Final
A. Renee Kangas
B. Caramel_diva84
C. I completed 14 of the 14 posts. (I only posted 13 to yahoo)
Post 1 May 26 Post 8 June 10
Post 2 May 30 Post 9 June 16
Post 3 June 1 Post 10 completed- never posted
Post 4 June 6 Post 11 June 22
Post 5 June 9 Post 12 June 22
Post 6 June 9 Post 13 June 29
Post 7 June 10 Post 14 June 28
D. Field Trip One- ISKCON
Field Trip Two- Bait-Ul-Hameed Mosque
E. Grade A
F. I have completed all of the assigned readings required. I have read chapters one through eight in Smith’s book The Illustrated World Religions. I have read all of the assigned readings on the internet for example: When Scholars Study the Sacred, When God’s Decay, The Politics of Mysticism, The Enchanted Land, the website titled Jainism Simplified (I skipped about three sections), reviewed the link below regarding Jainism, Why I Don’t Eat Faces, Lions in the Punjab, The Gnostic Mystery, the two Islam websites, the four websites Judaism, the False Testament, Triumph of Christianity, Ancient Jewish Accounts of Jesus, Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography. In regards to the required literature I have read the Tao Te Ching, Wisdom of the Buddha, the New Testament and The Koran.
G. I would definitely continue to use Crossan’s book because I think that he presents a terrifically unbiased view of the life that Jesus lived. Regardless of one’s religious views Crossan’s depiction of Jesus (like you said) can attract and teach anyone something new. Also, the Illustrated World Religions book does a good job dividing up the religions to make it easier to learn, but I had difficulty keeping some of the religious differentiated but that’s because of the shorter time line.
H. ARE YOU KIDDING…..I HAD NO TIME FOR SUCH, I WISH I DID.
Final Questions:
1. Gnosticism means seeking for the gnosis or spiritual knowledge, no to be confused with worldly knowledge. There are two forms of spiritual knowledge. The first, is knowledge of a God and the second, is knowledge of the passwords or multiple God’s names. These passwords are known because the spirit will take on a human form known as the Redeemer and purify the souls of the people on Earth in order to grant them access to their primordial home, in the Devine. The Redeemer will take a human form multiple times, not just once like Jesus and other religious figures. The Gnostic tradition has been related to Jewish and Christian cultures in the past. The Gnostic tradition may have found similarities within these cultures in order to gain more followers, but the faith and believe system of the Gnostic tradition is almost opposite of these two religions. When attempting to be a sect of Christianity, the Gnostics adjusted the story of Adam and Eve in order to show that the God that Christians see as God is really an evil God “that is a lower deity than the true Godhead”. The serpent, in Christianity a symbol of evil, is actually viewed as good. These alterations to the Adam and Eve story demonstrate the difference in view the Gnostics have from Christianity. In regards to the Gnostics being viewed as pessimistic, this I believe to be true because of the Gnostic stance against reproduction. Gnostics believe that an evil karma, Kal, holds the soul as long as possible within the world in order to keep the soul from finding the true Godhead. Therefore, not procreating is ultimately helping keep the supply of human souls depleting so that Kal cannot control any souls eventually. Since Kal cannot create humans the Gnostics do not want to help populate the world that he controls. There are many different sects of Gnostics around the world and it is hard to describe this tradition as one religion. Although each sect is a little different, all of the Gnostic sects recognize the original creators which transform the Gnostic tradition into a religion.
The Gnostic religion lost its strength during the rulings of the Roman Empire. There are a few things that allowed Christianity to survive while other religions such as the Gnostic religion were evaporating. Christianity held three key factors that allowed for the large number of followers to continue following regardless of the changes in society and over time. The three factors are (1) the “appeal” to the people that were surrounded by Rome’s state religion, (2) complete acceptance regardless of race, gender, age and social status and (3) the idea that the “Kingdom of God was at hand”. Many people felt that the Roman Empire was extremely corrupt and desired the religion of Christianity because it praised a God that created the world they lived in, yet “stood separate from it”, the proof that there was life after the physical death and a complete set of rules to live by. These basic pieces of the puzzle were combined in order to attract all types of people. Probably the most important difference between Christianity and the Gnostic tradition was the requirements that each religion had in order to be a member of the religion. “Not only were slaves and other undesirables excluded from these religions, there were also elaborate initiation ceremonies designed to exclude those not serious about involvement. This is why the Gnostic tradition and all of Christianity’s rivals were eventually became Christians simply, because of the simplicity of initiation. The final aspect of religion that Christianity provided that the Gnostic tradition did not was a divine plan or an “apocalyptic expectation, whether immediate or set in the future, gave converts a sense of mission and purpose, which no doubt added to the attractiveness of this new religion.” I think that the author Tim Callahan stated it best when he said, “Christianity had something for everyone, did not have any barriers to membership, and even had a sense of historical imperative.”
2. The author, John Crossan, of Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography argues that a man named Jesus may have existed but he was not the man portrayed by religious literature such as the Bible. John Crossan offers a different view of Jesus than most people are familiar with today. Through the help of history books, research, relevant knowledge and other religious literature Crossan is able to develop a realistic biography of the man known as Jesus. There are many inconsistencies that Crossan brings to the readers attention such as timelines and stories that have been recorded differently with alternate endings and teachings. These are the types of examples that will follow.
