The role of world religions in the 21st century. Abstract world religions in the modern world
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Municipal Budgetary Educational Institution "Secondary School No. 3" of the Verkhneufaleysky urban district Creative project of the Religions of the World in the village of Nizhny Ufaley 2018
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introduction Object of study: Religions of the world Subject of study: Religions of the peoples of Russia Purpose: to gain knowledge about the main religions of the peoples of Russia. Hypothesis: in Russia there are different religions, the main ones being Christianity, Islam, Buddhism and Judaism.
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introduction Research methods: - theoretical analysis of literature and Internet sources; -descriptive; - comparison; -practical analysis of comparison results. Objectives: 1) find out when religions arose; 2) how religious beliefs were spread; 3) what sacred books exist; 4) how many believers profess a particular religion in Russia.
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introduction Relevance: this topic is relevant because Currently, there are more and more believers and various religious movements are covering more and more people in my country.
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introduction When studying theoretical issues, we used the following sources: - World Atlas for schoolchildren: Philip Steele - St. Petersburg, Olma-Press, 2001 - 94 p. - Religions of the world. Research interactive manual with lesson presentations and interactive slides (+ CD-ROM): V. P. Leontyeva, O. M. Chernova - St. Petersburg, Anthology, 2012 - 32 p. - Thematic and lesson planning for the course “Religions of the World”. TO textbook A. E. Kulakova `Religions of the World`. Grades 10-11: A. E. Kulakov, T. I. Tyulyaeva - Moscow, AST, Astrel, 2003 - 288 p. - Encyclopedia for children. Volume 6. Religions of the world. Part 2. Religions of China and Japan. Christianity. Islam. The spiritual quest of humanity at the end XIX-XX centuries. Religion and the world: - Moscow, Avanta+, 2007 - 688 p. Internet resources: - https://www.syl.ru/article/355936/vidyi-veroispovedaniya-v-rossii - www.Grandars."Philosophy"Religion" - http://scorcher.ru/theory_publisher/show_art.php? id=331 - http://megabook.ru/article/Religious+composition+of+the population+of Russia - https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Russia -https://www.politforums.net/culture/1494823907. html
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Introduction This study includes the following sections: introduction; main part; comparison and research; conclusion.
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Chapter I. Buddhism Arose in Ancient India in the VI-V centuries. BC. The founder is considered to be Siddhartha Gautama. Main directions: Hinayana and Mahayana. At the center of Buddhism is the doctrine of the "four noble truths ah": there is suffering, its cause, the state of liberation and the path to it.
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Suffering is a state of anxiety, tension, equal to desire; liberation (nirvana) - a state of detachment of the individual from outside world, complete satisfaction and self-sufficiency, which entails the destruction of desires, or rather, the extinction of their passion. The principle of the middle path, important in Buddhism, recommends avoiding extremes - both the attraction to sensual pleasure and the complete suppression of this attraction. To achieve a state of liberation in Buddhism, there are a number of special methods (for example, meditation, “Buddhist yoga”).
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In Buddhism there is no soul as an unchanging substance, there is no opposition between subject and object, spirit and matter, there is no God as a creator and an unconditionally supreme being. During the development of Buddhism, the cult of Buddha and bodhisattvas, ritual and monastic communities gradually emerged. About 500 million people around the world adhere to Buddhism.
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Chapter II Christianity Christianity arose in Palestine as a result of the activities of Jesus Christ, as well as his closest followers. The spread of Christianity, especially in the first five centuries AD, was very rapid.
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In brief form, the main tenets of Christianity are set out in three historical creeds (confessions) of faith: the Apostolic, Nicene and Athanasian. In Orthodoxy, the Apostolic symbol is actually supplanted by the Nicene symbol.
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Christianity has a large number of directions, currents, and denominations. The main directions are Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Protestantism, etc. The total number of Christians was 1955 million people, about 34% of the total world population.
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Chapter III Islam Arose in Arabia in the 7th century. Founder - Muhammad. Islam developed under the significant influence of Christianity and Judaism. As a result of the Arab conquests, it spread to the Near and Middle East, and later to some countries of the Far East, Southeast Asia, and Africa.
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The main principles of Islam are set out in the Koran. The main dogmas are the worship of the one omnipotent God - Allah and the veneration of Muhammad as a prophet - the messenger of Allah. Muslims believe in the immortality of the soul and the afterlife.
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The five main duties prescribed to adherents of Islam are: the belief that there is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah; praying five times daily; alms for the benefit of the poor; fasting in the month of Ramadan; a pilgrimage to Mecca performed at least once in a lifetime. The number of followers of Islam is estimated at 880 million people. In almost all countries with a predominantly Muslim population, Islam is the state religion.
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Chapter IV Judaism The ideas of the ancient Jews about the One God developed over a long historical period (19th - 2nd centuries BC). This period was called “biblical” and included the era of the patriarchs (forefathers) Jewish people. As legend tells, the very first Jew was the patriarch Abraham, who entered into a sacred union with God - a “covenant” or brit. Abraham made a promise that he and his descendants would remain faithful to God and, as proof of this, fulfill his commandments - norms of behavior that distinguish a person who honors the true God.
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The basis of Judaism is the Torah. This holy book Jews It is known in Christianity as the first five books of Moses. Jews gather to pray in places called SYNAGOGUES. This room cannot be called a temple, since they only had one temple, but it was destroyed. All that remained from him was the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem. Religious communities Jews are led by RABBINS - experts religious traditions. They also resolve disputes between believers.
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Chapter IV Religions of peoples in Russia Orthodoxy The Russian Orthodox Church is the largest religious association on the territory of Russia; considers itself to be the historically first Christian community in Russia: the official state foundation was laid by Holy Prince Vladimir in 988
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The largest non-Slavic Orthodox peoples Russia are the Chuvash, Mari, Mordovians, Komi, Udmurts and Yakuts. The majority of Ossetians are also Orthodox, making them the only major Orthodox ethnic group in the North Caucasus.
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Attitudes towards it have changed over the course of many centuries, as have religious concepts. And if previously the existence of some kind of supernatural force was almost never questioned, then the role of religion in modern society is no longer so great. Moreover, today it is the subject of constant debate, discussion, and often condemnation.
In addition to the three world religions - Buddhism, Christianity and Islam - there are many other movements. Each of them is the most important source of a set of moral rules and values, to one degree or another close to a certain people. Actually, religious norms are nothing more than a reflection of the prevailing views of a particular ethnic group. Therefore, the role of religion in society has always had a dogmatic character and helped a person fight temptations and the dark side of his soul.
The meaning of religion today cannot be the same as it was, say, in the 5th-6th centuries. And all because the existence of God explained the origin of man, our planet, and life in general. But the role of religion in modern world in this regard, it is insignificant, because scientific evidence shows the inconsistency of theological views. However, even today there is a large proportion of those who prefer to believe that some Creator gave life.
The role of religion in modern society also has a political basis. This is especially noticeable in eastern countries, where the Koran (both before and now) is the basis of all spheres of life: from spiritual and cultural to economic and political.
The influence of the church did not bypass education. In Russia for several years now (as an experiment so far) the subject “Fundamentals Orthodox culture"is listed in the primary school schedule. Some believe that others argue is the imposition of unnecessary views. The proportion of those who view this as an opportunity to learn more about the culture of our country is, unfortunately, small. In any case, we can talk about how significant the role of religion is in modern society, including in the field of education.
