1. The Major Religions
Prof. T. Patrick Burke

2. Introduction Seriousness and Frivolity The Significance of Religion?
The spiritual dimension of human life.
Soul
Meaning
Analysis and Diagnosis
Hegel

3. Introduction, cont’d. The Families of Religions
Indian: Hinduism, Buddhism, (Jainism), Sikhism
The Self
Chinese: Confucianism, Taoism, Chinese Buddhism
Nature
Semitic: Judaism, Christianity, Islam
God and Revelation

4. Introduction, cont’d. Places of Worship Belief and Action
Some Categories
Universal and Particular
Mystical and Ethical
Self- and Other-Power
Personal and Civil

5. Introduction, cont’d. Value Judgements The Phenomenological Approach
Current Debate: Commitment v. Anthropology
Our Approach in this Course
Description, Suspension, Discussion
Gender and Class: Equality and the Middle Class.

6. Introduction, cont’d Test Questions:
Arrange the major religions in their families.
What is meant by a “universal” religion?
What is meant by a religion of “self-liberation”?
What is the “phenomenological” approach?
What are the reasons for and against it?

7. Part I: Religions of Indian Origin
Hinduism
Buddhism
Jainism (not covered in this course)
Sikhism

8. Hinduism The Spirit of Hinduism The story of Narada and Vishnu
The Hindu View of Life
The presence of the divine
Pre-Vedic Religion: Harappa

9. Hinduism Vedic Religion The Aryans The Vedas
Rig, Sama, Yajur, Atharva.
The Vedic Gods
Indra, Agni, Varuna, Rta
Sacrifice (yajna)
Brahman, the Power of the Sacrifice

10. Hinduism The Upanishads Brahman, the highest Reality Nirguna Brahman
The Atman or Self
The Atman is identical with Brahman
The True Self and the Apparent Self

11. Hinduism, cont. Monism Reincarnation The Law of Karma
The Cycle of Birth and Death
Moksha, Liberation
The Path of Sacred Knowledge,
Meditation and Asceticism

12. Hinduism, cont. The Later Upanishads: Personalization
Saguna Brahman: With Attributes
Ishvara, the Lord
Maya
Yoga

13. Hinduism, cont. Classical Hinduism The Epics, Maha-bharata, Ramayana
The Puranas
Vishnu and Shiva (and Brahma)
Shakti: the Goddess
Parvati, Durga, Kali
Yoni and lingam

14. Hinduism, cont. Lakshmi Sarasvati Ganesha Polytheism and Monotheism
Puja
Darshana

15. Hinduism, cont. The Four Varnas, or Classes
The Aryan or Twice-born, the Sacred Thread
Brahmins
Kshatriyas
Vaishyas
Sudras
Outcastes, Untouchables

16. Hinduism, cont. The Many Jatis, or Castes Restrictions on: Food
Marriage
Occupation

17. Hinduism, cont. The Four Ends of Man Dharma, Caste Duty
Sadharana Dharma
Artha, Power
Kama, Pleasure
Moksha, Liberation

18. Hinduism, cont. The Four Ashramas, or Stages of Life
Brahmacarin, the celibate student
Grihastha, the householder
Vanaprastha, the forest-dweller
Sannyasin
Sadhus

19. Hinduism, cont. Bhakti Hinduism: The life of devotion
The Bhagavad-gita
Karma yoga
“Do the work for the sake of the work…”
Bhakti, devotion to the Supreme Lord
Vishnu: Krishna and Rama
Shiva

20. Hinduism, cont. Hindu Ethics: Class and Caste Duties Universal Duties
Ahimsa, non-violence
No doctrine of unjust war
But rules for conduct of war

21. Hinduism, cont. Modern Developments Gandhi
Non-violent protest, civil disobedience, political independence (1947)
Class and Caste outlawed, but preserved
Partition: creation of Pakistan for Muslims
Rejection of Capitalism, and Return to it.
Hindutva: militant Hindu nationalism

22. Test, Hinduism
1. Identify: Indra, Agni, Varuna, Rta, Vishnu, Shiva, Sarasvati, Kali.
Explain briefly what is meant by: Brahman, Atman, maya, moksha, samsara, yoga.
Summarize in one or two sentences the worldview of the Upanishads.
What are the Four Ends of Man?
5. What are the Four Varnas?

