Religion and the Church in modern society briefly. Religion in the modern world

WHAT IS RELIGION IN THE MODERN WORLD?

In any world, religion (from the Latin verb religare - “to bind”) has been and remains a form of social consciousness, inseparable from the very existence of man. Its social function is to externally structure a person's inner faith in God or gods. Faith and religion, by the way, are two different things, more on that below. There are no human communities without religion. On the different stages history, there is a loss of confidence of the masses in certain religious institutions, a temporary loss of interest in participating in rituals or worship higher powers. In this case, reforms take place, sometimes radical and even great. It also happens that some forms of ubiquitous popular religions disappear. But never to the end, because, outwardly disappearing, they actually dissolve in other religions, organized more effectively and on theoretical principles more accessible to the masses - the so-called theology. So, let's say, it happened with Mithraism and Manichaeism, the teachings of the prophet Mani, which was confessed from Europe to Siberia, Tibet and China, but was finally supplanted by Christianity, Islam and Buddhism, finally by the 17th century. None of the religions disappear without a trace, and periods of formal non-religion with the regularity of the pendulum are replaced by periods of acute religiosity. This does not change the essence of the matter: in cases of rejection of one or another religion, it is replaced by another form of religion, built on the worship of the state (this is most often), science, ideology, philosophy or pure morality (for example, Confucianism). That is, religion, abandoning its direct functions, is replaced by a religious attitude to other forms of social consciousness. I have listed some of them.

Atheism, by the way, no matter how angry the atheists and object to it, is also a form of relationship with God and to God. Atheists believe that there is no God. Therefore, atheism is also a form of religion or quasi-religion. Which doesn't make atheists "bad" or "second class."

DOES IT MAKE A PERSON BETTER OR MAKES IT HATE THE "OTHER"?

No, it doesn't do better. It's just a given, like other forms of social consciousness. Does law, morality, or science make a person better? No. Law follows legality, i.e. something external. Morality varies from nation to nation, and what was considered good in ancient Egypt or ancient Rome might not have been the norm in ancient China and may be considered bad or abnormal today. Science is designed to alleviate the conditions of human life through experimental research. physical world and greater understanding of its processes. But it does not make the person "internally" better. This can only be done by faith, and even then not by everyone. In addition, the concepts of "better" and "worse" are very relative. What is good in one culture may be considered bad in another. Another thing is that religion undoubtedly makes a person “better” in the social sense, i.e. for the state or society. A religious person who tries to implement the principles of his religion in practice is easier to manipulate, it is easier to control him and make him more obedient in the face of a state that formally professes the same religion.

But connected with this is the fact that the church hierarchy or the state, using the subordinate position of its parishioner or citizen, can easily make him hate the “other”. This is a constant phenomenon in human history, this is the main cause of wars, uprisings and other social cataclysms. Moreover, sometimes (this is usually associated with individual characteristics human nature) faith in God or in invisible forces may weaken and even disappear. But even in this case, faith never completely disappears; it is simply superseded or replaced by faith in pragmatism, i.e. the most effective means of successfully living in this world, or by believing in one or another idea that allegedly promotes life success, personal, public and state good. In this sense, we are no longer talking about a religious faith, but about a quasi-religious faith. But it is still a faith, and the followers of such a faith are just as easily manipulated and forced to hate the "other." Which is what usually happens.

IS THIS A MEANS OF SELF-IDENTIFICATION IN ORDER TO BY MISTAKE NOT KILL YOUR OWN OR SOMETHING ELSE?

Yes, in primitive societies, local tribal religions were certainly a means of self-identification in order not to mistakenly kill one's own. Moreover, the general principles of primitive and ancient religions were tied to the same archetypes of the human unconscious, but at a more archaic level. This archaism was represented by cults of unusually large stones, various groves and rivers, and especially by sexual mysticism and magic associated with the oldest of the religious ideas of mankind - the idea of ​​fertility and reproduction as the only means of preserving one's tribe, one's children, and, consequently, oneself. Let me remind you that the Slavic word "God" itself came to us through the Scythians from the Persian baha (pronounced as the Ukrainian fricative "g"), and to the Persians - from the Sanskrit bhaga (one of the names of God), which in turn came from the Sanskrit bhakti, denoting both fertility in general and the female reproductive organ in particular (vagina).

