The Sociology and Philosophy of Religion

LO O K T O T H E H I L L S

THE SOCIOLOGY AND PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION

Resources:Professor J. McBrayer – Fort Lewis College, Durango, CORitual and Religion in the Making of Humanity; Roy A. RappaportPhilosophy of Religion; David Elton TruebloodStanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – plato.stanford.edu/contents.html

HOMEWORK FOR SUNDAY

Please….

a. Read!

b. Discuss and/or reflect on the handouts

c. Write down your questions

HOMEWORK DUE TODAY

Podcast: On BeingYoutube Audio: Christopher HutchinsSong: Spirit in the SkyReading: Plato – Laws

Commentary and Questions?

HOMEWORK QUESTIONSCan you know that God exists? 

If you cannot, is there anyone else that can know if God exists, and who is this person or who are these people?  If you can, how can you know that God exists?

The idea of pantheism says that God is all things.  If you agree with this idea, what does it mean to say that something is God?  If you disagree with this idea, please speak to the delineation between those things that are God and those things that are not God.

Unfortunately, for many people the word ‘God’ is loaded with imagery and, for lack of a better word, baggage. 

If we wanted to discuss God so that the idea of God is more neutral and less biased, what would you, instead, call God?

DEFINITIONS

Sociology of Religion: The search for natural and rational evidence of the emergence of religion in human history.

 Philosophy of Religion: The search for reasoned answers to important, non-empirical questions that arise within a religious context or as a result of religious belief.

JOHN LOCKE & THECOMPATIBILITY OF RELIGION

Guiding question: Given Locke’s role in advocating rational, independent thought, what assumptions are made about religion in his, and other comparable, rights-oriented, treaties?

Is religion an independent endeavor?

Can religious truth be known?

Is religion a force for good? Is it a force for societal cohesion?

Discussion of the Faith Filter and Authority at a Distance

HEAD OF CHRIST, C. 1648-56REMBRANDT HARMENSZ. VAN RIJN, DUTCHOIL ON OAK PANEL, LAID INTO LARGER OAK PANEL

SUPPER AT EMMAUS, C. 1648REMBRANDT HARMENSZ. VAN RIJN, DUTCH

CHRIST AND THE WOMAN TAKEN IN ADULTERY, C. 1644REMBRANDT HARMENSZ. VAN RIJN, DUTCH

THE ROAD TO EMMAUS

ORTHODOX ICON PAINTING/CARD

LANGUAGE

THE ABRAHAMIC AND VEDIC ‘SEARCH FOR THE DIVINE’

RELATIVE POPULATIONS OF WORLD’S RELIGIONSWWW.ADHERENTS.COM

Christianity: 2.1 billionIslam: 1.5 billionSecular/Nonrel/Agn/Ath: 1.1 billHinduism: 900 millionChinese traditional: 394 millBuddhism: 376 millionprimal-indigenous: 300 millionAfrican Traditional: 100 millionSikhism: 23 millionJuche: 19 millionSpiritism: 15 millionJudaism: 14 millionBaha'i: 7 millionJainism: 4.2 millionShinto: 4 millionCao Dai: 4 millionZoroastrianism: 2.6 millionTenrikyo: 2 millionNeo-Paganism: 1 millionUnitarian-Universalism: 800 thousRastafarianism: 600 thousandScientology: 500 thousand

COURSE POSTULATESPrimary postulates in the course: Sociology and Religion1. The emergence of language in human history allowed for the

emergence of religion, and the idea of something divine

2. Far more influential than we realize, religious rituals were – and continue to be – culturally defining phenomena.

 Philosophy and Religion 3. Thoughtful, unanswerable questions (in ANY discipline) linger.

2. ‘Westerners’ have cared a lot about whether or not there is a God; ‘Easterners’ have not. The nature of their respective religions represents this fact.

LANGUAGE & RITUALSOCIOLOGY INQUIRY EXPLAINS ORGANIZED RELIGION

[in contrast to the communication of other living beings]Human Language can be:• speculative• dishonest

Human language, like humanity, has evolved in adaptive (surprising) and then intentional (predictable) ways

THE SOCIOLOGICAL MATH(OF RELIGION)

• Speculative language becomes sanctified language

• Sanctified language is clarified through religious ritual

• Religious ritual, therefore, expresses speculative language

• In this way, speculative language has the potential to become religious creed

• (a transitive property problem!; if A begets B, and B begets C, then A begets C)

COURSE POSTULATESPrimary postulates in the course: Sociology and Religion1. The emergence of language in human history allowed for the

emergence of religion, and the idea of something divine

2. Far more influential than we realize, religious rituals were – and continue to be – culturally defining phenomena.

 Philosophy and Religion 3. Thoughtful, unanswerable questions (in ANY discipline) linger.

2. ‘Westerners’ have cared a lot about whether or not there is a God; ‘Easterners’ have not. The nature of their respective religions represents this fact.

DEFINITIONS

 Philosophy of Religion: The search for reasoned answers to important, non-empirical questions that arise within a religious context or as a result of religious belief.

FAITH & RELATIONSHIPPHILOSOPHICAL INQUIRY EXPLAINS ORGANIZED RELIGION

Meaning – Our Lives Matter to Us!

“Do you believe in a Divine Presence?” – this is a (the?) PIVOTAL question of human existence

Life lived in relation to Other, or life lived in relation to Self?

Right Relationship; The Leap of Faith

GODForms of God

Polytheistic (Ancient Greek, Roman, Norse)Henotheistic (Hinduism; monistic/dualistic)Monotheistic (Abrahamic)Nontheistic (Buddhism; Jainism)Panentheism (ex. Indig American; Pagan)Pantheism (God IS everything; monism/tic)Mysticism / Spirituality

DEFINITIONSMonotheistic Terminology: Evidence of God

• Deism (God the Watchmaker)• First Cause/Prime Mover• Design of existence; God the architect of order• Ontological Argument• God the Judge• Pascal’s Wager 

Right Relationship: Humans ask the question, “How can I best demonstrate my compatibility with God and/or God’s plan?” or “In what way is my life compatible with the natural world and with the world of humans?”

CONCLUSION

• Living a meaningful life is a shared human endeavor (Faith Creed)• The search for meaning can be directed outward or inward, depending

on the ‘geography’ of the divine (Relationship God)

Questions to be addressed:

• Does God exist, or is God a manifestation of the human mind and/or of human social structures?

• Can all religions be equally true, and/or equally untrue? Does the

existence of many faiths mean that there is no one true faith?

COURSE POSTULATESSociology and Religion1. The emergence of language in human history allowed for the

emergence of religion, and the idea of something divineOur use of language is new worlds-creating (Language Humanity)2. Far more influential than we realize, religious rituals were – and continue to be – culturally defining phenomena.What we do tells the story of what we believe/know (Ritual Culture)

Philosophy and Religion3. Thoughtful, unanswerable questions (in ANY discipline) linger.Living a meaningful life is a shared human endeavor (Faith Creed)2. ‘Westerners’ have cared a lot about whether or not there is a God; ‘Easterners’ have not. The nature of their respective religions represents this fact.The search for meaning can be directed outward or inward, depending on the ‘geography’ of the divine (Relationship God)