23. Test, Hinduism, cont.
6. What is the chief message of the Bhagavad-Gita?

24. Buddhism The Mustard Seed The Buddhist View of Life: Transience
"Do not cherish the unworthy desire that the changeable might become unchanging.“
Siddhartha Gautama of the Shakyas
The Four Passing Sights
The Great Going Forth
The Great Awakening

25. Buddhism, cont. Theravada Buddhism The Four Noble Truths
Dukkha: Suffering
Tanha: Craving
Nirvana: Extinction
Marga: The Path

26. Buddhism, cont. The Eightfold Path Right Understanding Right Thought
Right Speech, Conduct, Livelihood
Right Effort
Right Mindfulness
Right Concentration

27. Buddhism, cont. The Ten Precepts Five and Five Monks and Laity
The Three Jewels
Buddhist Theory
Impermanence, Anicca
No Self, Anatta

28. Buddhism, cont. The Five Aggregates Matter Sensations Perception
Mental Formations
Consciousness

29. Buddhism, cont. The Doctrine of Dependent Origination Rebirth
The Many Buddhas

30. Buddhism, cont. Mahayana Buddhism The Bodhisattva Nirvana and Samsara
The Eternal Buddha
Emptiness, Sunyata
Grace v. Merit
Meditation

31. Buddhism, cont. Devotional Buddhism Some Buddhas and Bodhisattvas
Amitabha, Avalokiteshvara, Maitreya
The Threefold Body of the Buddha
The historical Buddha
Faith
The Sangha
Festivals

32. Buddhism, cont. Buddhist Ethics Compassion for suffering
Care for life, including commerce
Rejection of justice, just war.
Modern Developments
Little affected by science, democracy, capitalism
Neo-Buddhism

33. Religions of Chinese Origin
Harmony with Nature
Human Nature: Confucianism
Cosmic Nature: Taoism
Buddha Nature and Cosmic Nature: Chinese Buddhism

34. Traditional Chinese Religion
Spirit: Sacrifice offered to spirits of ancestors
by the son.
Civil religion, for the good of the community. rather than personal.
A function of the head of the community:
father, king (son of ancestors).
Nearest thing to a priesthood: the ju, the learned.

35. Traditional Chinese Religion
Shang Dynasty, BC.
Aristocracy and peasantry.
Ancestors
Spirits: kuei and shen.
Gods: the T’u Ti
the celestial administration;
once human beings.

36. Traditional Chinese Religion
Shang dynasty cont.
Ti.
Divination.
Ritual, Li.
Power, Te.

37. Traditional Chinese Religion
Chou Dynasty, BC.
Shang Ti, the high God.
Heaven, T’ien.
The Mandate of Heaven, T’ien Ming.
Virtue, Te.
Filial piety, Hsiao.
The Son of Heaven, T’ien Tzu.

38. Traditional Chinese Religion
Period of the Warring States, BC.
Calamities
Shang Ti, replaced by Heaven, T’ien.
The Five Classics:
Changes
History
Poetry
Ritual
Spring and Autumn Annals.

39. Confucianism Confucius and the Tiger
The Confucian View of Life: Human-heartedness.
K’ung Fu Tzu, BC.
Poor but well educated.
Teachings compiled by his followers.
Response to barbarization: virtue, character.
Religious ethics.

40. Confucianism, cont. The Four Books: Analects The Doctrine of the Mean
The Great Learning
Mencius
Heaven
The Goodness of Human Nature

41. Confucianism, cont. Tao, the Way Chun-tzu, the Noble Man
Ren, Human-heartedness
I, Justice
Hsiao and T’i, Filial Piety and Brotherly Love
The Five Relationships
Li, the Rules of Good Behavior

42. Confucianism, cont. Shu, Treat others as you wish to be treated.
Chung, Conscientiousness
Te, the Power of Virtue
Ho, harmony
The Mean
The Rectification of Names
Theory of Government: the Person of the Ruler

43. Confucianism, cont. The Destiny of Man Yang and Yin
Modern Developments:
Banned under Communism on Mainland
Maintained in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore
Can it foster democracy?
Can it foster free markets?

44. Taoism The Spirit of Taoism: Who knows what is ‘good’?
Harmony with Cosmic Nature.
Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu
Tao, the Way of Nature
Wu, Non-being, Emptiness
Spontaneity
Impartial, not humane

45. Taoism, cont. The Relativity of Values
Our ordinary values are conventional,
and relative to their opposites. Beauty implies ugliness.
The cosmos does not share our human values.
Wu Wei: Inactive Action.
The Man of Tao
Government should be minimal.
Taoism and the arts.

46. Taoism, cont. Other forms of Taoism:
In addition to Philosophical Taoism,
there is also Popular Taoism,
which aims to produce health, wealth and long life through rituals.