Interestingly, in earlier times the church as an organization was not subject to any outside study. Today, many scientists - mainly historians - are engaged in research and analysis of the meaning of religion at certain stages of the development of society. As a subject of study, it allows one to predict, predict the further course of events, and assess the situation in the world. Various wars and revolutions, one of the causes of which was the church, are indicators of how the role of religion in modern society differs from its role, say, in the Middle Ages.
Today, the authority of the Church no longer has its former strength. Protests are being held all over the world against the actions of clergy. Atheism is becoming increasingly widespread: while adhering to a lifestyle that is healthy in every sense, people deny religion as a phenomenon that can make humanity better. However, for many, the Church in a world full of wars and hatred is the only spiritual refuge, and therefore it is foolish to deny the significant role of religion in modern society.
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Religion andXXIcentury
ideology society religion
In order to understand the role and place of religion in modern society against the backdrop of globalization, and even more so to determine the most rational type of coexistence of religion and state, it is useful to consider some theses that define the global, historical status quo.
Thesis one. The 21st century is a century of unique development of culture and humanity. Any time is unique in its own way, but the totality of what is happening today for the first time leaves us with virtually no chance to look into the past or to find in the past at least something similar to recipes for mutual coexistence. The experience of the past is extremely important and necessary, but this experience in itself cannot tell us how to live today. People, countries, and religions today are in a situation in which they have never been before. This must be clearly understood. This situation is aggravated, on the one hand, by the speed at which technologies, including information, are developing, which are completely unusual for humanity. The 21st century has rightly been called the century of non-normative development of culture, when different social trends coexist, which until recently were considered alternative. All this puts us in a very difficult situation indeed.
As for religion, here I would allow myself to recall a phenomenon that exists in polymer chemistry: “fragile objects”. These are substances that, with minimal impact on them, can significantly change both their structure and the situation around them. Religion, of course, is one of those fragile objects that, in principle, requires extremely careful treatment, and in our time - even more so.
Thesis two. The idea that religion is a private matter remains popular today. On the one hand, a lot has been said about this, on the other hand, the constant popularity of this thesis forces us to return to it again, albeit briefly.
In fact, the thesis about religion as a private matter is, of course, a thesis that we inherited from the era of enlightenment. In the expert, academic community, the education project was closed as unsuccessful, but some of its remnants have entered the fabric of society. There are two dimensions here - personal and social.
As for the personal, it is useful to remember Pitirim Sorokin, his thesis that modern man believes in God on Sundays, and in the stock exchange on other days. Pitirim Sorokin very clearly pointed out a certain lack of integrity, fragmentation of consciousness, which is a consequence of the perception that religion is a private matter. That is, I have many roles, many interests. One of them is religious interest. He lives in the Sunday corner of my life and has no connection with others.
The social dimension of this thesis suggests that you, of course, can believe in anything or not believe in anything, but the manifestation of your faith is limited to the manifestation of your personal space, which has no contact with society. As soon as you go out into society you forget that you are a Christian, a Muslim, a Jew, a Buddhist and so on. You must understand that you are, first of all, a citizen, a member of society, and so on. Is it so? Why is this worth attention and discussion? Because it conflicts with the self-identity of any normally developing religious person.
On the one hand, religion is not just private, not just personal, but also intimate, perhaps the most intimate of all that is given to a person in experience. On the other hand, religious feelings and religion as a phenomenon have never in the history of mankind been only a private matter and could not be, because, speaking in the language of philosophers, religious identity is the ultimate identity that determines the attitude towards what is good and evil. The way each person decides for himself the question of good and evil, that is, the question of religiosity or irreligion, determines all other roles that a person plays in society.
Therefore, as is now commonly said, by definition, religious identity cannot be only a private matter. If I say that, for example, as a Christian I am against abortion, but, understanding that the situation in society is such a complex one, that everyone has different points of view, I am ready to support the existence of this right, then I am simply a bad Christian. We need to put an end to this; we don’t need to hide behind beautiful phrases about understanding the diversity and complexities of this world.
Thesis three. The twentieth century is the century of the collapse of ideologies. The ideologies for the most part are non-religious, anti-religious, and in fact pseudo-religious. When this collapse became obvious, at the end of the collapse of the latest ideological systems, a feeling of some euphoria arose: it seemed to everyone that the terrible, unacceptable was becoming a thing of the past, and the 21st century would become more predictable, calmer, more predictable. The end of the 20th and beginning of the 21st centuries showed that this is not so, that we have not begun to live calmer, life has not become more stable from the point of view of international relations.
At the same time, turning to religions as sources of possible stability turned out to be completely natural. This cannot be ignored. I recall Huntington’s famous article on the clash of civilizations, which proposed possible conflicts for consideration and predicted various conflicts along religious fault lines, saying that the 21st century will become the century of interreligious conflicts. In fact, although this certainly deserves to be taken into account, we understand that the experience of interreligious coexistence is such that representatives of religions will always agree with each other in one way or another. And the fault lines rather run along the relations of religious consciousness on the one hand and non-religious or aggressively anti-religious on the other.
It would seem that the relatively safe thesis that let everyone believe in what he wants and how he wants inevitably (and we see this) entails two things. The first is the denial of absolute criteria of morality. The second is the imposition of certain views on people who fundamentally do not want to accept these views.
There are people who believe that marriage is not necessarily a union of a man and a woman. Let them think so, fine. But what is the consequence of this? Let's start explaining to our children in schools that there are people who think this way, this is normal, there is nothing wrong with it. Next step: why did this boy say that this is not normal? Maybe there is something wrong with this boy or with this adult who allows himself to say this?
It would seem that completely innocent and safe things, naturally developing, lead to the dominance of a new totalitarianism, lead to a new criterion of a person’s disloyalty to society. This criterion turns out to be connected with a person’s idea of absolute good and evil.
The last fourth thesis is very important because it concerns the relationship between religion and science. There are two main points of view on this relationship. According to the first, religion and science are opposing sides. According to the second, religion and science have no contact at all, existing in different dimensions. Galileo, who is certainly one of the founding fathers modern science, made the line of demarcation very clear when he said that the Bible tells us how to go to heaven, but not how it works. There is no conflict with the scientific idea of how it works.
Therefore, most likely, religion and science are two ways of understanding the world. They just answer different questions. Science answers the questions “how?” and why?". Religion answers the question “why?” Therefore, there simply cannot be a conflict between them. If science tries to answer the question “why?”, it exceeds the limits of its competence. We know this from such a phenomenon as scientism. If religion tries to answer purely scientific questions, then it also goes beyond its competence. These are the examples that are incorrectly interpreted as a meaningful struggle between religion and science.
Interaction should consist in the understanding that, with all the deepest respect for scientific research, for scientific knowledge, even if science will someday be able to indisputably answer the question of how life appeared on earth, it will never answer the question: why did it appear? For this we need religion.
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Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation
Ural State Academy of Veterinary Medicine
Abstract on the topic:
"The role of world religions in the modern world"
Completed by: graduate student...
Checked by: Professor Golubchikov A.Ya.
Troitsk - 2003
Introduction
1. Buddhism
3. Christianity3
Conclusion
List of used literature
Introduction
During the communist system in the Soviet Union, religion did not exist as a state institution. And the definition of religion was as follows: “... Every religion is nothing more than a fantastic reflection in the heads of people of those external forces that dominate them in their Everyday life, - a reflection in which earthly forces take the form of unearthly ones...” (9; p. 328).
