The sequence of religions in ascending order. World religions. Basic forms of religions

World religions - Buddhism, Christianity and Islam appeared in the era of great historical turns, in the conditions of the folding of "world empires". These religions became world ones due to the so-called universalism, i.e. their appeal to everyone and everyone, regardless of class, estate, caste, national, state, etc. affiliation, which led to a large number of their adherents and the widespread prevalence of new religions around the globe.

2.1. Buddhism- the most ancient world religion that arose in India in the 6th century. BC. The origins of Buddhism date back to brahmanism- the religions of the ancient Hindus. According to these views, the universe is based on a single world soul - Atman (or Brahman). She is the source of individual souls. After death, the souls of people are transferred to other bodies. All living things are subject to the law karma ( posthumous retribution for actions during life) and is included in the chain of continuous incarnations - the wheel Samsara... The next incarnation can be the highest or the lowest. Everything that exists is based on dharmas, - the flow of these immaterial particles, their various combinations determine the existence of inanimate objects, plants, animals, humans, etc. After the disintegration of a given combination of dharmas, their corresponding combination disappears, and for a person this means death, but the dharmas themselves do not disappear, but form a new combination. There is a degeneration of the individual in a different guise. The ultimate goal of these beliefs is to break free from the wheel of samsara and attain Nirvana. Nirvana- this is a state of eternal bliss when the soul perceives everything, but does not react to anything ("nirvana" - from Sanskrit: "cooling, fading" - a state beyond life and death, the moment when the human soul joins the Atman). According to Buddhism, one can fall into nirvana during life, but it is fully achieved only after death.

The founder of Buddhism is a prince Siddhartha Gautama (564/563 - 483 BC), the first Buddha(in the translation from Sanskrit - "enlightened"), the son of the king of the Shakya tribe (hence one of the names of Buddha - Shakyamuni- a sage from the Shakya clan). The turning point in Siddhartha's life came when he was 29 years old and left the palace where he lived. Face to face with old age, illness and death, he realized that all these are integral elements of life, with which you need to come to terms. He got acquainted with various religious teachings in the hope of comprehending the meaning of life, but, disappointed in them, he completely focused on meditations(deep reflection) and once - after 6 years of wandering - finally discovered the true meaning of the existence of all things. Siddhartha outlined his creed in the so-called Benares sermon... It is akin to the Sermon on the Mount of Jesus Christ. In it he sets out "4 great truths": 1) life is suffering; 2) the cause of suffering is our desires, attachment to life, thirst for being, passion; 3) you can get rid of suffering by getting rid of desires; 4) the path to salvation leads to the observance of 8 certain conditions - "Eightfold path of self-improvement", which involves mastering the art of having the righteous: views, aspirations, speech, actions, life, efforts, contemplation, reflection.

In fact, Buddhism is a religious and philosophical teaching. Many researchers consider Buddhism to be a polytheistic religion, since one who is able to go through all the stages of the eightfold path and attain nirvana becomes a Buddha. Buddhas- these are the gods of the Buddhist religion, there are many of them. There are also bodhisattvas(bodhisattvas) are saints who have almost reached nirvana, but who remain to live earthly life to help others achieve enlightenment. Buddha Shakyamuni himself, having reached nirvana, preached his teachings for more than 40 years. Buddhism affirms the equality of all people and the possibility for anyone, regardless of caste, to achieve "enlightenment." Buddhism requires from its adherents not asceticism, but only indifference to worldly benefits and hardships. The "middle way" of Buddhism requires avoiding extremes in everything, not making too strict demands on people. The main tenets of Buddhism are concentrated in the texts Tripitaki(Tipitaki) - (translated as "Three baskets": The basket of the charter of the community - sangha, Doctrine Basket, Doctrine Interpretation Basket). There are a number of directions in Buddhism, the earliest are Hinayana and Mahayana, formed in the first centuries of our era. Hinayana(Skt. - "narrow chariot", narrow path of liberation) promises liberation from suffering, from samsara only to monks, members of the sangha ... Mahayana(Skt. - "wide chariot") believes that liberation from samsara can be achieved not only by a monk, but also by any believer who observes the vows of spiritual perfection.

In the 3rd century. BC. the ruler of India's largest state, Ashoka, declared himself the patron saint of Buddhist monasticism and the defender of the Buddhist doctrine. Having reached its zenith in India at the end of the 1st millennium BC, Buddhism by the 13th century. AD lost its influence in this country and became widespread in the countries of South, Southeast, Central Asia, the Far East. There are now about 800 million Buddhists in the world.

2.2. Christianity - one of the world's religions that originated in the 1st century AD in the eastern province of the Roman Empire (in Palestine) as the religion of the oppressed. Christianity is a collective term for describing three main directions creed: Catholicism, Orthodoxy and Protestantism... Each of these major areas, in turn, is subdivided into a number of smaller faiths and religious organizations. All of them are united by common historical roots, certain provisions of the doctrine and cult actions. Christian teaching and its dogmas have long been an important component of world culture.

Christianity got its name from the name Jesus Christ(he appears as the Messiah predicted by the Old Testament Jewish prophets). Christian doctrine is based on Scripture - Bible(Old Testament - 39 books and New Testament - 27 books) and Holy Tradition(the decrees of the first 7 Ecumenical Councils and local councils, the works of the "Church Fathers" - Christian writers of the 4th-7th centuries AD). Christianity originated as a sect in Judaism in conditions of deep economic, political, social and ethnic inequality and oppression of peoples on the territory of the Roman Empire.

Judaism was one of the first monotheistic religions. The biblical legend from the Old Testament tells about the three sons of the Jew Jacob who got into the Nile Valley. At first they were well received, but over time their life and the life of their descendants became more difficult. And then Moses appears, who with the help of almighty God leads the Jews out of Egypt to Palestine. The "Exodus" lasted 40 years and was accompanied by many miracles. God (Yahweh) gave Moses the 10 commandments, and he actually became the first Jewish lawgiver. Moses is a historical person. Sigmund Freud believed he was an Egyptian and a follower of Akhenaten. After the prohibition of the religion of Aten, he tried to introduce it in a new place and chose the Jewish people for this. The biblical campaign coincides in time with the reforms of Akhenaten, as evidenced by the historical chronicles.

Coming to Palestine, the Jews created their own state there, destroying the culture of their predecessors and devastating fertile lands. Exactly in Palestine in the 11th century BC the monotheistic religion of God Yahweh is taking shape. The Jewish state turned out to be fragile and quickly disintegrated, and in 63 BC. Palestine became part of the Roman Empire. At this time, the first communities of the Christian type appeared in the form of heresies - deviations from the dogmas of Judaism.

The God of the ancient Jews, the God of the Old Testament (he is known by different names - Yahweh, Jehovah, Hosts) was a type of the Christian God. As a matter of fact , for Christianity it is the same God, only his relationship with the person changes. The preaching of Jesus of Nazareth in its content went far beyond the limits of the national religion of the ancient Jews (as the Bible indicates, Jesus was born into a Jewish family. His earthly parents - Mary and Joseph were devout Jews and sacredly observed all the requirements of their religion). If the God of the Old Testament is addressed to the entire nation as a whole, then the God of the New Testament is addressed to every person. The Old Testament God pays great attention to the fulfillment of complex religious law and the rules of everyday life, numerous rituals accompanying each event. The God of the New Testament is addressed, first of all, to the inner life and inner faith of each person.

Asking why the peoples of the Roman Empire, among whom Christianity first began to spread, were so susceptible to this teaching, modern historical science came to the conclusion that by the middle of the 1st century A.D. the time has come when the belief of the Romans that their world is the best possible world has become a thing of the past. This confidence was replaced by a feeling of imminent catastrophe, the collapse of age-old foundations, the imminent end of the world. In the public consciousness, the idea of ​​fate, fate, the inevitability of what is destined from above is gaining a dominant position. In the lower social classes, dissatisfaction with the authorities is growing, which periodically takes the form of riots and uprisings. These performances are brutally suppressed. The mood of dissatisfaction does not disappear, but other forms of expression are sought.

