We often find that religious beliefs are present in other aspects of life than we expect. In law, we do see a lot of elements that are mostly morals of society. But what do these societal morals reflect? They reflect certain religious beliefs (if applicable, since some people do not necessarily identify with a religion)
When we look at things in our very own American legal system, we see that a lot of laws are based on general moral opinions of the American public. There are the standard laws that make things like murder and assault illegal because long ago, the general public agreed that they did not like these practices. It is safe to say that these types of ideals are consistent with Christian values (as well as many other religions, although Christian values are more prominent in the U.S). For example, "thou shall not kill", correlates with the moral public belief against killing.
If ideals and laws are so similar to each other, then why does the U.S. have a separation between church and state? It technically can't because in reality, the U.S. is not uniformly Christian (or any other religion for that matter) and there are many other groups who all share this society. To keep things fair, these two aspects of society (political and religious) are two different things. However, we can see that the opposing type of system works more effectively. Tibet, for example, had a long time ruler who was considered the head of the country politically and as their religious leader. The Dalai Lama was and is an important figure today although he no longer holds his political position he once did. People continuously look up to him regardless of the turmoil that continues in Tibet. The country this type of system was applied is not in the best place but, that is due to other political conflicts. Although we see more or less separation of belief and politics, I believe there is always at least a small tie between the two.
While law is based on public belief, it also reflects the things that members of a society want to see happen within it. Typically laws are put in place to make things better for society later. Cover says "law is the projection of an imagined future upon reality," meaning that with a legal system, society hopes to create a better world in the future. Humans tend to have a common goal to create a "more perfect" place.
This idea gets a little iffy when it gets to certain subjects. The death penalty is a strongly arguable topic among many in the U.S. While some agree that an "eye for an eye" is an acceptable policy, some think that performing the same act on the one who did it doesn't make things better. It also gets difficult to determine who is allowed to dish out this type of punishment. Who has authority to kill someone and not 'get in trouble' for it? Does any human truly have this kind of authority? That is where it gets hard to determine whats effective and what isn't or what's right and what's taking it too far.
Another thing that occurs with the intermingling of religion and legal and ethical systems is scapegoating. The community tends to find a specific source for an issue and often blames a certain group for something. Rene Girard stated that society likes to blame and seek revenge on specific people or groups. In present day U.S., you might often see someone on Facebook or some other site saying how we should inflict other punishments on all prisoners. Or some might have a specific stereotype in mind that makes them believe one group is responsible for something. For example, we have he old stereotype that African Americans are most responsible for stealing. Or that Mexicans are the main source of illegal immigrants. Another example that I'd like to think is applicable, is the thought that 'out of towners in IV are the ones that cause most of the crimes.' We as humans like to blame something for our troubles and for the turmoil in the world. we also see this historically, in the Holocaust, where Jews were targeted for the many downfalls that Nazi Germany faced.
Ariel. 2nd Year. Psych major.
Thursday, July 24, 2014
Thursday, July 17, 2014
Understanding the Practices of Mourning
Mourning practices are important traditions for members of that religion. Ancient Chinese traditions during the Han Dynasty had a specific protocol. Mourning was a more systematic process and specific (but not fixed or uniform practices) rituals were performed to achieve some sort of settlement of the mind.
The protocol begins with "soul-calling" which began as soon as the person stopped breathing. The remaining survivors would attempt to bring back the spirit of whoever died. They would display items of the deceased and call out in such a way as to call the soul to return. For the purpose of searching, they call out and wander about to see if they can locate the soul. For grievances, wailing, sobbing and other gestures were often performed to express their feelings toward the lost soul. It also acted as a precautionary measure. Many were concerned and soul-called just to verify that the soul has permanently left the body and is not only temporarily wandering off. It was thought that if they were able to call the temporarily dislocated soul, than it would return to the body and than alternatively, death could be avoided.
Once the person's soul was confirmed to be permanently gone, the official beginning of mourning began. The closest members of the deceased tend to the body and plug any openings to prevent any vapors from exiting the body The main person in this ritual is the Chief mourner, who would actually receive quite a bit of respect for being male. It was often accepted for males to grieve and ignore responsibilities dealing with the deceased for the first 3 days. Women would eventually join in with the heavy grieving. This practice involved consoling men more than it was involved with personal grief. Although the three day period was essentially for the mourner to release grief and somewhat make a mess of themselves and be excused for it, it was important for him to keep his health at an acceptable level.
The final stage was burial and and continuous mourning. Immediate chief mourners would participate in the coffining ceremony while the rest of those close to the deceased would dress up the body and prepare it for burial. Chief mourners could have mourned for up to 3 years. During these years, seclusion was encouraged and sometimes got pushed to extremes. He would abstain from many usual activities and would occasionally become weak and fragile from it.
Looking more closely at these rituals, we can see that although some of the practices are to help the deceased (such as preparation for burial and soul-calling to possibly avert death), others are mostly for survivors to cope with what has happened. Grieving is very important in this ritual because it is a process that allows the ones affected to show how they feel and more easily move past it,
We can also see that ancient Chinese cultures are more spiritual based in their narratives and in their way of explaining life in a more general way, So it is fairly obvious that the spirit or soul is valued when the mourners are going through great efforts in order to call out to the recently lost soul.