In recent years, the role of religion has been increasingly increasing, but, unfortunately, religion in our time is a means of profit for some and a tribute to fashion for others.
In order to find out the role of world religions in the modern world, it is necessary to first highlight the following structural elements, which are basic and connecting for Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism.
1. The original element of all three world religions is faith.
2. Doctrine, the so-called set of principles, ideas and concepts.
3. Religious activity, the core of which is a cult - these are rituals, services, prayers, sermons, religious holidays.
4. Religious associations- organized systems based on religious teachings. They mean churches, madrassas, sanghas.
1. Describe each of the world religions;
2. Identify the differences and relationships between Christianity, Islam and Buddhism;
3. Find out what role world religions play in the modern world.
1. Buddhism
“...Buddhism is the only true positivist religion in all history - even in its theory of knowledge...” (4; p. 34).
BUDDHISM, religious - philosophical doctrine, which arose in ancient india in the 6th-5th centuries. BC. and transformed in the course of its development into one of the three, along with Christianity and Islam, world religions.
The founder of Buddhism is Sidhartha Gautama, the son of King Shuddhodana, the ruler of the Shakyas, who left a luxurious life and became a wanderer on the paths of a world full of suffering. He sought liberation in asceticism, but having become convinced that the mortification of the flesh leads to the death of the mind, he abandoned it. Then he turned to meditation and after, according to different versions, four or seven weeks spent without food or drink, he achieved enlightenment and became Buddha. After which he preached his teachings for forty-five years and died at the age of 80 (10, p. 68).
Tripitaka, Tipitaka (Sanskrit “three baskets”) - three blocks of books of the Buddhist Holy Scripture, perceived by believers as a set of revelations of the Buddha as presented by his disciples. Designed in the 1st century. BC.
The first block is the Vinaya Pitaka: 5 books characterizing the principles of organization of monastic communities, the history of Buddhist monasticism and fragments of the biography of Buddha-Gautama. The second block is the Sutta Pitaka: 5 collections expounding the teachings of the Buddha in the form of parables, aphorisms, poems, and also telling about last days Buddha. The third block is the Abhidharma Pitaka: 7 books interpreting the basic ideas of Buddhism.
In 1871, in Mandalay (Burma), a council of 2,400 monks approved a single text of the Tripitaka, which was carved on 729 slabs of the memorial in Kuthodo, a place of pilgrimage for Buddhists around the world. Vinaya occupied 111 slabs, Sutta - 410, Abhidharma - 208 (2; p. 118).
In the first centuries of its existence, Buddhism was divided into 18 sects, and at the beginning of our era, Buddhism was divided into two branches, Hinayana and Mahayana. In the 1st-5th centuries. The main religious and philosophical schools of Buddhism were formed in the Hinayana - Vaibhashika and Sautrantika, in the Mahayana - Yogachara, or Vij-nanavada, and Madhyamika.
Originating in Northeast India, Buddhism soon spread throughout India, reaching its greatest flowering in the mid-1st millennium BC - early 1st millennium AD. At the same time, starting from the 3rd century. BC, it covered Southeast and Central Asia, and partly also Central Asia and Siberia. Faced with the conditions and culture of the northern countries, Mahayana gave rise to various movements, mixed with Taoism in China, Shinto in Japan, local religions in Tibet, etc. In its internal development, breaking into a number of sects, northern Buddhism formed, in particular, the Zen sect (currently most widespread in Japan). In the 5th century Vajrayana appears, parallel to Hindu Tantrism, under the influence of which Lamaism arises, concentrated in Tibet.
A characteristic feature of Buddhism is its ethical and practical orientation. Buddhism put forward as a central problem the problem of the existence of the individual. The core of the content of Buddhism is the Buddha's preaching about the “four noble truths”: there is suffering, the cause of suffering, liberation from suffering, the path leading to liberation from suffering.
Suffering and liberation appear as different states in Buddhism one being suffering is the state of being of the manifested, liberation is the state of the unmanifested.
Psychologically, suffering is defined, first of all, as the expectation of failures and losses, as the experience of anxiety in general, which is based on a feeling of fear, inseparable from the present hope. In essence, suffering is identical to the desire for satisfaction - the psychological cause of suffering, and ultimately simply any internal movement and is perceived not as any violation of the original good, but as a phenomenon organically inherent in life. Death, as a result of Buddhism's acceptance of the concept of endless rebirths, without changing the nature of this experience, deepens it, turning it into inevitable and devoid of end. Cosmically, suffering is revealed as an endless “excitement” (appearance, disappearance and reappearance) of the eternal and unchanging elements of the impersonal life process, flashes of a kind of vital energy, psychophysical in composition - dharmas. This “excitement” is caused by the absence of the true reality of the “I” and the world (according to the Hinayana schools) and the dharmas themselves (according to the Mahayana schools, which extended the idea of unreality to its logical conclusion and declared all visible existence as shunya, i.e. emptiness). The consequence of this is the denial of the existence of both material and spiritual substance, in particular the denial of the soul in the Hinayana, and the establishment of a kind of absolute - shunyata, emptiness, which is not subject to either understanding or explanation - in the Mahayana.
Buddhism imagines liberation, first of all, as the destruction of desires, or more precisely, the extinguishing of their passion. The Buddhist principle of the middle path recommends avoiding extremes - both the attraction to sensual pleasure and the complete suppression of this attraction. In the moral and emotional sphere there appears the concept of tolerance, “relativity”, from the standpoint of which moral precepts are not binding and can be violated (the absence of the concept of responsibility and guilt as something absolute, a reflection of this is the absence in Buddhism of a clear line between the ideals of religious and secular morality and, in particular, the softening and sometimes denial of asceticism in its usual form). The moral ideal appears as absolute non-harm to others (ahinsa) resulting from general gentleness, kindness, and a feeling of complete contentment. In the intellectual sphere, the distinction between the sensory and rational forms of cognition is eliminated and the practice of contemplative reflection (meditation) is established, the result of which is the experience of the integrity of being (non-distinction between internal and external), complete self-absorption. The practice of contemplative reflection serves not so much as a means of understanding the world, but as one of the main means of transforming the psyche and psychophysiology of the individual - dhyana, called Buddhist yoga, is especially popular as a specific method. The equivalent of quenching desires is liberation, or nirvana. In the cosmic plan, it acts as a stop to the disturbance of dharmas, which is later described in the Hinayana schools as a motionless, unchanging element.
At the heart of Buddhism is the affirmation of the principle of personality, inseparable from the surrounding world, and the recognition of the existence of a unique psychological process in which the world is involved. The result of this is the absence in Buddhism of the opposition of subject and object, spirit and matter, the mixing of individual and cosmic, psychological and ontological, and at the same time emphasizing the special potential forces hidden in the integrity of this spiritual-material existence. The creative principle, the final cause of being, turns out to be the mental activity of a person, which determines both the formation of the universe and its disintegration: this is the volitional decision of the “I”, understood as a kind of spiritual-physical integrity, - not so much philosophical subject, as a practically acting personality as a moral and psychological reality. From the non-absolute significance for Buddhism of everything that exists regardless of the subject, from the absence of creative aspirations in the individual in Buddhism, the conclusion follows, on the one hand, that God as the highest being is immanent to man (the world), on the other hand, that in Buddhism there is no the need for God as a creator, savior, provider, i.e. in general as, undoubtedly, a supreme being, transcendent of this community; This also implies the absence in Buddhism of dualism of the divine and the undivine, God and the world, etc.