Christianity in the Roman Empire was initially perceived by most people as a clear and understandable form of social protest. It awakened faith in an intercessor capable of affirming the idea of ​​universal equality, the salvation of people regardless of their ethnic, political and social affiliation. The first Christians believed in the imminent end of the existing world order and the establishment, thanks to the direct intervention of God, of the "Kingdom of Heaven", in which justice would be restored, righteousness would prevail. Exposing the corruption of the world, its sinfulness, the promise of salvation and the establishment of a kingdom of peace and justice - these are the social ideas that attracted hundreds of thousands, and later millions of followers, to the side of Christians. They gave hope for the consolation of all those in need. It is to these people, as follows from the Sermon on the Mount of Jesus and the Revelation of John the Theologian, first of all, the Kingdom of God was promised: “Those who are first here will be the last there, and the last here will be the first there. Evil will be punished, and virtue will be rewarded, the last judgment will take place and everyone will be rewarded according to their deeds. "

The ideological basis for the formation of Christian associations was universalism - appeal to all people, regardless of ethnic, religious, class and state affiliation. “There is no Greek, no Roman, no Jew, no rich, no poor, before God all are equal". On the basis of this ideological setting, an opportunity was created to unite representatives of all strata of the population.

The traditional view sees Christianity as the result of the deeds of one person, Jesus Christ. This idea continues to dominate in our time. In the latest edition of Encyclopedia Britannica, twenty thousand words are devoted to the person of Jesus — more than Aristotle, Cicero, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Confucius, Mohammed, or Napoleon. In scientific works devoted to the study of the problem of the historicity of Jesus Christ, there are two directions - mythological and historical. The first considers Jesus to be a mythological collective image, created on the basis of agricultural or totemic cults. All the gospel stories about his life and miraculous deeds are borrowed from myths. The historical direction recognizes that the image of Jesus Christ is based on a real historical person. His supporters believe that the development of the image of Jesus is associated with mythologization, deification of a really existing preacher from Nazareth. Truth has been separated from us by two millennia. However, in our opinion, from doubts about the reliability of certain biographical details, one cannot conclude that the preacher Jesus never existed as a historical person. In this case, it becomes a miracle the very emergence of Christianity and the spiritual impulse that (with all the private disagreements) unites and leads the authors of the Gospels (they took shape at the end of the 1st - the beginning of the 2nd centuries AD) and unites the first Christian communities. This spiritual impulse is too ingenious and powerful to simply be the result of a concerted invention.

Thus, under the influence of a number of socio-cultural factors at the end of the 1st - the beginning of the 2nd centuries, Christian communities began to appear and spread on the territory of the Roman Empire - ecclesias... Word "Ecclesia" in translation from the Greek means the assembly. In Greek cities, this term was used in a political context as the people's assembly - the main body of the polis' self-government. Christians give this term a new connotation ... Ecclesia is a gathering of believers to which anyone who shared their views could freely come. Christians accepted everyone who came to them: they did not hide their belonging to the new religion. When one of them got into trouble, others immediately came to his aid. At the meetings, sermons, prayers were delivered, the "sayings of Jesus" were studied, rites of baptism and communion were performed in the form of collective meals. Members of such communities called each other brothers and sisters. They were all equal to each other. Historians have not noticed any traces of the hierarchy of positions in the early Christian communities. In the 1st century A.D. there was still no church organization, officials, cult, clergy, dogmatists. The organizers of the communities were prophets, apostles, preachers who were believed to have charisma(the ability "given by the spirit" to prophesy, teach, perform miracles, heal). They did not call for struggle, but only for spiritual liberation, they were waiting for a miracle, preaching that heavenly retribution will reward everyone according to their merits. They declared everyone equal before God, thus providing themselves with a solid base among the poor and disadvantaged population.

Early Christianity is the religion of the dispossessed, disenfranchised, oppressed and enslaved masses. This is reflected in the Bible: "It is more convenient for a camel to pass through the ears of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Of course, this could not please the ruling Roman leaders. They were joined by Orthodox Jews, who did not want to see Jesus Christ as the Messiah. They were waiting for a completely different deliverer, a new Jewish king. This is confirmed by the texts of the Gospels, in which the responsibility for the execution of Jesus is assigned to the Jews. Pontius Pilate, according to the Gospels, tried to save Christ, but the crowd tore out his consent to execution by shouting: "His blood is on us and on our descendants!"

But for all the "openness" of their communities, Christians did not perform public services, did not take part in polis celebrations. Their religious meetings were for them a sacrament that could not be performed in front of the uninitiated. They internally separated themselves from the world around them, this was the secret of their teachings, which worried the authorities and caused condemnation from many educated people of that time. The accusation of secrecy has therefore become one of the common accusations that Christians have thrown at their opponents.

The gradual growth of Christian communities, the increase in their wealth with a change in class composition required the performance of a number of functions: organizing a meal and serving its participants, purchasing and storing supplies, managing the community's funds, etc. All this staff of officials had to be managed. This is how the institute arises bishops whose power gradually increased; the post itself became life-long. In every Christian community, there was a group of individuals who were especially respected by members for their dedication to the church - bishops and deacons... Along with them, early Christian documents mention elders(elders). However, it should be noted that at the early stage of development (30 - 130 AD) of Christian communities, these persons were in "living unity with the church", their power was not legal in nature, but grace-filled, freely recognized by the assembly. That is, their power in the first century of the church's existence rested only on authority.

The emergence clear refers to the 2nd century and is associated with a gradual change in the social composition of early Christian communities. If earlier they united slaves and the free poor, then in the 2nd century they already included artisans, merchants, landowners and even the Roman nobility. If earlier any member of the community could preach, then as the apostles and prophets are driven out, the bishop becomes the central figure in propaganda. The wealthy part of Christians is gradually concentrating in their hands the management of property and the direction of liturgical practice. Officials, first elected for a fixed term and then for life, form a clergy.... Priests, deacons, bishops, metropolitans oust charismatics (prophets) and concentrate all power in their hands.

Further development of the hierarchy led to the emergence of the Catholic Church, to a complete rejection of the sovereignty of communities that existed before, to the establishment of strict internal church discipline.

As already noted, Christianity in the first three centuries of its existence was a persecuted religion. Christians were originally identified with Jews. At first, the hostility of the local population of different provinces towards Christians was determined not by the essence of their teaching, but by their position as strangers who denied traditional cults and beliefs. The Roman authorities treated them in much the same way.

Under their own name, Christians appear in the minds of the Romans in connection with the fire in Rome under the emperor Nero. Nero accused Christians of arson, and in this regard, many Christians were brutally tortured and executed.

One of the main reasons for the persecution of Christians was their refusal to offer sacrifices in front of statues of the emperor or Jupiter. Performing such rituals meant fulfilling the duty of a citizen and subject. Refusal meant disobedience to the authorities and, in fact, non-recognition of these authorities. Christians of the first centuries, following the commandment "Thou shalt not kill", refused to serve in the army. And this also served as a reason for the persecution of them by the authorities.

At that time, an active ideological struggle was waged against Christians. In the public consciousness, rumors spread about Christians as atheists, blasphemers, immoral people who performed cannibal rites. Spurred on by such rumors, the Roman plebs repeatedly massacred Christians. From historical sources, cases of martyrdom of some Christian preachers are known: Justin the Martyr, Cyprian and others.

The first Christians did not have the opportunity to openly conduct their divine services and were forced to look for hidden places for this. Most often they used the catacombs. All catacomb temples ("cubicles", "crypts", "chapels") were rectangular (basilica type), in the eastern part a large semicircular niche was made, where the tomb of the martyr was located. throne ( altar ) ... The altar was separated by a low lattice from the rest of the temple. Behind the throne was the pulpit of the bishop, in front of him - salt ( elevation, step ) ... The altar was followed by the middle part of the temple, where worshipers gathered. Behind it is the room where those who wanted to be baptized gathered. (announced) and repentant sinners. This part was later named porch... We can say that the architecture of Christian churches took shape, mainly, in the period of early Christianity.

The last, the most severe period of persecution, Christians experienced under the emperor Diocletian. In 305 Diocletian abdicated power, and his successor Galerius in 311 ordered the abolition of the persecution of Christians. Two years later, by the Edict of Milan, Constantine and Licinius, Christianity was recognized as a tolerant religion. According to this edict, Christians had the right to openly perform their cult, communities received the right to own property, including real estate.

In the context of the crisis in the Roman Empire, the imperial government felt an urgent need to use the new religion for their political and ideological purposes. As the crisis deepened, the Roman authorities shifted from severe persecution of Christians to support for a new religion, right up to the conversion of Christianity during the 4th century into the state religion of the Roman Empire.