47. Chinese Buddhism The Spirit of Chinese Buddhism Paradox
The Chinese Buddhist View of Life:
Personal Religion
A Fusion of Indian Buddhism and Taoism
The place of the Tao is taken by the Buddha- nature.
Meditational and Devotional

48. Chinese Buddhism Meditational: Ch’an (Zen in Japan)
Meditation is the path to enlightenment.
The Buddha and the Lotus
Bodhidharma
Seeking the Buddha in One’s Own Heart
A Special Transmission outside the Scriptures
No Dependence on Words or Letters

49. Chinese Buddhism
Meditation: Overcoming the sense of individual identity distinct from the world.
Seeing our innermost nature as the Buddha- nature.
Sudden vs. Gradual Enlightenment
Lin Chi
Shock therapy, kung an (koan).
Tsao Tung Reason and argument

50. Chinese Buddhism Enlightenment not our doing. No objective change.
Spontaneity and the arts.
Devotional Chinese Buddhism
Far greater numbers
The Pure Land
Kuan Yin

51. Religions of Semitic Origin
Judaism, Christianity, Islam
God
Personal, all-powerful, -knowing, -good.
Creation
Revelation, in writing
Judgement

52. Israelite Religion Spirit: David, Uriah, Nathan
Origins: Unification of hill tribes.
Captivity in Egypt? Exodus?
Torah in Babylon
Ethical Monotheism
Civil religion, for this world
The Law

53. Israelite Religion God and Creation Initial henotheism
Pluralistic, not monistic
Salvific History
Beginning, middle, end
The Covenant
The Law of Moses

54. Israelite Religion The Torah Sacrifice, purification Civil law Priests
Prophets
Sin and punishment
Jeremiah: individual instead of collective responsibility

55. Israelite Religion 538 B.C.: Incorporation into the Persian Empire
Zoroastrianism
Battle between Good and Evil
Judgement, Paradise and hell, Angels
The Messiah to come
Diaspora

56. Israelite Religion
The Synagogue System
Study, prayer
The Oral Torah

57. Israelite Religion Religious Diversity
Sadducees, traditional pre-Persian beliefs
civil religion, sacrifices
Pharisees, Persian: personal religion
Scribes of both (> Rabbis)
Essenes, monastic
Imminent Messianism
Zealots

58. Rabbinic Judaism The Story of Rabbi Eisik The Revolts of 70, 135 AD.
Diaspora, Roman Citizenship
Elimination of Diversity
Christianization of the Roman Empire
Constantine, Theodosius
Changed political circumstances of the Jewish people
The Oral Law, Fences, > Talmud
Mishnah + Gemara
Enlargement of Torah

59. Rabbinic Judaism Transformation of Jewish religion End of sacrifices
End of special law enforcement
Festivals now religious
Temple replaced by Synagogue and Family
Continuities
Pharisaic conception of universal God
Traditional Faith

60. Rabbinic Judaism An Ethnic Religion The Holy Days Sabbath
Rosh Hashanah
Yom Kippur
Sukkot
Hanuka
Purim
Passover (Pesach)
Pentecost (Shavuot)

61. Rabbinic Judaism Rites of Passage Circumcision Bar Mitzvah
Shiva and Sheloshim
Kashrut
Tallit, Tefillin, Mezuzah, Kippah
The Divine Name: Yahweh and Adonai

62. Rabbinic Judaism Kabbalah Hasidism Branches of Modern Judaism Orthodox
Reformed
Conservative
Reconstructionist

63. Rabbinic Judaism Ashkenazim and Sephardim The Holocaust
The Land of Israel
Conflict with Palestinians
Jewish Ethics
Orthodox: Halakhah
Others: Socialist, “Liberal”
Neo-conservatives

64. Islam 600, 622 A.D. The Spirit of Islam: Voice of the Muezzin
Languages: Urdu, from India, and Arabic
View of Life: God, Submission, Salvation
Before Islam: polytheism, spirits, jinn
Allah the high but not only God
Christianity, Judaism
hanifs

65. Islam Mohammed 570-632 Mecca Travel to Damascus
Revelations (see Hadith)
Koran
Hegira, 622
Medina

66. Islam The Return to Mecca, 630 The Death of Mohammed, 632
Expansion of Islam into Persian, Roman Empires
The Status of Mohammed: Seal of the Prophets
Sunna (custom) and Hadith (report)

67. Islam Doctrines of Islam: One God: There is no God but Allah
Angels, jinn
Correction of text: not precisely “fallen”
Prophets and Scriptures
Islam views itself as the original religion
Resurrection and Judgement
Predestination

68. Islam Shari’ah: the Law The Five Pillars of Islam
Shahadah: confession of Faith
Salat: public prayer
Zakat: almsgiving
Sawm: fasting
Hajj: pilgrimage to Mecca

