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How do christians celebrate holy communion
5 Importance of religious symbols
Importance of symbols in religion
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Christianity has its own store of powerful cultural tools that are used to legitimate the social order. For instance, symbols. Symbols in Christianity are used to reflect and reinforce social boundaries. The common example is when most Christians’s ships on the open ocean are required to bare with symbols. Catholics wear a crucifix on a chain around their neck, which identifies them as Christians. In addition, Christians known for having a fish symbol on their car which also identifies them as Christians. Also, these types of symbols identify an individual as insider of the group and simultaneously opuses him or her to another group. Most of Christians often involve appeals to what the gods say. They use religious legitimations, such as “because …show more content…
If we focus on the meaning of “the Bible says so” we will miss out on the social effect. The members of Christian community are simply saying that Bible says that some acts are forbidden and not allowed to be practiced. However, if we focus on social effect, we might notice that this way of talking also does something: it functions to add an additional level of supernatural authority to what they were saying. Rituals in Christian religion mark insider and outsider boundaries. The common example is when requires all members to go through “Communion” which is one of the central ritual practices of the Church. This ritual is designed to mark an individual as a full insider in the Catholic Church, with all rights and responsibilities of a full member. This is an other example of social order that people have to follow in order to be a member of the desired community. People who are not Catholic and have not gone through the ritual do not have the rights of a full member. In my opinion, from this type of order people only get benefits. They will know that in order for them to achieve something they have to work on it, to have a discipline, right sequences and order in …show more content…
However, it happens very rare in our family. Usually we sit all together as a big family. Similarly, I have noticed that throughout the history of Christian Church, it has often been the case that the seating in the church is divided by gender. In addition, some churches also have divided seating by race. From my point of view, by sitting where people are invited to sit, individuals learn who they are and where they sit in social hierarchy. Traditions are also cultural tools that help maintain the social order. Marriage is one example of these types of traditions. The distinction between married and unmarried individuals, their relations, and legitimate and illegitimate children, all come into being with and through the performance of wedding, without which one of these categories would exist. In Christian weddings the minister announces the married couple by the name and last tame of the male pattern. It reinforces the subordination of women’s social position to that of
The increase of wealth during the twelfth century allowed artists to showcase their talents in churches. The apse titled Christ in Majesty with Symbols of the Four Evangelists in the church of Santa Maria de Mur displays the representation of divinity through its subject matter, technique, and style. In the apse, the main subjects revolve around scenes from the Old and New Testament with Christ as the focal point. For technique, the artist employed fresco painting instead of mosaics to show the images. The style of the apse avoids a sense of realism by hiding the bodies of the figures in the drapery and using the hierarchy of scale.
Most weddings are done in church. The newly wedded couple is supposed to hold on to their faithfulness in God. Praying and fasting are major activities that are recommended for the couples. Church, best maids and the altar are a symbol of holiness in marriage and that still applies in today’s life. Church weddings are upheld in the society and people take pride being associated with weddings.
As you can see, marriage can come in different celebrations but they all constitute the fact that marriage is an institution in which man and woman come together as one. Aditi and Hermant’s marriage was no different compared those in this study. Al-Zu’abi (2008) states that urbanization plays a key role in influencing perceptions of marriage and that marriage patterns are formed and reformed according to culture. The final point is, marriage is a basic institution of any society no matter the culture difference.
Although religion does not exist as a central theme in Toni Morrison’s work, it does set premise for a richly intertwined web of symbolism. Morrison’s novels focus on the lives of characters acting in the present day or recent past. For African Americans, events of the past are a crucial facet of culture as they seek to remember their history, the most influential of these events reaching far back into the years of slavery. Historians argue that for incoming slaves, Christianity offered a religious ground for the displaced individual, a soil in which to replant the symbols of their native spirituality. In interviews and articles regarding her works, Morrison seems to take on a tone of rejection towards the idea that the civilization of blacks was beneficial. However, through her use of blatant parallels to the Bible and obvious references to Christian doctrine, it is easy to see how a reader might interpret Morrison’s stance as one of affirmation of at least the Christianizing aspect of civilization.
Sacred texts and writings are integral to a living and dynamic religious tradition. Such texts are materials that can range from verbally spoken stories to writings. Sacred texts and writings provide followers with information on core ethical behaviour, rituals and ceremonies, as well as beliefs. The idea of the texts and writings being sacred refers to the texts encompassing divine inspiration. Christianity’s sacred texts and writings, such as the bible (conveyed as the word of God), are continually studied/interpreted throughout generations. The teachings of the bible and the ‘Ten Commandments’ provide Christians with morally accepted standards of behaviour to live their lives by and thus directly influence the day-today actions of its adherents. Furthermore, sacred texts and writings provide information on beliefs, which assist adherents in understanding and even answering significant enduring questions of life. For instance, the creation story ...