At the center of Christianity is the image god-man- Jesus Christ, who, by his martyrdom on the cross, by suffering for the sins of mankind, atoned for these sins, reconciled the human race with God. And by his resurrection, he opened for those who believed in him a new life, a path to reunification with God in the Divine kingdom. The word "Christ" is not a surname and not a proper name, but, as it were, a title, a title assigned by humanity to Jesus of Nazareth. Christ is translated from Greek as "Anointed one", "messiah", "savior"... With this common name, Jesus Christ is associated with the Old Testament legends about the coming to Israel of the prophet, the Messiah, who will free his people from suffering and establish a righteous life there - God's kingdom.

Christians believe that the world was created by one eternal God, and created without evil. Man was created by God as the bearer of the "image and likeness" of God. Man, endowed with free will according to God's plan, fell under the temptation of Satan, one of the angels who rebelled against God's will, while still in paradise, and committed an offense that fatally affected the future fate of mankind. Man violated God's prohibition, he desired to become "like God" himself. This changed his very nature: having lost his good, immortal essence, man became accessible to suffering, illness and death, and in this Christians see the consequence of original sin, passed down from generation to generation.

God expelled man from paradise with the parting words: "... in the sweat of your brow you will eat bread ..." (Gen. 3.19.) The offspring of the first people - Adam and Eve - inhabited the earth, but from the very beginning of history there was a gap between God and man. To return a person to the path, the true God revealed himself to the people chosen by Him - the Jews. God more than once revealed to the prophets, concluded covenants (unions) with "His" people, gave him the Law, which contained the rules of a righteous life. The Holy Scriptures of the Jews are imbued with the expectation of the Messiah - the one who will deliver the world from evil, and people from the bondage of sin. For this, God sent his Son into the world, who, through suffering and death on the cross, atoned for the original sin of all mankind - past and future.

That is why Christianity emphasizes the cleansing role of suffering, any limitation by a person of his desires and passions: “accepting his cross,” a person can overcome evil in himself and in the world around him. Thus, a person not only fulfills God's commandments, but also himself is transformed and ascends to God, becomes closer to him. This is the purpose of the Christian, his justification for the sacrificial death of Christ. The resurrection of Christ marks for Christians the victory over death and the newfound possibility of eternal life with God. It was from that time that the history of the New Testament with God began for Christians.

The main direction in the rethinking of Judaism by Christianity is to affirm the spiritual nature of the relationship between man and God. The main idea of ​​the Gospel preaching of Jesus Christ was to convey to people the idea that God - the Father of all people - sent him to bring people the message about the imminent establishment of the Kingdom of God. The good news is the message about the salvation of people from spiritual death, about the introduction of the world into spiritual life in the Kingdom of God. The “Kingdom of God” will come when the Lord reigns in the souls of people, when they feel a bright, joyful feeling of the closeness of the Heavenly Father. The way to this Kingdom is opened to people by faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, the mediator between God and man.

The main moral values ​​of Christianity are Faith, Hope, Love. They are closely related and merge into one another. However, the main among them is Love, which means, first of all, spiritual connection and love for God and which is opposed to physical and carnal love, declared sinful and base. At the same time, Christian love extends to all "neighbors", including those who not only do not reciprocate, but also show hatred and hostility. Christ urges: "love your enemies, bless those who curse you and persecute you."

Love for God makes faith in Him natural, easy and simple, not requiring any effort. faith means a special state of mind that does not require any evidence, arguments or facts. Such faith, in turn, easily and naturally turns into love for God. Hope in Christianity means the idea of ​​salvation.

Those who strictly follow the commandments of Christ will be rewarded with salvation. In list commandments- suppression of pride and greed, which are the main sources of evil, repentance for committed sins, humility, patience, non-resistance to evil, the requirement not to kill, not to take someone else's, not to commit adultery, honor parents and many other moral norms and laws, the observance of which gives hope for salvation from the torment of hell.

In Christianity, moral commandments are addressed not to external affairs (as was the case in paganism) and not to external manifestations of faith (as in Judaism), but to internal motivation. The highest moral authority is not duty, but conscience. We can say that in Christianity, God is not only love, but also Conscience.

Christian doctrine is based on the principle self-worth of personality... The Christian person is a free being. God has endowed man with free will. Man is free to do either good or evil. The choice of good in the name of love for God and people leads to spiritual growth and transformation of a person's personality. The choice of evil is fraught with the destruction of the personality and the loss of the very freedom of man.

Christianity brought into the world the idea of ​​equality of all people before God... From the point of view of Christianity, regardless of race, religion, social status, all people as bearers of the "image of God" are equal and, therefore, worthy of respect as a person.

The adoption of the Nicene-Constantinople "Creed" (the 1st Ecumenical Council in Nicea in 325, the 2nd Ecumenical Council in Constantinople in 381) was of fundamental importance for the establishment of Christian dogma. Symbol of faith Is a short summary of the main provisions of the Christian doctrine, consisting of 12 dogmas... These include: the dogmas of creation, providentialism; the trinity of God, acting in 3 hypostases - God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit; incarnations of God; resurrection of Christ; redemption; the second coming of Christ; immortality of the soul, etc. The cult forms sacraments, ceremonies, holidays. Christian sacraments – special cult actions designed to really bring the divine into a person's life. The sacraments are considered to be established by Jesus Christ, their 7: baptism, chrismation, communion (Eucharist), repentance, priesthood, marriage, blessing of oil (unction).

In 395 g. there was an official division of the empire into the Western and Eastern Roman Empires, which led to an increase in disagreements between the churches of the East and West and their final rupture in 1054... The main dogma that served as a reason for the split was filioque dispute(i.e. about the procession of God the Holy Spirit). The Western Church began to be called Roman Catholic(the term "Catholicism" is derived from the Greek "catholicos" - universal, ecumenical), which meant "Roman world church", and Eastern, - Greek Catholic, Orthodox, i.e. worldwide, faithful to the principles of orthodox Christianity ("Orthodoxy" - from the Greek. "Orthodoxy"- correct teaching, opinion). Orthodox (Eastern) Christians believe that God - the Holy Spirit comes from God the Father, and Catholics (Western) - as from God the Son ("filioque" from Latin - "and from the Son"). After the adoption of Christianity by Kievan Rus in 988 BC under Prince Vladimir of Byzantium in its eastern, orthodox version, the Russian Church became one of the metropolises (ecclesiastical regions) of the Greek Church. The first Russian metropolitan in the Russian Orthodox Church was Hilarion (1051). V 1448 The Russian Church declared itself autocephalous(independent). After the death of Byzantium under the onslaught of the Ottoman Turks in 1453, Russia became the main stronghold of Orthodoxy. In 1589, Metropolitan Job of Moscow became the first Russian patriarch. Orthodox churches, unlike the Catholic, do not have a single center of government. There are currently 15 autocephalous Orthodox churches. The Russian patriarch today is Kirill, Pope - FrancisI.

In the 16th century. during the period Reformation (from Lat. Transformation, correction), wide anti-Catholic movement, appears Protestantism. The reformation in Catholic Europe took place under the slogan of restoring the traditions of the early Christian church and the authority of the Bible. The leaders and ideological inspirers of the Reformation were Martin Luther and Thomas Münzer in Germany, Ulrich Zwingli in Switzerland and Jean Calvin in France... The starting point at the beginning of the Reformation was October 31, 1517, when M. Luther nailed to the door of the Wittenberg Cathedral his 95 theses against the doctrine of salvation by the merits of saints, purgatory, and the mediating role of the clergy; he denounced the selfish trade in indulgences as a violation of the gospel covenants.

Most Protestants share common Christian ideas about creation, providentialism, about the existence of God, about his trinity, about the God-manhood of Jesus Christ, about the immortality of the soul, and so on. Important principles of most Protestant denominations are: justification by faith alone, and good deeds are the fruit of love for God; the priesthood of all believers. Protestantism rejects fasts, Catholic and Orthodox rituals, prayer for the dead, worship of the Mother of God and saints, veneration of relics, icons and other relics, the church hierarchy, monasteries and monasticism. Of the sacraments, baptism and communion are preserved, but they are interpreted symbolically. The essence of Protestantism can be expressed as follows: divine grace is bestowed without the mediation of the church. Man's salvation occurs only through his personal faith in the atoning sacrifice of Christ. Communities of believers are headed by elected priests (the priesthood extends to all believers), the divine service is extremely simplified.

