Transcript Religion
Religion Ch. 7 EQ 7.1-7.2 WHAT IS RELIGION AND WHAT ROLE DOES IT PLAY IN CULTURE? WHERE DID THE WORLDS MAJOR RELIGIONS ORIGINATE AND DIFFUSE? Distribution of Religions • Universalizing religions – Christianity – Islam – Buddhism • Ethnic religions – Hinduism – Judaism How do the two types differ? Universalizing Ethnic •Appeal to people everywhere. •Has meaning in particular place only. •Individual founder (prophet). •Unknown source. •Message diffused widely •Content focused on place and (missionaries). landscape of origin. •Followers distributed widely. •Followers highly clustered. •Holidays based on events in •Holidays based on local climate founder’s life. and agricultural practice. World Distribution of Religions Fig. 6-1: World religions by continent. World Population by Religion Fig. 6-1a: Over two thirds of the world’s population adhere to Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, or Buddhism. Christianity is the single largest world religion. Christian Branches in the U.S. Fig. 6-3: Distribution of Christians in the U.S. Shaded areas are counties with more than 50% of church membership concentrated in Roman Catholicism or one of the Protestant denominations. Statue of Buddha Hong Kong, China Hierarchy of Religious Groups Branch large and fundamental division within a religion Denomination – a division of a branch that unites a number of local congregations in a single legal and administrative board. Sect – a relatively small group that has broken away from an established denomination. Hierarchy of Religious Groups Religion (Christianity) Branch Branch (Roman Catholic) (Protestantism) Branch (Eastern Orthodox) Denomination Denomination (Baptist) (Lutheran) Sect (Southern Baptist) Variations in Distribution of Religions • Origin of religions – Origin of universalizing religions – Origin of Hinduism • Diffusion of religions – Diffusion of universalizing religions – Lack of diffusion of ethnic religions • Judaism and the Diaspora (now signifies spatial dispersion of members of any ethnic group) Diffusion of Islam Fig. 6-6: Islam diffused rapidly and widely from its area of origin in Arabia. It eventually stretched from southeast Asia to West Africa. Diffusion of Buddhism Fig. 6-7: Buddhism diffused gradually from its origin in northeastern India to Sri Lanka, southeast Asia, and eventually China and Japan. Shintoism & Buddhism in Japan Fig. 6-8: Since Japanese can be both Shinto and Buddhist, there are many areas in Japan where over two-thirds of the population are both Shinto and Buddhist. EQ 7.3 HOW IS RELIGION SEEN IN THE CULTURAL LANDSCAPE? Variations in Distribution of Religions • Holy places – Holy places in universalizing religions – Holy places in ethnic religions • Sacred sights • Pilgrimages Holy Sites in Buddhism Fig. 6-9: Most holy sites in Buddhism are locations of important events in Buddha’s life and are clustered in northeastern India and southern Nepal. Mecca, Islam’s Holiest City Fig. 6-10: Makkah (Mecca) is the holiest city in Islam and the site of pilgrimage for millions of Muslims each year. There are numerous holy sites in the city. Makkah during the Haj Pilgrimage The Ka’ba stands at the center of the Great Mosque (al-Haran al Sharif) in Makkah. Ritual Bathing in the Ganges River Hindu pilgrims achieve purification by bathing in the Ganges. The Golden Temple in Amritsar The Golden Temple (Darbar Sahib) in Amritsar, India is the holiest structure for Sikhism. EQ 7.4 WHAT ROLE DOES RELIGION PLAY IN ETHNIC CONFLICT? Conflicts along religious borders • Interfaith boundaries – Boundaries between the world’s major faiths • Intrafaith boundaries – Boundaries within a single major faith Religious Conflicts • Religion vs. government policies – Religion vs. social change • Taliban • Caste system • Religion vs. religion – Religious wars in Ireland – Religious wars in the Middle East • Crusades • Palestine/Israel Distribution of Protestants in Ireland, 1911 Fig 6-14: When Ireland became independent in 1937, 26 northern districts with large Protestant populations chose to remain part of the United Kingdom. Jerusalem Fig. 6-15: The Old City of Jerusalem contains holy sites for Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.