Chapter One

The Religious Impulse

Learning Objectives• Identify some of the diverse religions represented in Canada and

understand how religious pluralism is a defining feature of Canadian life• Know the major common features and questions associated with religion• Identify common features and questions associated with religion• Know the relationship between religion and ethics• Evaluate religion’s place in a highly technological and scitentific age• Explore and employ primary and secondary research material

appropriately in completing an assignment• Demonstrate an ability to recognize prejudice and bias in primary and

secondary sources

Learning Objectives

• Distinguish between fact, opinion and arument as they apply to the study of religion

• Identify the role of religion in human experience and culture

• Differentiate between religion and ethnicity• Describe how misconceptions can influence peoples’s

views of various religions, beliefs and practices• Differentiate between popular and religious symbolism

associated with one major religious celebration in canada• Understand the relationship to the state in canada

What Is Religion?

The Religious Impulse

• Throughout history, and even before recorded history people felt the need to worship a higher power.

• People seek to explain unanswered questions, and unexplainable happenings in various ways.

• Faith is seen by many as an essential human characteristic.

• This need for faith in something is referred to as the religious impulse.

Exploring Religion

• Common Features:– Believe in supernatural/spiritual world beyond our physical

world– Belief in the existence of a soul– A collection of sacred writing– Organized institutions– Strong sence of community based on rituals and festivels.– Set of answers to many unexplainable questions– Rules of conduct for a honourable life– System of ethics that guide moral behaviour– Significant founders.

Why Is Religion Practiced

• Fear: Death, loneliness, doing wrong, • Wonder: Stars, storms, natural beauty• Questioning: What is the purpose of life• Identity: a deeper more lasting personal

identity• Intuition: you feel it• The Big Questions: How did this all start, what

is right what is wrong, who are we.

Your Credo

• Credo is a statement of beliefs:

• Take a moment to write down your personal credo which identifies what is important to you.

• Project 1: Create a artwork that identifies things that are important to you.– Collage, Painting, Drawing.

Religion and Ethics

• Both religion and ethics are concerned with being good and doing the right thing.

• Religion and ethics have differences.– Religion: Be good because of god– Ethics: be good for sake of being good.

Humanists

• Humanists: a person who believes that human kind is the source of all value and meaning not religion or spirituality.– if you are good to others, others will be good to

you.– How you live your life is all that matters

• Humanists believe that religion and ethics are separate.

Science and Religion

• Seen by many as rivals• Both try to explain things in their own way

• Evolutionary Theories.– Did man evolve from an ape ancestor?

or

– Was man created by god in his image?

Technology

• New technology is answering a lot of questions that have been around for centuries– Space exploration– Genetic research– Biotechnology

• Technology is also destructive to the environment

Understanding Religion and CultureReligion and Ethnicity

• Don’t confuse religion and ethnicity.

• Religion: a persons beliefs, rituals, and practices

• Ethnicity: a persons origins, race, or culture but not religion

Religion and Popular Culture

• Religion is featured in many books, movies, songs, T.V. Shows, video games, magazines......

• Can be good or bad....– Muslims shown as terrorists in many movies.– Ratings over reality.

• To study religion without Bias we need to drop our preconceptions of what a particular religion means.– Example: The true meaning of christmas

Christmas

• Christmas is a HUGE event.– 40% of annual purchasing

– People go into debt – Holidays– Songs– Specials– Trees– Concerts – Plays

– Movies– Toys– Trips– People act differently

• “seasons greetings”• “merry christmas”

What is Sacred? What is Secular?

• Sacred: Connected to religion.– Silent Night– Nativity Scene

• Secular: Connected to the material world.– Jingle Bells– Santa Clause

Christmas as a Multi-Faith Celebration

Religion in Canada TodayReligion and the State

• In Canada religion and the state are separate.• Religion is personal and non political having its

own leaders.• State is the government, they control our

country and set our laws.• Here you can be Atheist, Agnostic, Catholic,

Buddhist... Whatever.

How To Answer Questions In Religion 3101.

1. Read the question at least twice.2. Think what is this asking me to do.3. State the question in your answer.4. Respond to all parts of the question.5. Review it to make sure it makes sence.

Example.

• Question:– How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a

woodchuck could chuck wood?• Answer:– Step 1: read at least twice– Step 2: what is this asking me???– Step 3: state the question in the answer

• A woodchuck would chuck....

– Step 4: respond• A woodchuck would chuck all the wood that a woodchuck

could if a woodchuck could chuck wood.

More examples.

• What colour is the sky?– The sky is blue.

• What time is it?– It is 10:35

• Are you going to answer all questions in fully stated answers? Why?– Yes I am going to answer all my questions in fully

stated answers, because if I don’t Mr. Tucker will not give me full marks for them.

Questions.

• Page 6: 1, 2, 3.• Page 13: 1, 2, 3, 4.• Page 20:1, 2.• Page 22: 1, 2.• Page 23: Activities: 1,2,3