From the very beginning of its existence, Protestantism was divided into a number of independent faiths - Lutheranism, Calvinism, Zwinglianism, Anglicanism, Baptism, Methodism, Adventism, Mennonism, Pentecostalism. There are also a number of other trends.

Today, the leaders of both the Western and Eastern Churches are striving to overcome the pernicious consequences of centuries of enmity. Thus, in 1964, Pope Paul YI and Patriarch Athenagoras of Constantinople solemnly canceled the mutual curses pronounced by representatives of both Churches in the 11th century. The beginning of overcoming the disunity between Western and Eastern Christians was laid. Since the beginning of the 20th century. the so-called ecumenical movement (from the Greek "eikumena" - the universe, inhabited world). At present, this movement is carried out mainly within the framework of the World Council of Churches, of which the Russian Orthodox Church is an active member. Today, an agreement has been reached on the coordination of the activities of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad.

2.3. Islam - the youngest world religion ("Islam" in translation from Arabic - obedience, and the name Muslims comes from the word "Muslim" - who gave himself to God). Islam was born in the 7th century. AD in Arabia, the population of which at that time lived in the conditions of the decomposition of the tribal system and the formation of a single state. In this process, a new religion became one of the means of uniting numerous Arab tribes into a single state. The founder of Islam is a prophet Muhammad (570-632), a native of the city of Mecca, who in 610 began his preaching work. The tribes that lived on the Arabian Peninsula before the rise of Islam were pagans. The pre-Islamic era is called jahiliyya. The pantheon of pagan Mecca consisted of many gods, whose idols were called betilam. One of the idols, as the researchers believe, bore the name Allah. V 622 g... Muhammad, along with his followers - muhajirami- was forced to flee from Mecca to Yathrib, which later became known as Medina (the city of the prophet). Resettlement (in Arabic "Hijra") Muslims in Yathrib became the first day of the Muslim chronology. After the death of Muhammad in 632, the first four heads of the Muslim community were Abu Bakr, Omar, Osman, Ali, who received the name "righteous caliphs" (Arabic successor, deputy).

Judaism and Christianity played a special role in the formation of the Muslim worldview. Muslims, along with Jews and Christians, revere the same Old Testament prophets, as well as Jesus Christ as one of them. This is why Islam is called Abrahamic religion(named after the Old Testament Abraham - the founder of the "12 tribes of Israel"). The basis of the doctrine of Islam is Koran(Arabic for "reading aloud") and Sunnah(Arabic "sample, example"). Many biblical stories are reproduced in the Koran, biblical prophets are mentioned, the last of which, the "seal of the prophets," is considered Muhammad. The Quran consists of 114 suras(chapters), each of which is divided into verses(poetry). The first sura (the largest) - "Fatiha" (Revealing) means for a Muslim the same thing as for Christians the prayer "Our Father", that is. everyone is obliged to know it by heart. Along with the Qur'an, a guide for the entire Muslim community ( ummah) in solving pressing problems of public and private life is the Sunna. This is a collection of texts ( hadith), describing the life of Muhammad (similar to the Christian Gospels), his words and deeds, and in a broad sense - a collection of good customs, traditional institutions, complementing the Koran and revered on an equal basis with it. An important document of the Muslim complex is sharia(Arabic for "proper path") - a set of norms of Islamic law, morality, religious precepts and rituals.

Islam affirms 5 "pillars of faith" which reflect the duties of a Muslim:

1. Shahada- evidence of faith, expressed by the formula "There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah." It contains 2 of the most important dogmas of Islam - the confession of monotheism (tawhid) and the recognition of the prophetic mission of Muhammad. During the battles, the Shahada served as a battle cry for the Muslims, therefore the soldiers who died in the battle with the enemies of the faith were called martyrs(martyrs).

2... Namaz(Arabic "salad") - daily 5-fold prayer.

3... Saum(Turkish "uraza") fasting in the month of Ramadan (Ramadan) - the 9th month of the lunar calendar, "the month of the prophet."

4. Zakat- compulsory charity, a tax in favor of the poor.

5. Hajj- a pilgrimage to Mecca, which every Muslim must complete at least once in his life. Pilgrims go to Mecca, to the Kaaba, which is considered the main shrine of Muslims.

Some Muslim theologians consider jihad (ghazavat) the 6th "pillar"... This term refers to the struggle for faith, which is waged in the following basic forms:

- "jihad of the heart" - the fight against one's own evil inclinations (this is the so-called "Great Jihad");

- "jihad of the tongue" - "the command of the commendable and the prohibition of the blameworthy";

- "jihad of the hand" - the adoption of appropriate measures of punishment against criminals and violators of moral norms;

- "jihad of the sword" - the necessary appeal to arms in order to deal with the enemies of Islam, to destroy evil and injustice (the so-called "Small Jihad").

Soon after the death of Muhammad, a split occurred within the Muslims between Shiites and Sunnis. Shiism(Arabic "party, group") - recognizes Ali, the 4th "righteous caliph" and his descendants, the only legal successors of Muhammad (since he was his blood relative), i.e. defends the transfer of the dignity of the supreme leader of the Muslims ( and mother) by inheritance within the clan marked by God's guardianship. Later in the Islamic world there were Shiite states - imamats. Sunnism - the largest confession in Islam, recognizes the legitimate power of all 4 "righteous caliphs", rejects the idea of ​​mediation between Allah and people after the death of the prophet, does not accept the idea of ​​Ali's "divine" nature and the right of his descendants to spiritual supremacy in the Muslim community.

Explain the meaning of the terms: confession, sect, Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Protestantism, dogma, Gospel, Old Testament, New Testament, apostle, messiah, white and black clergy, patriarch, Reformation, charisma, nirvana, Buddha, stupa, brahmanism, karma, samsara, caste, Wahhabism , Kaaba, jihad (ghazavat), namaz, hajj, shahada, saum, zakat, clergy, prophet, hijra, caliphate, sharia, imamat, sunnah, shi'ism, surah, ayat, hadith.

Personalities: Siddhartha Gautama, Abraham, Moses, Noah, Jesus Christ, John, Mark, Luke, Matthew, Muhammad (Magomed), Abu Bakr, Omar, Osman, Ali, Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli, John Calvin.

Questions for self-test:

1. How are the concepts of culture and religion related?

2. What are the functions of religion?

3. What religions are called Abrahamic?

4. What religions are called monotheistic?

5. What is the essence of Buddhism?

6. What is the essence of the Christian and Islamic faiths?

7. When and where did the world's religions originate?

8. What confessions exist in Christianity?

9. What confessions exist in Islam?

PRACTICAL LESSONS

Seminar plans for students of OZO SK GMI (GTU)

Seminar 1. Culturology in the system of humanitarian knowledge

Plan: 1. The origin and meaning of the term "culture".

2. The structure of culture and its main functions.

3. Stages of the formation of cultural studies. The structure of cultural studies.

Literature:

When preparing for the seminar, one should pay attention to the etymology of the term "culture" and trace the historical development of ideas about culture: in antiquity, in the Middle Ages, in the Renaissance, in the New Time and in the present. Students can present different definitions of the term "culture" and comment from what positions this or that definition is given. It is important to present a classification of the main definitions of culture. As a result, we will get an idea of ​​the diversity, versatility of definitions of culture in modern cultural studies.

When preparing the second question, the student must consider the structure of culture and not only know the main functions of culture, but also understand how they are implemented in the life of society, be able to give examples. Students should explain why the function of socialization or inculturation is central to culture.

The third question involves the analysis of the structure of cultural studies itself as an integrative humanitarian discipline. Revealing the process of the formation of science itself, the study of the main stages of the formation of culturology as a science will make it possible to be convinced of its multifaceted connections with ethnography, history, philosophy, sociology, anthropology, and other sciences.

Discussion of all the issues of the seminar will allow students to draw well-grounded conclusions about the place and role of cultural studies in the system of modern humanitarian knowledge.

Seminar 2. Basic concepts of cultural studies.

Plan:

Information-semiotic approach to culture. The main types of symbolic systems of culture.

Cultural values, essence and types.

The concept of norms in cultural studies, their functions and types.