The social effects in this case are clear because the mourning process eventually leads to seclusion. This act may make things difficult for those around the chief mourner. They are not to hold in their grief and are socially allowed to reach a low in their life and express it. The positive thing about this is that communities were not to be judgmental about these type of grievance rituals.
The protocol begins with "soul-calling" which began as soon as the person stopped breathing. The remaining survivors would attempt to bring back the spirit of whoever died. They would display items of the deceased and call out in such a way as to call the soul to return. For the purpose of searching, they call out and wander about to see if they can locate the soul. For grievances, wailing, sobbing and other gestures were often performed to express their feelings toward the lost soul. It also acted as a precautionary measure. Many were concerned and soul-called just to verify that the soul has permanently left the body and is not only temporarily wandering off. It was thought that if they were able to call the temporarily dislocated soul, than it would return to the body and than alternatively, death could be avoided.
Once the person's soul was confirmed to be permanently gone, the official beginning of mourning began. The closest members of the deceased tend to the body and plug any openings to prevent any vapors from exiting the body The main person in this ritual is the Chief mourner, who would actually receive quite a bit of respect for being male. It was often accepted for males to grieve and ignore responsibilities dealing with the deceased for the first 3 days. Women would eventually join in with the heavy grieving. This practice involved consoling men more than it was involved with personal grief. Although the three day period was essentially for the mourner to release grief and somewhat make a mess of themselves and be excused for it, it was important for him to keep his health at an acceptable level.
The final stage was burial and and continuous mourning. Immediate chief mourners would participate in the coffining ceremony while the rest of those close to the deceased would dress up the body and prepare it for burial. Chief mourners could have mourned for up to 3 years. During these years, seclusion was encouraged and sometimes got pushed to extremes. He would abstain from many usual activities and would occasionally become weak and fragile from it.
Looking more closely at these rituals, we can see that although some of the practices are to help the deceased (such as preparation for burial and soul-calling to possibly avert death), others are mostly for survivors to cope with what has happened. Grieving is very important in this ritual because it is a process that allows the ones affected to show how they feel and more easily move past it,
We can also see that ancient Chinese cultures are more spiritual based in their narratives and in their way of explaining life in a more general way, So it is fairly obvious that the spirit or soul is valued when the mourners are going through great efforts in order to call out to the recently lost soul.
The social effects in this case are clear because the mourning process eventually leads to seclusion. This act may make things difficult for those around the chief mourner. They are not to hold in their grief and are socially allowed to reach a low in their life and express it. The positive thing about this is that communities were not to be judgmental about these type of grievance rituals.
Thursday, July 3, 2014
Week 2: Myth and Abrahamic Religions
We've learned that narrative stories are extremely important for a lot of religions. They provide a basis for our beginnings, creator(s), surroundings, way of life and our customs. Narrative stories are main reasons for many religious practices. They let people see their own history and their own ancestors. Most importantly they are often building blocks for their expected practices ans behaviors for their religion and their interactions with the afterlife.
Narrative stories are forms of myths. The most common myth about myths is that they are not true. A mythological event or story does not necessarily have to be false. Myths are special in comparison to legends, fables or just plain history because they capture the essence of truth, authority and credibility in a religion. Myths are so important to religion. They help create background for a religion and its practicing group. People often rely on myths for reasoning behind many of their practices. In a polytheistic religion, myths provide background of the Gods. In a monotheistic religion, the myths focus more on ancestors.
For example, in Christianity and in Judaism (note that this myth works a bit differently in each), the story of the Messiah or Jesus is very important to how people practice their religion. As we learned in class, the faith aspect of Christianity became more important to Christians. Because the Messiah, the messenger of God, was associated with such great faith and was crucified and resurrected, he represented an eternal life. As a result baptism became a common practice to ensure that this eternal life was reality to members.
What I found very interesting about this myth was the concept of Christology. It plays on the myth itself ans causes there to be different types of believers, ranging from those who do not believe and see Jesus simply as a healer to those who are strong believers and say that Jesus was a complete embodiment of God himself. I find this so interesting because it shows how a small change in viewpoint on a myth can cause large variances in beliefs. This truly shows that myth is important for the formation of social groups.
In comparison to the other religions, myth is still very important in all of them. In ancient religions such as Greco-Roman religions, myths show how their gods we similar to humans. This helps form religions, and some mystery cults that were based off of how much the Gods' behavior. We can even see the power of mtyh in Islam, which is even more similar to Christianity and Judaism. The Messiah appears in Islamic myths as well but takes a new form of Muhammad. The value placed on him can be considered more sacred, but because the story is a bit different, ideas of these religions are very different.
As for myths outside of our discussion, the first thing that comes to mind is science, as weird as that sounds. There are many myths in science based on our health and chemistry and so on. Regardless if these types of myths are true or not, sometimes people have different viewpoints and behaviors based on a myth. The best example of this I think is the old radioactive microwave concern. I know plenty of people who are cautious to stay far from microwaves while they are in use in case the radio waves from it will affect them. Then there are others who are not convinced that it is an issue. Here this myth has created two social groups, believers and non believers. It is similar like varying beliefs in Christianity.
