Posted: December 2nd, 2022

Comparison of World’s Religions

Comparison of World’s Religions
Why Do People Participate in Religion?
People across the world participate in religious activities and uphold various beliefs for numerous unconscious reasons. One of the reasons is that people participate in religion because they appreciate the teachings associated with their faith (Álvarez, 2019). Some teachings encourage people to stay holy or faithful while others promise prosperity, wealth, and health. Others are religious because from a young age they were indoctrinated and the belief system was reinforced in them. For example, the Muslim religion teaches children from a young age about Quran. During the indoctrination process, the children have not acquired critical thinking to say yes or no to the religion (Álvarez, 2019). Religious beliefs are thus propagated in the minds of people without their full realization.
Different religious groups encourage people to develop an attachment to a supernatural being through faith. The attachments are important since people ask for help from the gods or goddesses in times of need (Cenci & Filippim, 2017). The attachment is similar to the relationships people establish in family or marriage. People want to be associated with a stronger power than themselves. In some religious beliefs, people believe that the deities will preserve their lives after death (Cenci & Filippim, 2017). The belief that life does not end at death encourages people to hold on to religious practices. Some people believe in reincarnation or living another life after the one on earth is over. The hope of living eternally motivates people to strictly observe religious practices.
Anthropomorphism is another motivation to be religious. People participate in religious activities because there are some instances or events they cannot explain (Rozycka-Tran, 2017). The issues that lack human explanation or connection find their relationship with divine power. Occurrences in life that lack human connection are connected with superhuman beings (Rozycka-Tran, 2017). The willingness to stay religious is to gain the confidence that the deities have a good purpose to make people prosper and not harm them despite the unanswered questions.
Religious practices bring people together for fellowship. The fellowship is an important medium to bring people together, encourage them to bond and support one another in times of need (Álvarez, 2019). Other practices such as singing, dancing, offering, and praying together create a strong bond among congregants. For example, during times of calamity people come together to pray to the supernatural powers for Helpance. Others seek the intervention for a sick person and healing is realized (Álvarez, 2019). The benefits act as a glue to keep people together in religion.
The practices keep people together since it contains stipulations on how to conduct oneself in public and private. The conduct involves dress code, marriage, and eating habits (Cenci & Filippim, 2017). For example, the Muslim religion has strict laws that members of the religion or family must adhere to. Those who go against the traditions are considered outcasts. In some cases, families disown children who want to embrace a different faith (Cenci & Filippim, 2017). The regulations act as a motivation to keep people together in religious groups and practices.
Religious Motivations Thousands of Years Ago
The religious motivation for people to participate in religion thousands of years ago is the belief that a supernatural power sustains the world. People were afraid that going against the deities would attract repercussions that would lead to calamities, death, and famine (Terzidou et al., 2018). Another motivation is that people always associated things outside human control with supernatural powers. For example, people would associate birth, love, rainfall, and bumper harvest with deities. In ancient religious practices, there were gods of love, wealth, procreation, and security (Terzidou et al., 2018). Some religious practices in Egypt, Greece, Phoenician, and Rome were transferred to other communities around the world.
People adopted religious practices since they believed that the more gods they had the more safety, opportunities for success, and influence. In the Egyptian or Indian religious practices, people adopted many gods due to the belief they would eventually succeed (Terzidou et al., 2018). Others adopted the gods as a way to ward off the evil spirits that would attack them or their property. For example, people would consult the god of love to seek Helpance in marriage issues while others would seek help from the god of procreation if they had difficulty in having children (Almuhrzi & Alsawafi, 2017). Others went to the temple to seek counseling and guidance from the priests. The benefits attracted people to worship and observe religious practices.
Religious Motivations Today
The motivation today is to find a place of refuge during suffering. The world today is facing numerous calamities that prompting people to gravitate towards religious beliefs that invoke invincible powers (Almuhrzi & Alsawafi, 2017). Religion is upheld as a solution to many life problems in the world today. People congregate in worship centers to seek help from supernatural beings.
One of the similarities with the ancient motivations is that people are religious since religious teachings answer basic questions of suffering, death, and life. Another similarity is that people adopt the beliefs due to the family pressure to conform to certain practices (Liro et al., 2018). Other people use religion as a source of explanation of why they are powerful or wealthy. The current world has faced changes in the political arena making people religious (Liro et al., 2018). For example, the India Freedom Movement and civil rights activism in the United States has motivated people to adopt gods in their lives.
What is the Point of Studying Religion?
The study of religion is important since it provides the reasons why people would adopt deities in their lives both today and the ancient world. Information about religion is crucial in understanding world patterns and religious groupings (Noy & O’Brien, 2018). Another benefit of studying religion is to understand why people would die in the ancient world for the sake of their faith. It explains the current world patterns that led to the execution of believers in some extremist countries (Noy & O’Brien, 2018). Religious understanding helps explain the sacredness of life and the prohibition of contemporary issues such as euthanasia, abortion, murder, and execution of prisoners. Another value is that the study helps explain the diverse religious groupings in the world today (Noy & O’Brien, 2018). For example, the study provides a glimpse of the relationship between various beliefs. One of the points to take from the study of religion is that people observe diverse practices while seeking a connection with a deity.
Role of Religious Tradition in Contemporary Society
The selected religious tradition is Christianity. Christianity has a role to play in contemporary society since it seeks to provide answers to the world. For example, the world is grappling with questions of euthanasia, abortion, murder, and execution of prisoners (Tarigan et al., 2020). Christianity helps provide answers based on the sacredness of life. Religion educates people to observe various traditions that maintain order in society. It discourages people from killing, stealing, committing a crime, aborting infants, and respecting the government authorities (Perry & Whitehead, 2020). Another value in contemporary society is that people can avoid corrupt behaviors to gain wealth. The belief is that people can trust in God to gain wealth when they work hard.
Religion provides answers in times of difficulty for the world. It encourages people to believe in God who has good plans for them and cannot harm them (Jones, 2017). Even while in pain, the religion teaches that God uses every opportunity or event for the good of the people he has called to be his children. The promise of overcoming present difficulties and eventually getting eternal life makes people live with hope (Jones, 2017). Without hope today, people would end up in depression and commit suicide for the lack of hope during difficult times.
The core teachings of the Christian faith are love, faith, and hope. Love is the greatest of all. It encourages people to love each other despite the natural feelings of hate and jealously (McGann, 2019). Love is a vital tool that can be used in the world to address contemporary issues. The teachings encourage couples to love one another and live in harmony. Family is the core unit of the country whose success determines the general success of a country. Studies show that children from broken families are likely to engage in criminal activities and end up in jail (McGann, 2019). Practicing the virtue of love and forgiveness in society can solve multiple problems the community is experiencing currently.