Having started with the denial of external religiosity, Buddhism, in the course of its development, came to its recognition. The Buddhist pantheon grows due to the introduction into it of all kinds mythological creatures, one way or another assimilating with Buddhism. Extremely early in Buddhism, a sangha-monastic community appeared, from which, over time, a unique religious organization grew.
The spread of Buddhism contributed to the creation of those syncretic cultural complexes, the totality of which forms the so-called. Buddhist culture (architecture, sculpture, painting). The most influential Buddhist organization is the World Society of Buddhists, created in 1950 (2; p. 63).
Currently, there are about 350 million followers of Buddhism in the world (5; p. 63).
In my opinion, Buddhism is a neutral religion; unlike Islam and Christianity, it does not force anyone to follow the teachings of Buddha; it gives a person a choice. And if a person wants to follow the path of Buddha, then he must apply spiritual practices, mainly meditation, and then he will achieve the state of nirvana. Buddhism, preaching the “principle of non-interference,” plays a big role in the modern world and, in spite of everything, is gaining more and more followers.
2. Islam
“...Many acute political and religious conflicts are associated with Islam. Behind it is Islamic extremism...” (5; p. 63).
ISLAM (literally - surrender to oneself (to God), submission), Islam, one of the three world religions along with Buddhism and Christianity. It arose in the Hijaz (at the beginning of the 7th century) among the tribes of Western Arabia, under the conditions of the decomposition of the patriarchal clan system and the beginning of the formation of a class society. It quickly spread during the military expansion of the Arabs from the Ganges in the East to the southern borders of Gaul in the West.
The founder of Islam is Muhammad (Mohammed, Muhammad). Born in Mecca (around 570), he was orphaned early. He was a shepherd, married a rich widow and became a merchant. He was not supported by the Meccans and moved to Medina in 622. He died (632) in the midst of preparations for conquests, as a result of which, subsequently, a huge state was formed - Arab Caliphate(2; p. 102).
The Koran (literally – reading, recitation) is the sacred scripture of Islam. Muslims believe that the Koran exists from eternity, is kept by Allah, who, through the angel Gabriel, conveyed the contents of this book to Muhammad, and he orally introduced this revelation to his followers. The language of the Koran is Arabic. Compiled, edited and published in its current form after the death of Muhammad.
Most of the Koran is a polemic in the form of a dialogue between Allah, speaking sometimes in the first, sometimes in the third person, sometimes through intermediaries (“spirit”, Jabrail), but always through the mouth of Muhammad, and the opponents of the prophet, or Allah’s appeal with admonitions and instructions to his followers (1; p. 130).
The Koran consists of 114 chapters (suras), which have neither a semantic connection nor a chronological sequence, but are arranged according to the principle of decreasing volume: the first suras are the longest, and the last are the shortest.
The Koran contains the Islamic picture of the world and man, the idea of Last Judgment, heaven and hell, the idea of Allah and his prophets, the last of whom is considered Muhammad, the Muslim understanding of social and moral problems.
The Koran began to be translated into eastern languages from the 10th-11th centuries, and into European languages much later. The Russian translation of the entire Koran appeared only in 1878 (in Kazan) (2; p. 98).
The most important concepts of the Muslim religion are “Islam”, “din”, “iman”. Islam in a broad sense began to mean the entire world within which the laws of the Koran were established and operate. Classical Islam, in principle, does not make national distinctions, recognizing three statuses of human existence: as a “faithful believer,” as a “protected one,” and as a polytheist who must either be converted to Islam or exterminated. Each religious group united into a separate community (ummah). An ummah is an ethnic, linguistic or religious community of people that becomes the object of deities, a plan of salvation, and at the same time, an ummah is also a form of social organization of people.
Statehood in early Islam was conceived as a kind of egalitarian secular theocracy, within which only the Koran had legislative authority; executive power, both civil and religious, belongs to one god and can only be exercised through the caliph (sultan) - the leader of the Muslim community.
In Islam there is no church as an institution; in the strict sense of the word, there is no clergy, since Islam does not recognize any mediator between God and man: in principle, any member of the ummah can perform divine services.
"Din" - deities, establishment, leading people to salvation - means, first of all, the duties that God has prescribed for man (a kind of “God’s law”). Muslim theologians include three main elements in "din": the "five pillars of Islam", faith and good deeds.
The Five Pillars of Islam are:
1) confession of monotheism and prophetic mission Muhammad;
2) daily prayer five times a day;
3) fast once a year in the month of Ramadan;
4) voluntary cleansing alms;
5) pilgrimage (at least once in a lifetime) to Mecca (“Hajj”).
“Iman” (faith) is understood primarily as “testimony” about the object of one’s faith. In the Koran, first of all, God testifies to himself; the believer's response is like a returned testimony.
Islam has four main articles of faith:
1) into one god;
2) in his messengers and writings; The Koran names five prophets - messengers (“rasul”): Noah, with whom God renewed the union, Abraham - the first “numina” (believers in one god); Moses, to whom God gave the Torah for the “children of Israel,” Jesus, through whom God communicated the Gospel to Christians; finally, Muhammad - the “seal of the prophets”, who completed the chain of prophecy;
3) into angels;
4) on the resurrection after death and the day of judgment.
The differentiation of the worldly and spiritual spheres is extremely amorphous in Islam, and has left a deep imprint on the culture of those countries where it has spread.
After the Battle of Siffin in 657, Islam split into three main groups, in connection with the issue of supreme power in Islam: Sunnis, Shiites and Ismailis.
In the bosom of orthodox Islam in the mid-18th century. A religious and political movement of Wahhabis arises, preaching a return to the purity of early Islam from the time of Muhammad. Founded in Arabia in the mid-18th century by Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab. The ideology of Wahhabism was supported by the Saudi family, who fought for the conquest of all of Arabia. Currently, Wahhabi teachings are officially recognized in Saudi Arabia. Wahhabis are sometimes called religious-political groups in different countries, financed by the Saudi regime and preaching slogans of establishing “Islamic power” (3; p. 12).
In the 19-20 centuries, largely as a reaction to the socio-political and cultural influence of the West, religious and political ideologies based on Islamic values (pan-Islamism, fundamentalism, reformism, etc.) emerged (8; p. 224).
Currently, Islam is professed by about 1 billion people (5; p. 63).
In my opinion, Islam is gradually beginning to lose its basic functions in the modern world. Islam is being persecuted and gradually becoming a “forbidden religion.” Its role is currently quite large, but, unfortunately, it is associated with religious extremism. And indeed, in this religion this concept has its place. Members of some Islamic sects believe that only they live according to divine laws and correctly practice their faith. Often these people prove they are right using cruel methods, not stopping at terrorist acts. Religious extremism, unfortunately, remains a fairly widespread and dangerous phenomenon - a source of social tension.
3. Christianity
“... Speaking about the development of the European world, one cannot miss the movement Christian religion, which is credited with the re-creation of the ancient world, and with which the history of new Europe begins…”(4; p. 691).
CHRISTIANITY (from the Greek - “anointed one”, “messiah”), one of the three world religions (along with Buddhism and Islam) arose in the 1st century. in Palestine.
