Intro to Religion Blog

It was interesting to learn about the pilgrimage to Elvis’ home, Graceland. I found the article we read very strange, because people actually worship Elvis like an real relgion. The journey to his home does have aspects of a pilgrimage; such as ritual, community, walking, and metaphorical death. However, I do not believe this pilgrimage could also be classified as a relgion. Elvis was a very huge influence in American pop culture and throughout the world, but he was still human. He did not posess divine qualaties like those of a god, goddess or higher power. This was a great critical thinking discussion to have in class, and forced me to compare the differences between pilgrimage and relgion.

When we talked about Goddess/Pagan religion in class today, I couldn’t help but see a correlation with Hinduism. The idea of these Gods being “one” with the earth, and the circular worldview, are two major things these religions have in common with each other. Something I found interesting about this Goddess religon was the fact that is seems relatively peaceful. It’s about equality, and harmony with nature and others. Usually when people see the word Pagan, these are not the words that come to mind. I believe this can be classified as a religion because it holds almost all of the elements of religion, including: rites & rituals, an ultimate reality, myth, community, and moral code.

Today’s class helped me understand Indian religion a bit better. By making all of the maps for the different terms, I could see the correlation between everything we were discussing, such as: Reincarnation, Karma, “non-linear religion,” and Praxis. Hinduism is still difficult for me to understand, since Christianity is all I’ve know my whole life. It’s hard to believe that there are people in the world who don’t believe in one personal god. I find it strange that there is no creed, or any sort of declaration of faith. Even the Turner & Eliade Models that we have learned, do not completely apply to this type of religion. However, I find this very interesting and hope to learn more about eastern religions. Continue reading →

I found our guest speaker-a pastor from the United Methodist Church- very informative. Listening to him talk about pilgrimage helped me connect almost everything we have discussed in class so far.  It made me realize exactly what God wants from us and why people decide to go on pilgrimage. The Turner model was very prevelant in everything he mentioned; even more so than the Eliade model. People go on pilgrimage to make a stronger relationship between themselves and God. They leave their home, cross a threshold where all of their pre-existing rules dissolve, meet new people and a new way of life, and eventually return enlightened or changed from the experience. It sounds like an amazing thing to do and I hope to go on pilgrimage sometime in my life.

The Unlikely Disciple was a very interesting story for me. Kevin’s desire for a new change of pace was potentially lifechanging, which is what made this such a good book. I loved the fact that he had the courage to transfer to a college where he not only knew no one, but also had to sacrifice his own religious beliefs, friendships, and family. After our class discussion, it was very easy to see the connections between this book and the Turner/Eliade Models. Kevin’s whole life at Liberty was based on these models. Axis mundi, sacred space, rituals, limin, anti-structure and metaphorical death were all elements of Kevin’s life at Liberty. I believe Kevin’s journey made him understand himself and those around him much better.

Today’s class (9/13) was very helpful to me. While reading the material, I was
confused, to say the least. When we split into groups and drew pictures to
describe the different sections we had read, it made a lot more sense. I now
understand what “sacred space” means; or the “axis mundi.”
Building a world around sacred spaces is very clear now that we have discussed
it in class. Things as simple as where families gather, how churches are
organized, and where the dead are buried, are just a few of the examples that
stood out to me. We all like familiarity and comfort. Christians especially,
like to feel connected to heaven. I also found it interesting that sacrifice is
necessary to maintain order. I never realized the truth in that before today.

I am writing about Freud because he is the person that I most strongly disagree with out of the four. His beliefs are absolutely absurd to me. It is ridiculous to think that every man wants to marry his mother and every woman is envious of men. I don’t believe that all humans feel sexually guilty, and I do not believe that we truly want these things, deep down. Is religion a result of Oedipal Guilt? Is religion just a set of beliefs that we want to be true? I do not believe so. However, his idea that religion is necessary because it keeps us away from our own fear, could be very true. That’s why it is scary. Many of us worship. We believe in a higher power of some sort, and we practice our beliefs and customs. Most would say they have “strong faith” and believe they are committed to their religion, which keeps us grounded. It’s something to live for. What would society be like if religion did not exist?

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