Narrative stories are forms of myths. The most common myth about myths is that they are not true. A mythological event or story does not necessarily have to be false. Myths are special in comparison to legends, fables or just plain history because they capture the essence of truth, authority and credibility in a religion. Myths are so important to religion. They help create background for a religion and its practicing group. People often rely on myths for reasoning behind many of their practices. In a polytheistic religion, myths provide background of the Gods. In a monotheistic religion, the myths focus more on ancestors.
For example, in Christianity and in Judaism (note that this myth works a bit differently in each), the story of the Messiah or Jesus is very important to how people practice their religion. As we learned in class, the faith aspect of Christianity became more important to Christians. Because the Messiah, the messenger of God, was associated with such great faith and was crucified and resurrected, he represented an eternal life. As a result baptism became a common practice to ensure that this eternal life was reality to members.
What I found very interesting about this myth was the concept of Christology. It plays on the myth itself ans causes there to be different types of believers, ranging from those who do not believe and see Jesus simply as a healer to those who are strong believers and say that Jesus was a complete embodiment of God himself. I find this so interesting because it shows how a small change in viewpoint on a myth can cause large variances in beliefs. This truly shows that myth is important for the formation of social groups.
In comparison to the other religions, myth is still very important in all of them. In ancient religions such as Greco-Roman religions, myths show how their gods we similar to humans. This helps form religions, and some mystery cults that were based off of how much the Gods' behavior. We can even see the power of mtyh in Islam, which is even more similar to Christianity and Judaism. The Messiah appears in Islamic myths as well but takes a new form of Muhammad. The value placed on him can be considered more sacred, but because the story is a bit different, ideas of these religions are very different.
As for myths outside of our discussion, the first thing that comes to mind is science, as weird as that sounds. There are many myths in science based on our health and chemistry and so on. Regardless if these types of myths are true or not, sometimes people have different viewpoints and behaviors based on a myth. The best example of this I think is the old radioactive microwave concern. I know plenty of people who are cautious to stay far from microwaves while they are in use in case the radio waves from it will affect them. Then there are others who are not convinced that it is an issue. Here this myth has created two social groups, believers and non believers. It is similar like varying beliefs in Christianity.
Friday, June 27, 2014
Personally Understanding Death
Throughout my life, I have not really been faced with any extremely hard deaths. Most deaths in my family were mostly distant relatives and occurred when I was much younger and didn't fully understand. My family was very supportive of any grief I did have and always encouraged me to have a positive outlook on things that happened. I think because of that I've been able to handle death of others and its impact on me seriously but in a more 'life goes on and gets better' type of attitude. I've truly learned to accept that death is a thing that is going to happen no matter what. I've developed an assumption that whatever comes after life is a better than life on Earth.
The first piece of work that comes to mind when I think of something that best represents my current understanding of death is the song Autumn Leaves by Ed Sheeran. (Autumn Leaves - Ed Sheeran). It somewhat portrays the acceptance of death similar to how I've come to accept it. The first part of the song goes "Another day another life/ Passes by just like mine/ It's not complicated," which expresses the simplicity of life and death and how it is a natural occurrence. The lyrics go into more depth later in the song about how in reality the situation is actually a bit more complicated in the human mind in general. In the verse "another love that's gone to waste/ Another light lost from your face/ It's complicated," the song addresses how it is human to grieve and how death, although a natural incidence, can actually affect a person. the song also talks about the value of the deceased's individuality or name. The acknowledgment of the name, or what the Egyptians called the Ren is addressed in two lines of the song: "Do you ever wonder if the stars shine out for you?" and "Is it that it's over or do birds still sing for you?". This raises questions about how the person's name will carry on. I personally agree with the Egyptians' concept of the Ren. People leave a legacy when they pass on and they are never truly 'gone.' To me, this is the most important aspect of death. It's almost as if our presence after our passing is what makes us human.
The first piece of work that comes to mind when I think of something that best represents my current understanding of death is the song Autumn Leaves by Ed Sheeran. (Autumn Leaves - Ed Sheeran). It somewhat portrays the acceptance of death similar to how I've come to accept it. The first part of the song goes "Another day another life/ Passes by just like mine/ It's not complicated," which expresses the simplicity of life and death and how it is a natural occurrence. The lyrics go into more depth later in the song about how in reality the situation is actually a bit more complicated in the human mind in general. In the verse "another love that's gone to waste/ Another light lost from your face/ It's complicated," the song addresses how it is human to grieve and how death, although a natural incidence, can actually affect a person. the song also talks about the value of the deceased's individuality or name. The acknowledgment of the name, or what the Egyptians called the Ren is addressed in two lines of the song: "Do you ever wonder if the stars shine out for you?" and "Is it that it's over or do birds still sing for you?". This raises questions about how the person's name will carry on. I personally agree with the Egyptians' concept of the Ren. People leave a legacy when they pass on and they are never truly 'gone.' To me, this is the most important aspect of death. It's almost as if our presence after our passing is what makes us human.
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