Crossan finds the comparison between John the Baptist and Jesus to be quite misleading the way that Matthew and Luke portray it. John the Baptist was born from a virgin mother just like Jesus only many years earlier. John the Baptist drew people out of their homes to be baptized where Jesus traveled to the people that would be baptized. John the Baptist in some stories actually baptized Jesus. The event in which John actually baptizes Jesus is a very controversial topic. Jesus did not commit sin which is the only reason that he was able to die for our sins, if this statement was true than why was Jesus baptized by John the Baptist? Another similarity between these two men is the way that the story of their birth was presented. The main difference here between the two stories is the alterations in order to make Jesus’ birth much more important than John the Baptists.
When John the Baptist was born it states that his neighbors and relatives rejoiced together. When Jesus was born there is “a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God” for this magnificent birth. The parallelism that Crossan demonstrates through this past example reveal that it is more than likely that the biblical Jesus’ life story may have been altered in order to strengthen the argument for religious purposes.
As I mentioned earlier, there are many inconsistencies with the travels of the biblical Jesus. Luke writes about Jesus time of birth being occurring during the “taxation census under Quirinius”, the taxation actually occurred about ten years after King Herod’s death. The only problem is that the bible gives this as the reason for Mary to return to Bethlehem and that Jesus was born while King Herod was still ruler. Obviously both of these statements cannot be true, they contradict one another. But to the uneducated, no one would ever know the difference. I guess, since Jesus was a peasant and wanted to reach out to other peasants, perhaps the authors thought that this statements would never be researched?
Crossan is not attempting to prove that a man named Jesus never lived; just that he did not live the life described by the Bible. Crossan depicts the life of a man that was born into a lower class family that was able to change the social structure of the Roman Empire and many other nations. The changes may not have occurred as the Bible depicts or for the reasons that the Bible states, but these man, if he existed, did change lives for the better. Crossan describes Jesus as a miracle worker because of the social changes he was able to make being that his social status was a simple peasant.
3. The False Testament presents the idea that the Bible’s depiction of the past is inaccurate and claims that it is completely false. The False Testament begins by explaining the process of science emerging from religious studies. Science was first used to find “proof” in order to back up the Bible’s tale of creation. The problem that occurred was when evidence was found that exposed a different story besides what the Bible has presented human kind with. These inconsistencies were, at first, disregarded and throw to the side in search of evidence that would support the faith that was followed.
As science has evolved and scientists actually want to discover the past, the true past, many inconsistencies regarding the timeline of the Bible have been exposed. Scientists have done research during the time of King David and King Solomon and are unable to provide proof of any such existence. The closest thing that was discovered was a piece of old material with writing on it saying something about the linage of a man named David. This cannot be considered proof of King David’s existence or even bloodline because the name could belong to anyone. The Bible talks about King Solomon having possessions that are numbered in the hundreds and having built many buildings with unlimited amounts of gold and grandeur. The only problem with this record, is that there simply is no proof of any such items anywhere near where King Solomon was have said to have lived.
Another inconsistency is the claim that the Israelites have against the land they claim as belonging to them. In the Bible the Israelites are described as trespassers or foreigners in this land and through war took over the land which should belong to them because of this simple fact. The research that has been done pieces together a different story. The archeologists and anthropologists have learned that the people that inhabited this land were indigenous people. That no-one came and claimed the land, the research shows that the people that originated started and ended there. Researchers have tried to make sense of the story that the Bible presents regarding the claim of the Holy Land. The only idea that seems to have stuck is that throughout history in order to have a valid land claim the land had to be taken through a war or was lost in a war. This could explain why the Israelites created a story that would prevent the loss of their Holy Land or Home Land.
The most interesting discovery made by archeologists is regarding the time that the Israelites spent out in the desert for nearly five centuries. “Not so much as a skeleton, campsite, or cooking pot had turned up, Finkelstein and Silberman noted, even though ‘modern archaeological techniques are quite capable of tracing even the very meager remains of hunter-gatherers and pastoral nomads all over the world.’ Indeed, although archaeologists have found remains in the Sinai from the third millennium B.C. and the late first, they have found none from the thirteen century.”
4. Christianity is the world’s most wide spread religion with the “largest number of adherents”. Christianity holds its importance in the life of Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus of Nazareth may have been a mortal man, but he was descendant from an earthly mother and heavenly father which makes him divine. Jesus was born to a virgin mother named Mary. Although the life of Jesus was not well recorded, there are many stories and events that occurred that explain more about the life that Jesus lived and died for.
Jesus attempted to change the social lifestyle of the world that he lived in, during the ruling of the Roman Empire. Although the government at that time was merciless, Jesus opened the door letting acceptance, love and healing flow in like a river. Jesus was viewed as a spiritual man because the spirit was within him. When John the Baptist baptized Jesus “the heavens opened and the spirit descend[ed] upon him like a dove”. This was one of the many miracles that Jesus disciples saw and experienced during Jesus’ lifetime. Jesus was a healer. Although his actions were not for show, because he healed in private, his disciples also were given powers through him to heal all that crossed their paths. Jesus spoke about the kingdom on earth that disciples would enter if they lived pure lives and lived strictly for the Heavenly Father.
When Jesus was killed on the cross it was the end of his mortal life and at the same time also the beginning of the church and the strengthening of the Christian religion. From this point forward the “Good News” was spread that God lives within and around us. God is within everyone if they only invite him into their hearts and live for him alone. The next step was to create a church in which to hold the body of Christ. Not only would the church symbolize the body of Christ it would also literally allow Jesus’ followers a place of worship and sanctuary. The church symbolizes the body of Christ in the way that the head of the body is God, while the spirit is actually the spirit and Jesus while the cells that keep the body running are the disciples within the body. Not only was the church a place, but a symbol of the disciples’ devotion to God. After the creation of the church came a split regarding different views creating three branches within the Christian Religion.
