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Understanding World Religions

Religion is the driving force behind much of what happens in the world today -- particularly when it comes to the "big three" religions -- Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Religious differences have and continue to spark wars, create nations, and spawn ongoing conflict down through the centuries. No matter what religion you adhere to (or even if you claim that you don't adhere to any religion at all), you need to have a basic understanding of the world's religions in order to understand what is happening in the world today so that you can be better informed and a more useful citizen of your nation and of the world. Without some knowledge of religion, you will not understand the underpinnings of what is happening in an increasingly global society.
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Now displaying: Category: Religion, Culture
Jan 28, 2015

Our quote for today is from Mahatma Gandhi. He said, "It is easy enough to be friendly to one's friends. But to befriend the one who regards himself as your enemy is the quintessence of true religion. The other is mere business."

In this podcast, we are making our way through Garry R. Morgan's book, "Understanding World Religions in 15 Minutes a Day." Garry Morgan is a Professor of Intercultural Studies at Northwestern College. He served with World Venture for 20 years in Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Tanzania. 

Our topic for today is, "Evangelical Christianity" 

Evangelicalism is a movement in Protestant Christianity that began in the twentieth century as a response to changes in the beliefs, or doctrines, of some Protestant churches, especially with regard to the Bible's authority. 

Modernism, and more recently postmodernism, have influenced the thinking of many and cast doubt in their minds about some scriptural teachings. While there is a broad range of belief within Protestantism, some see the Bible as an ancient, error-filled human record of religious experience rather than a divinely inspired revelation from God. As a result, they reject one or more foundational doctrines of the Christian faith. 

For example, some dismiss "Jesus as the only way to salvation" as arrogance. Some consider the need for salvation at all from "God's wrath" to be an abhorrent myth. They might say Jesus is a remarkable human teacher, but not the divine-human Son of God. They deny his miracles and his resurrection and, in the extreme, question whether he actually existed as a historical person. And, despite all these denials of historic orthodoxy, many who hold these beliefs still consider themselves Christian and remain active in churches and seminaries. They find the content of Jesus' teaching to be mostly a useful source of principles for right living. 

Catholicism has been impacted by the same philosophical and worldview trends, and many today, including some leaders, hold one or more of the above beliefs. Certainly this has brought dissension and debate into Catholic scholarship and writing. Unlike some Protestant denominations, though, the Roman Church's official teachings still reflect a more traditional stance with regard to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

How did these changes come about? In seventeenth-century Europe, new ways of thinking produced what is now called the Enlightenment. One key Enlightenment facet was its emphasis on rationalism, the elevation of human reason in determining truth. If something could not be understood by the human mind, it was rejected as false. 

There were positive aspects to rationalism—for example, the development of the scientific method—but it also rejected revealed religion and made humankind the ultimate authority. By the eighteenth century, a different way of studying the Scriptures emerged. Biblical accounts of miracles were assumed to be fictitious, since Europeans of that era couldn't produce miracles themselves. Biblical statements about Jesus' deity and resurrection were dismissed as the fabrications of "primitive" human minds in the ancient world. The worldview that evolved from these ideas was called modernism. The macroevolutionary hypotheses brought forth by Charles Darwin's theories further influenced modernism's focus on the material world and rejection of the supernatural. 

Initially, these humanistic ideas were limited to the educated elite and had little impact on the masses of European and North American Christians. But theological education would come to be influenced by modernistic views, and some Christian leaders became convinced that the church needed to change or else the faith would become irrelevant and die out. This process, over several decades, led some entire denominations to alter their doctrinal statements toward a modernist viewpoint. 

The reaction by those who still believed in the Bible as God's authoritative Word was strong. Dozens of new denominations were formed as churches split over belief in Jesus' virgin birth, miracles, and resurrection. By the 1920s, the labels “liberal” and “fundamentalist” were used to identify these two Christian groups. As modernist teachings grew in long-established seminaries, fundamentalists (so-called because they held to the "fundamentals" of biblical Christianity) started a number of Bible schools around the United States. 

By the mid-1940s, fundamentalists had become increasingly disengaged from American society, separating themselves even from other Christians who did not believe exactly the same way. Some within fundamentalism became uncomfortable with this rigidity and negativism. (Fundamentalists, it was said, "were known more for what they were against than what they were for.") While still holding to biblical fundamentals regarding Christ's person and work, this new movement sought increased cooperation with other Christians, engaged in the pursuit of scholarship (the fundamentalist movement had become strongly anti-intellectual), and generally became more involved in society. Those within this group came to be known as evangelicals. 

