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How did Christianity impact civilization
Impact on religion in ancient civilizations
Impact on religion in ancient civilizations
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Religious syncretism is a blending of two or more religious beliefs or practices into a new system, or the merging into a new religious tradition of beliefs from different traditions. This can occur for many reasons, but happens quite frequently in areas where multiple religions exist nearby to each other and are active in the culture. When a culture is conquered, the conquerors bring their religious beliefs with them, but do not succeed in entirely wiping out the old beliefs or practices as they are too engrained. Certain religious followers see syncretism as a betrayal of their pure truth. They feel by adding an incompatible belief ruins and changes the original concept and practice of the original religion, thus rendering it no longer true. …show more content…
In fact, any modification to biblical law and principle for the sake of a “better” religion is heresy. The Bible even says that no one shall add any word to it. The Bible is complete as it stands. Syncretism, in this case, is the mixing of Christianity with something else, such that they become a different gospel. Syncretism is more common than we know and has happens for hundreds of years. When anything is added to the message of the gospel, the true message of Christ is changed and another gospel can be created that is actually not the gospel. Syncretism can be most easily seen when two or more contrasting religious elements are combined. Around the world, examples are readily available where Christ has been preached in places with long and various religious traditions. In many cases, pieces and parts of the traditional religion will remain while Christ is added to the mix .For example, many Baby Boomer seeking …show more content…
They worshiped Isis, an Egyptian Goddess, and also Mithra, an Iranian God, as well as the Greek Gods, and their own Roman Gods. The Romans took over the gods of peoples they conquered and established their festivals at Rome. Christianity draws heavily from Jewish culture, as Jesus was a Jew, but also bears the inspiration of the Roman Empire. A good example that Wikipedia gives is how the Romans included Greek, Anatolian, and East Mediterranean gods into their religion without adopting some of the cultish practices. The Egyptian goddess Isis, mother of the god Horus This image closely resembles the early Christian iconic art of Mary and Jesus, who, together with Astarte and other Near Eastern goddesses, influenced the rise of the Virgin Mary. The “sistrum”, a tinkling rattle that was shaken during ceremonies honoring the goddess, is the source of the bell that is rung at several points in a Roman Catholic mass. Another image that was adopted by Christianity was the Celtic High Cross, a pre-Christian symbol, which was later mixed and combined to form and symbolize the Christian crucifix. The High Celtic Cross is perhaps the best example of the link between pagan Celtic and Christian traditions and Armenian churches. The mixing of Christian traditions with these pagan, folk traditions resulted in religions such as Roman Catholicism, Irish Catholicism and Greek and Russian
Syncretism is the fine line between Christianity and Native American Religions because it is the ambivalent, simultaneous attraction of choice and identification to the influences of two or more religious belief systems. Syncretism is most common among minority groups such as Hispanics. The definition applied to their unique position of culture is brought about by the Native American and Spanish ancestry. Ambivalence is shown even by the word Hispanic, which is an "umbrella" term. The novels, Rudolfo Anaya's Bless Me Ultima(1972) and Sandra Cisneros' The House on Mango Street(1984) explore syncretism and how it enhances and exemplifies the issue of ambivalent behavior in regards to the combined use of Native and Christian religions.
Christianity and Buddhism are only two examples of universal religions that expanded through Syncretism. Although Syncretism is a very powerful tool, it will not succeed on its own. Factors like political alliance and positive motivators of the religion are very important for a large amount of people to commit to converting. In a universal religion, Syncretism along with other key factors were very important in the expansion of universal religions during this time period.
Syncretic refers to the "nature of ideas, deities, and practices that derive from historically distinct traditions that become reinterpreted and transformed in situations of a cultural encounter" (Carmack 303). The cultural encounter between Mesoamericans and the Catholic Church was a natural result of mutual needs. The Indians needed protection from the cruelties inflicted by Spanish colonists, and the Church in many ways fought for their basic human rights; the Church needed land and support for their missions, and the Indians provided provisions and labor in much the same fashion as they had been giving tribute to ruling elites for thousands of years (Fash). This arrangement gave missionaries access not only to the Indians’ bodies—in the form of sweat and labor—but also their hearts and souls.
According to Peter Van der Veer’s article on “Syncretism, multiculturalism and tolerance”, “theologian Calixtus of Helmstadt was the first to use syncretism in theological debate to mean the sinking of theological differences, at a church conference in Thorn in 1645” (Veer 197). In other words, he explained syncretism as “an attempt to sink differences and effect union between sects or philosophical schools” or more simply, a “union of different, supposedly equal, theological viewpoints” (196-197). Vietnamese Catholic can be considered as a syncretic system derived from deeply rooted African beliefs and widely spread by colonial French Catholicism. However, when I came to the United States, I’ve learned that Americans usually think that the use of Peyote was wrong and they tried converting Natives to Christianity. However, Natives counter argued that their Peyote represented the version of their savior. This created syncretism between Native American religion and European Christianity religion because Catholics eat the “body of Christ” in the form of bread, and Natives eat peyote, which symbolizes Jesus. Peter Van der Veer concluded in his article of syncretism as “a term which in comparative religion refers to a process of religious amalgamation, of blending heterogeneous beliefs and
There are many aspects of the Christian worldview that determines one’s faith. It all begins with God and what he did and why he so great. Then how humanity was shape with its issues and main purpose. The way we see Jesus and what has he done to be apart of are faith and what as humans have found for a restoration. Through analysis the Christian faith and how each of these tie in together. While reflecting on my faith and if lives to the standards of a Christian worldview. Through explaining my understanding of the four aspects of a Christian worldview I will analysis and compare it to my faith.