The first branch is known as Roman Catholicism. Roman Catholics follow the church unwaveringly and abide by the Pope’s religious and ethical decisions. The church serves as the supreme court by “adjudicate[ing] between truth and error on important matters”. The second idea that Catholicism centers on is that the church also serves as a Sacramental Agent. There are seven Sacraments that must be accomplished during each individual’s life. The seven Sacraments are: baptism, confirmation, holy matrimony, holy orders, sacrament of the sick, reconciliation and mass. The first Sacrament, baptism, normally occurs during the first years of a child’s life. Baptism “delivers” the soul into the world of the supernatural. Confirmation occurs once the child is old enough to understand the difference between right and wrong. Holy Matrimony is the union of two individuals through the act of marriage. Another act is announcing ones’ holy orders which is the act of dedicating one’s life to God. Receiving the Sacrament of the sick prepares the body for death. Reconciliation may be more familiar to most as confession. The final Sacrament but not at all of least importance is mass. Mass is where disciples go in order to consume the body and blood of Christ.
Another branch of Christianity is Eastern Orthodoxy. The Eastern Orthodox branch separated from Roman Catholicism around 1054 A.D. Eastern Orthodoxy is practically the same as Roman Catholicism with the exception a few details. Orthodox Christians believe that they are saved through groups and not as individuals. They believe that every individual’s actions contribute or hurt the entire group or body of Christ. “One can be damned alone but saved only with others” is a quotation that Orthodox Christians believe whole heartedly.
The third branch of Christianity is called Protestantism. Protestants agree that religion and having faith in God is not simply “a belief system but a response of the entire self. The movement consists of participation of the mind, by believing certain things; the heart, by loving and trusting in those things, and finally the will, in doing things that are prompted by that love.” One of the biggest fears that Protestants have is falling easily to idolatry. Idolatry regarding the Bible itself, Protestants hold the Bible in such high esteem that sometimes it becomes difficult to remember that the Bible is not the focus of religion but God.
5. Finding the meaning behind everything is the basis of Judaism. Jews look for the meaning in God, creation, human existence, history, morality, justice, suffering and messianism. Jews describe God to be singular, there is one God. Jews believe that God defines divine unity among the world and its inhabitants. There is nothing and there is no one like God. Creation itself is considered good. Unlike many other religions Jews believe that when God created the Earth it was good, very good in fact. Therefore everything in regards to creation is good, the Earth is good and even sex is considered good. Jews look for the meaning in human existence. God created humans through Adam and Eve and therefore must be good. Finding the meaning in history is very important and highly regarded within Judaism. History is the key to the future, alongside messianism. But I will refer back to the importance of history within Judaism later. Morality and justice are equally important to the Jews because both should be a goal for every Jew. Being a moral person is required by God. God delivered his instructions to Moses on top Mt. Sinai which informed the Jews of God’s expectations. Justice will be delivered to everyone on their day of judgment, but Jews believe that everyday is an opportunity for justice. Justice can also be called righteousness. Live a life that is righteous and that individual will be rewarded. Suffering almost parallels the importance of history in Judaism. The responsibility of suffering was placed upon the Jews by God and must be respected and understood. Suffering is the only way to show people that they should not take advantage of their complacency. The Jews were the chosen people in order to show the rest of the world how much freedom should be valued. The Jews learned the importance of freedom through the physical suffering of being enslaved while the rest of the world was allowed to learn through the Jews demonstration. Jews do not attribute their freedom to chance that some unorganized slaves were capable of freeing themselves from slavery and becoming a free nation, Jews attribute their freedom to the power of God. God was the only reason that freedom was granted to the Jewish people. Jews although all believe in some sort of messiah, are actually divided by this idea also. Jews have a common belief that there will be a messiah, but the details are the dividing factors.
Judaism is divided into sects or denominations. Although these groups are not defined by name or claim that they each belong to a particular group, they are divided by common beliefs. Defining a Jewish person is difficult because there is no set formula or combination. A person is Jewish only if they are born to a Jewish mother or are converted. Although a person may claim to be Jewish and follow all the rules and beliefs they are still not considered a Jew. On the other hand, people that are born Jewish and are atheist and follow none of the Jewish beliefs are still considered Jewish. This is unlike any other religion. Some Jews believe that a messiah will come and restore the world to its original form as in the past. Other Jews believe that when the messiah comes a new order will arise and it will be nothing like the past. The final group of Jews believes that when the Messiah comes, it will be judgment day and all will end
6. The religion of Islam began with the Prophet Muhammad. Muhammad is also called the Seal of the Prophets because Islam recognizes other Prophets that came before him, but the “culmination” of Islam as a religion occurred with Muhammad. Muhammad’s parents died when he was a young boy, after which his uncle adopted him and showered him with love. Due to his early loss of his parents and the kindness showed to him by his uncle Muhammad became very sensitive to others needs. Muhammad, once he was older, met a woman by the name of Khadija whom he feel in love with and married. They remained married for the fifteen years that Muhammad prepared for his ministry. During these years of preparation Muhammad traveled to a cave in order to have solitude for open thoughts without distractions. One night while in the cave he was visited by an angel that told him to proclaim Allah as his savior the one and only! Muhammad returned to his wife and told her of the events that had occurred the night before. After hearing his story and expressing to her that he had become a Prophet or a madman she became his first convert among many.
