WORLD RELIGION
BELIEF SYSTEM
● refers to a particular way of ordering the realities of one’s world
● refers to an ideology or set of principles that assists us in interpreting our
everyday reality
● structures of norms that are interrelated or interconnected
● like stories we tell ourselves to outline our personal sense of reality
● deemed as convictions, often in the form of supernatural or religious beliefs,
scientific views or philosophical belief
WORLDVIEW
● derived from the German term “weltanschauung”
● refers to the cluster of beliefs an individual holds about the most significant
concepts of life such as God, the cosmos (universe), and humanity
● a theory of the world used for living in it, serving as mental model of reality,
a framework of ideas and attitudes about ourselves, the world, the life
● how you see life and the world at large
● metaphorically, it can be compared to eye glasses, how you make sense of
the world depends upon your vision, the lens in eye glass help us make
sense of life and comprehend the world around us; some lens bring clarity,
while others may distort reality
● creates a mental structure that organizes our basic or ultimate beliefs, this
cognitive frame provides a comprehensive view of what we deem real, true,
rational, good, valuable, and beautiful
● a comprehensive system of beliefs with answers for a wide range of
questions: What are humans, why are we here, and what is our purpose in
life? What are our reasons for being and goals for life? Why are we the way
we are? Why do we face the challenges we do? What can we know, how and
with how much certainty? Does reality include only matter, energy and
physical stuffs, or is there more?
● affects our decisions and actions in everyday life
● fashioned by many factors, such as our inherited characteristics, life
situations and background, experiences, the values, attitudes, and habits we
have developed, and more
● serves as a “road map”, provides a perspective that shapes, influences, and
even directs an individual’s entire life, a worldview thus acts as a “road map”
that provides directions that guide our life decisions
Some philosophers hold that for a worldview or belief system to be deemed
sound and viable, it needs to answer 12 ultimate concerns identified as “the big
questions of life”. They are the following:
1. ultimate reality (What kind of God, if any, actually exists?)
2. external reality (Is there anything beyond the cosmos?)
3. knowledge (What can be known, and how can anyone know it?)
4. origin (Where did I come from?)
5. identity (Who am I?)
6. location (Where am I?)
7. morals (How should I live?)
8. values (What should I consider of great worth?)
9. predicament (What is humanity’s fundamental problem?)
10. resolution (How can humanity’s problem be solved?)
11. past/present (What is the meaning and direction of history?); and
12. destiny (Will I survive the death of my body and, if so, in what state?)
THEISM AS A BELIEF SYSTEM
Theism – deemed as an umbrella worldview among the world religions, for
generally, all religions are theistic; that is, in one way or another and in
varying degrees, world religions have a belief in God or deity
- holds that a deity or deities exist/s
- many theistic worldviews consider this supernatural being as an infinite
personal God who is the creator of the universe, and who supernaturally
acts on things in it
- God is commonly regarded as both immanent and transcendent
- God is omnipotent (all powerful), omniscient (all knowing), eternal and
immortal
- God is also seen as the source of truth and destiny
- Theism views human being as the special created being of God
- Man is distinct from the animal world and unique in his nature and being
- Man is the only created being that can have a special relationship with
God and the only created being that God desires to have a relationship
with
- Man’s purpose and supposed destiny is defined by God, his Creator
- God created the universe and nothing in it happens without God’s control
or sanction. God is thus responsible for the universe existence and it is
maintained by His power
- BASIS OF TRUTH : Theism points to holy scriptures. (Islam = Koran,
Judaism = Torah, Christianity = Bible)
- MORALITY : theistic ethics believes that a supernatural being called God is
the foundation of morality. God is viewed as the true source of all moral
laws
- Holds that the truth of moral judgments depends on God’s will. In theistic
ethics, “X is moral “ means “God wants us or a particular agent to do X.”
While other ethical views can just postulate good moral principles, only a theistic view
can justify them. Filipino Philosophy Professor Jensen DG. Manebog gives at
least four reasons for this:
1. There are moral absolutes.
2. If everything is relative, then there is no good reason why we ought to
abstain from doing anything we wish to do.
3. Only in theism are all persons held morally accountable for their actions in
the real sense.
4. Only the ethics rooted in Moral Law-Giver can be truly prescriptive in any
objectives sense of the word.