Today, “evangelical” has become an umbrella term for Christians who believe in the Bible's accuracy (its inerrancy) and full authority. They also believe in the necessity of being born again for salvation. 

The term is used broadly. It may describe an individual, a local church, or an entire denomination. It's used to identify subgroups within larger denominations, like the "evangelical wing" of the global Anglican Church. There are evangelical organizations, such as the Evangelical Theological Society. The World Evangelical Alliance is made up of more than a hundred national evangelical associations representing thousands of denominations, hundreds of thousands of churches, and approximately four hundred million Christians. 

As the movement has grown, it's become more diverse nationally, ethnically, and culturally. Since modernist or liberal churches no longer believed in the necessity of faith in Christ for salvation, most twentieth-century missionary work was carried out by evangelicals. Although Pentecostal Christianity had earlier and different origins and for decades remained separate from evangelicalism, the two are often considered part of the same branch of Christianity. Now almost all non-biological growth in Christianity, globally, is in the evangelical-Pentecostal wing.  

Now, for An Extra Minute 

What's in a label? Terms can be perplexing. In contrast to liberal Christians, evangelicals are often labeled conservative. But liberal may refer to politics as well as theology, or it may mean a person is generous. Someone who's theologically liberal may be politically conservative, and vice versa. Denominations that generally have liberal theology in the sense described above are also known as conciliar, mainline Protestant, and ecumenical. Denominational labels aren't always reliable guides either. For example, some Presbyterian denominations are conciliar/liberal and others are evangelical/conservative. And despite the name, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, the largest Lutheran denomination in the U.S., isn't evangelical, doctrinally speaking (there are individual ELCA churches that hold evangelical views). It's more reliable to listen with discernment to the preaching and teaching of a local church than to go by any label. 

Jan 9, 2015

Our quote for today is from Albert Camus. He said, "I would rather live my life as if there is a God and die to find out there isn't, than live as if there isn't and to die to find out that there is."

In this podcast, we are making our way through Garry R. Morgan's book, "Understanding World Religions in 15 Minutes a Day." Garry Morgan is a Professor of Intercultural Studies at Northwestern College. He served with World Venture for 20 years in Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Tanzania. 

Our topic for today is, "Roman Catholic Christianity" 

The first Christians had little organizational structure. Although local churches all around the Mediterranean world were in contact and even cooperated in activities (like sending support to Paul’s missionary team or providing financial assistance to the Jerusalem church during a famine), there was no central human authority. 

The apostles were a chosen group who established new churches and provided special guidance during the New Testament era. These men, primarily Peter and James in Jerusalem, and Paul, the church planter, were looked to for wisdom and advice on matters of doctrine and practice (e.g., see Acts 15 or Paul’s epistles—letters written to many of the local churches). However, the local assembly of believers in each city believed they drew their authority directly from Jesus Christ, led by the Scriptures and his Holy Spirit.

The New Testament describes three types of church leaders, always in connection with a given congregation. The first have traditionally been called bishops. The literal translation of the Greek word is “overseer,” which clearly describes their role. The second, elders, were responsible for teaching, leading, and spiritual care. Deacons primarily provided material care for the congregation, though their qualifications were similar to elders and many, like Stephen, the first Christian martyr, were gifted preachers and teachers. It seems likely there were also deaconesses. While their exact title is not certain, Paul mentions by name a number of women who served in a ministry capacity. 

This decentralized leadership aided the church’s survival through the waves of persecution it faced during its first three centuries. By the time the last of the apostles died (c. AD 90), each city where believers gathered had a bishop or overseer. Church buildings weren’t common for several centuries; groups of believers met in homes, usually with an elder present, while large, corporate gatherings were held outside or in rented facilities. 

Many bishops, especially in the larger cities, were gifted theologians, speakers, and writers— two of the better known are Athanasius and Augustine, both from North Africa. The writings of these and other influential bishops were circulated as the church refined ways of stating New Testament truths in doctrinal statements and dealt with questions and controversies that came up over the years in specific contexts. 