In the year 622 A.D. Muhammad traversed to a city now known as Medina. The migration that Muhammad made became “known in Arabic as the hirja and is regarded to Muslims as the turning point in world history.” This migration became the basis for the Muslim calendar year. When Muhammad arrived in Medina he was assigned a position in administration. Throughout the next eight years many fights occurred changing the power back and forth between Muhammad and the Meccans. At the end of this period Muhammad became the more powerful political position and calmed the waters between the two feuding areas. Combined under one government lead by Prophet Muhammad these people created one fifth of the world’s population.
Muslims refer to the creation of the Koran as the standing miracle. Muslims tend to read the Koran literally and they never mention Muhammad’s name without instantly saying, “blessings and peace be upon him”. “Because the overwhelming thrust of the Koran is to proclaim the unity, omnipotence, omniscience and mercy of God – and correlatively the total dependence of human life upon Him – historical facts are in its case merely reference points that have scarcely any interest in themselves. When the Lord-servant relationship is the essential point, all else is commentary and allusion.” The Koran is the basis for decision making from early childhood on.
The five pillars of Islam are creed, canonical prayer, charity, observance of Ramadan and pilgrimage. The first pillar of Islam is creed, which simply means that each Muslim must at some point say a particular sentence and mean it entirely. “There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is His Prophet.” The creed is also known as a confession of faith or shahadah. The second pillar of faith is canonical prayer. Every Muslim must pray five times a day, everyday. Charity is the third pillar which states that people that live comfortably must share their wealth with the less fortunate and the poor. Observance of Ramadan is the fourth pillar of Islam. Ramadan is the holy month in the Islamic calendar that represents the time that Muhammad traveled to Mecca. The fifth pillar of Islam is pilgrimage. The pilgrimage requires that every Muslim (that can) must traverse to Mecca at least once in their lifetime.
One of the most important events that transpired from the Islamic religion catching fire throughout the community was the positive social effects that it had upon its people. Many changes occurred regarding the way that women were treated by their families and in society. Other changes have been occurring as time goes on such as the economic condition, encouraging of race relations and decreasing the use of force. Muslims have adjusted to the changing of the times socially but the question that author Houstan Smith presents is can the religion of Islam withstand many more changes?
7. While studying the religions of Judaism, Islam and Christianity there are more similarities than differences. The differences that do appear are quite significant to the separation of the three religions. All three religions share a faith in a God-head, a God that is singular. Monotheism is a common link between the previous mentioned religions. On a side note, Muslims believe that they are responsible for introducing the idea of Monotheism not only to Arabs around the world, but also to all of religion. Even though Judaism, Islam and Christianity are all monotheist religions, they differ greatly regarding that single God-head. Judaism was headed in the right direction but stopped short only allowing for God’s teachings to be confined to a certain people. Christians have a difficult time explaining to other religions the belief in the Trinity, while Christians fully comprehend the symbolism relating to one God in three forms. While Islam honors that Jesus was a religious leader, Muslims do not agree with Jesus as a divine being and argue that Christians are not monotheists due to this cross of divine and human life.
All three of the religions are God fearing religions, although fear not in the form of a “capricious tyrant” but instead out of the wonder of God’s /Allah’s/ Yahweh’s magnitude of abilities. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all agree that God is capable of amazing tasks for example, the creation of the universe. The three religions all agree that God alone created the universe and it is completely finite. Because the Earth was created by a perfect being the world itself cannot therefore be considered perfect also. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all agree that although the creation of the world was good, it is not perfect.
Another similarity that contains differences between the religions is the creation of the human self. The religions agree that the creation of man was good, but that is about as far as the similarities go. Christians believe that the human naturally has sinful desires, with this statement Judaism agrees. Islam on the other hand does not go that far. Muslims believe that the most sinful thing that humans can do is forget, they “forget their divine origin.” Islam views life as a gift from the Creator which requires the act of gratitude from the disciples that are aware of this blessing. The second responsibility that goes along with gratitude is the act of surrendering. Once a person knows about the Creator they are expected to do those two things: show gratitude and surrender their lives completely and willingly.
The final topic that these religions have in common is the reality of a Day of Judgment. Each religion whether Christianity, Judaism or Islam all agree that there will come a day when each individual will be judged and render a final decision. The degree to which these judgments occur varies within each religion and the corresponding sects but the common theme is the reality of a final day.
Each of these religions are similar and yet very different from one another. Having the multitude of choices from what religion an individual wants to follow creates for a very interesting world. If only all of the religions could realize that they have more in common than they realize. The religious trials and tribulations could possibly cease if not at least ease up on the level of intensity.
8. The religion that I found most interesting was actually the religion that I thought I would never want to learn about. My favorite religion was Islam. I was shocked when I read about how similar the history is to Christianity. I was even more shocked to learn that although Islam is the most dedicated religion, in my opinion, it also is the only religion that recognizes leaders from other religions. It appears that Islam is more open-minded to some degree than any other religion while I was taught (through the news) that it was the least open minded regarding other religious views.
When I visited the Islamic Mosque in Chino I was amazed by the hospitality that was bestowed upon me and my guest without anyone knowing that I was a student here for an assignment. I again was amazed at the vast amount of knowledge that these men had regarding not only their religion, but also Christianity and many other religions. I would very much enjoy going back to the Mosque simply to hold conversations with these leaders of the community. Regardless of all that the Islamic Religion has going against them because of nine eleven it is refreshing to see that people can overcome their differences and misunderstandings in order to create a better community and world. That is the primary focus of the Islamic Religion, besides Allah first and foremost obviously.