The founder of Christianity is Jesus Christ (Yeshua Mashiach). Jesus - the Greek vowel of the Hebrew name Yeshua, was born into the family of the carpenter Joseph - a descendant of the legendary King David. Place of birth - the city of Bethlehem. The parents' place of residence is the city of Nazareth in Galilee. The birth of Jesus was marked by a number of cosmic phenomena, which gave reason to consider the boy the Messiah and the newborn king of the Jews. The word "Christ" - Greek translation Ancient Greek "Mashiach" ("anointed one"). At about 30 years of age he was baptized. The dominant qualities of his personality were humility, patience, and goodwill. When Jesus was 31 years old, from all his disciples he selected 12, whom he determined to be the apostles of the new teaching, of which 10 were executed (7; pp. 198-200).
The Bible (Greek biblio - books) is a set of books that Christians consider revealed, that is, given from above, and are called the Holy Scriptures.
The Bible consists of two parts: the Old and New Testaments (“covenant” is a mystical agreement or union). The Old Testament, created from the 4th to the second half of the 2nd century. BC e., includes 5 books attributed to the Hebrew prophet Moses (the Pentateuch of Moses, or Torah), as well as 34 works of a historical, philosophical, poetic and purely religious nature. These 39 officially recognized (canonical) books constitute Holy Bible Judaism - Tanakh. To these were added 11 books, which are considered, although not divinely inspired, to be nevertheless useful in a religious sense (non-canonical) and are revered by the majority of Christians.
The Old Testament sets out the Jewish picture of the creation of the world and man, as well as the history of the Jewish people and the basic ideas of Judaism. Final composition Old Testament established itself at the end of the 1st century. n. e.
The New Testament was created in the process of the formation of Christianity and is the actual Christian part of the Bible, it contains 27 books: 4 Gospels, which set out earthly life Jesus Christ, described by him martyrdom and a miraculous resurrection; Acts of the Apostles - Disciples of Christ; 21 letters of the apostles James, Peter, John, Jude and Paul; Revelation of the Apostle John the Theologian (Apocalypse). The final composition of the New Testament was established in the second half of the 4th century. n. e.
Currently, the Bible has been fully or partially translated into almost all languages of the world. The first complete Slavic Bible was published in 1581, and the Russian one in 1876 (2; pp. 82 - 83).
Initially, Christianity spread among the Jews of Palestine and the Mediterranean diaspora, but already in the first decades it received more and more followers from other nations (“pagans”). Up to 5th century The spread of Christianity occurred mainly within the geographical boundaries of the Roman Empire, as well as in the sphere of its political and cultural influence, later - among the Germanic and Slavic peoples, and later (by the 13th-14th centuries) - also among the Baltic and Finnish peoples.
The emergence and spread of early Christianity took place in conditions of the deepening crisis of ancient civilization.
Early Christian communities had many similarities with the partnerships and cult communities characteristic of the life of the Roman Empire, but unlike the latter, they taught their members to think not only about their needs and local interests, but about the destinies of the whole world.
The administration of the Caesars for a long time viewed Christianity as a complete negation of the official ideology, accusing Christians of “hatred of the human race”, refusal to participate in pagan religious and political ceremonies, bringing repression on Christians.
Christianity, like Islam, inherits the idea of a single god, matured in Judaism, the owner of absolute goodness, absolute knowledge and absolute power, in relation to which all beings and forerunners are his creations, everything was created by God out of nothing.
The human situation is considered extremely contradictory in Christianity. Man was created as the bearer of the “image and likeness” of God, in this original state and in the final sense of God about man, mystical dignity belongs not only to the human spirit, but also to the body.
Christianity highly values the purifying role of suffering - not as an end in itself, but as the most powerful weapon in the war against world evil. Only by “accepting his cross” can a person overcome the evil in himself. Any submission is an ascetic taming in which a person “cuts off his will” and paradoxically becomes free.
An important place in Orthodoxy is occupied by sacramental rituals, during which, according to the teachings of the church, special grace descends on believers. The Church recognizes seven sacraments:
Baptism is a sacrament in which a believer, by immersing his body three times in water with the invocation of God the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, gains spiritual birth.
In the sacrament of confirmation, the believer is given the gifts of the Holy Spirit, restoring and strengthening him in spiritual life.
In the sacrament of communion, the believer, under the guise of bread and wine, partakes of the very Body and Blood of Christ for Eternal Life.
The sacrament of repentance or confession is the recognition of one’s sins before the priest, who absolves them in the name of Jesus Christ.
The sacrament of the priesthood is performed through episcopal ordination when a person is elevated to the rank of clergy. The right to perform this sacrament belongs only to the bishop.
In the sacrament of marriage, which is performed in the temple at the wedding, the marital union of the bride and groom is blessed.
In the sacrament of consecration of oil (unction), when anointing the body with oil, the grace of God is invoked on the sick person, healing mental and physical infirmities.
Having become officially permitted in 311, and by the end of the 4th century. dominant religion In the Roman Empire, Christianity came under the protection, guardianship and control of state authorities, interested in developing unanimity among their subjects.
The persecutions experienced by Christianity in the first centuries of its existence left a deep imprint on its worldview and spirit. Persons who suffered imprisonment and torture for their faith (confessors) or were executed (martyrs) began to be revered in Christianity as saints. In general, the ideal of the martyr becomes central in Christian ethics.
Time passed. The conditions of the era and culture changed the political and ideological context of Christianity, and this caused a number of church divisions - schism. As a result, competing varieties of Christianity—“confessions”—emerged. Thus, in 311, Christianity became officially permitted, and by the end of the 4th century, under Emperor Constantine, it became the dominant religion, under the tutelage of state power. However, the gradual weakening of the Western Roman Empire eventually ended in its collapse. This contributed to the fact that the influence of the Roman bishop (pope), who also took on the functions of a secular ruler, increased significantly. Already in the 5th-7th centuries, during the so-called Christological disputes, which clarified the relationship between the divine and human principles in the person of Christ, Christians of the East separated from the imperial church: monophists and others. In 1054, the division of the Orthodox and Catholic churches took place, which was based on the conflict between the Byzantine theology of the sacred power - the position of church hierarchs subordinate to the monarch - and the Latin theology of the universal papacy, which sought to subjugate secular power.
After the death of Byzantium under the onslaught of the Ottoman Turks in 1453, Russia turned out to be the main stronghold of Orthodoxy. However, disputes about the norms of ritual practice led to a schism here in the 17th century, as a result of which Orthodox Church The Old Believers separated.
In the West, the ideology and practice of the papacy aroused increasing protest throughout the Middle Ages both from the secular elite (especially the German emperors) and from the lower classes of society (the Lollard movement in England, the Hussites in the Czech Republic, etc.). By the beginning of the 16th century, this protest took shape in the Reformation movement (8; p. 758).
Christianity in the world is professed by about 1.9 billion people (5; p. 63).
In my opinion, Christianity plays a big role in the modern world. Now it can be called the dominant religion of the world. Christianity penetrates into all spheres of life of people of different nationalities. And against the backdrop of numerous military operations in the world, its peacekeeping role is manifested, which in itself is multifaceted and includes a complex system that is aimed at shaping a worldview. Christianity is one of the world religions that adapts to changing conditions as much as possible and continues to have a great impact on the morals, customs, personal lives of people, and their relationships in the family.