Persecution during the first three centuries was sporadic and sometimes localized. Begun initially by Jewish leaders, after Jerusalem’s fall (AD 70), the Romans became the persecutors. The most severe and widespread wave came under Emperor Diocletian (ruled AD 284–305). His successor, Constantine, abruptly reversed policy (through the Edict of Milan, AD 313) and granted Christianity legal status equal to all other religions in the empire. 

Constantine took two other actions that significantly shaped Christianity. In 325, he called the Council of Nicaea, to be held in present-day Turkey, inviting 1,800 bishops from all over the empire to discuss and settle questions regarding the nature of Christ. Several hundred were able to attend, and they produced the Nicene Creed, still used in some worship services today.

Then in 330, Constantine moved his political capital from Rome to Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey). In the western part of the empire, the church filled the political vacuum. The bishop in Rome already held great prestige and influence over the rest of the church, and although the New Testament doesn’t mention it, there’s a church tradition that says the apostle Peter traveled there and became its first bishop. 

This influence, increasing significantly after 330, also brought increased conflict with Christianity’s eastern branch, which resisted the Roman bishop’s claim to lead all Christians. Geography, politics, and theological differences all led to a gradual and often acrimonious separation that became complete in 1204, when Crusaders from the west, en route to the Holy Land, attacked and looted Constantinople. 

Within a century, the Christian church went from persecuted minority to appointing emperors and running political systems. After the Empire’s collapse, the church became the unifying force in Europe. But with more political influence came declining spiritual fervor. In response, monastic orders were formed by those who wanted to focus on the spiritual aspects of Christianity. Yet the monks did not simply withdraw from society. They taught the people in their areas, maintained centers of learning, and sent missionaries to other parts of the world. 

Early in the Middle Ages (roughly AD 500– 1500), the bishop of Rome became the recognized head of the Western church and was called the pope. He claimed authority over all Christians, and thus the church came to be called the Catholic Church, meaning “all-embracing” or universal. It was not until the Reformation, when some Christian groups broke away from the pope’s authority, that Roman Catholic came to describe the section of the church that recognized papal leadership. Today, Christianity is described as having three major branches: Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Eastern Orthodox. 

The Reformation produced an often violent reaction (the Counter-Reformation) from the Catholic Church but also brought some positive changes. Over time, the pope’s amassing of power and wealth had led to corruption and other outrages. The Council of Trent (1545) was an effort to stem the tide of Christians leaving the Catholic Church to join the Reformers. 

The sale of indulgences and other abuses were restrained, but certain doctrines were formulated to specifically “counter” Reformation beliefs and establish the claim to be the only true and legitimate form of Christianity. Opposing Protestant trust in the Bible’s sole authority, the Council stated that church tradition carried equal weight. Protestants promoted translating the Bible into common languages and providing it to all believers (with help from the recently invented printing press); the Council maintained that the Latin Bible was the only true Scripture, and only the Catholic Church could interpret it.

Although some new dogmas (official statements of belief) were added over the centuries, the doctrines established by Trent defined Roman Catholic Christianity until the middle of the twentieth century. The First Vatican Council (Vatican I, 1869) had added the dogma of papal infallibility: that the pope’s official pronouncements (ex cathedra) are without error. In 1962, Pope John XXIII called the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II), which met until 1965, and wrought momentous change. Best known for replacing Latin with vernacular languages in the mass, it also recognized Protestant and Orthodox believers as true Christians and allowed ordinary members to read the Bible for themselves. Today, the Roman Catholic Church, with 1.1 billion members globally, remains the largest Christian branch. 

Now, for An Extra Minute 

The organizational structure of the Roman Catholic Church is often used as a model in business management courses because of its “flatness,” that is, minimal layers from top to bottom. With more than a billion members, there are only six layers from pope to ordinary member (layperson). In between are the offices of cardinal, archbishop, bishop, and priest.

Dec 10, 2014

Welcome to the "Understanding World Religions" podcast. This is episode number 2. My name is Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International. The simple purpose of this podcast is to help you become informed about the various religious beliefs that exist  in the world today. In the interest of full disclosure, I am a Christian and I do believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Savior of the world. However, I do have two degrees in Religion and with the knowledge of all these religions, I have chosen to be and remain a Christian. 