ATHEISM, NATURALISM, and MATERIALISM as OPPOSING
WORLDVIEWS
Atheism – the disbelief, denial of, lack of belief in the existence of God or gods,
the term comes from the Greek prefix “a”, meaning “without” and the Greek
word “theos”, which means “God”
Naturalism – a belief system that rejects all spiritual and supernatural
explanations of the world and affirms nature as the totality of reality, it holds
that we can comprehend nature only through scientific investigation since
science is the sole basis of what can be known; it roots in empiricism which
claims that all valid knowledge is derived from experience, and in positivism,
which denies all metaphysical concepts
Materialism – the philosophical doctrine that physical matter is the only
ultimate reality, it maintains that all that exists is reducible to matter or to
qualities or upshots of matter; things like feelings, emotions, reason, thought,
dreams, wishes, desire, and even morality will ultimately be explained as physical
functions
RELIGION – a compound of the Latin “re” and “ligare” meaning “to bind back”,
thus, for the religionists, there is a bond that exists between the creator and His
human creatures
- the pursuit of transformation guided by a sacred belief system; defined as
“people’s beliefs and opinions concerning the existence, nature, and worship of a
deity or deities, and divine involvement in the universe and human life
- refers to a sacred engagement with that which is believed to be a spiritual
reality
- an organized collection of beliefs, cultural systems, and worldviews that
relate humanity to an order of existence
- many religions possess holy scriptures, narratives, or sacred accounts that
aim to explain the origin and meaning of life and the universe
- many religions also have clergy, rules on membership, holy places,
religious rites, visual symbols, creeds, doctrines, mythology, philosophical
systems, and organized behaviors
- used interchangeably with faith, creed, belief system, or conviction
SUPERNATURAL – it means whatever transcends the powers of nature or
human agency
RELIGION vs. SPIRITUALITY
Spirituality – one’s integrative view of life, it involve a quest for the meaning
and ultimate value of life as opposed to an instrumentalist or materialistic
attitude to life
- refers to a religious process of reformation which aims to recover the
original shape of man, oriented at the image of God
- the term “spiritual” pertains to matters concerning the spirit
- it comes from the Latin word “spiritus” which means “soul, courage, vigor
or breath”
- the modern usage of the term puts emphasis on subjective experience of
a sacred or spiritual dimension and the deepest purpose, values, and
meanings by which human beings live, typically in a context unconnected
from organized religious institutions
The following are some of the differences between religion and
spirituality:
1. Religion may focus on doctrines and rules to be followed by its adherents
whereas spirituality focuses on the soul that dwells within a person.
2. Religion may focus more on the outside expressions of faith; spirituality
focuses on the within.
3. Religions are institutions and may work on institutionalizing some of its
sector, whereas, spirituality does not necessarily involve the idea of
institutionalization.
4. To some outsiders, religion may appear all about rituals, while spirituality
may seem avoiding anything that can become meaningless through
repetition
5. Especially from a sociologist’s point of view, the rituals of religion are
intended to foster a community of believers that provide both spiritual and
physical support to its members, whereas people who consider
themselves to be only spiritual are usually left to their own devices.
RELIGION vs THEOLOGY
Theology – the study of God; it comes from the word “theos” which is Greek
for “God” and “logos” meaning “word” or “study”
- Webster’s dictionary defines theology as the science of God or religion;
the science which treats the existence, character, and attributes of God,
his laws and government
- mostly, theology gained its content and method from Christianity
- theology refers to a belief system that is built upon intellectually and
emotionally held commitments concerning God and man
- a set of intellectual and emotional commitments, justified or not, about
God and man which dictate one’s beliefs and actions
There are however, various points on which religion and theology
differ:
1. Theology works on religion; religion and its principles, doctrines, beliefs,
and thoughts should have been established in the first place for the
subject of theology to develop. Theology is based in religion. Religion is
anchored on faiths and beliefs when it comes to the acceptance of
superhuman beings and powers in the form of God or gods. Theology on
the other hand, is basically the study of theistic thoughts or religions.
2. Rational evaluation of its faith is not the main concern of religions,
whereas, theology, essentially an academic discipline, deals with the
rational analysis of religious faiths.
3. Unlike theology, religion deals with the customs and manners observed by
a certain community or society when it comes to practicing any specific
belief or faith.
4. The religious leaders establish religious truths whereas theological leaders
establish analytical truths.
5. Religion is human’s way to God, whereas theology is a study of God’s way
to humans.
RELIGION vs. PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION
Philosophy of Religion – refers to the philosophical study of the main themes
and concepts involved in religions. It may also include an enquiry into the
religious significance of historical events and the general features of the cosmos,
the laws of nature, and the occurrence of conscious life
- fundamentally, a branch of philosophy
- comes from the Greek words “philo” (love) and “Sophia (wisdom)
- considered by some as the mother of all branches of knowledge
- defined as the systematic examination od principles and presuppositions
of any field of inquiry, including religion
The following are some of the differences between religion and
philosophy of religion:
1. Religion is humans’ way to God, whereas philosophy of religion is a
reflection of human’s lived experience of God.
2. Religion is about profession and practice of one’s held faith, whereas
philosophy of religion, as a branch of philosophy, is about examination of
the principles and presuppositions of religion.
