To explain this in detail I have brought together sources from both sides of the argument, such as Silver Ravenwolf’s Teen Witch: Wicca for a New Generation which persuades the reader to think that Wicca is an established religion and Geertz, Armin W. "Hopi Indian Witchcraft and Healing", which says that it is not an established religion. Since it is still a debated topic I have chosen to make my own conclusion based on the facts I am given. One of my other questions is, what are the main elements of Wicca that haven’t changed since it originated? When and where Wicca originated is still debatable, but we know that early humans did practice pagan rituals. Paganism means to worship and love the earth.
The influential High Priest Raymond Buckland said that a human's soul reincarnates into the same species over many lives in order to learn lessons and advance spiritually, but this belief is not universal, as many Wiccans believe in the reincarnation of the soul through different species. However, a popular saying amongst Wiccans is that "once a witch, always a witch", indicating a belief that Wiccans are the reincarnations of previous witches. Typically, Wiccans who believe in reincarnation believe that the soul rests between lives in the Otherworld or Summerland, known in Gardner's writings as the "ecstasy of the Goddess". Many Wiccans believe in the ability to contact the spirits of the dead who reside in the Otherworld through spirit mediums and Ouija boards. Though some disagree with this practice, such as High Priest Alex Sanders, who stated that "they are dead; leave them in peace."
Han China used a philosophy known as Confucianism and Imperial Rome had religious tolerance meaning people could follow any religion they would like. The main religion in Rome was Christianity. In Han China, Confucianism was used by the government. Everyone was encouraged to follow the ideals and -teachings of Confucianism by the government. This could have contributed to the long reign of the Han because there was there would be virtually no fighting or persecution between people of different beliefs because mostly everyone followed the same philosophy.
And the Kwakiutl perform ceremonies to forestall death. When that fails, they pray to the spirit to protect the; those left behind. This nature worship is rooted in Native Americans’ deep tradition of mythology, in which people are one with the land. While mainstream Western Christianity teaches of original sin and earth as a transitory place, Native American spirituality teaches that earth is our permanent home and there is no concept of heaven or division from God or other deities. Native American creation stories do not provide a viewpoint of humans having dominion over the earth.
For example Churingas are sacred drawings on wood or stone. Durkheim argued that Totemism represents religion in its most elementary form. The totem has divine properties which separates it from other profane objects. It is a symbol for the group, tribe or clan itself as it stands up for the values central to the community which everyone respects. Therefore worship of the totem is the worship of the social group itself.
Her healing work has also been published in the local news media. Mama Lola was very much open to alternative methods of healing “she is not afraid to incorporate elements from other cultures into her own worldview.” “… her whole life is about movement between cultures and about understanding and coping with cultural difference.” (Pg 206, Mama Lola) Mama Lola’s line of work not only deals with health problems but also love, work and family difficulties. Her healing skills combine that of a medical doctor, psychotherapist, a social working and priest and is well respected in her community not just for her work but as a good woman. “She has a group of steady followers who appreciate her for being trustworthy and discreet as well as effective. It is also widely known that she adheres to a tradition that discourages making large profits from healing work”.
Both believe in one ruler over all, both believe in a good place (heaven) and bad place (hell) after death, and both believe in guidance through spiritual leaders(prophets), to name a few. Another reason I believe Natives practices have not been abandon is because their culture is inextricably linked and connected with Mother Earth. The land, the plants, the animals, and all around contain their culture, spirit, and identity; all working together to create a balance of harmony (Page 68). How can a culture’s spiritual identity gets lost when it is rooted into everything living and non-living? Lastly, spirituality was designed without written rules to be edited and manipulated, without limits and boundaries, without segregation and prejudice.
As this is a dominate religious base, many of the healthcare systems are set up to understand this, offering up chapels, areas within hospitals to pray and in some circumstances assure that there is availability of chaplains that can assist the healthcare team in the healing of this family This is not difficult for nursing as its roots have grown out of public ministry, developed out of the understanding of sin and redemption (Shelly & Miller 63). Having the understanding that health state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity (WHO), assists in the nurses or care teams understanding of how we care for those various individuals while they are out of congruency with this state of health. Both of these faith perspectives have a theme of individual responsibility for health, this is a good starting place to assure that the basic care needs are met during the acute part of the illness. Human caring and respect covers both of these philosophies. Apart from medical technologies such as diagnostic, surgical repair and medication management, both of these relate to keeping the person whole results in physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.
I know that as a nurse, I will see patients with many different worldviews and I will be open to them and work with them to help them spiritually. Religion and spirituality can be huge in treating patents by using meditation and prayer in healing (Krietzer et al, 2012). This can cause patients to forgive and have hope, which can change their attitude on the disease and ultimately the outcome of the disease. References Krietzer, M., Dossey, L., & Groopman, J. (2012).
“Mysticism is the conscious awareness of an ultimate reality, divinity, spiritual truth, or got through direct experience, intuition, or insight” (Wikipedia). It usually centers on a practice that is intended to nurture these experiences or awareness, it is meant to unite the diving and sacred and is an activity with a definite goal. Although mysticism is philosophically and religiously neutral it is often used in the context of strong religious motivation and is therefore often tied into religion (blessings). In Taoism salvation is attained through mysticism and the experience of enlightenment. There are many practices and beliefs in Taoism that are mystical such as the origin of the religion, theories of connection with nature, use of yin yang symbol, meditation, martial arts and magic.