The earliest man-made works of religious art and human hands in general - menhirs - were a horizontally standing roughly processed stone. It was nothing more than a sacred image of the male reproductive organ - the phallus. They are everywhere from the Gambia to Tuva: in Europe, Africa, Asia, Siberia. Another ancient religious building, belonging to the category of megaliths (large stones) and just as common everywhere is the dolmen. These are two stones covered with a third, sometimes with an additional round hole - a symbol of the female reproductive organ, which was also placed in burial places (a symbol of the return of the soul to the mother's womb). Ancient Greek herms - stone pillars with the head and often the phallus of the god Hermes, placed along the high roads full of dangers - are also remnants of ancient phallic cults. Garden scarecrows, which are still ubiquitous today, are a memory of phalluses or statues of the phallic god Priapus in the gardens, kitchen gardens and fields of ancient Rome, which guarded the crops. Sacred lingams (phalluses) and yoni (vagina) have come down to our days from ancient times, still preserved in India.

Why am I talking about this? This is a clear illustration of the principle "so as not to kill one's own by mistake." Because what we today call obscenity or, scientifically, taboo vocabulary, has been taboo since ancient times, but not because it was considered a curse, but because it was sacred amulets. Checkmate, i.e. sacred words associated with the ancient cult of the Great Mother, protected the traveler from strangers on the high road of time, so to speak, "Conan the Barbarian". When everyone you meet could become deadly for a traveler. In a similar situation, two main amulets were used. The one who first managed to say "I had sexual relations with your mother" magically put himself in the position of the father of a stranger. Of course, he could still kill you, but by doing so, he incurred the wrath of the Goddess and became cursed. The second amulet was more primitive: by sending a stranger into three letters, the traveler magically turned him into a woman and, as it were, deprived him of his strength. Despite the fact that various tribes (not only Slavic, there are analogies among the Celts and the Germans, and in English language) had different cults, sexual magic was understood by everyone and was used strictly. These sacred formulas were turned into curses by Christianity, which declared them "pagan abominations." Today, this quality of the amulet has been preserved in the form of a peasant belief that if an evil spirit begins to “lead” you in the forests or swamps, you must constantly swear at her expense. The same amulet.

So, yes, religion is certainly one of the main means of self-identification and distinguishing “one's own” from “alien” in human society, both in the ancient world and today.

IS THIS THE DEATH MEDICINE OR A CAUSE TO KILL?

Neither one nor the other. It is not a cure for death, if you mean the belief in the immortality of the soul. The belief in the afterlife of souls, and in some cases also about the transmigration of souls, has existed since ancient times and is not so important for more modern religions - for them it is obvious. Christ taught how to live here, not what will be there. So did Moses and Muhammad. In other words, in order to believe in the immortality of the soul and the afterlife, it is absolutely not necessary to be a Christian or a Muslim. Christianity and Islam are not about that.

No religion is and cannot be a reason for murder. The reason for the murder is not religion, but religious ideology. People substitute concepts and pass off their religiously colored ideology as religion. Some do it sincerely wrong. Others - intentionally, that is, for charlatan reasons. Forcing hatred to all who disagree with them. Such a charlatan escalation of a religious ideology full of hatred and intolerance mixed with unctuousness and hypocrisy, and which at the same time passes off as religion, we see today in Putin's Russia. This is done very clumsily, because this is done by the KGB, or whatever they are called today. The names are not important, the essence is important, but the essence is the very same Cheka, the GPU and the NKVD, who organized mass executions, mass famine, mass repressions. Moscow totalitarianism has remained the same as it was and continues to educate the Russian people in its spirit in order to be able to continue to use it with impunity as cannon fodder and beast of burden. And makes great use of it. I repeat, this is done clumsily, but the Russian masses, uneducated and immature after 70 years of communism, take all this nonsense at face value. The so-called “Moscow Orthodoxy,” which today calls itself the “Moscow Patriarchate,” is not a church or a religion, but rather an ideology, a continuation of the ideology of Sergianism, which in the 1920s in Soviet Russia taught that the church must completely submit to godless power and cooperate with her. What they do. This is one of the ideologies of modern Russian Orthodoxy. In countries where Russian Orthodox churches are not under Moscow's control, this ideology does not work. For example, the ideology of Russian Orthodoxy in France and the American parishes independent of Moscow is the so-called Eulogianism, a completely liberal Orthodoxy. In their temples, by the way, rows of pews are installed, as in all Western churches. Therefore, when you get to them, you can’t believe for a long time that these are Russian churches. There are simply no such people in Russia. And if there is, they are oppressed in every possible way, sometimes they are openly persecuted.

