Buddhism
.... Siddartha would have most likely been born into a Christian
family. This in itself presents the first obstacle, that being that
Christianity is a strictly monotheistic and non-mystical faith. Hence from the
outset, although in the traditional story Siddartha faced a conflict with his
father (Ludwig 137), in the North American scenario the conflict would have been
heightened by the fact that his search for enlightenment was not even closely
similar to the Christian faith.
As with science, changes in religious thought are often met with strong
opposition. It is interesting to note though, that many parallels can be foun .....
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Significance Of Ritual In North American Indian Religion
.... draw some
parallels to the more common sweat lodge ceremony. If a recurring spiritual
theme appears in separate rituals, it can be considered evidence of a consistent,
structured belief system.
The use of smoking pipes in Native American cultures is a popular and
very ancient practice. Direct predecessors of the modern pipe appear 1,500
years ago, and other less relevant pipes can be found as far back as 2,500 years
ago. The distinguishing characteristic of the sacred pipe is that the bowl is
separable from the long stem, and the two parts are kept apart except during
ritual use. The pipe is seen as a holy object and is treat .....
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Jews
.... Ghetto,
although separated by nearly two thousand years have and eerie sameness. The
Germans sealed off the Warsaw's Jewish population with and eight-foot brick
concrete wall. The Romans built a high earthen barricade around Jerusalem to
make certain the Jews could not escape. Germans shot, on the spot Jews
discovered outside the Warsaw Ghetto. The Romans crucified the Jews they found,
placing crosses atop the hill to terrorize those watching from inside the city:
as many as 500 were crucified in 1 day. The Germans tried to starve the Polish
Jews into submission reducing their rations at first to 800 calories a day and
later cutt .....
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Different Religions
.... didn't mind violence and killing, then they developed
into a Brutal civilization. Consequently, the religions of these civilizations
were evolved around sacrificial rituals and allegiance to brutal gods. The
Assyrian civilization worked around this principle. They used scare tactics to
overcome their enemies and treated their captives badly. They also believed in
powerful gods who they feared. If certain civilizations became peaceful, then
their religion reflected their peaceful nature and didn't have things like
sacrifices. The people in peaceful civilizations believed in their religion
because they wanted to not because .....
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Sufism
.... away are known as dervishes (this is quite different from the belief in
Islam).
Sufi's also stress the remembrance of God, which is called Zikr. They
try to get close to God, to be one with God. They define God as something that
is close to you but you can't see it. That God is all around us, but His
presence is too overwhelming to see. An example is like fish who is in water.
The fish can't really see the water, even though it is all around the fish. Once
a person realizes the presence of God, he or she will feel closer to God.
(Frager 27)
Sufi's believe that God remains hidden, so that people don't complain to
Him (this however .....
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Alcohol And The Church
.... someone
else's life. You don't need to be drunk to cause an accident, it's been proven
in many cases only a few drinks can impair someone's stability. If more thought
of this there would be less tragedies on our highways. When it comes to food and
there are people starving in the world, when we could help by not converting
food grains into alcohol, this should be made more aware to our society. I'm
not sure most people are aware of this. It is supposedly our main concern to
feed the hungry and shelter the poor. If giving up something that only
contributes to loneliness and destruction than ever, because there are more that .....
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Religion Support And Education
.... statement. This statement is that the
lack of religious support is one of the main reasons why society and its morals
are decreasing.
World Vision of Canada has published as of November 1993 statistics
dealing with the attendance of church and youth, which states; Canada's church
attendance, in all denominations has decreased by twenty-five percent in adults
and fifteen percent in youth. In Britain Adult attendance is down ten percent
and youth attendance is down nine percent. In France the adult attendance is
down thirteen percent, statistics for youth where not available. Australia's
adult attendance has decreased twenty- .....
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The Bible
.... wasn't their fault, but the
fault of their parents because if they had a perfect childhood then they
wouldn't have committed the crime. It is true that the values that children
develop in their early years are important in influencing future decisions but
how does this explain the many adults that climb above their horrible childhood
and become successful happy individuals. This proves that the individual is in
charge of his every move and every action in life - he is in charge of his own
destiny. Sin is never forced upon anyone but merely delivered by just one
person's choice. In the trial of the Oklahoma bomber, the jury wil .....
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The Buddha's Four Noble Truths: A Logical Basis For Philosophy
.... forces or
energies...." - Walpola Rahula{2}
In order to fully understand the Four Noble Truths, it is necessary to
investigate the Buddhist view of the individual and its makeup. In some
respects, the manner in which Buddhism deals with the mind/body problem is much
more advanced than most religious views, and closer to science's understanding
of the mind and body. Rather than postulating the existence of an eternal soul
with no physical manifestation, the Buddha taught that the person is really a
collection of five skandhas or aggregates. These include rupa (matter), vedana
(sensations), sanna (perceptions), samkhara (mental .....
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The Spaniard Quietist Miguel De Molinos
.... quiet, serene and eve-minded in Graces and
in extraordinary favors as also in the most rigorous and bitter torments. No
news causes them to rejoice, no event saddens them". Was Miguel de Molinos
trying to be consistent way with his mystical teachings of total passivity?, or
was he really guilty as charged? Was Molinos a victim of the jealousy of the
Jesuits? Was his fall caused by "the machinations of a corrupt clergy who saw
that they would loose their living if his plain and simple method of devotion
were generally adopted"? Did he ever had any other options than recant
admitting his culpability? Was martyrdom his only ot .....
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The Churches Of Christ: A Comparative Essay
.... student, Kip McKean, and began discipling him. Kip was a bright student
and showed great potential for leadership in the church. However, something in
the discipling process went wrong. Kip was expelled from the Gainesville church
later that year for reasons dealing with departure from the CoC doctrine,
manipulative attitude, unclear motivation, and controlling of other's lives.
Kip and his wife Elena moved to Boston and started a small church that grew
rapidly from thirty to over three hundred disciples in two months. Kip (who, by
this time, proclaimed himself as "God's man for God's mission") then declared in
his Evan .....
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The Effect Of The Russian Orthodox Religion On The Cult
.... of faith. As a result of this emphasis on community, the rights of the
group tend to take precedence over the rights of the individual in Russian
culture. The Orthodox and Catholic faiths had an adversarial relationship for
years. As this rift deepened and grew increasingly antagonistic, the rift
between the East and the West also grew. The difference in religion between
Russia and Europe can largely explain the vast differences that developed in
their cultures.
The Tsar of All Russia derived his power and right to rule from his
status as God's chosen representative on earth. As it is God alone who bestowed
power on the .....
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