69. Islam Jihad, internal and external Polytheists: conversion or death
People of the Book, tolerated: Jews, Christians, Hindus, Zoroastrians.
Ritual Impurity
Circumcision
The Organization of Islam: Ulama

70. Islam Islam and Society: union of religion and politics
Sunni and Shiite: the problem of the succession, and so of authority. Abu Bakr v. Ali
Shiite Islam: the redemptive sacrifice of Husayn,
10th of Muharram
saviorism, philosophy
Sufism
Islamic Ethics

71. Christianity An Incident in the Temple The Christian View of Life
Two Roots
Jewish Monotheism
The Graeco-Roman world
The Humanity of God
God as Father

72. Christianity The Jewish Community in Jesus’ Time Pharisees
Universal God
Future Life
Oral Law
Sadducees
God of the Jewish People
Prosperity of the Jewish People in this life.

73. Christianity Scribes Scholars of the law
of both Pharisees and Sadducees
Essenes
A monastic movement, sort of
Common property
Zealots
Political revolutionaries, in Galilee (the north).

74. Christianity The Gentile Background The Roman Empire Judaea, Galilee
Roman Civic Religion
National, polytheistic
The Mystery Religions
Personal, Participation in the life of the God

75. Christianity Jesus of Nazareth in historical perspective
The Message of Jesus
The law of Moses must be kept
But it must be interiorized
The law exists for man, not man for the law
The Oral Law has no validity
No food is unclean
God is our Father
The law is kept fully by loving God and our fellow man

76. Christianity The Kingdom of God
Ag. the Sadducees, there is a future life for soul and body
One day Jesus will return.
The Miracles of Jesus

77. Christianity The Message of Paul Jesus is the Savior of Mankind
All men are sinners, and need redemption
The Gentiles are immoral and do not know
God
The Jews do not keep God’s law
All men suffer death, the punishment for sin

78. Christianity Jesus saves mankind from sin and death by his death
and resurrection
To become a Christian is to participate in Jesus’
death and resurrection

79. Christianity The Further Development of Christianity
Jewish v. Gentile Christians
Destruction of Jewish Christianity in 70 AD.
Some meanings of terms
“Catholic” = the whole church, as contrasted with the local church
Organization of the Christian Church

80. Christianity The Christian Bible The Hebrew Bible completed c. 100 AD
Accepted by Christians as the Old Testament
Books of New Testament settled c. 180 AD
The Church superior to the Bible
The Sacramental System
At first two, then five others
“Ex opere operato”

81. Christianity The Church as Authority The Apostolic Succession
Communion with the Church in Rome
312, Constantine, Christianity permitted
Theodosius, other religions banned

82. Christianity The Status of Jesus Divine or human?
Real body? Real death?
Doctrines of Incarnation:
Jesus is one person with two natures
and Trinity
God is one nature in three persons

83. Christianity Philosophy and Theology Evil Purgatory East v. West
The Germanic tribes

84. Christianity The Reformation Martin Luther, 1517 John Calvin (b. 1509)
Salvation by grace alone
Nature and reason are corrupt
Grace only through Christ
Salvation by faith alone

85. Christianity Certainty of salvation
Reduction of the sacramental system
The church not a divine authority
but the Bible
Virtue the consequence of being saved
Elimination of prayers for the dead.

86. Christianity The Reformation Churches Lutheran Calvinist Presbyterian
Congregationalist
Anglican
Methodist

87. Christianity The Radical Reformation Baptist
Believers only, by immersion
Separation of church and state, religious liberty
Mennonite (Brethren)
Sect v. church
Bible alone
Pacifist
Society of Friends

88. Christianity Ethics Old Testament: the Ten Commandments
New Testament: love and compassion
Catholics: Natural Law (Aquinas)
Protestants: diverse.
Bible alone;
or, Natural Law (Hooker, Locke)

89. Christianity Modern Developments Liberal Christianity
Values rather than faith
Social Justice
Equality v. No Harm

90. Comparative Analysis
Phenomenological: without value judgements, initially
Evaluational: in terms of some criterion, e.g. consequences
What are the interesting points of comparison?
That is, what are the interesting differences
and the interesting agreements?

91. Comparative Analysis Aspects of Religions: Faith, Belief, World-view
Religious Practices
Ethics, Values
Consequences:
Social existence, economics, government, family

92. Comparative Analysis
Example: Compare and contrast Buddhism and Christianity.
Theravada: Interesting Differences:
God v. No Self, Impermanence
Morality v. psychology
Just war v. pacificism
Similarities: Detachment, humility

93. Comparative Analysis Mahayana and Christianity
Differences: God v. Eternal Buddha-nature
Reality of the Phenomenal world
Similarities
Saviorist

94. Comparative Analysis