We see the same thing with Muslim terrorism. Islam is a religion. The Quran does not teach violence. It is not Islam that teaches violence, but Islamism, the radical ideology of war against everyone, including Muslims themselves, the majority that does not support terrorists. Islamism terrorizes Muslims as much as Christians and the democratic world. Another example. The official ideology of Saudi Arabia is Wahhabism. Wahhabism opposes Islamism and terrorism, although it is also a rather intolerant and overwhelming ideology. But Wahhabism is not all Islam. And, for example, in the ideology of Shiism there are a variety of directions, both radically intolerant, and deeply humanistic and peaceful.

It was the same in the case of the terrorist war in Ulster, in Northern Ireland. It was not Catholics and Protestants who waged a war to the death, but Catholic terrorists and Protestant terrorists, both of which were deliberately financed by the USSR, just as Putin’s Russia finances Islamist terrorists today. Continuing this tradition Soviet Union and the KGB, in which in the 1960-70s, under Andropov, all types of international terrorism, acts of hijacking (this was a personal invention of the head of foreign intelligence in 1956-1971, Colonel-General of the KGB A. Sakharovsky), the Palestinian movement, Tamil movement in Sri Lanka and so on. I remember that time well, because I studied at the translation department of the "ideological" Moscow foreign language, where such plans were not even particularly hidden by party lecturers. By the way, Valeria Novodvorskaya also studied with me on a parallel course, and even then I was a member of her underground organization, along with the future professor Andrei Zubov. And we all knew perfectly well who was financing world terrorism, including religious terrorism. Which does not mean that there are few hunters in the world for this kind of business and without Moscow money. But that's what Moscow's money is for, in order to identify potential rapists and murderers "shifted in the religious phase", organize them and supply them with finances and weapons. And the goal is still the same - the destabilization of the countries of the free world. The same goal that Moscow is pursuing today on the territory of Donbass. Because Ukraine today is an obvious part of the free world. And because of this, Russia is furious with furious anger and envy, and in a rage is ready to tear itself in half, like Rumpelstiltskin from the famous fairy tale of the Brothers Grimm.

ARE THERE GOOD AND BAD RELIGIONS?

No. All religions are equally neutral. And at the same time, all religions stubbornly insisted that only they are good, and all the rest are bad. This is especially true of the Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Precisely because all three descended from Abraham, and therefore perceive each other in the framework of intense competition. But one should not think that the older religions were more tolerant. Yes, the incredible size of the Roman Empire at that time forced the Romans not only to accept the Greek gods, but also, in order to establish harmony between all citizens, constantly include the gods of the newly conquered peoples in their pantheon. But this was not always the case and not with all the gods. As you know, the Romans were very reluctant to accept the tribal god of the Jews, since the Jews claimed that he was the only true God. They treated Christians even harder, but in the end they equalized their rights. Hindus also slaughtered Muslims, and the specific Burmese Buddhism is still incredibly intolerant and cruel today.

