AHSS 2360 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Book Of Deuteronomy, God Gene, Shema Yisrael
28 Jun 2018
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Week 1: Judaism, Christianity and Islam Intro
Ninian Smart’s Seven Dimensions of Religion
1. Ritual—acts that “do something”
2. Narrative and Mythic—who are we and how did we get here and what happens to us?
3. Experiential and emotional—sense of fear and awe
4. Social and Institutional
5. Ethical and legal—religious requirements
6. Doctrinal and philosophical—foundations of belief
7. Material—from art to music to houses of worship
Ludwig Feuerbach (1804-1872)
-The Essence of Christianity (1841)
-Our belief in God is anthropological, based on projection
-It fulfills human needs and has human attributes
-We project our “best selves” on to God; We make God in our image
-Our image of God is what we aspire to—to be like God
-Religion is still important as social glue, but it is not divinely inspired
E.B. Tylor (1832-1917)
-Religion is all about explaining; explaining things that we observe or experience and do not
immediately or intuitively understand
-Termed this original religion, “animism”
-That is, there are “spirits” in everything and they live after bodily death
-This is “pre-scientific”. Eventually, we outgrow religion
Karl Marx (1818-1883)
-Materialist communism; State replaces religion
-People feel alienation, and thus turn to the comforts of religion
-Religion is the “opium of the masses”
-Religion keeps people in their “place”; Furthers the interest of the capitalist classes
-Religion’s rewards are in the “other world”
-In the end, it is evil because it obstructs communism
Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)
-The sacred, the profane, and taboo
-The community itself is God
-Worship involves social unity, removal of alienation, existential security
-It is community, not the specific forms of worship, ritual, and belief that matters
-Religion is a great social good, providing both cohesion and control
-It is about reducing radical individualism and enhancing solidarity
-It is a social product, and its value comes from its functionality
find more resources at oneclass.com
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Document Summary
Our belief in god is anthropological, based on projection. It fulfills human needs and has human attributes. We project our best selves on to god; we make god in our image. Our image of god is what we aspire to to be like god. Religion is still important as social glue, but it is not divinely inspired. Religion is all about explaining; explaining things that we observe or experience and do not immediately or intuitively understand. That is, there are spirits in everything and they live after bodily death. People feel alienation, and thus turn to the comforts of religion. Religion keeps people in their place ; furthers the interest of the capitalist classes. In the end, it is evil because it obstructs communism. Worship involves social unity, removal of alienation, existential security. It is community, not the specific forms of worship, ritual, and belief that matters. Religion is a great social good, providing both cohesion and control.
