Religion

4 Pages 888 Words

Many people may be wondering what religion is exactly? Religion is a sacred engagement in which is believed to be a spiritual reality. Religion is a worldwide event that has played a part in all human culture and it is a much broader, more complex category than the set of beliefs or practices found in any single religion tradition. In all cultures, human being make a practice of interacting with what are taken to be spiritual powers.
These powers may be in the form of god, spirits, ancestors, or any kind of sacred reality with which humans believe themselves to be connected. Sometimes a spiritual power is understood broadly as a complete reality, and sometimes it is approached through its appearance in special symbols. It may be regarded as external to the self, internal, or both. People interact with such presence in sacred manner-that is, with reverence and care. Religion is the term most commonly used to designate this difficult and different area of human experience.
Where did religion come from?
The word religion is derived from the Latin noun religio, which denotes both earnest observance of obligations and an inward spirit of reverence.
Ways of Defining Religion
In modern usage, religion covers a wide range of meanings that reflect the huge variety of ways the term can be interpreted. At one extreme, many committed believers recognize only their own traditions as a religion, understanding expressions such as worship and prayer to refer completely to the practices of their tradition. Some see religion-for example, “ true love of God”, or “ the path of enlightenment.” On the other hand it could be equated wit ignorance, passion, or wishful thinking. By defining religion as a sacred engagement with what is taken to be a spiritual reality, it is possible to consider the importance of religion in human life without making claims about what it really is or ought to be.
Religion is not an object with a single, fixed defin...