Literature:

1. Baghdasaryan. N.G. Culturology: textbook - M .: Yurayt, 2011.

2. Culturology: textbook / ed. Yu.N. Solonina, M.S. Kagan. - M .: Higher education, 2011.

3. Karmin A.S. Culturology: a short course - St. Petersburg: Peter, 2010.

When preparing the first question, students should understand the difference in the definition of culture from the standpoint of the information-semiotic approach in relation to the definitions already known to them (“Culture is a special non-biological form of the information process”), which involves considering culture in three main aspects: culture as a world of artifacts , culture as a world of meanings and culture as a world of signs. The content of culture always finds expression in language. Language in the broadest sense of the term call any sign system(means, signs, symbols, texts), which allows people to communicate and transmit various information to each other. The systems of signs and the information that is accumulated with their help are the most important necessary components of culture. Students need to remember this, considering culture as a complex sign system.

It is important to note that today the information-semiotic approach to understanding culture is one of the main in cultural studies. It is on it that cultural scientists Kagan M.S., Karmin A.S., Solonin Yu.N. base their understanding of culture. and others, the textbooks of which are recommended by the Ministry of Higher Education of the Russian Federation as basic.

Considering the main types of sign systems, students should attend to giving examples for each of the types of sign systems. The clarity and persuasiveness of the examples contribute to a better understanding and assimilation of the program material.

Considering the issue of values, students should emphasize the role of values ​​in culture, find out their nature and connection with norms, mentality, determine the types of values ​​and their classification. It is important to understand the system of personal value orientations and the factors of its formation.

The concept of a norm in cultural studies depends on the degree and specificity of the normativity of culture, the student should familiarize himself with various classifications of norms and give examples.

Workshop 3.Culture and religion.

Plan: 1. Religion in the cultural picture of the world. The main elements and functions of religion.

2. World religions:

a) Buddhism: origins, teachings, sacred texts;

b) Christianity: the emergence and foundations of the Christian doctrine, confession.

c) Islam: origins, creed, confessions.

Literature:

1. Baghdasaryan. N.G. Culturology: textbook - M .: Yurayt, 2011.

2. Culturology: textbook / ed. Yu.N. Solonina, M.S. Kagan. - M .: Higher education, 2011.

3. Karmin A.S. Culturology: a short course - St. Petersburg: Peter, 2010.

4. Culturology: educational pos. / Ed. G.V. Dracha. - Rostov / Don: Phoenix, 2012.

5. Culturology. History of world culture / ed. A.N. Markova - M .: Unity, 2011.

6. Kostina A.V. Culturology: electronic textbook. - M .: Knorus, 2009.

7. Kvetkina I.I., Tauchelova R.I., Kulumbekova A.K. and other Lectures on cultural studies. Uch. pos. - Vladikavkaz, ed. SK GMI, 2006.

Religious issues are closely related to culture. It is not for nothing that the word “culture” has its root in the word “cult” - reverence, worship of someone - or something. That is why the seminar, based on self-preparation of students, proposed for the study of the world's most widespread religions. As for Christianity and Islam, we live in a region where both of these confessions exist around us. By their confessional origin, many students belong to Christians or Muslims, and it is quite useful for them to know the basics of the religion of their ancestors.

When preparing 1 question of the seminar, one should understand that any religion is a fundamental factor in social life. Growing out of mythology, religion inherits from it a fundamental place in culture. At the same time, in a developed society, where art, philosophy, science, ideology, politics form independent spheres of culture, religion becomes their common, system-forming spiritual basis. Its influence on the life of society was and remains very significant, and in some periods of history - decisive. Students should be able to not only list the main elements of religion, but also comment on their content. And also tell in detail about the main functions of religion.

Unlike other world religions, Buddhism is often interpreted as a philosophical and religious doctrine, a religion "without a soul and without God" - Siddhartha Gautama (563 - 486-473 BC) - Buddha, i.e. The “enlightened one” was a historical person, the son of the Shakya king, a small tribe that lived in the foothills of the Himalayas. He was deified by his followers after his death. When talking about the origins of Buddhism, students should know that it grew out of ancient Indian Brahmanism. Buddhist philosophers borrowed from him the idea of ​​rebirth. Today Buddhism is not only a religion, but also ethics and a certain way of life.

Shortly before his death, Buddha formulated the principles of his teaching: "four noble truths", the theory of causality, impermanence of elements, "middle way", "eightfold path". The task of students is not only to list, but also to be able to reveal the content of these principles, concluding that their ultimate goal is to achieve nirvana. Students need to understand that nirvana (to explain the term) is the highest state of spiritual activity and energy that is free from base attachments. Buddha, having achieved nirvana, preached his teachings for many more years.

The history of Christianity is detailed in many textbooks and manuals. In preparing this part of the question, it is important to present the origins of the emergence of a new religion in the mainstream of Judaism, the difference between Christianity and Judaism and the foundations of the Christian doctrine (Sermon on the Mount of Jesus, Symbol of Faith). The Bible can be presented in 2 of its main parts - the Old and New Testaments. Moreover, students should have an idea of ​​the essence of the New Testament itself as a new contract of God with people. Students also need to form an understanding of the 3 main branches of Christianity - Orthodoxy, Catholicism and Protestantism and the main differences between them.

When preparing the question of Islam, it should be borne in mind that Islam, as the youngest of the world religions, has absorbed a lot from both Judaism and Christianity, therefore Islam is considered Abrahamic religions. Muhammad (Magomed) - the prophet of Islam, the last Messiah (according to the Muslim faith), opposing Arab paganism, with the help of the new faith proclaimed by him, contributed not only to the ethnic, but also to the state consolidation of the Arabs. This explains the fact of the presence in the original Islam of the idea of ​​"jihad" ("ghazavat"). Students should trace the historical evolution of this idea and its modern embodiment in Islamic fundamentalism (in particular, the course of Wahhabism). The essence of the doctrine of Islam is reduced to the recognition of the 5 "pillars of Islam", which students must not only state, but also explain. It is also necessary to trace the history of the creation of the Koran and Sunnah, their role in the lives of believers. Students need to have an idea of ​​the main currents of Islam - Sunnism and Shiism.

Basic literature for the course:

1. Karmin A.S. Culturology: a short course - St. Petersburg: Peter, 2010 .-- 240 p.

2. Culturology: textbook / ed. Yu.N. Solonina, M.S. Kagan. - M .: Higher education, 2010 .-- 566 p.

3. Baghdasaryan. N.G. Culturology: textbook - M .: Yurayt, 2011 .-- 495 p.

additional literature:

1. Culturology: study for bachelors and specialists / ed. G.V. Dracha and others - M .: Peter, 2012 .-- 384 p.

2. Markova A.N. Culturology. - M .: Prospect, 2011 .-- 376 p.

3. Kostina A.V. Culturology. - M .: Knorus, 2010 .-- 335 p.

4. Gurevich P.S. Culturology: uch. pos. - M .: "Omega-L", 2011. - 427 p.

5. Stolyarenko L.D., Samygin S.I. and other Culturology: textbook. settlement - Rostov-on-Don: Phoenix, 2010 .-- 351p.

6. Viktorov V.V. Culturology: uch. for universities. - M .: Fin.un-t at Prav. RF, 2013 .-- 410 p.

7. Yazykovich V.R. Culturology: study guide for universities. - Minsk: RIVSH, 2013 .-- 363 p.

The proposedthemesNSabstracts:

1. Cultural anthropology as an integral part of cultural studies. F. Boas. 2. Methods of cultural studies. 3. Semiotics as a science. 4. Culture as text. 5. The essence and functions of the language of culture. 6. The plurality of cultural languages. 7. Symbol as a means of the language of culture. 8. Symbol in science and art. 9. The role of the value component in people's lives. 10. Value core of culture and factors influencing its formation. 11. The problem of the relationship between the values ​​and motivations of the individual. 12. The problem of the relationship between the world of values ​​of the individual and society. 13. The meaning of mentality. 14. Mentality and national character. 15. Primitive and antique mentality. 16. Mentality in the Middle Ages. 17. Anthropological structure of culture. 18. "Cultural environment" and "natural environment", their real correlation in human life. 19. The role of play in culture. 20. Culture and intelligence. 21. Historical dynamics of the existence of culture. 22. Beauty as the essence of art. 23. Artistic and scientific picture of the world. 24. Perception of a work of art. 25. Art and religion. The concept of "dehumanization" of art by J. Ortega y Gasset. 26. Art in the modern world. 27. Tradition and innovation in culture. 28. The laws of history and the development of culture. 29. The problem of historical and cultural typology. 30. Ethnicity and culture in the concept of L.N. Gumilyov. 31. Ethnocultural stereotypes. 32. Semiotic types of cultures by Yu. Lotman. 33. Youth subculture. 34. Counterculture as a mechanism of sociodynamics. 35. Countercultural phenomena. 36. Primitive painting. 37. Myth as a cultural phenomenon. 38. Myths in the life of the ancient Greeks. 39. Myth and magic. 40. Characteristic features of myth and the logic of mythological thinking. 41. Socio-cultural functions of myth and myths in modern culture. 42. Russia in the East-West system: opposition or dialogue of cultures. 43. Russian national character. 44. Orthodox motives of Russian culture. 45. Westerners and Slavophiles on Russian culture and the historical fate of Russia. 46. ​​Christian temple as the focus of spiritual and cultural life. 47. Secularization of Russian culture in the 17th century. 48. Features of the culture of the Enlightenment in Russia. 49. Typological model of culture F. Nietzsche. 50. The concept of cultural and historical types of N.Ya.Danilevsky. 51. Typology of culture by O. Spengler and A. Toynbee. 52. P. Sorokin's theory of sociocultural dynamics. 53. K. Jaspers about a single path of human development and its main stages. 54. The main threats and dangers to culture in the 21st century. 55. Technology as a sociocultural phenomenon. 56. Prospects for the interaction of culture and nature in the 21st century. 57. Protection of cultural monuments. 58. Museums of the world and their role in preserving the cultural heritage of mankind. 59. Cultural universals in the modern world process.

Despite the development of modern technology and science, the inhabitants of the planet continue to classify themselves as one of the many beliefs. Hope for higher powers allows you to go through difficult life situations. Religion statistics show how many confessions exist and how many people count themselves among them.

Origin theory

There is one general theory of the origin of beliefs on earth. As soon as inequality appeared in human society, there was also a need for some kind of highest value that would reward people for their actions. The possessor of superpower must be endowed with a super being, the role of which is played by a certain deity.

What it is

Beginning with the acquaintance with beliefs, it is worth exploring the very concept of religion. There are quite a few definitions of faith today. R religion is a form of view of the world around us, which is based on belief in the supernatural.

Existing classifications

WITH how many religions in the world? Today there are more than 5 thousand official religious associations. This includes the world's largest religions. Beliefs can be very different from each other. Much depends on the customs and traditions of the country. There are also similarities between religions. All of them imply belief in higher powers.

Today there are several classifications of religions according to various criteria. For example, the types of religions by the number of gods are monotheistic and polytheistic. The latter are represented in the countries of the African continent with a tribal way of life. These nationalities have not yet left paganism.

According to Hegel, the history of religion is the path of the Spirit coming to full self-awareness. Each of them is a step in awareness leading to the ultimate goal of the story. The structure of the Hegel classification is as follows:

1. Natural beliefs(lower level) based on sensory perception. He referred to them all magical beliefs, religions of China and India, as well as the ancient Persians, Syrians and Egyptians.
2. Spiritual and individual confessions(intermediate bar) - the religion of the Jews (Judaism), the beliefs of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome.
3. Absolute spirituality- Christianity.

The experience of studying the problem led to the creation of other classifications - according to the degree of prevalence or the number of followers. Here local (within one clan-tribe), national (influencing the culture of one people, for example, Ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, China with Shintoism, India with Hinduism) are distinguished. How do local movements differ from national religions? More prevalent among many, ahead of them in terms of the number of followers. Religious centers are present all over the world.

What ancient civilizations professed

Totemism flourished in Ancient Egypt, as evidenced by the half-animal image of the Egyptian gods. The statistics of religions asserts that during this period of time the idea of ​​an afterlife and a connection between earthly life and the afterlife appeared. The idea of ​​resurrection also arose (Osiris - the sun god - dies in the evening and is reborn in the morning). Belief dates back to long before Jesus and Christianity.

Buddhism

The founder is considered Siddhartha Gautama Shakyamuni, later Buddha (5-6 century BC). The main position is that a person can get out of the cycle of life and achieve nirvana. This is done by achieving bliss through one's own experience, rather than taking it for granted. Religion statistics show that Buddhism is widespread in many countries that are culturally distant from each other. This includes Vietnam (79%), Laos (60%), Mongolia (96%), Thailand (93%), Sri Lanka (70%).

Religion statistics in South Korea show that 47% of believers in the state profess Buddhism.

National denominations

There are national and traditional religious movements, also with their own directions. They arose or became especially widespread in certain countries, in contrast to the world. On this basis, the following types of beliefs are distinguished (an enlarged list of religions):

• Hinduism is the religion of India;
• Confucianism and Taoism - China;
• Shinto is the religion of Japan;
• paganism - Indian tribes, peoples of the North and Oceania.

The statistics of religions in Israel singles out Judaism as the main religion of the state, which is also included in the above list.

Classification by country

Beliefs are a factor in the formation of statehood. They lay down an attitude towards a woman and towards life in general. The statistics of religions by country will help to understand the diversity of world confessions. Beliefs have changed over time, of course. However, the main religions have survived to this day.

Russia

The statistics of religions in Russia show that the main part of the country professes Orthodoxy (41%). They consider themselves to be believers, but have not decided on a religious trend (25%). People who consider themselves to be atheists (13%). The number of Muslims in the Russian Federation is 4.1%.

Byelorussia

The religion of Belarus is Christianity. 94.5% adhere to it. The ratio of believers and atheists shows the quantitative superiority of the former. The statistics of religions in Belarus show that 58.9% believe in God.

Kazakhstan

The statistics of religions in Kazakhstan reports that the majority of the country's residents are Muslims (70%). Then comes Orthodoxy (26%). Only 3% of the country's population deny the existence of higher powers. Here, even with religion is closely linked.

Ukraine

What are the statistics of religions in Ukraine? The country is dominated by Orthodoxy (74%). It is followed by Catholicism and Protestantism. Religion in Ukraine is very widespread. less than 10% of residents identify themselves.

Religion statistics

The number of religious denominations and non-religious groups in human society exceeds 27 thousand. This includes official confessions, unrecognized religious movements, sects and associations, as well as followers of philosophical agnosticism. The age of religions is immense. Their history goes back hundreds of years. People began to believe in higher powers even before Babylon and Assyria.

Everyone makes their own choice of religion. Not everyone comes to faith right away. Some begin to identify themselves as belonging to a certain denomination after 40 years. The characteristics and basic approaches of religion are not always clear to the child. The task of the parents is to give a short description of the chosen denomination and explain its tenets in a simple and age-appropriate form. Religion in school can help you figure out which faith to choose and how to abandon the imposed worldview.

However, despite such a number of existing beliefs, the statistics of religions show competition within groups.

Faith in God surrounds a person from infancy. In childhood, this still unconscious choice is associated with family traditions that exist in every home. But later, a person can deliberately change his confession. How are they similar and how do they differ from one another?

The concept of religion and the prerequisites for its appearance

The word "religion" comes from the Latin religio (piety, shrine). This is an attitude, behavior, actions based on belief in something that transcends human understanding and is supernatural, that is, sacred. The beginning and meaning of any religion is belief in God, regardless of whether he is personified or impersonal.

Several prerequisites for the emergence of religion are known. First, from time immemorial, man has been trying to go beyond the boundaries of this world. He seeks to find salvation and consolation outside of it, sincerely needs faith.

Secondly, a person wants to give an objective assessment of the world. And then, when he cannot explain the origin of earthly life only by natural laws, he makes the assumption that a supernatural force is applied to all this.

Third, a person believes that various events and incidents of a religious nature confirm the existence of God. The list of religions for people of faith already serves as a real proof of the existence of God. They explain it very simply. If God did not exist, there would be no religion.

The oldest species, forms of religion

The origin of religion took place 40 thousand years ago. It was then that the emergence of the simplest forms of religious beliefs was noted. It was possible to learn about them thanks to the discovered burials, as well as rock and cave paintings.

In accordance with this, the following types of ancient religions are distinguished:

• Totemism. A totem is a plant, animal or object that was considered sacred by a particular group of people, tribe, clan. This ancient religion was based on the belief in the supernatural power of the amulet (totem).

