2. Part 1 — Demographics (10 pts)
a. Where is this religion, cult, or faith tradition practiced?
b. What demographics can you report?
Use the world religions database
Use Pew Research Center’s website
Or use other sources as long as they are academic and not blogs or news articles.
c. Show a map, image,
fi
gure, or chart.
3. Part 2 — History or Biography (20 pts)
a. Give a brief history of the religion, cult, or faith tradition
b. Biography: Identify at least one person, if you can, who is important in the
development of this religion, cult, or faith tradition. If this is an ancient animist
religion (example Hawaiian Indigenous religion), you can identify at least one
important religious leader in its history. If this is a new religious movement (ex.
Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard), give the biography of its founder.
4. Part 3 — Beliefs (20 pts)
a. Identify and describe at least major beliefs, at least
fi
ve
b. Describe any sacred texts (ex. Scientology, Dianetics).
c. If it the faith community has an oral tradition, then describe a central legend
such as their creation myth.
5. Part 4 — Practices (20 pts)
Identify and describe one or two practices in detail
Show a clip or pictures 1-2 min’s
6. Part 5 —Reflection (10 pts)
1. What do you are with?
2. What do you disagree with
3. Compare it with the Christian Belief
7. Preparation and sources (5 pts)
Cover Slide – list the group members who participated (only those who
contributed get points).
b. Individual Slides – on lower left, put name of person who prepared the slide,
on the lower right put APA citation
c. References – list references at the end
12. James George Frazer
1854 - 1941
Scottish social anthropologist
Studied mythology
Theorized origins of religion
Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2022, May 3). Sir James George Frazer. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/James-George-Frazer
13. The Golden Bough
1899
Origins of Religion
Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2021, December 14). The Golden Bough. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Golden-Bough
14. Aeneid, Aeneas and Sibyl had to bring
a golden bough from the sacred grove
to gatekeeper of Hades
Frazer studied religions worldwide
Decided that religions evolve the
as humans evolved biological
As societies evolve culturally
Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2021, December 14). The Golden Bough. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Golden-Bough
18. 1. Evolution of Religion
• Mana: spiritual forces
• Animism: spirits in things
19. 1. Evolution of Religion
• Mana: spiritual forces
• Animism: spirits in things
• Ancestors
• Curses and Taboos
• Sacred spaces
• Gods and Spirits
20.
21. 1. Evolution of Religion
• Mana: spiritual forces
• Animism: spirits in things
• Polytheism: many gods
22. 1. Evolution of Religion
• Mana: spiritual forces
• Animism: spirits in things
• Polytheism: many gods
• Hierarchy of gods
• One overarching god
• Structured rituals
• Temples
23. 1. Evolution of Religion
• Mana: spiritual forces
• Animism: spirits in things
• Polytheism: many gods
• Henotheism: favorite god
24. 1. Evolution of Religion
• Mana: spiritual forces
• Animism: spirits in things
• Polytheism: many gods
• Henotheism: favorite god
• Monotheism: Only 1 God
25. 1. Evolution of Religion
• Mana: spiritual forces
• Animism: spirits in things
• Polytheism: many gods
• Henotheism: favorite god
• Monotheism: Only 1 God
• Secularism: Religion obsolete
27. History of the Jews
1. Ancient Near East peoples were desert tribes practiced Mana
2. Canaanites emerged as an animist people
3. Jews emerged in Canaan as polytheists who worshipped idols
4. Abraham worshipped Yahweh and was a Henotheist
5. In Exile, Jews encountered Zoroastrianism and became monotheists.
6. Today, Jews are largely secular because modernity has replaced religion
28. What are some problems with
The Theory of Evolution of Religion?
33. Critique of Evolution of Religion
1. No one has observed a religious system evolve
2. Devolution of religion back to primitive worship readily observed
3. Most cultural mythologies have a pre-existent creator
44. Animism, belief in innumerable spiritual beings
concerned with human affairs and capable of
helping or harming human interests.
Park, G. Kerlin (2020, October 29). Animism. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/animism
45. Theory of Animism
Theorized Animism is the most basic,
primitive form of religion, that religions
evolve from
Sir Edward Tylor (1832 - 1917)
McClenon, James. (1998). “Edward Tylor” in William Swatos Ed. Encyclopedia of religion and society. Sage Publication. Retrieved from http://hirr.hartsem.edu/ency/Tylor.htm
46. Theory of Animism
Taylor studied ancient religions of
Mexico and published theories in
Researches into the Early History of
Mankind and Development of
Civilization (1865), and his book
Primitive Culture (1871)
Sir Edward Tylor (1832 - 1917)
McClenon, James. (1998). “Edward Tylor” in William Swatos Ed. Encyclopedia of religion and society. Sage Publication. Retrieved from http://hirr.hartsem.edu/ency/Tylor.htm
47. Theory of Animism
1. There is a soul that survives death
2. There are spirits and deities inhabiting things
and animals
Sir Edward Tylor (1832 - 1917)
McClenon, James. (1998). “Edward Tylor” in William Swatos Ed. Encyclopedia of religion and society. Sage Publication. Retrieved from http://hirr.hartsem.edu/ency/Tylor.htm