References
Almuhrzi, H. M., & Alsawafi, A. M. (2017). Muslim perspectives on spiritual and religious travel beyond Hajj: Toward understanding motivations for Umrah travel in Oman. Tourism Management Perspectives, 24, 235-242.
Alvarez, J. J. Á. (2019). To exist with and for the people: Philosophico-Religious roots and the need of a moral common faith. Central and Eastern Europe Online Library, 13(1), 97-112.
Cenci, R., & Filippim, E. S. (2017). Attraction and retention of people for religious life in Catholic religious institutions: the importance of institutional features. Cadernos EBAPE. BR, 15(1), 152-168.
Jones, C. (2017). Why Does God Allow Evil?: Compelling Answers for Life’s Toughest Questions. Harvest House Publishers.
Liro, J., Sołjan, I., & Bilska-Wodecka, E. (2018). Visitors’ diversified motivations and behavior–the case of the pilgrimage center in Krakow (Poland). Journal of Tourism and Cultural Change, 16(4), 416-435.
McGann, J. (2019). “Christian Charity”, A Sacred American Text. Textual Cultures, 12(1), 27-52.
Noy, S., & O’Brien, T. L. (2018). An intersectional analysis of perspectives on science and religion in the United States. The Sociological Quarterly, 59(1), 40-61.
Perry, S. L., & Whitehead, A. L. (2020). Porn as a threat to the mythic social order: Christian nationalism, anti-pornography legislation, and fear of pornography as a public menace. The Sociological Quarterly, 1-21.
Rozycka-Tran, J. (2017). Love thy neighbor? The effects of religious in/out-group identity on social behavior. Personality and Individual Differences, 115, 7-12.
Tarigan, L., Naibaho, P., & Siringo, T. (2020). The Influence of Cultural and Christianity Values Toward the Society. In Conference Series, 11(11), 103-109.
Terzidou, M., Scarles, C., & Saunders, M. N. (2018). The complexities of religious tourism motivations: Sacred places, vows and visions. Annals of Tourism Research, 70, 54-65.

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