A. Renee Kangas
B. Caramel_diva84
C. I completed 14 of the 14 posts. (I only posted 13 to yahoo)
Post 1 May 26 Post 8 June 10
Post 2 May 30 Post 9 June 16
Post 3 June 1 Post 10 completed- never posted
Post 4 June 6 Post 11 June 22
Post 5 June 9 Post 12 June 22
Post 6 June 9 Post 13 June 29
Post 7 June 10 Post 14 June 28
D. Field Trip One- ISKCON
Field Trip Two- Bait-Ul-Hameed Mosque
E. Grade A
F. I have completed all of the assigned readings required. I have read chapters one through eight in Smith’s book The Illustrated World Religions. I have read all of the assigned readings on the internet for example: When Scholars Study the Sacred, When God’s Decay, The Politics of Mysticism, The Enchanted Land, the website titled Jainism Simplified (I skipped about three sections), reviewed the link below regarding Jainism, Why I Don’t Eat Faces, Lions in the Punjab, The Gnostic Mystery, the two Islam websites, the four websites Judaism, the False Testament, Triumph of Christianity, Ancient Jewish Accounts of Jesus, Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography. In regards to the required literature I have read the Tao Te Ching, Wisdom of the Buddha, the New Testament and The Koran.
G. I would definitely continue to use Crossan’s book because I think that he presents a terrifically unbiased view of the life that Jesus lived. Regardless of one’s religious views Crossan’s depiction of Jesus (like you said) can attract and teach anyone something new. Also, the Illustrated World Religions book does a good job dividing up the religions to make it easier to learn, but I had difficulty keeping some of the religious differentiated but that’s because of the shorter time line.
H. ARE YOU KIDDING…..I HAD NO TIME FOR SUCH, I WISH I DID.
Final Questions:
1. Gnosticism means seeking for the gnosis or spiritual knowledge, no to be confused with worldly knowledge. There are two forms of spiritual knowledge. The first, is knowledge of a God and the second, is knowledge of the passwords or multiple God’s names. These passwords are known because the spirit will take on a human form known as the Redeemer and purify the souls of the people on Earth in order to grant them access to their primordial home, in the Devine. The Redeemer will take a human form multiple times, not just once like Jesus and other religious figures. The Gnostic tradition has been related to Jewish and Christian cultures in the past. The Gnostic tradition may have found similarities within these cultures in order to gain more followers, but the faith and believe system of the Gnostic tradition is almost opposite of these two religions. When attempting to be a sect of Christianity, the Gnostics adjusted the story of Adam and Eve in order to show that the God that Christians see as God is really an evil God “that is a lower deity than the true Godhead”. The serpent, in Christianity a symbol of evil, is actually viewed as good. These alterations to the Adam and Eve story demonstrate the difference in view the Gnostics have from Christianity. In regards to the Gnostics being viewed as pessimistic, this I believe to be true because of the Gnostic stance against reproduction. Gnostics believe that an evil karma, Kal, holds the soul as long as possible within the world in order to keep the soul from finding the true Godhead. Therefore, not procreating is ultimately helping keep the supply of human souls depleting so that Kal cannot control any souls eventually. Since Kal cannot create humans the Gnostics do not want to help populate the world that he controls. There are many different sects of Gnostics around the world and it is hard to describe this tradition as one religion. Although each sect is a little different, all of the Gnostic sects recognize the original creators which transform the Gnostic tradition into a religion.
The Gnostic religion lost its strength during the rulings of the Roman Empire. There are a few things that allowed Christianity to survive while other religions such as the Gnostic religion were evaporating. Christianity held three key factors that allowed for the large number of followers to continue following regardless of the changes in society and over time. The three factors are (1) the “appeal” to the people that were surrounded by Rome’s state religion, (2) complete acceptance regardless of race, gender, age and social status and (3) the idea that the “Kingdom of God was at hand”. Many people felt that the Roman Empire was extremely corrupt and desired the religion of Christianity because it praised a God that created the world they lived in, yet “stood separate from it”, the proof that there was life after the physical death and a complete set of rules to live by. These basic pieces of the puzzle were combined in order to attract all types of people. Probably the most important difference between Christianity and the Gnostic tradition was the requirements that each religion had in order to be a member of the religion. “Not only were slaves and other undesirables excluded from these religions, there were also elaborate initiation ceremonies designed to exclude those not serious about involvement. This is why the Gnostic tradition and all of Christianity’s rivals were eventually became Christians simply, because of the simplicity of initiation. The final aspect of religion that Christianity provided that the Gnostic tradition did not was a divine plan or an “apocalyptic expectation, whether immediate or set in the future, gave converts a sense of mission and purpose, which no doubt added to the attractiveness of this new religion.” I think that the author Tim Callahan stated it best when he said, “Christianity had something for everyone, did not have any barriers to membership, and even had a sense of historical imperative.”
2. The author, John Crossan, of Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography argues that a man named Jesus may have existed but he was not the man portrayed by religious literature such as the Bible. John Crossan offers a different view of Jesus than most people are familiar with today. Through the help of history books, research, relevant knowledge and other religious literature Crossan is able to develop a realistic biography of the man known as Jesus. There are many inconsistencies that Crossan brings to the readers attention such as timelines and stories that have been recorded differently with alternate endings and teachings. These are the types of examples that will follow.
