SOCI 326 1st EditionLecture 3What is Religion? Symbolic approaches Symbol: "objects, behaviors, or stories that represent or remind one of something else" Are Wiccan a religious group and is Wicca a religion? Rituals: Protestant worship service The objective: move congregants through successive moods Part 1: Mood of Awe and Praise Part 2: Mood of confession Part 3: An affirmation of faith Part 4: Dedication (final) Rituals Evangelical churches: altar call (sometimes)Question for discussion: Does a religious ritual have to follow these moods They're not required but it’s a pattern that is practical Religion is a human product Which religions are accepted as legitimate? Time & numbers "Antiquity breeds authenticity" Background for Davis & Robinson Debunking "common sense" What is the common sense about islamic Fundamentalism? Popular media: Thomas Friedman's NYT column (1/20/15) Bill Maher (Fall 2014) Scholars: Samuel Huntington, Clash of Civilizations Civilization: Culture, history, values, & especially religionWestern Christian Civilization Protestantism, Catholicism Most of Europe, North America Islam All Muslims Middle East, Northern Africa, Turkey Huntington's portrayal Western Christian civilizations Liberal Pluralism/Democracy Separation of Church and State Rule of (human) Law Islamic civilization Anti Democratic‐ TheocracyGod's Law Believers are part of a single community Future: Clashes between Western Christian and Islamic Civilizations Religion will be central Christianity and Islam claim "monopoly" on salvationDavis & Robinson Examine the views on economics of Islamic Fundamentalists across anumber of countries The Authors ask a number of questions:Is Huntington correct? Is Islam in conflict with the west Is there an Islamic worldview? Is there a Fundamentalist Islamic Worldview? The authors compare responses from Islamic Fundamentalistswith Jewish and Christian Fundamentalists. Will these groupshave similar views on "morality" issues, on economics? Criticisms of huntington Islam is not anti democratic‐ Concepts from Islamic scripture reflect democratic values Shura: consultative body Ijma: consensusOver generalizes‐ Seeing all muslim majority countries as same Fails to distinguish Fundamentalists from Mainstream Muslims Fails to distinguish among Fundamentalists regarding violence Not all violence committed by religious individuals is done byMuslims What do Muslims believe about "People of the book" They're deserving of respect as they are part of the samecommunity or Ummah Who are "People of the Book" Jews, Muslims, and
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