48. Tyler’s Theory how Animism Developed
1. Humans tried to explain dreams, trances and death.
2. If humans have souls, then so does everything that moves
3. If souls exist, then so do other spirits
4. If spirits exist, then there must be a hierarchy of spirits
5. If hierarchies exist, the there must be gods overseeing them
49. How did Animist practices develop?
1. If souls live on as ancestors, and…
2. If spirits and gods control our world,
3. There should be rituals to communicate with ancestors
4. There should be rituals to venerate gods
5. Spirits & gods must have sacred places where they live
6. Only sacred people can talk with them and go there.
50. What are common animist practices?
1. Rituals: to honor departed ancestors and help the move on
2. Shamanistic rituals: To communicate with spirits
3. Fetishism: Veneration to articles representing spirit entities of animals,
trees, and objects in nature
4. Amulets: to protect people from curses
5. Ceremonies: to venerate and appease of deities who control the world
52. Themes in Animism
• Dreams & Trances - people dream of dead relatives & believe they’re
still alive, and believe that the dream state is a spiritual realm & their
dead relatives are trying to communicate with them.
Swancutt, Katherine. (15 June 2019). Animism. Cambridge Encyclopedia of Anthropology. http://doi.org/10.29164/19anim
53. Example of Dreams & Trances
• Student trance- is the student day dreaming, zoned out, or soul
traveling?
54. Themes in Animism
• Dreams & Trances
• Spiritual & Physical Worlds - A spiritual world intersects the physical
world in which spirits, ancestors, and gods live.
Swancutt, Katherine. (15 June 2019). Animism. Cambridge Encyclopedia of Anthropology. http://doi.org/10.29164/19anim
55. Example
• House inexplicably burns down - someone angered the spirits of
the property who burned the house down. Maybe it was built over an
ancestral sacred site.
56. Themes in Animism
• Dreams & Trances
• Spiritual & Physical Worlds
• Animated things have souls - Things that move (rivers, animals, wind)
have souls and are imbued with humanlike qualities.
Swancutt, Katherine. (15 June 2019). Animism. Cambridge Encyclopedia of Anthropology. http://doi.org/10.29164/19anim
57. Themes in Animism
• Dreams & Trances
• Spiritual & Physical Worlds
• Animate things possess souls
• Animal Spirits - Animal spirits display their personalities according to
how they act toward humans (ex. A deer gives itself up to be hunted).
Swancutt, Katherine. (15 June 2019). Animism. Cambridge Encyclopedia of Anthropology. http://doi.org/10.29164/19anim
58. Themes in Animism
• Dreams & Trances
• Spiritual & Physical Worlds
• Animate things possess souls
• Animal Spirits
• Sacred Spaces - Places where the spiritual world intersects the physical
and special people can communicate or interact with it.
Swancutt, Katherine. (15 June 2019). Animism. Cambridge Encyclopedia of Anthropology. http://doi.org/10.29164/19anim
59. Examples
• Hunting - Native Americans ask animal spirit to guide their hunt, and
then thank the spirit before killing it.
• Sacred Trees - Many societies revere a sacred tree (mountain,
volcano, lake) and forbid touching them.
61. Themes in Animism
• Dreams & Trances
• Spiritual & Physical Worlds
• Animate things possess souls
• Animal Spirits
• Sacred Spaces
• Sacred People (Shamans) - Humans with the ability to interact with the
spiritual world and communicate with spirits.
Swancutt, Katherine. (15 June 2019). Animism. Cambridge Encyclopedia of Anthropology. http://doi.org/10.29164/19anim
62. Themes in Animism
• Dreams & Trances
• Spiritual & Physical Worlds
• Animate things possess souls
• Animal Spirits
• Sacred Spaces
• Sacred People (Shamans)
• Ancestors - Departed family members still part of the community.
Swancutt, Katherine. (15 June 2019). Animism. Cambridge Encyclopedia of Anthropology. http://doi.org/10.29164/19anim
66. Van Rheenen. (n.d) “Folk Religion” in Missiology Retrieved from http://missiology.org/folkreligion/introduction.htm
Folk religions synthesize popular beliefs and
practices, frequently animistic in nature, that are
developed within cultures to handle every day
problems. Often, they co-exist within formal
religion and sometimes even with secular
humanism.
67. Popular (Folk) Religion — Ground Up
Formal (institutional) Religion — Top Down
Stan Meyer, PhD
68. Folk Religion
• Grass roots rituals and beliefs
• Meets a need that formal religion failed to meet
• Flexible and not codi
fi
ed
• Varies by region and practice
• No
fi
xed institutions or creeds
• No
fi
xed hierarchy or clergy
69. Folk Religion Over Time…
1. Fades Away
2. Merges with formal religion and becomes part of it
3. Evolves into a formal religion
74. As the sacred and life-giving cross is everywhere set up as a symbol, so
also should the images of Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, the holy angels, as
well as those of the saints…to be revered by all who might see them. For the
more they are venerated, the more they move to fervent memory of their role
models. Therefore, it is proper to venerate them.
https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/ecum07.htm
77. Dear Saint Christopher,
Protect me today in all my travels along
the road’s way. Give your warning sign if
danger is near so that I may stop while
the path is clear. Be at my window and
direct me through when the vision blurs
from out of the blue. Carry me safely to
my destined place, like you carried
Christ in your close embrace.