Crossan finds the comparison between John the Baptist and Jesus to be quite misleading the way that Matthew and Luke portray it. John the Baptist was born from a virgin mother just like Jesus only many years earlier. John the Baptist drew people out of their homes to be baptized where Jesus traveled to the people that would be baptized. John the Baptist in some stories actually baptized Jesus. The event in which John actually baptizes Jesus is a very controversial topic. Jesus did not commit sin which is the only reason that he was able to die for our sins, if this statement was true than why was Jesus baptized by John the Baptist? Another similarity between these two men is the way that the story of their birth was presented. The main difference here between the two stories is the alterations in order to make Jesus’ birth much more important than John the Baptists.
When John the Baptist was born it states that his neighbors and relatives rejoiced together. When Jesus was born there is “a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God” for this magnificent birth. The parallelism that Crossan demonstrates through this past example reveal that it is more than likely that the biblical Jesus’ life story may have been altered in order to strengthen the argument for religious purposes.
As I mentioned earlier, there are many inconsistencies with the travels of the biblical Jesus. Luke writes about Jesus time of birth being occurring during the “taxation census under Quirinius”, the taxation actually occurred about ten years after King Herod’s death. The only problem is that the bible gives this as the reason for Mary to return to Bethlehem and that Jesus was born while King Herod was still ruler. Obviously both of these statements cannot be true, they contradict one another. But to the uneducated, no one would ever know the difference. I guess, since Jesus was a peasant and wanted to reach out to other peasants, perhaps the authors thought that this statements would never be researched?
Crossan is not attempting to prove that a man named Jesus never lived; just that he did not live the life described by the Bible. Crossan depicts the life of a man that was born into a lower class family that was able to change the social structure of the Roman Empire and many other nations. The changes may not have occurred as the Bible depicts or for the reasons that the Bible states, but these man, if he existed, did change lives for the better. Crossan describes Jesus as a miracle worker because of the social changes he was able to make being that his social status was a simple peasant.
3. The False Testament presents the idea that the Bible’s depiction of the past is inaccurate and claims that it is completely false. The False Testament begins by explaining the process of science emerging from religious studies. Science was first used to find “proof” in order to back up the Bible’s tale of creation. The problem that occurred was when evidence was found that exposed a different story besides what the Bible has presented human kind with. These inconsistencies were, at first, disregarded and throw to the side in search of evidence that would support the faith that was followed.
As science has evolved and scientists actually want to discover the past, the true past, many inconsistencies regarding the timeline of the Bible have been exposed. Scientists have done research during the time of King David and King Solomon and are unable to provide proof of any such existence. The closest thing that was discovered was a piece of old material with writing on it saying something about the linage of a man named David. This cannot be considered proof of King David’s existence or even bloodline because the name could belong to anyone. The Bible talks about King Solomon having possessions that are numbered in the hundreds and having built many buildings with unlimited amounts of gold and grandeur. The only problem with this record, is that there simply is no proof of any such items anywhere near where King Solomon was have said to have lived.
Another inconsistency is the claim that the Israelites have against the land they claim as belonging to them. In the Bible the Israelites are described as trespassers or foreigners in this land and through war took over the land which should belong to them because of this simple fact. The research that has been done pieces together a different story. The archeologists and anthropologists have learned that the people that inhabited this land were indigenous people. That no-one came and claimed the land, the research shows that the people that originated started and ended there. Researchers have tried to make sense of the story that the Bible presents regarding the claim of the Holy Land. The only idea that seems to have stuck is that throughout history in order to have a valid land claim the land had to be taken through a war or was lost in a war. This could explain why the Israelites created a story that would prevent the loss of their Holy Land or Home Land.
The most interesting discovery made by archeologists is regarding the time that the Israelites spent out in the desert for nearly five centuries. “Not so much as a skeleton, campsite, or cooking pot had turned up, Finkelstein and Silberman noted, even though ‘modern archaeological techniques are quite capable of tracing even the very meager remains of hunter-gatherers and pastoral nomads all over the world.’ Indeed, although archaeologists have found remains in the Sinai from the third millennium B.C. and the late first, they have found none from the thirteen century.”
4. Christianity is the world’s most wide spread religion with the “largest number of adherents”. Christianity holds its importance in the life of Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus of Nazareth may have been a mortal man, but he was descendant from an earthly mother and heavenly father which makes him divine. Jesus was born to a virgin mother named Mary. Although the life of Jesus was not well recorded, there are many stories and events that occurred that explain more about the life that Jesus lived and died for.
Jesus attempted to change the social lifestyle of the world that he lived in, during the ruling of the Roman Empire. Although the government at that time was merciless, Jesus opened the door letting acceptance, love and healing flow in like a river. Jesus was viewed as a spiritual man because the spirit was within him. When John the Baptist baptized Jesus “the heavens opened and the spirit descend[ed] upon him like a dove”. This was one of the many miracles that Jesus disciples saw and experienced during Jesus’ lifetime. Jesus was a healer. Although his actions were not for show, because he healed in private, his disciples also were given powers through him to heal all that crossed their paths. Jesus spoke about the kingdom on earth that disciples would enter if they lived pure lives and lived strictly for the Heavenly Father.
When Jesus was killed on the cross it was the end of his mortal life and at the same time also the beginning of the church and the strengthening of the Christian religion. From this point forward the “Good News” was spread that God lives within and around us. God is within everyone if they only invite him into their hearts and live for him alone. The next step was to create a church in which to hold the body of Christ. Not only would the church symbolize the body of Christ it would also literally allow Jesus’ followers a place of worship and sanctuary. The church symbolizes the body of Christ in the way that the head of the body is God, while the spirit is actually the spirit and Jesus while the cells that keep the body running are the disciples within the body. Not only was the church a place, but a symbol of the disciples’ devotion to God. After the creation of the church came a split regarding different views creating three branches within the Christian Religion.