Conclusion
The role of religion in the lives of specific people, societies and states is not the same. Some live according to the strict laws of religion (for example, Islam), others offer complete freedom in matters of faith to their citizens and do not interfere in the religious sphere at all, and religion may also be prohibited. Over the course of history, the situation with religion in the same country can change. A striking example of this is Russia. And confessions are by no means the same in the requirements that they make of a person in their rules of conduct and moral codes. Religions can unite people or separate them, inspire creative work, feats, call for inaction, peace and contemplation, promote the spread of books and the development of art and at the same time limit any spheres of culture, impose bans on certain types of activities, sciences etc. The role of religion must always be viewed specifically as the role of a given religion in a given society and in a given period. Its role for the whole society, for a separate group of people or for a specific person may be different.
Thus, we can highlight the main functions of religion (in particular world religions):
1. Religion forms in a person a system of principles, views, ideals and beliefs, explains to a person the structure of the world, determines his place in this world, shows him what the meaning of life is.
2. Religion gives people consolation, hope, spiritual satisfaction, support.
3. A person, having a certain religious ideal before him, changes internally and becomes able to carry the ideas of his religion, affirm goodness and justice (as this teaching understands them), putting up with hardships, not paying attention to those who ridicule or insult his. (Of course, a good beginning can only be affirmed if the religious authorities leading a person along this path are themselves pure in soul, moral and strive for the ideal.)
4. Religion controls human behavior through its system of values, moral guidelines and prohibitions. It can significantly influence large communities and entire states that live according to the laws of a given religion. Of course, one should not idealize the situation: belonging to the strictest religious and moral system does not always prevent a person from committing unseemly actions, or society from immorality and crime.
5. Religion contributes to the unification of people, helps the formation of nations, the formation and strengthening of states. But the same one religious factor can lead to division and collapse of states and societies, when large masses of people begin to oppose each other on religious principles.
6. Religion is an inspiring and preserving factor in the spiritual life of society. She saves the public cultural heritage, sometimes literally blocking the way for all kinds of vandals. Religion, constituting the basis and core of culture, protects man and humanity from decay, degradation and even, possibly, from moral and physical death - that is, all the threats that civilization can bring with it.
Thus, religion plays a cultural and social role.
7. Religion helps to strengthen and consolidate certain social orders, traditions and laws of life. Since religion is more conservative than any other social institution, in most cases it strives to preserve foundations, to stability and peace.
Quite a lot of time has passed since the emergence of world religions, be it Christianity, Buddhism or Islam - people have changed, the foundations of states have changed, the very mentality of humanity has changed, and world religions have ceased to meet the requirements of the new society. And for a long time there have been trends in the emergence of a new world religion, which will meet the needs of the new person and will become a new global religion for all humanity.
As a result of the work performed, the following tasks were solved:
1. The characteristics of each of the world religions are given;
2. The differences and relationships between Christianity, Islam and Buddhism are revealed;
3. The role of world religions in the modern world is clarified.
List of used literature
1. Avkentiev A.V. and others. Dictionary of an atheist / Under the general. ed. Piotrovsky M.B., Prozorova S.M. – M.: Politizdat, 1988. – 254 p.
2. Gorbunova T.V. and others. School philosophical dictionary / Ed. ed., comp. and will join. Art. A.F. Malyshevsky. – M.: Education: JSC “Ucheb. Lit.”, 1995. – 399 p.
3. Zhdanov N.V., Ignatenko A.A. Islam on the threshold of the twenty-first century. – Politizdat, 1989. – 352 p.
4. Ogarev N.P. Selected social, political and philosophical works: In 2 vols. M., 1952. T. 1., p. 691.
5. Maksakovsky V.P. Economic and social geography of the world: Textbook. for 10th grade educational institutions / V.P. Maksakovsky. – 10th ed. – M.: Education, 2002. – 350 pp.: ill., map.
6. Nietzsche F. Antichristian / Twilight of the Gods - M.: - 1989. - 398 p.
7. Taranov P.S. Wisdom of three thousand years. / Artist. Yu.D. Fedichkin. – M.: LLC “Izd. AST", 1998. – 736 p. with ill.
8. Philosophical encyclopedic Dictionary/ Ch. ed. L.F. Ilyichev, etc. - M.: Sov. Encyclopedia, 1983. – 840 p.
9. Engels F., see Marx K. and Engels F., Soch., vol. 20, - p. 328.
10. Encyclopedia of mysticism: - St. Petersburg: Publishing house “Litera”, 1996, - 680 p.
Content
Introduction
Religions in the modern world
Religion as an element of the spiritual life of society
Functions of religion
The place of religion in the system of relations between man and the surrounding world
World religions in the modern world
Freedom of conscience
Conclusion
Bibliography
Introduction
The main question for every person has always been and remains the question of the meaning of life. Not everyone can find a final answer for themselves, not everyone is able to sufficiently substantiate it.
Religion (from Latin religio - piety, shrine) is a special type of spiritual and practical activity, representing an inextricable unity of ideological attitude, experience, action, based on faith in the sacred. The sacred is a type of supernatural that goes beyond the natural course of events, a “miracle.” But the sacred, in contrast to the supernatural in general, includes the recognition of its unconditional value for man.
Religion, throughout most of human history, played a decisive role in man's construction of social reality and was the most effective and widespread means of implementing social control in society.
Modern man is surrounded by a large number of different faiths and ideologies. Each religion has certain rules of behavior that its adherents must follow, as well as the purpose for which people follow the tenets of this religion. Maintaining faith is expressed in worship, prayers, and going to places of worship where people of the same faith gather.
Purpose of the work: based on a comprehensive study and generalization of theoretical sources, to define the concept and essence of religion, characterize its functions, study the current state of world religions, and clarify the role of religions in the modern world.
The work consists of an introduction, three chapters, a conclusion and a list of references.
Religion as an element of the spiritual life of society
Religion is one of the oldest and main (along with science, education, culture) forms of spiritual culture.
The religious worldview is characterized by the division of all things into the earthly and heavenly worlds, as well as the recognition of the immortality of the soul.
Religion presupposes the presence of a mysterious (mystical) connection between man and God (or other supernatural forces), the worship of these forces, and the possibility of human interaction with them.
Religion is one of the ways of human life associated with the recognition of the existence of God and other supernatural phenomena, their ability to positively or negatively influence a person, the optionality of any argumentation of the supernatural, and the replacement of knowledge with faith.
Why do people believe in the supernatural? Researchers of the past explained this, for example, by fear of the unpredictability and power of nature or the deep ignorance of most people, the mythological nature of mass consciousness. Do these characteristics apply to modern society? Philosophers, cultural scientists, sociologists, and psychologists answer this question differently. But it is obvious that religion retains its position even at the post-industrial stage of development of society, since it performs socially significant functions, which we will consider below.
Specifics
religion - in the special nature of its “second world” and its semantic role for a person, in the recognition of a person’s ability to turn to God, to establish special interaction with him on the basis of insight, vision, revelation in order to save a person from sinfulness or make his life easier.
The basis of the religious worldview is the belief in the existence of one or another type of supernatural forces and in their dominant role in the worldview and life of people. Religion differs from superstitions primarily in that there is no God in superstitions.
Any religion includes several important elements (Fig. 1):
- faith - religious feelings, moods, emotions;
doctrine - a systematized set of principles, ideas, concepts specially developed for a given religion;
religious cult - a set of actions that believers perform for the purpose of worshiping the gods, i.e. a system of established rituals, dogmas, rituals, prayers, sermons, etc.