3. Philosophy of religion essentially involves other main areas if philosophy
such as metaphysics, epistemology, logic, and philosophy of language.
Religion may also deal with these philosophical disciplines but only
accidentally and not as its main concerns.
4. Religion normally affirms the existence of a deity, whereas philosophy of
religion rationally inspects religious issues and concerns without a
presumption of the existence of a god or reliance on acts of faith.
5. Religion is about faith in a supreme power and worship of Him as the
Creator and Controller of the universe without necessarily involving
reasoning, whereas philosophy is a pursuit of wisdom by intellectual
search necessarily involving logical reasoning.
6. Religion is also about practices, and the performance of rituals, whereas
philosophy is about metaphysics and does not emphasize the actual
practice or rituals.
In view of the preceding discussions, we can infer the following:
1. A belief system or worldview is a particular way of ordering the realities of
one’s world.
2. Religion is the pursuit of transformation guided by a sacred belief system.
3. Spirituality is one’s integrative view of life. It involves a quest for the
meaning and ultimate value of life as opposed to an instrumentalist or
materialistic attitude of life.
THE ELEMENTS OF RELIGION
1. It reflects an effort to elevate man’s whole self to a higher dimension of
existence.
2. It is a framework of transcendent beliefs.
3. Text or scriptures
4. Rituals
5. Sacred spaces
SOME THEOLOGICAL WORLDVIEWS
1. All is One (Monistic)
2. Many Gods (Polytheistic)
3. One God (Monotheistic)
4. No God (Atheistic)
THE ELEMENTS OF SPIRITUALITY
1. Holistic (fully integrated view to life)
2. Quest for Meaning (including the purpose of life)
3. Quest for the Sacred (beliefs about God)
4. Suggests a Self-reflective Existence
A SPIRITUAL BUT NOT RELIGIOUS (SBNR) MAN
A spiritual but not religious individual associates faith with the private realm of
personal experience rather than with the public realms of religious institutions,
creeds, and rituals. He or she may ignore membership in religious institutions,
participation in formal rituals, and adherence to official denominational doctrines.
A SBNR person may have no or low levels of interest in Church attendance and
commitment to or orthodox beliefs. Instead, as one research shows, he or she
has higher levels of interest in mysticism, experimentation with unorthodox
beliefs and practices, and negative feelings toward both clergy and Churches.
People who profess to be spiritual but not religious are less likely to consider
religiousness positively, less likely to participate in traditional forms of qorship
such as Church attendance and prayer, and less likely to involve themselves in
group experiences related to spiritual growth.
Studies also show that many SBNR people or “spiritual seekers” prefer weekend
workshops or retreats than institutionalized religious pilgrimages.
A RELIGIOUS BUT NOT SPIRITUAL (RBNS) MAN
Below are examples of people who were religious but not spiritual the Bible
characters Cain, Balaam, and Korah.
Cain was a deeply religious man who believed in offering sacrifices to God. Cain
is seen as a type of people who offer external things to God like money, services,
time, etc. Religious but not spiritual man I thus sketched as someone who can
give gifts, pray and do many good works, but he or she does not understand
what it is to offer oneself.
Balaam is also depicted as a religious man, as he was a preacher who wanted to
serve God; he was also interested in making money and meeting great men in
the world. He sought monetary gain and honor for himself in the name of the
Lord.
Korah is also a religious man. He was from the priestly tribe of Levi. He was
discontented with the ministry assigned to him by the Lord. He wanted to be
more prominent, like Moses was. Korah’s covetousness and his rebellion against
the authority that God Himself had appointed over His people wee what proved
to be his painful destruction.
RBNS are those who find it hard to praise and appreciate a God-fearing brother
or spiritual leader, those who criticize him, and those who listen to others
criticizing him, thereby causing divisions.
FAMILIARIZATION OF KEY CONCEPTS
Direction: Define the following terms. You may use your own words in defining
them.
1. Belief system_________________________________________________
2. Worldview____________________________________________________
3. Theism______________________________________________________
4. Atheism_____________________________________________________
5. Naturalism___________________________________________________
6. Materialism__________________________________________________
7. Religion_____________________________________________________
8. Spirituality___________________________________________________
9. Theology____________________________________________________
10. Philosophy of religion__________________________________________
11. Religious rituals_______________________________________________
12. Synagogue___________________________________________________
13. Mosque______________________________________________________
14. Monism______________________________________________________
15. Polytheism___________________________________________________
16. Monotheism__________________________________________________
17. Atheism_____________________________________________________
18. Darwinism___________________________________________________
19. Spiritual But Not Religious (SBNR) Man____________________________
20. Religious But Not Spiritual (RBNS) Man____________________________