Amen
79. Rabbi Yosei bar Yehuda says: Two angels accompany a person on
Shabbat evening from the synagogue to his home, one good angel
and one evil angel. And when he reaches his home and
fi
nds a
lamp burning and a table set and his bed made, the good angel
says: May it be Your will that it shall be like this for another Shabbat.
And the evil angel answers against his will: Amen.
(B Shabbat 119b)
https://www.sefaria.org/Shabbat.119b.3
80. But…if a person’s home is not prepared for Shabbat in that manner,
the evil angel says: May it be Your will that it shall be so for another
Shabbat, and the good angel answers against his will: Amen.
(B Shabbat 119b)
https://www.sefaria.org/Shabbat.119b.3
81. Good angel & bad angel accompany Jews home from on Friday night
91. Max Weber
1864 - 1920
Weber. (1920) The Sociology of Religion
Coined term “disenchantment”
92. Disenchantment
The supposed condition of the world once science and
the Enlightenment have eroded the sway of religion and superstition.
Chua, E. Jin (2016, November 29). disenchantment. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/disenchantment-sociology
93. Disenchantment
From the German word Entzauberung, translated into English as
“disenchantment” but which literally means “de-magic-ation.”…The
word connotes the breaking of a magic spell. Scienti
fi
c methods and
the use of enlightened reason rendered the word transparent and
demysti
fi
ed.
Chua, E. Jin (2016, November 29). disenchantment. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/disenchantment-sociology
94. Postwar Society
• Shock of the nuclear Age
• Anxiety of the Cold War
• Grief over WW II & Holocaust
• Inability to comprehend our world
95. Science & Technology
• Has not solved our social problems
• Has not made us better people
• Has not answered ultimate questions
• Has become the means to our end.
96. Interest in
Personal Spirituality
• Cynicism of Institutional religion
• Interest in spiritual experience
• Looking inward instead of outward
• Renewed interest in supernatural
97. Globalization of Culture
• Immigration from Asia and Eastern religion
• Greater awareness of other religions
• Exotic practices promising inner peace
98. Popular Interest in…
• Practices of Eastern Religion
• Beliefs of ancient earth religions
• Mystical practices of the West
99. Ethnic Pride Movement
• Desire to discover ancient heritage
• Suspicion White Christianity
eradicated ethnic past
102. What characterizes New Religious Movements
1. PERSONAL — Spiritualities that are contemplative & looked inward.
2. THERAPEUTIC — Promise to help with daily struggles
3. EXOTIC — New practices or rituals not found in mainstream religion
4. TRANSCENDENT — Look for answers beyond traditional religion, science, human reason
5. SUPERNATURAL — Described an invisible world that intersects with ours
103. New Religious Movements
6. EXPERIENTIAL — Promised to provide “experience” religion failed to give
7. ANSWER ULTIMATE QUESTIONS — O
ff
ered answers to big questions religion failed to answer
8. COMBINES SCIENCE— Added rather than replaced Scienti
fi
c & psychological theory
9. PERSONALITY LED — Most founded by creative, charismatic leaders
104. Re-enchantment of Western Culture
The rediscovery and new interest in the heroic, mythical, and
supernatural nature of the world reinterpreted into modernity.
Berman, Morris. (1981). The Reenchantment of the World. Cornell University Press
105. New Age Movement
Religious movement emerging in the 1970s and 80s looking to a
new era of life & light through metaphysical healing, and modern
esotericism.
Melton, J. Gordon (2016, April 7). New Age movement. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/New-Age-movement
106. Case: Scientology
• Personal — Finding personal ful
fi
llment
• Therapeutic — Finding solutions to anxiety, and daily struggles
• Exotic Practices — Auditing
• Transcendent — Past lives, other galaxies
• Supernatural — Our Theta lives on
• Answers big questions — reason for our existence, origins, destiny
• Adds — science, extraterrestrial existence, and ideas from psychology
• Personality driven — L Ron Hubbard
107. Case: Jewish Renewal Movement
• Personal — Individual Judaism rather than corporate
• Therapeutic — Kabbalah can help you be a better person
• Exotic Practices — chanting, meditation, dance
• Transcendent — Kabbalistic and Eastern explanations of the soul
• Supernatural — supernatural experiences (often through drugs)
• Answers big questions — Reasons for Jewish practice and ritual
• Adds — Added to Judaism, Jewish practice, and social justice.
• Personality driven — Zalman Schlachter Shalomi
108. Some New Religious Movements
• International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Hari Krishna)
• Family Federation for World Peace and Uni
fi
cation (Sun Myung Moon)
• Church of Scientology
109. Revised Older Religions
• Neo-Paganism & Wicca
• Native American Religion
• The Kabbalah Center
• Nichiren Shōshū Buddhism (NSA)
• Transcendental Meditation
• Tarot Cards (Voodoo)