The first branch is known as Roman Catholicism. Roman Catholics follow the church unwaveringly and abide by the Pope’s religious and ethical decisions. The church serves as the supreme court by “adjudicate[ing] between truth and error on important matters”. The second idea that Catholicism centers on is that the church also serves as a Sacramental Agent. There are seven Sacraments that must be accomplished during each individual’s life. The seven Sacraments are: baptism, confirmation, holy matrimony, holy orders, sacrament of the sick, reconciliation and mass. The first Sacrament, baptism, normally occurs during the first years of a child’s life. Baptism “delivers” the soul into the world of the supernatural. Confirmation occurs once the child is old enough to understand the difference between right and wrong. Holy Matrimony is the union of two individuals through the act of marriage. Another act is announcing ones’ holy orders which is the act of dedicating one’s life to God. Receiving the Sacrament of the sick prepares the body for death. Reconciliation may be more familiar to most as confession. The final Sacrament but not at all of least importance is mass. Mass is where disciples go in order to consume the body and blood of Christ.
Another branch of Christianity is Eastern Orthodoxy. The Eastern Orthodox branch separated from Roman Catholicism around 1054 A.D. Eastern Orthodoxy is practically the same as Roman Catholicism with the exception a few details. Orthodox Christians believe that they are saved through groups and not as individuals. They believe that every individual’s actions contribute or hurt the entire group or body of Christ. “One can be damned alone but saved only with others” is a quotation that Orthodox Christians believe whole heartedly.
The third branch of Christianity is called Protestantism. Protestants agree that religion and having faith in God is not simply “a belief system but a response of the entire self. The movement consists of participation of the mind, by believing certain things; the heart, by loving and trusting in those things, and finally the will, in doing things that are prompted by that love.” One of the biggest fears that Protestants have is falling easily to idolatry. Idolatry regarding the Bible itself, Protestants hold the Bible in such high esteem that sometimes it becomes difficult to remember that the Bible is not the focus of religion but God.
5. Finding the meaning behind everything is the basis of Judaism. Jews look for the meaning in God, creation, human existence, history, morality, justice, suffering and messianism. Jews describe God to be singular, there is one God. Jews believe that God defines divine unity among the world and its inhabitants. There is nothing and there is no one like God. Creation itself is considered good. Unlike many other religions Jews believe that when God created the Earth it was good, very good in fact. Therefore everything in regards to creation is good, the Earth is good and even sex is considered good. Jews look for the meaning in human existence. God created humans through Adam and Eve and therefore must be good. Finding the meaning in history is very important and highly regarded within Judaism. History is the key to the future, alongside messianism. But I will refer back to the importance of history within Judaism later. Morality and justice are equally important to the Jews because both should be a goal for every Jew. Being a moral person is required by God. God delivered his instructions to Moses on top Mt. Sinai which informed the Jews of God’s expectations. Justice will be delivered to everyone on their day of judgment, but Jews believe that everyday is an opportunity for justice. Justice can also be called righteousness. Live a life that is righteous and that individual will be rewarded. Suffering almost parallels the importance of history in Judaism. The responsibility of suffering was placed upon the Jews by God and must be respected and understood. Suffering is the only way to show people that they should not take advantage of their complacency. The Jews were the chosen people in order to show the rest of the world how much freedom should be valued. The Jews learned the importance of freedom through the physical suffering of being enslaved while the rest of the world was allowed to learn through the Jews demonstration. Jews do not attribute their freedom to chance that some unorganized slaves were capable of freeing themselves from slavery and becoming a free nation, Jews attribute their freedom to the power of God. God was the only reason that freedom was granted to the Jewish people. Jews although all believe in some sort of messiah, are actually divided by this idea also. Jews have a common belief that there will be a messiah, but the details are the dividing factors.
Judaism is divided into sects or denominations. Although these groups are not defined by name or claim that they each belong to a particular group, they are divided by common beliefs. Defining a Jewish person is difficult because there is no set formula or combination. A person is Jewish only if they are born to a Jewish mother or are converted. Although a person may claim to be Jewish and follow all the rules and beliefs they are still not considered a Jew. On the other hand, people that are born Jewish and are atheist and follow none of the Jewish beliefs are still considered Jewish. This is unlike any other religion. Some Jews believe that a messiah will come and restore the world to its original form as in the past. Other Jews believe that when the messiah comes a new order will arise and it will be nothing like the past. The final group of Jews believes that when the Messiah comes, it will be judgment day and all will end
6. The religion of Islam began with the Prophet Muhammad. Muhammad is also called the Seal of the Prophets because Islam recognizes other Prophets that came before him, but the “culmination” of Islam as a religion occurred with Muhammad. Muhammad’s parents died when he was a young boy, after which his uncle adopted him and showered him with love. Due to his early loss of his parents and the kindness showed to him by his uncle Muhammad became very sensitive to others needs. Muhammad, once he was older, met a woman by the name of Khadija whom he feel in love with and married. They remained married for the fifteen years that Muhammad prepared for his ministry. During these years of preparation Muhammad traveled to a cave in order to have solitude for open thoughts without distractions. One night while in the cave he was visited by an angel that told him to proclaim Allah as his savior the one and only! Muhammad returned to his wife and told her of the events that had occurred the night before. After hearing his story and expressing to her that he had become a Prophet or a madman she became his first convert among many.
