Polytheism and monotheism PDF

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Polytheism and monotheism...

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1- Try to define what is a religion starting from J. Ries , The origins of Religions, Grand RapidsMichigan 1994, p.7. The earliest meaning of the word religion can be found in Cicero who thought that it has a connection with the verb relegere, “to assemble”. In this vision, religion is the assembling and transmitting of the ancestral worship of the gods. Since the third century, the word religio has been adopted by Christians who said that the word derived from the verb religare, “to bind together”, and they also gave the meaning to the concept of religion as “a set of doctrines and practices that forms man’s relationship with the divinity”. In the nineteenth century, the discovery and study of the religions of Asia and other countries provided a wider concept of religion and various definitions according to the different cultural and religious contexts. Sociologists identify three essentials elements in religion: a system of belief, the sacred and the community. 2- Polytheism. Analyze the text and focus on these concepts: God an goodness, Animism, Polytheistic cultures. Polytheism is the belief in many gods. Sometimes, above the many gods, a polytheistic religion will have a supreme creator and focus of devotion, sometimes the gods are considered less important than some higher goal, state or saviour, sometimes one god could be more dominant and powerful than the others without attaining overall supremacy. Polytheistic cultures also include the belief in many demonic and ghostly forces in additions to the gods. The term “animism” has been applied to a belief in many animae (“spirits”) and is often used to characterize the so-called primitive religions. In 19 th century, animism was regarded as a stage in which the forces around human beings were less personalized than in the polytheistic stage. 3- Monotheism. Focus on these aspects: Oneness of God, Transcendence of God, Revelation, Historical forms of religious traditions. Monotheism is the belief in the existence of one god, unlike polytheism that is the belief in the existence of many gods. Monotheism characterizes the traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam (monotheistic religions). Many scholars sustain that monotheism is a higher form of religion than polytheism, so it has to be a later development, assuming that what is higher came later. In monotheism it’s not the oneness of God that counts but its uniqueness: one god is an expression of divine might and power. But monotheism has its difficulties in explaining the origin of evil in a universe under the government of God. 4- Provide synthetic definitions of: Symbol, Myth, Sacred, Homo religiosus, Hermeneutics. -Symbol: It is a sign that brings to mind something that is absent or imperceptible. The symbol is a representations that brings a hidden meaning to light. -Myth: It’s an account of events that took place at the very beginning. It is a story destined to supply models for human behaviour. -Sacred: It suggests a metaphysical and a theological notion whose religious and cultural connotation will vary according to the different traditions of each people. The experience of the sacred implies the discovery of an absolute reality which is perceived and transcendent.

-Homo religious: The expression homo religious refers to man as the subject of the real experience of the sacred. -Hermeneutics: It’s the science of interpretation. It takes evidences that has been critically reviewed and classified them to render its meaning explicit, reveal its trans-historic dimension and make it comprehensible and accessible in the present context by means of comparative analysis. 5- Define the meaning of term “Religion”. Religion is a set of doctrines and practices that forms man’s relationship with the divinity. 6- What is a Monotheism? Monotheism is the belief in the existence of one god. Monotheism characterizes the traditions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam (monotheistic religions). 7- What is a Polytheism? Polytheism is the belief in many gods also including the belief in many demonic and ghostly forces in additions to the gods. 8- Give some examples? 9- Try to explain differences and relationships between monotheisms and polytheisms. 10- Provide a definition of Animism. The term “animism” has been applied to a belief in many animae (“spirits”) and is often used to characterize the so-called primitive religions. 11- Provide a definition of Atheism. Atheism, in general, is the critique and the denial of metaphysical beliefs in God or spiritual beings. It is distinguished from agnosticism which leaves open the question whether there is a god or not, professing to find the questions unanswered or unanswerable....