One point of collision was seen in the differences the religious practices by the Native Americans and the Europeans. For instance, the native inhabitants of Savannah in Georgia were continuously urged to accept Christianity as a true faith and to apply the gospel of Jesus Christ in all that they did (Whitefield par 4). At one point the Native Americans were promised eternal life in Christianity, but at the other point they were warned of existing eternal death if they continued practicing their “earthen” religions. This was confused them more as the missioners argued to have been taken by the natives for granted (Whitfield par. 10). Christianity was not
What is Christianity and why has it been able to develop into a continuously growing and evolving religion?
As far as mankind’s history can date, religion has had quite an intimate relationship with people. Although maybe it hasn’t always been identified in the same way as we identify religion today, spread across the world we have the remains of pyramids, temples, and even written in ancient texts from centuries ago dedicated to god, to the afterlife, to what lies on the other side. And up to today’s times, religion has grown along with man.
Christianity borrows many aspects from Judaism. The Old Testament Hebrew Scriptures were used in the early teachings, however the Christian believers interpreted the scriptures in a different manner. This interpretation leads to a fundamental shift in ideology between Jews and Christians. In addition to scripture, Christianity adopted many worship rituals practiced within the Jewish synagogue; such as prayers, baptisms, and communion. Christianity of today still practices these sacred ritu...
Religion is sold to the masses daily. In 1925 it was sold to the masses in the form of printed material by Bruce Barton. In 1960 it was sold to the masses by way of a film entitled Elmer Gantry. Bruce Barton sold a different idea of Jesus than most people were familiar with. In the film, Elmer Gantry sold religion with bravado and arrogance which was not the typical way of selling religion either. In each work, religion is being sold but Elmer is a more exciting and relatable character than Bruce Barton’s Jesus. Elmer Gantry sold religion in a similar way to Barton’s Jesus but did so in a more relatable manner.
Both the Greek and the Roman civilization were polytheistic. Greeks were a very religious people. In Greece each city-state had a patron god or goddess that protected their city. Greeks believed that their Gods appeared in human form but had superhuman strength and ageless beauty. Many of the Gods are depicted on various painted scenes on vases, and stone, terracotta and bronze sculptures by themselves or in mythological scenes interacting with humans and lesser Gods (Realign and Death). Rome’s Gods and Goddesses were from a blend of a variety of cultures including Greece. They too believed the gods were actively involved in their everyday life, so much so that they held sacred meals for their Gods during religious festivals in which the invitations were sent in the God’s name and a place was set for them at the table. The oldest male in the family preformed religious rituals for the whole household to the family God, while the state employed priests and Priestesses to worship at the temple. Though they could not predict the future the priests were the one who could read signs to see if the Gods were happy or angry with the people. In the first century a new religion was born in the Rome that spread all throughout the empire and corners of the world, Christianity (Life in
The following essay will evaluate the importance of the journey that takes place from Systematic to Practical theology; this view will be explored through Ronelle Sonnenberg’s research done regarding ‘being together’ in a youth setting. This essay will first build on the basis of Practical Theology; furthermore addressing the importance of the community aspect within a youth setting; this will lead to the process that takes place between a Systematic stance, leading to a Practical theological stance.
The religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are alike in many ways but they also share many differences. Judaism and Christianity use the bible in their holy scriptures, while Islam does not. Jesus Christ is a part of all three religions as Christianity and Islam developed from Judaism. Many believe that the three religions worship, pray to, and focus on the same god. They believe this as many of the prophets are they share much in common as they share many beliefs. However, the followers of the three religions pray differently and in different places. the religions believe that their god created the world and everything in the world. The three Abrahamic religions have different histories, yet they share many similarities and difference.
“Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.” According to Buddha, everyone needs some form of spirituality to define his or her life and existence. Webster Dictionary defines spiritualism as “a system of beliefs or religious practices based on supposed communication with the spirits of the dead, often times through mediums.” Though this is one general definition of spiritualism, this concept is one that does not hold a conclusive meaning. Each and every single person has the ability and right to create and practice their own idea of spiritualism. From ancient times to present day, the term and practice of spirituality has transformed, particularly from region to region. Despite the discrepancies in practices and overall understanding of this idea, spirituality has had an effect and impact upon all of humanity since the creation of time. This religion that is believed to have been established in the early eighteen hundreds, after two little girls claimed to have the ability to talk to spirits, sparked interest in this spiritual movement, allowing it to spread rather rapidly over many geographical locations. Aside from being recognized as a religion, spiritualism is also believed to be a form of philosophy and a science in which spiritualists believe that there is life after death and try to demonstrate this through the ability of attempting to communicate with those that have passed on. Spiritualism was socially different from other religions in existence at the time because it presented followers with a more tolerant belief system that assimilated the principles and facts from a selection the world's religions. Spiritualism also made it acceptable for women to play a disti...
My definition of religion has mostly stayed the same, but my perception of it has changed. At the beginning of the class, I assumed religion was something you believed based on your moral principles. I now believe that those moral principles are based on the religion that you believe in. Your religion changes your perception of the world and how to go about in it. Your religion tells you what is right and wrong in the world and answers all of the big questions one asks. Religion according to our book is, “A pattern of beliefs and practices that expresses and enacts what a community regards as sacred and/or ultimate about life” (Van Voorst 6). That definition was one thing that really got me thinking about my own personal idea of what religion