Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Religion

1. Killed an Egyptian and cut a person’s life short, so his life is cut short. Moses strikes the rock more than once to make sure he’s doing it right because he messed up so many times and wants to make sure.

Moses sends 12 spies to find out their weaknesses.

Moses' successor: Joshua

2. Rahab; width

She provides shelter and food. She hides two spies in her house because Canaanite soldiers come for them.

Tells her to put a red ribbon outside her house to not get killed.

Her fate: safety of her and her children.

Not sure why she takes them in, but it's guessed it is because she was abused by Canaanites.

3. Surrounds the Canaanites. Starve them out. Walls originally supposed to protect, now a trap.

Ark of Covenant - circling the city with it. God is... Continue reading "Key Events: Moses, Joshua, Rahab, and the War of Ai" »

Humanism

Humanism was the philosophical and cultural movement that spread through Europe in the 15th and early 16th centuries.

Astronomy

In 1543, the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus published On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, presenting his heliocentric theory. According to Copernicus, the sun was the center of the universe, not the Earth. All the planets revolve around the Sun. However, the church continued to insist that the Earth was the center of the universe.

Medicine

In 1543, the doctor Andreas Vesalius published On the Structure of the Human Body. Based on direct observation, this book was a big step forward in the knowledge of human anatomy. It became the manual for students of medicine at that time. Ten years later, the doctor... Continue reading "The Renaissance: A Cultural and Scientific Revolution" »

The Worm: Symbolism of Repression and Fallenness in William Blake's Poetry

Metaphorical Meanings of 'Worm'

• Death and decay
• Snake or serpent (alluding to the Fall of humankind)
• Christian teaching of the devil's unseen presence
• Phallic associations, representing the impact of the Fall on sexual ecstasy

'Flies in the Night' and 'Howling Storm'

* Night symbolizes the time when fears and fantasies are most active. * 'Howling storm' suggests ungovernable turmoil and passion.

'Has Found Out'

* May echo Psalms 90:8, referring to the exposure of 'secret sins.'

'Crimson'

* Denotes passion, blood, shame, and sin in the Old Testament. * Suggests that ideas of shame, sin, and secrecy have reached the innermost part of the person, infecting their capacity for joy.

Effects

Conradin Personality Essay

Conradin was a ten-year-old with a very particular and mental personality. He is 'protected' by Mrs. De Ropp. Conradin has been given less than five more years to live. He hates Mrs. De Ropp, and all he is left with is his imagination, which lets him live. Without his imagination, Conradin would have died long ago.

Introduction: A Summary of the Body

Conradin had a very particular personality; he felt hate, sadness, and the only thing he could live with was his imagination. He hated his cousin and imagined her dead when angry. His cousin was supposed to support and love him, but she only made him suffer, leading to his intense hatred.

He followed a religion and performed ceremonies far from the house to avoid his cousin.... Continue reading "Conradin's Unique Personality and Desires" »

Understanding Core Islamic Vocabulary

Adhan

The call to prayer performed from the minarets of mosques by the *muezzin*.

Allah

Arabic for God.

Amir

Commander or prince, frequently used with reference to the person who leads the community.

Aya

A verse of the Quran; also used in a general meaning of “sign” from God.

Ayatollah

In Shia Islam, a high-ranking title given to clerics recognized as experts in Islamic studies.

Basmala

The statement at the beginning of each sura of the Quran (except sura 9), “In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate”; also used by Muslims as an invocation.

Buraq

The winged horse which carried Muhammad on his “Night Journey” from Mecca to Jerusalem.

Dhimmi

A member of a protected community, especially referring to... Continue reading "Essential Islamic Terms and Definitions" »

A baby speaks of its entry into the world, which brought pain to its parents. The world it came into seemed dangerous. It was helpless, vulnerable, noisy, encased in its body like a devil hidden in a cloud.

The baby struggled against the confinement of its father's hands and the swaddling in which it was wrapped. Unsuccessful, it resigned itself to sulking on its mother's breast.

Commentary

For Blake, a fiend was not to be regarded as evil – it was an embodiment of energy and instinct. So here, the baby comes into the world not as a peaceful, meek being, but as one filled with positive energy and instinctual life. However, the response of the parents is ambiguous. Do they groan and weep because:

• Of the physical anguish of childbirth?
• The baby

African Indigenous Religions

African indigenous religions have not all died out.

The Atlantic slave trade

Humanity and life in the present world

High God is both a and b

High God

Many supernatural beings are recognized, and one is elevated to a higher status.

Mali and Burkina Faso

Yoruba religion

An Orisa in the Yoruba tradition

Spirits are all of the above

Improving life in this world

Spirit world: all of the above

A divination system among the Yoruba

Medium

Kenya and Tanzania

Christianity did not completely eradicate indigenous African religions.

The continuing cycle of birth, death, and rebirth

Supreme, unitary reality

Dualistic

330 million

Hebrew

It cannot be translated and is only legitimately scripture when read in Hebrew.

John

The Way

Greek

The Shema

Merneptah... Continue reading "Major World Religions: Key Beliefs and Practices" »

African Beliefs

Their beliefs are called Myth, for them God is Supreme, god has a generic term in this case. They identify the creator by supreme Being. God refers to objects of worship in any religion.

There are 3 varying accounts of the creation of Cosmos.

1. Some believe that it was created in one act
2. Others believe that God created heaven first so that he would have a place standing on Heaven, he created the Earth.
3. Others say that God is still creating new things, excepts souls because Africans think that you need one to live. Ex: People have children. Does God create them or does God equip people with the ability to create them?

They view about the cosmos:

1. For the African, the cosmos is divided into 2 parts, the two can be described as the heaven

No-Self

• Central concept: Buddha denies the existence of a self that is eternal or self-sustained.

• Biggest illusion: Believing we truly know our "self".

• Two bases for denying the eternal self:

  1. Impermanence

     • All entities in the world are impermanent in two ways:

       1. They cease to exist.

       2. They constantly change.

  2. Dependent Origination

     • This framework forms the basis for Buddhists' denial of a "self".

     • All things are products of infinite chains of causality. Nothing is self-sustaining; therefore, nothing has a self.

       • This concept relates to early Indian logic principles of cause and effect.

Reincarnation/Nirvana

• Reincarnation is a cycle of rebirth.

• This concept predates Buddhism, existing long before in Indian culture.

• Different views exist on the mechanisms behind this

William Blake: Romantic Poet and Visionary Artist

William Blake (1757-1827) was a prominent Romantic poet and artist. (Note: The original discussion also referenced *Blackadder* series: Middle Ages, Renaissance, Regency, Great Europe.)

Blake's unique perception of God challenged conventional views, portraying a deity that was not always perfect. His work often delves into profound spiritual concepts, as seen in his *Proverbs of Hell*, where the voice of the Devil speaks (p.105).

Blake's "Elohim Creating Adam"

Blake's interpretation of creation, influenced by the *King James Bible* (published 1611), is depicted in his non-realistic painting, characterized by symbolic elements like the sun, planets, clouds, and sunlight. The presence of the snake... Continue reading "William Blake's Vision: Art, Symbolism, and Biblical Interpretations" »