I know that these words of mine will seem scandalous to many, but from the point of view of comparative religion, there is no difference in the sense of “bad” and “good” between, say, Christianity and the Church of Satan. Yes, Christians believe in good, and Satanists in evil. But Satanists only believe in evil from a Christian point of view. On the contrary, from the point of view of Satanists, Christians believe in evil, and they, Satanists, believe in good. Both of them have their own moral principles, and the morality of Satanists (their commandments can be easily found on the Internet in any language) is undoubtedly quite reasonable in its own way, imbued with common sense and high human dignity. As long as certain churches and religions do not become sharply asocial, that is, they do not begin to cause damage to others through violation of the criminal code, all religions are the same and have the same rights to free coexistence. And antisocial actions (including calls for mass suicide of their followers) can be committed not only by the “Temple of the Peoples”, as in Guiana in 1978, or “Aum Shinrikyo” based on peaceful Buddhism in Japan, or “Santeria” in Mexico (see below). Sara Aldrete) but also Christian groups like the Branch Davidians in 1993 in Texas.

IS THERE A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RELIGION AND BELIEF?

There is a difference and it is very big. These are two different phenomena and concepts. Faith is an inner feeling of confidence, and confidence by no means in the existence of higher invisible spiritual forces. Their existence for a person of faith is obvious and an axiom that does not require proof. Faith is trust in higher invisible spiritual forces. These higher powers or higher powers can be perceived as individuals. Others perceive it as an archetype and as the energy of being, with which one can and should come into contact and harmony, into appropriate relationships in order to live life correctly and with the greatest dedication and self-disclosure. Since human consciousness and especially the unconscious sphere are built on archetypes - innate primary mental structures, images and symbols common to all people (there is even the concept of "collective unconscious"), then the inner experience of faith different people, despite the uniqueness and originality of each individual, is usually built on similar elements of consciousness and emotions - what we refer to the sphere of the soul or, which is the same thing, to the psyche. Therefore, people are able to share their faith. The accumulation of experience of faith in the soul gradually transfers it to a higher sphere, which in many religions is called spiritual. The spiritual sphere is no longer emotions, this sphere includes the human will and morality (rules of behavior in a team), to the fulfillment of which this will is directed. As well as common sense - the ability of the mind to control emotions and will.

Religion is the outward expression of an inner individual faith, which includes the observance of the principles that organize our lives in such a way that allow us to most effectively enter into contact or harmony with higher forces. Since people are able to share their faith with each other, religion is no longer an internal state, like faith, but a social phenomenon. It combines the theoretical principles of this faith and rituals that ensure and symbolize entry into contact with a higher power (s). Therefore, religion is one of the forms of social consciousness, namely, one that is conditioned by belief in the supernatural (as a rule). Religion should not be confused with other forms of social consciousness - mythology, ideology, philosophy, morality, law, science, art, economics. These forms may be closely related to religion, but they are completely independent of it. That is why contradictions between science and religion occurred only when religious views were presented as science, as Galileo's opponents did. There is no contradiction between pure science and pure religion. They just talk about different things. As for creationism as opposed to evolutionism, this is not a religion, but a religious ideology. There are many.

A person can have faith but not be religious. For example, he chooses not to attend worship services or refuses to express his faith in public, considering his faith a private matter. In the same way, a person may not have faith, but be religious. He participates in divine services, in rituals, because it is easier on his soul when the “consolation” is structured, organized, it can be touched. A person has died, and people go to special services in churches, synagogues, mosques, Buddhist temples, where someone reads prayers for them for the deceased. After that, people consider that they have fulfilled their duty, especially when they arrange additional commemorations on the third, ninth and fortieth day after death, even if they do not go to the temple. Or a person goes to take an exam, is sad about the person who left, wants to help his or someone else's recovery. Such people put candles in the appropriate places of the temple, order prayers. It makes them feel better about it. But all these actions of a huge mass of formal followers of various religions remain external. There is no real faith in the soul, but external actions allow you to create a spiritual mood. This is also normal, it has always been and always will be.

State educational institution

professional education

Regional state institution

Vocational School No. 15

Overview lecture on the topic: “The role of religion in modern society.»

History teacher

Strezhevoy

"The Role of Religion in Modern Society"

Introduction

1. The origin of religion, its early forms

2. World religions

3. Religion in modern world.

Conclusion

Bibliography

Introduction

Religion is an integral part of the modern world, since it performs three blocks of social functions. Firstly, religious institutions carry out the spiritual formation of believers, which is manifested in the organization of the "man-God" connection, in the education of religiosity and citizenship, in the saturation of a person with good and the removal of evil and sins. Secondly, religious organizations are engaged in religious and special secular education, mercy and charity. Thirdly, representatives of churches are actively involved in social activities contribute to the normalization of political, economic and cultural processes, interethnic and interstate relations, the solution global problems civilization.

