Similarities in Cross-Cultural Religious Expressions

In order for something to be considered sacred or religious, I figured there are more commonalities in them than I am aware of, so this led me to the article I will discuss. In order for something to be considered religious in a culture, it must contain 4 elements: belief in the sacred in which there is absolute truth and goodness, the sacred desires to connect with people, the sacred reality has broken through after the sacred has connected with the people, and have celebration of rituals and myths that teach moral lessons in life. These elements brought into question on how they came about. How can humans have a sense of a transcendent reality and how can they come to the idea that we can connect with it? The person studying this topic concluded that there was no explanation other than "the presence of the sacred-transcendent reality is within us." Like most of this world, we can't always make sense of it, but I believe in this conclusion in which sacred elements may lie within us. This isn't to say all unanswered questions are withing us, but I believe this is true.

Magis Center. “The Sacred: Similarities among All Religions and Cultures.” Magis Center, 2 Apr. 2018, https://magiscenter.com/common-elements-in-cross-cultural-religious-expression-part-3-ii-a-gods-presence-to-our-consciousness/.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Madison Heath- Kiyomizudera Temple, Japan

Image
I chose to write about the Kiyomizudera Temple, which means "pure water temple." It was founded in 780 on the Otowa waterfall, located in eastern Kyoto. The temple is famous for its large wooden terrace that has numerous amounts of trees for visitors to see whilst there. The main hall of the temple is home to a small statue of Kannon. Behind the main hall is a shrine of Jishu, which is dedicated to love. In front of Jishu is two stones that are placed 18 meters apart. It is known that if you can find your way from one stone to the other with your eyes closed, that you will have good luck in finding love. As I mentioned earlier, the Otowa waterfall is located at the base of the main hall. Visitors use cups connected to long poles to drink from each of the three separate streams of the waterfall. It is also known that each different stream has a different benefit to it. One to cause longevity, one to have success at school, and one for a fortunate love life. Another stru...
Read more

Ásatrú Temple in Iceland

Image
The Ásatrú Temple is a sacred sanctuary in Reykjavik, Iceland for the  Ásatrúarfélagið  religion. It was the first Pagan Temple and it was the central hub for the religion before the use stopped in 999 A.D. when  Ásatrúarfélagið  was suppressed by Christianity.  The religion is a Neopagan spiritual organization that worships Nordic gods (including Odin (lead god), Thor, Frigg, and Baldur). It was brought back in the 1970's, and now architect  Magnús Jensson is rebuilding it, which should be done by the end of 2019 . He is recreating the temple on a hill with the three sacred rocks that represent to the life and powers of Odin. Jensson made sure to align a dome with astronomical events due to the importance in the religion. Rituals in  Ásatrúarfélagið  religion are refered to as " blóts", and an important one has already occured inside the temple (thanking mother nature for the wood used to construct the Temple). It is also an inclusiv...
Read more

Revisiting Government Island

Image
Our class visit to the Noland Trail brought back memories of a trail I used to visit often in my childhood. Over thanksgiving break, my sister and I decided to take a break from technology and drive 20 minutes down the road to revisit the trail we used to walk on with family. This trail is called "Government Island" and is located in my hometown of Stafford, VA. The trail dates back to the time of the founding fathers and is said to be a place where limestone was confiscated to build the White House and other buildings in Washington D.C. Revisiting the trail brought back so many memories of jogging with my mom on weekends and bonding with my family. The flooding of nostalgia that I experienced felt similar to the spiritual feeling that sacred places evoke. Taking this trip with my sister has reminded me to cherish the time that I have with my family and appreciate nature trails with the information I have learned from class.
Read more