• Magic. This is a form of religion based on belief in the magical abilities of a person. The magician with the help of symbolic actions is able to influence the behavior of other people, natural phenomena and objects from a positive and negative side.
• Fetishism. From among any objects (a skull of an animal or a person, a stone or a piece of wood, for example), one was chosen to which supernatural properties were attributed. He was supposed to bring good luck and protect from danger.
• Animism. All natural phenomena, objects and people have a soul. She is immortal and continues to live outside the body even after his death. All modern religions are based on the belief in the existence of souls and spirits.
• Shamanism. It was believed that the head of the tribe or cleric possessed supernatural power. He entered into conversation with the spirits, listened to their advice and fulfilled the requirements. Belief in the power of the shaman is at the core of this form of religion.

List of religions

There are more than a hundred different religious trends in the world, including the most ancient forms and modern trends. They have their own time of origin and differ in the number of followers. But this large list is based on the three most numerous religions in the world: Christianity, Islam and Buddhism. Each of them has different directions.

World religions in the form of a list can be represented as follows:

1. Christianity (almost 1.5 billion people):

• Orthodoxy (Russia, Greece, Georgia, Bulgaria, Serbia);
• Catholicism (states of Western Europe, Poland Czech Republic, Lithuania and others);
• Protestantism (USA, UK, Canada, South Africa, Australia).

2. Islam (about 1.3 billion people):

• Sunnism (Africa, Central and South Asia);
• Shiism (Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan).

3.Buddhism (300 million people):

• Hinayana (Myanmar, Laos, Thailand);
• Mahayana (Tibet, Mongolia, Korea, Vietnam).

National religions

In addition, in every corner of the world there are national and traditional religions, also with their own directions. They arose or became especially widespread in certain countries. On this basis, such types of religions are distinguished:

• Hinduism (India);
• Confucianism (China);
• Taoism (China);
• Judaism (Israel);
• Sikhism (Punjab state in India);
• Shinto (Japan);
• paganism (Indian tribes, peoples of the North and Oceania).

Christianity

This religion originated in Palestine in the Eastern part of the Roman Empire in the 1st century AD. Its appearance is associated with faith in the birth of Jesus Christ. At the age of 33, he was martyred on the cross to atone for human sins, after which he was resurrected and ascended to heaven. Thus, the son of God, who embodied a supernatural and human nature, became the founder of Christianity.

The documentary basis of the doctrine is the Bible (or Holy Scripture), which consists of two independent collections of the Old and New Testaments. The writing of the first of them is closely related to Judaism, from which Christianity originates. The New Testament was written after the birth of religion.

The symbols of Christianity are the Orthodox and Catholic cross. The main provisions of faith are defined in dogmas, which are based on faith in God, who created the world and man himself. The objects of worship are God the Father, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit.

Islam

Islam, or Islam, originated among the Arab tribes of Western Arabia at the beginning of the 7th century in Mecca. The prophet Muhammad became the founder of the religion. From childhood, this man was prone to loneliness and often indulged in pious reflections. According to the teachings of Islam, at the age of 40, on Mount Khira, the heavenly messenger Jabrail (Archangel Gabriel) appeared to him, who left an inscription in his heart. Like many other world religions, Islam is based on belief in one God, but in Islam it is called Allah.

Holy Scripture - Koran. The symbols of Islam are the star and the crescent. The main provisions of the Muslim faith are contained in dogmas. They must be recognized and unquestioningly fulfilled by all believers.

The main types of religion are Sunnism and Shiism. Their appearance is associated with political differences between believers. So, Shiites to this day believe that only direct descendants of the Prophet Muhammad carry the truth, and the Sunnis think that this should be an elected member of the Muslim community.

Buddhism

Buddhism originated in the 6th century BC. Homeland - India, after which the teaching spread to the countries of Southeast, South, Central Asia and the Far East. Considering how many other most numerous types of religions exist, it can be safely argued that Buddhism is the most ancient of them.

The founder of the spiritual tradition is Buddha Gautama. This was an ordinary person, whose parents were rewarded with the vision that their son would grow up to be the Great Teachers. Buddha was also lonely and contemplative, and very quickly turned to religion.

There is no object of worship in this religion. The goal of all believers is to achieve nirvana, a blissful state of insight, to free themselves from their own shackles. Buddha for them represents a certain ideal, which should be equal.

Buddhism is based on the doctrine of four Noble Truths: about suffering, about the origin and causes of suffering, about the true cessation of suffering and the elimination of its sources, about the true path to the end of suffering. This path consists of several stages and is divided into three stages: wisdom, morality and concentration.

New religious movements

In addition to those religions that originated a very long time ago, new beliefs still continue to appear in the modern world. They are still based on faith in God.

The following types of modern religions can be noted:

• Scientology;
• neoshamanism;
• neopaganism;
• burkhanism;
• neo-Hinduism;
• Raelites;
• oomoto;
• and other trends.

This list is constantly being modified and supplemented. Certain types of religions are especially popular with show business stars. For example, Tom Cruise, Will Smith, John Travolta are seriously interested in Scientology.

This religion originated in 1950 thanks to science fiction writer L.R. Hubbard. Scientologists believe that any person is inherently good, his success and peace of mind depend on himself. According to the fundamental principles of this religion, humans are immortal beings. Their experience lasts longer than one human life, and their abilities are unlimited.

But everything is not so simple in this religion. Scientology is considered in many countries to be a sect, a pseudo-religion with a lot of capital. Despite this, the trend is very popular, especially in Hollywood.

Religions are "primitive" and complex. Primitive means primarily the religions of people from the primitive era: totemism, magic, faith in the soul, fetishism. Most of these religions have long died (dead religions, archaic - in terms of the compilers of the USE), but some of their elements turned out to be so tenacious that they entered later, truly complex and deep religions, but as a rule not at the level of teaching , but at the level of practice. For example, there are elements of magic in Christianity, where some of the believers treat church rituals as a magic wand, at the wave of which diseases pass away, and life becomes rich and prosperous. The depth and meaning of Christian teaching is ignored.

A person who denies any religion for himself is called an atheist. The main question of an atheist is "why is religion needed?"

Functions of religion

Almost every religion exists not only in the form of a worldview, but also in the form of an organization (church) conducting religious activities. The Church is an organization that broadcasts religious values, uniting believers. The concept of the church is inseparable from the concept of church sacraments, rituals and rules. They can exist as a direct prescription of the text of the doctrine (the sacrament of the Eucharist (communion) in Christianity is described in the New Testament), or it can be a product of church practice. For example, nowhere in the Bible do we find an injunction to confess. In the New Testament there is the idea of ​​repentance, and the idea of ​​confession (as one of the forms of repentance) was born already within the Christian church.

In religion, in the church, people find important ideas and meanings for themselves. Sometimes faith and the church become a person's way of life (monks, clergy, etc.)

In other words, the church meets a number of people's needs, which allows us to talk about functions of religion:

1. Consolatory
2. Communicative
3. Solving existential issues (each person at a certain moment in his life thinks about death, loneliness, the meaning of life, and it is these questions that are at the core of religions)
4. Regulatory
5. Worldview

Types of religions

According to the main classification of religions, there are:

• world religions
• national
• archaic

According to another popular classification, religions are divided into polytheistic (polytheism = paganism) and monotheistic (belief in one God-creator of all things).

There are only three world religions:

• Buddhism (the oldest of the world's religions)
• Christianity
• Islam (latest)

Buddhism appeared in the VI century. BC NS. in India. Its founder is the son of the Indian raja (king) Sidharta Gautama. The Raja was predicted that his son would become either a great king or a great saint. To fulfill the first probability, Sithartu was specially brought up in such conditions, which seemed to exclude the possibility of awakening deep thoughts in the boy: Sidharta was surrounded by luxury and only young and happy faces. But one day the servants did not notice, and Sidharta found himself outside of his rich possessions. There, at large, he met an old man, a leper, and a funeral procession. Thus, at the age of 30, Siddhartha first learned about the existence of suffering in the world. The news shocked him to such an extent that he left his family and went on a journey in search of truth. He indulged in austerities, meditated, contemplated and finally attained the state of nirvana and became the first enlightened person (Buddha). He had followers, a new religion began to spread throughout the world.

The essence of Buddhist beliefs in a very simplified form is as follows: human life is full of suffering, the cause of suffering is the person himself, his desires, his passions. you can overcome suffering through getting rid of desires and achieving a state of complete peace (nirvana). Buddhists believe in rebirth (samsara - an endless chain of rebirth) and in karma (reckoning). Nirvana interrupts the chain of rebirth, which means the chain of endless suffering. There is no concept of God in Buddhism. If a person becomes a Buddhist, he will try all his life to change his inner world in order to get rid of passions and desires. Here a number of practices come to help him: yoga, meditation, retreats, going to a monastery, and so on.

