John Stahl's essay discusses the complexities of religion, arguing that while no religion is inherently bad, each has its flaws and suggests that certain beliefs must evolve to foster peace, particularly in the context of Judaism and Islam. The document also explores the definition and shared characteristics of religion, highlighting how rituals and community engagement shape religious practices across cultures. Ultimately, it emphasizes the historical significance of religion in shaping moral values, community involvement, and cultural identity.

1. The Value of Religion Essay
The Value of Religion
In the essay, "Is Religion Bad or Good?" John Stahl reveals his thoughts on how religion is not
necessarily good even though it is supposed to be. He points out five different religions including
Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, and Quaker as he gathers his opinion on each. Stahl lets it
be known that no religion is really bad, yet they all have their own errors. He stops to say that in
his opinion, "both Jews and Moslems should evolve their religious beliefs," and that his reasons for
this is that it is a solution to the warfare in the Middle East. He observes that the "perfect" religion
consists of a single God for all, but that it leads to peace, joy, and love at the middle. Stahl, in the end,
...show more content...
We live with our mom and she use to have to try her best to keep us going to church weekly but
this task just got more and more difficult for her. Our church going started to slowly decrease, and
it got to where we would rarely go at all. My point is, there are a lot of things that affect my
youngest siblings behavior including the fact that they are adopted, have divorced parents, as
well as meth babies; however, I feel that going to church and believing in a greater God takes the
biggest role in that. Ashton and I have really good values; we were always the quieter kids who
did not look for trouble. Even today, we do not get into trouble at all really. As for AubreeAnn and
Zachary, they use to get into trouble quite a bit and even though they have other contributing
factors, their morals are just so much more off balance of Ashton's and myself, and I think the
major contributor is religion. My reasoning for thinking this is because my mom has recently
been sending them both to classes for church every Tuesday and go to church every Sunday and
their behavior has slowly improved. Having a religious belief has always been the thing that makes
me think twice before I actually do something. I think about how it might affect me or others closes
to me or what God would be thinking about if I actually followed through. Take for instance, lying
to my parents, I learned at an early age
Get more content on HelpWriting.net

2. What Is Religion? Essay
What is religion? Each person's definition of religion is different. Each person's faith is different.
This is a question that has been asked for centuries, and regardless of the answer given there is no
right or wrong answer. Religion can be defined as a group of people who have shared beliefs who
feel their life has purpose or meaning. This feeling or belief that their life has meaning can come
from outside of themselves, as well as within. Taking this one step further, these shared beliefs put
into action in the form of worship, can be easily identified because they happen regularly. It can be
said the Primal religions were in fact not religions. Some may argue Confucianism is not a religion.
Others may say Taoism is not a...show more content...
They are teachings learned by previous generations then passed down, they are not always
actions. The fifth feature of religion is grace. Grace is defined by Smith as "the belief and
assurance that reality is on our side and can be counted on." Lastly there is mystery. For this there
is no exact definition, but it is all of what a religion cannot explain, it is all that the human mind
cannot grasp, it is the certain "higher power" that religion offers. Of these six features, there are
three that are present in most all religions, they are: authority, tradition, and mystery. Authority,
tradition, and mystery further explore and define religion when looking specifically at Primal
Religions, Confucianism, and Taoism. Primal Religions are often mistaken to be the religion of the
primitive man, often thought to be unintelligent. There is a definition of "primal" that is better
suited than unintelligent or primitive. Primal in terms of religion, refers to the lack of exposure to
technology, it is not "knowing" the state of consciousness given to many by the technological
environment. Primal religions preceded organized religion as we know it today by thousands of
years, in some cases millions, but are still present in the world today; we now call them tribal
religions. Within primal religions there are people who are knowledgeable about life, who are
knowledgeable about
Defining Religion–4 traditions, and who are
Get more content on HelpWriting.net