 

Religion is the driving force behind much of what happens in the world today -- particularly when it comes to the "big three" religions -- Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Religious differences have and continue to spark wars, create nations, and spawn ongoing conflict -- along with doing much good -- down through the centuries. No matter what religion you adhere to (or even if you claim that you don't adhere to any religion at all), you need to have a basic understanding of the world's religions in order to understand what is happening in the world today so that you can be better informed and a more useful citizen of your nation and of the world. Without some knowledge of religion, you will not understand the underpinnings of what is happening in an increasingly global society. 

 

Our quote for today is from Ralph Waldo Emerson. He said, “All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen.”

 

In this podcast, we will be making our way through Garry R. Morgan's book, "Understanding World Religions in 15 Minutes a Day: Learn the Basics of Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Mormonism, Christianity, and many more." Garry Morgan is a Professor of Intercultural Studies at Northwestern College. He served with World Venture for 20 years in Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Tanzania. 

 

Our topic for today is titled, “What is Religion?” Part 1: 

 

Ask most people if they know what religion is and they will say yes. Ask them to define it, though, and you’re likely to get blank stares and some mumbles. While we usually recognize religion when we see it, definitions are more challenging. Most people assume it has something to do with God, or gods, but that’s not always the case. Definitions tend either to be so broad they’re unhelpful or so specific they omit or overlook certain religions. 

 

In addition, religion overlaps with philosophy. Confucius probably thought of himself as nonreligious, yet his philosophical principles have been incorporated into Chinese religions. Indeed, when a philosopher devoutly follows a particular religion, it can become impossible to distinguish between it and his philosophy. Søren Kierkegaard, a nineteenth-century Danish philosopher regarded as a father of existentialism, had a deep Christian faith and wrote profound theological works. Nevertheless, philosophy differs from religion in that it typically does not involve corporate practices like worship. 

 

One far-reaching effect of cultural diversity on a global scale is that disparities, divergences, and discrepancies are not only interreligious but also intra-religious— that is, within the same religion in different areas. An Ethiopian Orthodox worship service bears little outward resemblance to an Ecuadorian Pentecostal service, yet both groups share core Christian beliefs. 

 

Further, because religion significantly impacts our worldview, religious beliefs and practices are highly interconnected with culture. Indeed, as with the philosophical, discerning the cultural from the religious can range from challenging to undoable, so intertwined are they. What outsiders may view as religious practice, adherents may see as simply a cultural tradition. Traditional Chinese people clean ancestral graves each spring; Westerners tend to identify this as a religious practice, while the Chinese think of it in cultural terms. In the same way yet in reverse, some non-natives enjoy attending Native American powwows to watch the “cultural” dances, but to the cultural insider these dances have spiritual import. 

 

The English word religion comes from the Latin religio, meaning “awe or fear of a god or spirit.” Most religions do affirm a supernatural realm and include practices intended to worship or placate gods or spirits. But again, not all belief systems typically classified as “religions” entail the supernatural or even uphold its existence. Confucianism, Taoism, The-ra-va-da Buddhism, and Jain-ism are found in every world religions textbook yet are indifferent or agnostic on the reality of the supernatural, especially in any personal sense. 

 

Even those who study religion professionally struggle to agree on a definition. The theologian Paul Tillich called it “that which is of ultimate concern”— perhaps an accurate descriptor but too general to be very useful as a definition. Anthropologist Michael Alan Park defines it as “a set of beliefs and behaviors pertaining to the supernatural.” While most anthropological explanations insist on inclusion of the supernatural, Edward Norbeck says religion is a “distinctive symbolic expression of human life that interprets man himself and his universe, providing motives for human action”. William James said religion “consists of the belief that there is an unseen order, and that our supreme good lies in harmoniously adjusting ourselves thereto.” Note that neither of these latter two necessitates affirmation of the supernatural. 

 

- - - - - - - - -

 

On our next Understanding World Religions podcast, we will continue talking about "What is Religion?"

 

In closing, I would like to say that even though we are covering many religious belief systems in this podcast, there is only one way of truly being cleansed of your sins and only one way that you can be guaranteed an eternal home in Heaven with God. That way is through Jesus Christ. The Bible says in Acts 4:12: "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." First Timothy 2:5 says, “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all.”

 

If you do not believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, may I encourage you to get to know Him today. John 3:16 says, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will. Romans 10:13 says, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

 

Until next time, may God richly bless you.

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