In the year 622 A.D. Muhammad traversed to a city now known as Medina. The migration that Muhammad made became “known in Arabic as the hirja and is regarded to Muslims as the turning point in world history.” This migration became the basis for the Muslim calendar year. When Muhammad arrived in Medina he was assigned a position in administration. Throughout the next eight years many fights occurred changing the power back and forth between Muhammad and the Meccans. At the end of this period Muhammad became the more powerful political position and calmed the waters between the two feuding areas. Combined under one government lead by Prophet Muhammad these people created one fifth of the world’s population.
Muslims refer to the creation of the Koran as the standing miracle. Muslims tend to read the Koran literally and they never mention Muhammad’s name without instantly saying, “blessings and peace be upon him”. “Because the overwhelming thrust of the Koran is to proclaim the unity, omnipotence, omniscience and mercy of God – and correlatively the total dependence of human life upon Him – historical facts are in its case merely reference points that have scarcely any interest in themselves. When the Lord-servant relationship is the essential point, all else is commentary and allusion.” The Koran is the basis for decision making from early childhood on.
The five pillars of Islam are creed, canonical prayer, charity, observance of Ramadan and pilgrimage. The first pillar of Islam is creed, which simply means that each Muslim must at some point say a particular sentence and mean it entirely. “There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is His Prophet.” The creed is also known as a confession of faith or shahadah. The second pillar of faith is canonical prayer. Every Muslim must pray five times a day, everyday. Charity is the third pillar which states that people that live comfortably must share their wealth with the less fortunate and the poor. Observance of Ramadan is the fourth pillar of Islam. Ramadan is the holy month in the Islamic calendar that represents the time that Muhammad traveled to Mecca. The fifth pillar of Islam is pilgrimage. The pilgrimage requires that every Muslim (that can) must traverse to Mecca at least once in their lifetime.
One of the most important events that transpired from the Islamic religion catching fire throughout the community was the positive social effects that it had upon its people. Many changes occurred regarding the way that women were treated by their families and in society. Other changes have been occurring as time goes on such as the economic condition, encouraging of race relations and decreasing the use of force. Muslims have adjusted to the changing of the times socially but the question that author Houstan Smith presents is can the religion of Islam withstand many more changes?
7. While studying the religions of Judaism, Islam and Christianity there are more similarities than differences. The differences that do appear are quite significant to the separation of the three religions. All three religions share a faith in a God-head, a God that is singular. Monotheism is a common link between the previous mentioned religions. On a side note, Muslims believe that they are responsible for introducing the idea of Monotheism not only to Arabs around the world, but also to all of religion. Even though Judaism, Islam and Christianity are all monotheist religions, they differ greatly regarding that single God-head. Judaism was headed in the right direction but stopped short only allowing for God’s teachings to be confined to a certain people. Christians have a difficult time explaining to other religions the belief in the Trinity, while Christians fully comprehend the symbolism relating to one God in three forms. While Islam honors that Jesus was a religious leader, Muslims do not agree with Jesus as a divine being and argue that Christians are not monotheists due to this cross of divine and human life.
All three of the religions are God fearing religions, although fear not in the form of a “capricious tyrant” but instead out of the wonder of God’s /Allah’s/ Yahweh’s magnitude of abilities. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all agree that God is capable of amazing tasks for example, the creation of the universe. The three religions all agree that God alone created the universe and it is completely finite. Because the Earth was created by a perfect being the world itself cannot therefore be considered perfect also. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all agree that although the creation of the world was good, it is not perfect.
Another similarity that contains differences between the religions is the creation of the human self. The religions agree that the creation of man was good, but that is about as far as the similarities go. Christians believe that the human naturally has sinful desires, with this statement Judaism agrees. Islam on the other hand does not go that far. Muslims believe that the most sinful thing that humans can do is forget, they “forget their divine origin.” Islam views life as a gift from the Creator which requires the act of gratitude from the disciples that are aware of this blessing. The second responsibility that goes along with gratitude is the act of surrendering. Once a person knows about the Creator they are expected to do those two things: show gratitude and surrender their lives completely and willingly.
The final topic that these religions have in common is the reality of a Day of Judgment. Each religion whether Christianity, Judaism or Islam all agree that there will come a day when each individual will be judged and render a final decision. The degree to which these judgments occur varies within each religion and the corresponding sects but the common theme is the reality of a final day.
Each of these religions are similar and yet very different from one another. Having the multitude of choices from what religion an individual wants to follow creates for a very interesting world. If only all of the religions could realize that they have more in common than they realize. The religious trials and tribulations could possibly cease if not at least ease up on the level of intensity.
8. The religion that I found most interesting was actually the religion that I thought I would never want to learn about. My favorite religion was Islam. I was shocked when I read about how similar the history is to Christianity. I was even more shocked to learn that although Islam is the most dedicated religion, in my opinion, it also is the only religion that recognizes leaders from other religions. It appears that Islam is more open-minded to some degree than any other religion while I was taught (through the news) that it was the least open minded regarding other religious views.
When I visited the Islamic Mosque in Chino I was amazed by the hospitality that was bestowed upon me and my guest without anyone knowing that I was a student here for an assignment. I again was amazed at the vast amount of knowledge that these men had regarding not only their religion, but also Christianity and many other religions. I would very much enjoy going back to the Mosque simply to hold conversations with these leaders of the community. Regardless of all that the Islamic Religion has going against them because of nine eleven it is refreshing to see that people can overcome their differences and misunderstandings in order to create a better community and world. That is the primary focus of the Islamic Religion, besides Allah first and foremost obviously.
posted by Renee Kangas at 12:45 AM
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