Faith is the core of religion; it is in it that the most important features are revealed that determine the place of religion in the relationship between man and the world. Faith is a way of existence of religious consciousness, a special mood, an experience that characterizes the internal state of a person. Religious faith consists of:
1) faith itself - belief in the truth of the fundamentals of religious teaching;
2) knowledge of the most essential provisions of the doctrine;
3) recognition and adherence to moral standards contained in religious requirements for a person;
4) compliance with the norms and requirements for everyday life.
It is enshrined in the creed, dogma and religious cultures. Symbol of faith framed in different ways: this is either a listing of the gods in paganism, their characteristics and spheres of “responsibility,” or a set of basic tenets of faith. The most developed creed is among Christians; it includes twelve main dogmas regarding God and the church, adopted at the Ecumenical Council of 525 and revised at the Councils of 362 and 374. Religious dogmatics is contained, as a rule, in written sources: sacred scriptures, teachings (created by God or gods himself), sacred traditions - written documents of faith compiled by church leaders and their assemblies. Religious cults consolidate faith in the practical relations and actions of believers. In Christianity, for example, the sacraments are important cults: rites of purification, baptism, repentance, marriage, sanctification (healing the sick), etc.
Religious beliefs cannot be derived from the sphere of feelings and experiences of an individual person. They are a product of the historical development of society. Religious culture is an essential element of the spiritual culture of any society. Historically, long-existing societies as civilizations are also assessed on a religious and spiritual basis. Religion is a socially organized and organizing sphere of human communities, a way of expressing their spiritual culture and most revered values.
Worship of “higher powers” leads to the formation of the image of God - a supreme being, an absolute, worthy of worship.
The place and significance of religion in society are determined by the functions it performs. Next, let's look at the main functions of religion.
Functions of religion
The functions of religion are the various ways of its activity, the nature and direction of the influence of religion on individuals and societies.
Worldview function religion realizes due to the presence in it of a system of views that reflect the picture of the world, the essence of man and his place in the world. Religion includes worldview (explanation of the world as a whole and individual phenomena and processes in it), worldview (reflection of the world in sensation and perception), worldview (emotional acceptance or rejection), world relations (evaluation), etc. The religious worldview sets the “ultimate” criteria, the Absolutes, from the point of view of which man, the world, and society are understood, and provides goal-setting and meaning-making.
Regulatory function religion is based on the moral experience of many generations of people accumulated by it, expressed in commandments and moral canons. Within the framework of various religious beliefs, symbols of faith were formed, common patterns (canons) that normalized the way people felt, thought, and behaved. Thanks to this, religion acts as a powerful means of social regulation and regulation, ordering and preserving morals, traditions, and customs.
Religion not only establishes a certain framework for human freedom, but also encourages him to assimilate certain positive moral values and worthy behavior, and this is where it manifests itself. educational function.
Compensatory function- relieves a person’s social and mental stress, compensates for the shortcomings or deficits of secular communication with religious communication: social inequality is compensated by equality in sinfulness and suffering; human disunity is replaced by brotherhood in Christ. This function is realized especially clearly in prayer and repentance, during which a person moves from depression and mental discomfort to a state of relief, calm, and a surge of strength.
Religion fulfills communicative function, being a means of communication between believers. This communication unfolds on two levels: in the plane of dialogue with God and the “celestials,” as well as in contact with other believers. Communication is carried out primarily through cultic actions.
Integrating
function -
the direction of uniting people, their behavior, activities, thoughts, feelings, aspirations, efforts of social groups and institutions in order to maintain the stability of society, the stability of the individual, and a common religion. By directing and uniting the efforts of individuals and social groups, religion contributes to social stability or the establishment of something new. There are many examples of how religion can act as a factor in the integration of society: let us remember the role of the hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church, for example, St. Sergius of Radonezh, in the unification of Russian lands and the fight against invaders.
Cultural
function is that religion preserves and transmits the social experience of humanity, being an integral part of the culture of human society.
Humanistic function -
religion cultivates feelings of love, kindness, tolerance, compassion, mercy, conscience, duty, justice, trying to give them special value and associate them with the experience of the sublime, the sacred.
The place of religion in the system of human relations
and the surrounding world
Religion is a certain form of spiritual culture that has a social nature and functions. One of the historical missions of religion, which is acquiring unprecedented relevance in the modern world, is the formation of awareness of the unity of the human race, the significance of universal moral norms, and enduring values. For many people, religion plays the role of a worldview, a ready-made system of views, principles, ideals, explaining the structure of the world and determining a person’s place in it. Religious norms are one of the powerful social regulators. Through a whole system of values they regulate a person’s public and personal life. Many millions find consolation, tranquility, and hope in faith. Religion makes it possible to compensate for the shortcomings of imperfect reality, promising the “Kingdom of God”, reconciling with earthly evil. In the face of the inability of science to explain many natural phenomena, religion offers its own answers to painful questions. Religion often contributes to the unification of nations and the formation of united states. Religion acts as a powerful means of social regulation and regulation, ordering and preserving morals, traditions, and customs. This expresses its important cultural and historical role.
But a religious worldview can also contain ideas of fanaticism, hostility towards people of other faiths, and be an instrument of socio-political oppression. Historical experience shows that religious intolerance is to blame for many conflicts and wars. Not always even deep faith kept a person and society from committing crimes and misdeeds. Often religion and the church imposed bans on certain types of activities, science, art, fettering the creative power of people; social injustice and despotic regimes were sanctified by the authority of the church, which promised true liberation only in another world. Religion called for earthly life to be spent in peace and humility, without resisting evil.
However, predicting the future of religion is extremely difficult. Multidirectional processes are taking place in society: on the one hand, all larger number spheres of human activity are secularized, freed from the influence of religion, on the other hand, in many countries the role and authority of the church are growing.
World religions in modern world
In the history of society and modern planetary civilization, a huge number of religions have existed and exist. The main religions are presented in Tables 1, 2 and Fig. 2.
Table 1 - The largest religions and worldviews in the modern world
| № | Religion | Relative number of followers | |
| 1 | Christianity | > 2 billion | 32% |
| 2 | Islam | 1 billion 300 million | 20% |
| 3 | "Non-religious" | 1 billion 120 million | 17,3% |
| 4 | Hinduism | 900 million | 14% |
| 5 | Tribal cults | 400 million | 6,2% |
| 6 | Traditional Chinese religions | 394 million | 6,1% |
| 7 | Buddhism | 376 million | 5,8% |
| Other | 100 million | 1,5% |
The following distribution of believers is typical for Russia: Orthodoxy - 53%; Islam - 5%; Buddhism - 2%; other religions - 2%; found it difficult - 6%; 32% do not consider themselves believers.
Table 2 - Religions and sects, the number of adherents of which is more than 1 million people, but less than 1% of the world's population
| № | Religion | Absolute number of followers |
| 1 | Sikhism | 23 million |
| 2 | Jehovahism | 16 million 500 thousand |
| 3 | Judaism | 14 million |
| 4 | Shintoism | 10 million |
| 5 | Baha'ism | 7 million |
| 6 | Jainism | 4.2 million |
| 7 | Zoroastrianism | 2.6 million |
| 8 | Neopaganism | 1 million |
| Non-traditional religions | 120 million |
Figure 2 - Confessional structure of the modern world (percentage ratio of religions and worldviews in the world)
Everything is now existing religions can be divided into three groups:
- tribal primitive beliefs;
national-state- associated with a specific people or peoples (the largest national religions are: Hinduism in India, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, etc.; Shintoism in Japan and China; Sikhism in India; Judaism in Israel, etc.);
world religions- not recognizing national differences.
