This distinction also helps us look into our own minds, to better analyze our thoughts and beliefs when it comes to religion. Learning the distinction between ‘Natural Religion’ and ‘Biblical Faith’ will help with analyzing both past arguments we have learned, and arguments that have yet to come. In Herberg’s esteemed writing, “Biblical Faith and Natural Religion” he begins the paper with an introduction to some of Jules Masserman’s ideas. In presenting Masserman’s ideas of “The Ur-Defenses of Man” [Herberg 175], Herberg is able to set up a basis for his argument. Masserman at heart agrees with Freud’s argument that religion is an illusion humans hold onto, but he makes a key distinction in saying that this illusion is necessary for the well doing of human beings, “they are substitutive or compensatory beliefs, quite necessary to make human life at all livable” [Herberg 177].
As senses changes over time, perception of a religious experience changes over time. As a result, a step further in finding how and why religious experiences happen is needed to explain more of the unknown expressed in the experiences. Yet, before getting to what the actual senses are, a religious experience needs to be defined. Which defined by Rodney Stark, a credited American sociologist of religion, is “All of those feeling, perceptions, and sensations which are experienced by an actor or defined by a religious group or society as involving some communication with some divine essence…? ?” (Burger 255).
How can modes of dress and personal habits reflect religious views? 16. How do Stoddard and Prorak define religion? 17. How do people’s actions reflect their religious beliefs?
Religious language is the way of communicating ideas about belief, faith and God. Religious language can be interpreted in different ways by each individual. The logical positivists were a group of people who belonged to the Vienna Circle in the 1920s-30s. They believed that any assertion made which was meaningful has to be verified with a fixed conclusion. They treated claims made about God as cognitive, meaning that the assertions made are meant to be taken as facts or universal truth claims rather than non-cognitive meaning on a personal level for believers.
The third act gives power to the people to have their legislature appropriate provisions for public houses of worship and to support public religious teachers. The third act also stated that the legislature could command the people to attend the public religious instructions as long as the instruction is not offending to their beliefs. The third act closes by stating that every Christian denomination would be equally protected by law. The Massachusetts Declaration of Rights is a perfect example of religious toleration and it is exactly that: tolerant. The simple fact that the declaration gives power to the legislature to command the people to attend religious teachings is irrefutable evidence that Massachusetts felt that there should be a connection between church and state.
Philosophical Theology is used in our worldview to help us to consider the philosophy of religion in which gives us a way to understand doctrines or theological concepts through the use of philosophy. Many people believe many things in this world and a Higher Power or Supreme Being is one of those beliefs. But what is that being? It can be many different things to many different people God, Buda, the Earth in all reality anything can be a Supreme Being it is just what we hold dear to us. We all need something to believe in no matter what it is to give us a core understanding of where we came from and that in return helps us to see our worldview.
The argument from religious experience is an inductive, ‘a posteriori’ argument which claims that because God can be experienced, God must exist. It’s underpinned by testimonies of religious experiences that exist in which the person has claimed to have had experienced God. Consequently, this has led people to conclude that God must exist. In order to understand how this argument works, a comparison is required. For example, I am writing.
← Can religious experiences be “explained away” by science? Definitions: ← An experience with religious significance, e.g. the act of worship in a religious setting ← A person’s experience of something or a presence beyond themselves Arguments for religious experience as evidence for God’s existence There are two different variants on the basic valid argument: The argument from 1st person experience:
These differences in answers stem from each individual’s personal beliefs and morals. These beliefs and morals in turn stem from that individual’s history and culture. Thus, religion plays an important role in answering this question. At the most basic level, the religious person would answer that the purpose of being human is to “do onto others as you wish to have done onto you”. However, as society becomes less and less religious and consumerism increases in importance, this foundational rule, the golden rule, is being replaced with an
I personally think people should be allowed to have their own opinions and views on religion. I do not think people should have been imprisoned by not living by Calvinism. I also personally do not believe God has already chosen who will be saved from sin. Ignatius of Loyola believed through self-discipline and good actions people would be saved. Loyola created the religion belief known as Society of Jesus.