RELIGIONS

What is Religion

Hardly any period of the thoughtful life seems to have such multifarious meanings as religion . Religion is of great importance for the development of mankind and its history, as it represents the human reaction to an extrahuman holy, transcendent, and divine object. The term religion has its etymologic and historical roots in the Roman world, unlike the term faith, which has its origin in the New Testament Paulinic word pístis (Greek), or fides (Latin). The Latin noun religio originates from the verb re-legere, which has the various meanings to do sth. diligently, to do sth. again, to re-read sth., as M. T. Cicero has also uttered. The prefix re- could even be translated as to do sth. diligently again and again. That includes the careful execution of cults prescribed by law cults, which were valid only with exact observance of all these prescriptions. The Latin term religio, therefore, expresses in classical Roman culture the meticulous observance of cults and the consequent respect of man for their gods. Friedrich Heiler correctly puts the verb re-legere opposite to the verb neg-legere (to neglect).

Christianity

Christians believe that God created the world in such a way that there are laws that govern humanity's place in it. Failure to observe these moral laws can lead to pain and punishment. Christianity absorbed into its own ethic basic Old Testament instruction, including reverence for life, chastity, truthfulness, and passionate implementation of justice in the social order. But for the church, Jesus is of supreme importance for ascertaining moral standards. Moreover, Jesus seems to have heightened the demands of the Decalogue: For example, “You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:27-28). Jesus' central demand was love for neighbor—as the one who happens to be at hand rather than the kinsperson or fellow citizen—and for enemies—those who wrong us. The Apostle Paul elaborated on a related theme, nonViolence or a willingness to undergo suffering and sacrifice for the sake of reconciliation, which we find in Jesus' teaching and life: “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them…. Do not repay any person evil for bad, but take thought for what is noble in the view of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, reside peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, … Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:14-21).

Roman Catholicism has traditionally emphasized the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love, and the cardinal virtues of fortitude, justice, prudence, and temperance. Beginning in the late 1800s, Catholic social teaching recognized the right of workers to organize and called for the state to intervene when necessary to protect them or any particular class that was suffering. While liberal and mainstream Protestantism employs literary and historical criticism to understand the Bible, conservative Protestantism continues to see ...