characteristics of religion. Much of what will be explored will fit his dimensions. The practical and ritual dimension can been seen in all three religions through worship and rituals and patterns of behaviour. The latter are those acts that help the believer develop spiritual awareness or ethical insight, such as yoga or meditation in Buddhism and Hinduism. The experiential and emotional dimension of religion explains that religion feeds on human emotions and key events from history to illustrate this is, the enlightenment of the Buddha, or the visions of Muhammad. A person will not follow something without meaning or emotion driving it. The narrative or mythic dimension of religion refers to the use of story telling in religion. Typically, all faiths use stories to illustrate their beliefs or events in history, whether they might be of things to come, or like in this essay, stories of the Buddha, or Muhammad. The use of story telling is important as the stories are often based on accounts of history or documents that have been found. Story telling can enhance the believers faith and are often integrated into rituals. The doctrinal and philosophical dimension of religion talks about the importance of the holy books/ doctrines. Since the doctrines typically have an account of the leaders life, and the leaders are usually educated, believers read the doctrines to gain an insight into the leaders life; and thus strive to become more like them or abide by their teachings. The ethical and legal
When first looking at the relationship between philosophy and religion, I found it easier to explain the differences rather than the similarities. I began this paper the same way I do others. This generally involves a profound amount of research on the topic at hand. However, in contrast to the other papers I have done, the definitions of philosophy and religion only raised more questions for me. It was fascinating how the explanations differed dramatically from author to author.