Figure 3 – World religions
About half of the world's population are adherents of one of these three world religions. The characteristics of world religions include:
a) a huge number of followers all over the world;
b) cosmopolitanism: they are inter- and supra-ethnic in nature, going beyond the boundaries of nations and states;
c) they are egalitarian (preach the equality of all people, appeal to representatives of all social groups);
d) they are distinguished by extraordinary propaganda activity and proselytism (the desire to convert people of another confession to their faith).
All these properties determined the wide spread of world religions. Let's look at the main world religions in more detail.
Buddhism- oldest world religion, most common in China, Thailand, Burma, Japan, Korea and other countries in Southeast Asia. Russian centers of Buddhism are located in Buryatia, Kalmykia and the Republic of Tuva.
Buddhism is based on the teaching of the four noble truths:
- everything in human life is suffering - birth, life, old age, death, any attachment, etc.;
the cause of suffering lies in the presence of desires in a person, including the desire to live;
the cessation of suffering is associated with liberation from desires;
to achieve this goal, you must adhere to eightfold path salvation, including the assimilation of the four noble truths, accepting them as a life program, abstaining from words that are not related to the moral goal, not causing harm to living things, turning true actions into a way of life, constant self-control, renunciation from the world, spiritual self-immersion.
Christianity is the second in time of occurrence; the most widespread and one of the most developed world religions. The peculiarity of Christianity as a religion is that it can only exist in the form of the Church. Bible- main source Christian faith. It includes the Old Testament, common to the Jews (the religion of the Jewish people, in which Christ is recognized as only one of the messiahs) and Christians, and the New Testament, which consists of the four Gospels (the gospel), as well as the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles of the Apostles and the Revelation of John the Theologian (Apocalypse ). Christianity is a religion of redemption and salvation. Christians believe in the merciful love of the triune God for sinful humanity, for the sake of whose salvation the Son of God Jesus Christ was sent into the world, who became man and died on the cross. The idea of the God-man-Savior is central to Christianity. A believer must follow the teachings of Christ in order to participate in salvation.
There are three main movements of Christianity: Catholicism, Orthodoxy and Protestantism.
What are the fundamental dogmatic differences between the churches?
The Catholic Church maintains that the Holy Spirit comes from both God the Father and God the Son. Eastern Church recognizes the procession of the Holy Spirit only from God the Father. Roman Catholic Church proclaims the dogma of the immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary, her being chosen by God to be the Mother of Jesus Christ and her ascension to heaven after death, hence the cult of the Madonna in Catholicism. The Orthodox Church does not accept the dogma of the infallibility of the Pope in matters of faith, and the Roman Catholic Church considers the Pope to be the vicar of God on earth, through whose mouth God Himself speaks in relation to matters of religion. The Roman Catholic Church, along with hell and heaven, recognizes the existence of purgatory and the possibility of atonement for sins already on earth by acquiring a portion of the superfluous stock of good deeds performed by Jesus Christ, the Mother of God and the saints, which the church “disposes of.”
In countries Western Europe in the XV-XVI centuries. the Reformation movement unfolded, leading to separation from catholic church a significant part of Christians. A number of Christian Protestant churches emerged, emerging from the authority of the Pope. The largest of them are Lutheranism (Germany and the Baltic countries), Calvinism (Switzerland and the Netherlands), and the Anglican Church (England). Protestants recognize the Holy Scripture (Bible) as the only source of faith and believe that every person will be rewarded according to his faith, regardless of the means of its external expression. Protestantism shifted the center of religious life from the church to the individual. Catholicism remained a strictly centralized religion. Among European countries, Catholicism is most widespread in Italy, Spain, France, Poland, and Portugal. A significant number of Catholics live in Latin American countries. But in none of these countries is Catholicism the only religion.
Despite the division of Christianity into separate churches, they all have a common ideological basis. The ecumenical movement is gaining strength in the world, striving for dialogue and rapprochement of all Christian churches.
In the religious life of modern Russia, all three directions of Christianity are active; The overwhelming majority of believers in our country are Orthodox. Orthodoxy is represented by the Russian Orthodox Church, various directions of the Old Believers, as well as religious sects. Catholicism also has a certain number of followers. Protestantism among Russian citizens is represented by both official churches, for example Lutheranism, and sectarian organizations.
Islam- the latest world religion in terms of origin, widespread mainly in Arab states (Middle East and North Africa), in South and Southeast Asia (Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Indonesia, etc.). There is a significant number of Muslims living in Russia. This is the second religion in terms of the number of adherents after Orthodoxy.
Islam originated on the Arabian Peninsula in the 7th century. n. e., when the religious center of the Arab tribes was formed in Mecca and a movement arose for the veneration of the one supreme God, Allah. The activities of the founder of Islam, the Prophet Muhammad (Mohammed), began here. Muslims believe that the one and omnipotent God - Allah - conveyed to people through the mouth of the Prophet Muhammad, through the mediation of the angel Jebrail, the holy book - the Koran, which is the indisputable authority in spiritual life, law, politics and economic activity. There are five most important injunctions of the Koran: knowledge of the creed; five times prayer (namaz); observing fasting during the entire month of Ramadan; giving alms; making a pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj). Since the Koran contains instructions relating to all aspects of the life of Muslims, the criminal and civil law of Islamic states was, and in a number of countries is still based on religious law - Sharia.
The formation of Islam took place under the noticeable influence of more ancient religions of Middle Eastern origin - Judaism and Christianity. Therefore, a number of biblical personalities are found in the Koran (archangels Gabriel, Michael, etc., prophets Abraham, David, Moses, John the Baptist, Jesus), the book sacred to the Jews - the Torah, as well as the Gospel - is mentioned. The expansion of Islam was facilitated by the conquests of the Arabs and Turks, who marched under the banner of religion.
In the 20th century In Turkey, Egypt and a number of other states, reforms were carried out to limit the scope of religious laws, separate church and state, and introduce secular education. But in some Muslim countries (for example, Iran, Afghanistan) Islamic fundamentalism is extremely strong, which requires the organization of all spheres of life on the principles of the Koran and Sharia.
The distribution areas of the largest religions in the modern world are presented in Fig. 4.
Figure 4 - Areas of distribution of the largest religions (dark color indicates the area of distribution of Christianity, in all three directions)
Christianity distributed mainly in Europe, North and Latin America, as well as in Asia (the Philippines, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, India, Indonesia and Cyprus), Australia, New Zealand and Africa (South Africa and Gabon, Angola, Congo and etc.). Since Christianity as such does not exist, there are a number of its directions and currents, we will provide information regarding each of its main directions.
Catholicism in Europe it predominates in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, France, Belgium, Austria, Luxembourg, Malta, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland. The Catholic faith is also adhered to by approximately half of the population of Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, part of the population of the Balkan Peninsula, Western Ukrainians (Uniate Church), etc. In Asia, a predominantly Catholic country is the Philippines, but Catholicism is also professed by many citizens of Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, India and Indonesia . In Africa, many residents of Gabon, Angola, Congo, and the island states of Mauritius and Cape Verde are Catholics. Catholicism is also widespread in the USA, Canada, and Latin American countries.
Protestantism is very heterogeneous, it represents a combination of many movements and churches, the most influential of which are Lutheranism (mainly in Northern European countries), Calvinism (in certain countries of Western Europe and North America) and Anglicanism, half of whose adherents are English.
Orthodoxy
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