Christianity arose with the birth of Jesus Christ. From this date, mankind is now reckoning. Jesus Christ is the same real person as Siddharta Gautama. But Christians believe that he was a God-man. That he lived, preached to twelve disciples (apostles), worked miracles, and then was betrayed by Judas, crucified, and on the third day he rose again and later ascended to heaven. It is faith in the above (death, and then the resurrection of Christ) that turns a person into a Christian (in addition to baptism).

Christianity presupposes faith in one God, as well as in the Holy Trinity: the unity of the three hypostases of God - God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Christians do not believe that peace is continuous suffering, on the contrary, Christians talk about the joy of life and peace, which are available to a person if he sees God and accordingly rebuilds his mind and soul. He turned from, for example, an embittered person who condemns everyone and envies everyone into a kind, open person, capable of forgiving and asking for forgiveness from others.

The main book of Christianity is the Bible. It consists of two parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament is the Holy Scripture for another religion - Judaism, the religion of the Jewish people (Judaism belongs to national religions). For Christians, the New Testament is of paramount importance. It is he who contains the teachings of Jesus Christ and the main ideas of Christianity:

• Human freedom (a person must make all life decisions himself, no one has the right to impose his will on another, even if it is for the good),
• Immortality of the soul (Christians believe that after the death of people the Great Judgment awaits, after which the world will be reborn and life will continue, but only for those who deserve paradise).
• Love for your neighbor (love another as yourself)

The story of Metropolitan Anthony of Surozh about how he came to faith

“Until the age of fifteen I knew nothing about God: I heard this word, I knew that they were talking about it, that there are believers, but in my life He did not play any role and for me simply did not exist. These were the early years of emigration, twenties, life was not easy, and sometimes very scary and difficult. And at some point there came a period of happiness, a period when it was not scary. It was the moment when for the first time (I was 15 years old) my grandmother, mother and I were under one roof, in one apartment, instead of wandering and not having their own shelter. And the first impression was bliss: this is a miracle, happiness ... And after a while I was seized by fear: happiness turned out to be aimless. While life was difficult, every moment I had to fight with something or for something, every moment there was an immediate goal; but here, it turns out, there is no goal, emptiness. And I was so horrified with happiness that I decided that if for one year I will not find a meaning in life, I will commit suicide. ”It was quite clear. I wasn’t looking for anything special this year, because I didn’t know where to look or how, but something happened to me. I was present before the post at the conversation of Father Sergiy Bulgakov. He was a wonderful person, a pastor, a theologian, but he could not speak with children. I was persuaded by my leader to go to this conversation, and when I told him that I do not believe in God or in a priest, he told me: “I don’t ask you to listen, just sit.” And I sat down with the intention of not listening, but Father Sergius spoke too loudly and prevented me from thinking; and I had to hear this picture about Christ and about a Christian, which he gave: sweet, humble, etc. - that is, everything that is not typical of a boy at the age of 14-15. I was so furious that after the conversation I went home, asked my mother if she had the Gospel, deciding to check whether it was so or not. And I decided that if I find that the Christ that Father Sergius described is the Gospel Christ, then I am done with it. I was a practical boy, and after discovering that there were four Gospels, I decided that one would certainly be shorter, and so I chose to read the Gospel of Mark. And then something happened to me that deprives me of any right to be exalted by anything. While I was reading the Gospel, between the first and third chapters, it suddenly became absolutely, completely clear to me that on the other side of the table in front of which I am sitting, there is the living Christ. I stopped, looked, saw nothing, heard nothing, smelled nothing - there was no hallucination, it was just an inner perfect, clear confidence. I remember then I leaned back in my chair and thought: If Christ, alive, is in front of me, then everything that is said about His crucifixion and resurrection is true, and that means the truth and everything else ... And this was a turn in my life from godlessness to the faith that I have. Here is the only thing I can say: my path was neither mental nor noble, but simply for some reason God saved my life. "

In the article we will analyze the question of what a religion is, give a definition of this concept, find out its history, and also describe briefly the known religions of the world.

Religion is a kind of human consciousness that believes that the world is ruled by some supernatural force. And this power is sacred, it is worshiped.

The main thing in any religion is believed to be a belief in God. Since ancient times, people are in great need of faith, salvation and consolation. And they hypothesize that there is some inexplicable force that helps, directs, does something contrary to the laws of the Earth. And this power is God. This is the lofty principle of the world, the laws of morality.

Forms, signs, structure and types of religions

There are a lot of religions in the world, more than a hundred. Their origin began several thousand years ago.

It all started with simple types and forms of beliefs. Archaeological excavations confirm that the ancient tribes worshiped someone, they had rituals and sacraments. They had Gods.

The main forms of religions:

1. Recognition of totems - sacred objects, animals, plants.
2. Magism - a person with supernatural powers could somehow influence the events of people.
3. The choice of a talisman that could bring good luck, keep from accidents.
4. Belief in shamans, people who are endowed with sacred power.
5. A form of religion in which all objects, plants have a soul, they are alive.

To understand religion, it is necessary to identify its structure. This is a religious consciousness, activity, as well as organizations.

Organizations are a system that unites all people belonging to a particular religion. An example of religious activity is the wearing of crosses, lighting candles, and obeisances.

Each religion has its own characteristics that distinguish it from others. Without these signs, it would have been destroyed, reincarnating into occultism, shamanism.

First of all, this is the primary source of the ideal to strive for - this is God. Apart from this, people believe in various spirits. They are both good and evil, they help, you can communicate with them.

Another sign is that a person is a higher being, a spiritual one. He must take care of his inner soul first of all. In all religions, it is believed that the soul lives forever, it can exist even after death. Through faith, one can spiritually retire with God.

Religion is primarily moral in nature. There are rules for how a person should behave, what values ​​he should pursue in life, how to take care of his soul. The material world is insignificant, but the spiritual world is the most important.

Another main feature is a cult with its own rules and regulations. These are certain actions that are performed to express the worship of a particular religion.

List and brief history of major world religions

There are three famous world religions. These are Christianity, Islam and Buddhism.

Christianity first appeared in the Roman Empire in the first century. From there came all the scriptures about the life of Jesus, who at a young age was crucified on the cross to forgive all the sins of people.

After that, he was resurrected, incarnated into the son of God, into a supernatural power.

Holy Scripture, which preserves the doctrine of Christianity, is called the Bible. Consists of two collections: the Old Testament and the New Testament. People who believe in Christianity go to church, pray, observe fasting, celebrate holidays, and perform various sacraments.

Types of Christianity: Orthodoxy, Catholicism and Protestantism.

Orthodoxy strictly follows faith, recognizes all 7 sacraments: baptism, communion, chrismation, priesthood, repentance, wedding and unction. Catholicism is somewhat similar.

Protestantism - does not recognize the Pope as the head of the city, considers the faith to be independent, against church policy.

Islam is the religion of Muslims. She appeared among the Arab tribes at the beginning of the 7th century. It was founded by the prophet Muhammad. He was a hermit, a loner, often reflected and philosophized about morality and piety.

According to legend, on his fortieth birthday, the archangel Gabriel appeared to him, left an inscription on his heart. God in Islam is called Allah. Religion is very different from Christianity.

Buddhism originated in the 6th century BC. This is the oldest religion. The origins come from India, then it began to spread to China, to the Far East.

The most important founder is Gautama Buddha. At first he was an ordinary person. His parents once had a dream that their child would be a great person, a mentor. He was always very lonely, prone to thoughts, only religion and philosophy were important to him.

In Buddhism, there is no particular God whom everyone worship. Buddha is just the ideal of what one has to become. Light, clean, kind, moral. The goal of religion is to achieve a blissful state, achieve enlightenment, free yourself from the shackles, find yourself, find peace and tranquility.

In addition to the main three religions, there are others. This is a very ancient Judaism.

It is based on the ten commandments that God prophesied to Moses.

It is also Taoism, which has teachings that all things appear out of nowhere and go nowhere, the main thing is harmony with nature.

It was founded by a philosopher who lived in the 4th century.

The religions Confucianism, Jainism, Sikhism are also known.

Conclusion

Everyone chooses for himself which religion will be worshiped. Different religions have one goal: to improve the spiritual morality of people.