3. Essay on Why Religion Is Important
"You cannot believe in God until you believe in yourself."
–– Swami Vivekananda
"I would rather live my life as if there is a God and die to find out there isn't, than live as if there
isn't and to die to find out that there is."
–– Albert Camus
In this essay, I will explore the religious experience in general and some of its variations around the
world. The focus will be on the types of religious beliefs and religious leaders, especially in
small–scale societies. An exploration of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, or any other majorreligion is
beyond the scope of this essay. The approach taken is that of cultural relativity––religious practices
or beliefs are not evaluated in terms of their "correctness" or "sophistication" but,...show more
content...
At the heart of this experience is a sequence of traditional ritual acts that symbolically represent
aspects of the life, teachings, and death of Jesus.
Most religious rituals are performed in special places and under special conditions, such as in a
dedicated temple or at a sacred spot. This is an intentional separation between the secular and the
sacred. By being removed from the ordinary world, the sacred acts are enhanced for the believers.
The separation makes the rituals more effective. Only allowing initiated people to participate in
religious rituals also can have the same effect.
Religious ritual reinforces the basic tenets of religion. For instance, the "partaking of the host" in the
Catholic mass is a symbolic participation in the "last supper" of Jesus and, by extension, an
affirmation of the acceptance of his teachings. Rituals are often charged with high emotions. The
exalted feelings people experience during rituals provide positive reinforcement for continuing them.
When rituals make people "feel good", they reinforce the belief that their religion is the "correct" one.
Non–Religious Rituals
Not all rituals are religious. Brushing your teeth every morning in the same place and in the same
way is a non–religious ritual. Like religious rituals, it also can make you "feel good", which
reinforces your continuance of the practice. However, it rarely involves a belief in supernatural
beings or
Get more content on HelpWriting.net

4. Essay on Why Is Religion Important?
"Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life."
–– Buddha
"So I say to you, Ask and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will
be opened for you."
––Jesus Christ
Whether you consider yourself a religious person or not, or whether you think religion has played a
positive or negative role in history, it is an incontrovertible fact that from the beginning of time,
humans have engaged in activities that we now call religion, such as worship, prayer, and rituals
marking important life passages. Moreover, religions have always asked fundamental questions,
such as: What is the true meaning of life? What happens to us after death? How do we explain human
suffering and...show more content...
By studying different religious doctrines, rituals, stories, and scriptures, we can also come to
understand how different communities of believers–past and present, East and West–have used their
religious traditions to shape, sustain, transform themselves.
More than ever before, the world we live in is both multicultural and global. We no longer need to
travel across the ocean to visit a Hindu temple or an Islamic mosque or to meet a Sikh or a Jain.
The chances are that you can find a temple or mosque within a few miles of where you live, and it
is almost certain that you will be meet someone from any and all of these religious traditions on
campus or on the street. This makes it even more essential that we cultivate our ability to understand
and interpret other people's religious traditions.
Finally, the academic study of religion is inherently multidisciplinary. This is reflected in our
program here at Washington University, which draws faculty from different disciplines in the
humanities and the social sciences, such as history, anthropology, literature, art history, and political
science. Studying religion thus provides you an opportunity to learn about a range of disciplinary
approaches, and, even more
Get more content on HelpWriting.net

5. Religion Importance
Let's discuss the importance of religion in the ancient world. Religion has played a positive or
negative role in our history for a very long time. People use religion to oppress others while others
use it for good. There are different communities of believers that used their religious traditions to
shape and transform themselves. Religion influences people to engage more with their morals,
family, and more likely to volunteer for their community. Religion also creates a practice of
communication. The world we live in is both multicultural and global. Culture is everything that
gives a society its identity. Both culture and religion are very similar concepts the relationship
between culture and religion is what makes the world what it is...show more content...
Both Egypt and Mesopotamia are the cradle of world's first religion. In the Mesopotamia Culture the
region they live in has unpredictable floods, droughts, and storms that can ruin harvests and planting.
Religious concern in those times was the power of nature since nobody knows why their crops get
destroyed they thought maybe they need to appease their own gods who controlled nature.
Mesopotamia city–states have gods/goddesses that are seen as the supreme controllers of law and
weather. The Mesopotamia gods were viewed as military leaders and protectors among the
Mesopotamia. These guardians were to bring love and prosperity to it citizens besides their roles
of being violent gods. God wishes were translated by priests and kings who gained access to
divine power. Mesopotamia is one of the earliest regions in the world that created agriculture
across the world. In Egypt they have a positive view of life than in Mesopotamia when it comes to
the religious system. For example they made tombs/coffins for funeral rituals that way they can
take the embalmed body to the afterlife. Slaves in Egypt use pyramids and tombs as evidence of
their belief existence. Compare to Mesopotamia Pharaohs are considered gods themselves without
gods approval. The Mesopotamia uses religion for personal concepts of sin and
Get more content on HelpWriting.net