The Western church is described as being smaller in land mass, and less diverse (Shields, & Butzu, 2007, p. 103). The Eastern church is described as being quite vast, and full of different types of people (each with their own languages and customs that had an effect on the development of their worship styles and methods). Further we discover that the West had celebrated a time of peace (Christianity was legal, so there was a significant decrease in martyrdom), conversely the Eastern church was geographically located closely to an Islamic population, which meant it had a large military in comparison to the West. I should also point out that there was a shift in this time-period of the church providing what can be described as a governmental role, so in a very practical way being a bishop in the East could mean sending troops to defend members of your church (Shields, & Butzu, 2007, p. 103).
As a Christian, one is led by the teachings in the Bible. By reading the Word of God, we are compelled to act in the ways we do. For example, one of the most known aspects of the Bible is the Ten Commandments. People of the Christian faith follow these commandments in order to live a righteous life. Yet, if you are familiar with those Ten Commandments, you know that saying grace or blessing a meal is not written in these.
Pentecostalism is now the second -largest Christian subdivision in the world after Catholicism, with its numerical centre firmly located, and growing, in the global south (Freston, 2004). Etymologically, Pentecostalism is derived from the word “Pentecoste” which is the English version of the New Testament (NT) Greek word “Pentecoste” meaning fiftieth day. The day of Pentecost is noted in the Christian Church as the day on which the Holy Spirit descended upon the apostles, and on which, under Peter's preaching, so many thousands were converted in Jerusalem. Additionally, it parallels the Jewish “feast of weeks” popularly known as the “Shabuoth” in the Old Testament (OT) of the Bible (Gabriel, 2015) . Pentecostalism is a charismatic Protestant
Christians believe in the Ten Commandments, which are a set of biblical principals that relate to ethics and worship. They instruct to worship only God, as well as prohibitions against
The history of Christianity is one that can be traced from the beginning of time. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1 English Standard Version). The foundation of this religion is build upon the birth, life, death, and resurrection of a man named Jesus. Many Christians believe that he is the Son of God. Further, most additionally would agree that he is the second person in the trinity.
Marriage is a social event that allows members of several clans or distant relatives to meet. Weddings are still determined at the clan and prepared well in advance: the rule is that one marries a man or a woman outside his father 's
Making up the two largest religions in the world, Christianity and Islam, both look at marriage as a major part of one’s life journey. Thus the idea that the sacred ritual of marriage in both Christianity and Islam are full of rich symbolism, ceremony and grounded in religious and cultural traditions, can be explored. However, the ritual of marriage differentiates between Christianity and Islam, as Christianity is founded on deep symbolic meaning and religious tradition in contrast to the culturally rich marriage ceremony found in Islam. This can be further investigated through an in depth analysis of the ceremony, symbols, religious and cultural traditions involved in the ritual of marriage.
The relationship between religious ritual and social power is very complex in its nature. In each society examined thus far religious ritual is intertwined into almost every aspect of life from social taboos to rites in hunting, marriage and an innumerable amount of other cultural aspects. Religious ritual is so interwoven into the fabric of society that separating ritual from the act is often times impossible. In researching this topic I have become aware of two forms of connection that must be addressed to fully cover the idea governing the connection of these principles.
Throughout the years, societies view on marriage and cohabitation has been changing, especially from the 1950s up until now. Marriage and cohabitation are in relation to social location, education, immigration and social class. In addition, these changes are influenced through socialization and their surrounding environments as people’s beliefs and expectations vary from what a defined family really is. Same-sex couples are now getting married and the divorce rate is on the rise, including non-married couples raising children. Most importantly, each individual determines who they marry or whom they share their love with through conditioning or in the course of shared similarities. People have dissimilar values, beliefs and attitudes and throughout the life course may change again, including the future generations. This paper reviews why marriage is on the decline and cohabitation is now the accepted social norm, including other aspects such as specific rights that couples have over others in the past. Religion is a powerful tool that alters minds of those who are affiliated with it. As a result, their beliefs are conditioned and marriage is valued differently than those who are not married. All in all this paper will further explain the change, continuity and
When it comes to the topic of marriage, different cultures have different customs. Some of these customs have changed over the years and some have stayed the same. One type of marriage that interests me is arranged marriage and why there are arranged marriages still going on today. That is why I have chosen to write about them in this paper and discuss why they were/are an important staple in certain cultures.