The experiential & emotional dimension
The next dimension involves the importance of emotions and experiences in a religion. Just as the rituals of religious practice vary so do the religious experience. The enlightenment of the Buddha, the visionary experiences of Muhammad and the suffering of Christ, all generate strong emotions within the religious individual, giving meaning to the rituals they perform in their honour. For example, breaking bread for Christians would have no meaning if it did not represent the sacrifice of Jesus. Sharp also says that music is a powerful form of expression for many religions as is conversion of faith, Shamanistic visions, and being “born again” all of which are emotional experiences that provide meaning to the enactment of the ritual itself.
The narrative or mythic dimension
This involves the descriptive aspect of religion, which adds meaning to the experiences expressed by the rituals and the emotions they evoke. Most faiths have stories, which have been passed down either verbally or in written form, for example, Torah The Bible and The Quran. These narratives although not always rooted in History are to the believer a faithful record of God or the religion’s founder. It gives a historic value and a foundation on which the religion is based. Also related are Religious stories, for example the Christian Mass commemorates the Last Supper and the Jewish Passover commemorates the Exodus from Egypt.
The doctrinal & philosophical dimension
This dimension supports the narrative and deals with the philosophical questions of a religion. Doctrines vary from one religion to another, ranging, for example, from the doctrine of the Trinity in Christianity to the teachings of Hinduism and the nature of God or Buddha’s philosophical vision of world. In some religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, there are scriptures in which religious narratives and doctrines are recorded
The ethical & legal dimension
Many Religions have laws that a believer must adhere to be a true and faithful follower. Judaism has over six hundred complex rules (Including the Ten Commandments) that dictate the framework for living within the community. Similarly Islam abides by law or Shari’ which affects both individual and religious way of life.
The social and institutional dimension
The social side of a religion involves the gathering of the faithful – in a Church, Temple or Synagogue and many religions allocate special days in which they gather for the observance of prayer, family or rest. For Jews it’s Saturday, for Muslims it’s Friday. Buddhists however regard all days as special.
The material dimension
This dimension recognizes that there are often specific religious artifacts, places, buildings and emblems that are important in a religion. The importance of these symbols vary, some religions choose elaborate material expressions; the decorative icons of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, while others opt for simplicity; the bare pulpit in a Protestant church. Natural features of the world can also be regarded as sacred; for example, the Jordan River where Jesus was baptized and the Ganges River worshipped by Hindus as a goddess
Buddhists, Muslims, Jews and Muslims do not consider their belief as ‘a religion’; rather they regard it as a way of life, with set rules and laws to abide. Hinduism also tolerates a degree of variety that often confuses many outsiders and also creates a problem with classification. Hindus are flexible in their worship, which can be carried out in a temple or through housework or dance. A temple may house many gods and a follower can be a devout or infrequent visitor. Hinduism is all encompassing, and will absorb new beliefs, even those of other cultures and religions and accept them as another aspect of its complex nature.
Shaw’s model is flexible enough to accommodate the various aspects of Hinduism; this shows the model to be diverse, adaptable and as it does not define religion in terms of a particular trait, it resolves the issues that arise from substantive and functional definitions.
However, although Smart acknowledges that there would be religions in which one or more of his aspects are weak or not present, his model is still too vague to properly categorize religion. He views both religion and secular ideologies as ‘worldviews’, and insists that they can both be studied in the same way. According to the scholar Eileen Barker, this would imply that ideologies such as Nationalism and Marxism would both be considered a religion as they both have their own doctrines, ethics, institutions, and so on. Transcendental Meditation would also qualify as a “religion” under this model, regardless of the movement’s denial of it being a one.
Steve Bruce, a leading sociologist of religion, believes that rather than opting for narrow substantive definitions or broad functional definitions, the definition of religion should reflect common sense and encompass what ordinary people mean when they talk of religion. He opts for the following substantive definition:
Religion, then, consists of beliefs, actions, and institutions that assume the existence of supernatural entities with powers of action, or impersonal powers or processes processed of moral purpose. (Block 5, page 37)
This would allow non-religions such as Marxism to be excluded, while still including such faiths as Buddhism.
In conclusion, I would be more inclined to agree with Bruce’s definition of religion, as the inclusion of common sense eradicates to some degree the problem of vagueness that arises from Smart’s model. I would also agree that for many a ‘religion’ is a way of life, a philosophy that enables them to live by morals and principles that help make them better human being.
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