This is especially necessary in our multiethnic country, where believers belonging to different faiths and atheists coexist. For a prosperous and peaceful life in such conditions, tolerance to any points of view, mutual respect for people of any views and beliefs is necessary. Religion is a system of established beliefs. In order to respect any form of religion, it is necessary to know religious traditions, otherwise, out of ignorance, reluctantly, one can hurt the religious feelings of people living nearby. For self-respect and the preservation of cultural traditions, one should know the historical and religious foundations of culture and one's people.

Often, religious slogans are used by various kinds of extremists who actually pursue far from religious goals. To separate the tares from the grains, it is also necessary to know not only the basic religious postulates, but also how they arose and, in connection with what, were transformed.

The topic is especially relevant in our time, as the role of religion in modern society is increasing. The role of religion is felt not only in political life state, but in the economy and sports. There is not a single area where the influence of the church is not felt. For example, at the state level, the issue of introducing a new subject “Orthodox culture” in Russian schools is being resolved, and there is a position of an army priest in the army. It is not necessary to profess any religion, the main thing is to know about it. It is religion that is the lifeline that will lead our country out of lack of spirituality, aggressiveness towards each other on the path of mercy and tolerance.

1. The origin of religion, its early forms

Before talking about the role of religion in modern society, it is necessary to remember what religion is and how it came about. The word "religion" is derived from the Latin "religio" - "piety, piety, shrine." It is believed that the first religious beliefs appeared during the formation of the tribal system. Since mankind arose earlier, scientists found it possible to assume that religiosity is not a natural state of man. In order for it to arise religious outlook, a certain level of development of human thinking is necessary - abstract thinking. Religious thinking thus arises simultaneously with the abstract.

The main feature of the religious worldview of the people of the early primitive community was that they did not distinguish themselves from the environment. Human properties were attributed to nature, and properties of nature were attributed to people. This affected all early types of religious ideas. The early forms of religion include magic, fetishism, totemism, animism.

The emergence of magic, scientists attribute to the era of the Stone Age. Magic rituals probably already existed among the Neanderthals, who lived 80-50 thousand years ago. In magic, the supernatural has not yet separated from the natural. Magical beliefs implied belief in a supernatural (i.e., illusory) connection between real phenomena or objects.

The term "magic" comes from the Greek word for "witchcraft". There are many types of magic (malicious, industrial, medical, educational, etc.). Magic has survived to this day as an element of modern religions and in an independent form (for example, fortune telling on cards).

Modern people often perform magical acts without even knowing it - for example, when women use gold jewelry. Gold, according to the ideas of the ancients, has a magical power that gives longevity and immortality. Gold has long been perceived as precious metal as an attribute of the gods.

Magical thinking is based on the law of similarity and the law of contact. The law of similarity means that like produces like. The law of contact means that things once touched continue to interact at a distance after the end of direct contact.

In those days when the main occupation of people was hunting, there was a belief in the supernatural relationship of human groups with animals (less often with plants) - totemism (from the Indian words "totem" - "his kind"). The genus bore the name of its totem; relatives believed that they were related to the totemic ancestor. The totem was not worshiped, but considered its progenitor helping its descendants. The latter, for their part, were not supposed to kill the totem beast, harm it, eat its meat, etc.

Totemism could take other forms. For example, there were personal totems. Totemism in the form of various rituals entered into modern religions. Thus, believing Christians, under the guise of bread and wine, eat the body and drink the blood of God; Christ is identified with the lamb, the Holy Spirit with the dove.

Fetishism (from the Portuguese "fetico" - "enchanted thing, idol, talisman") is the worship of inanimate objects endowed with supernatural properties. Among the ancient Germans, the role of a fetish was performed by spruce, among Christians - the cross and relics. A cave that saved people or a mining spear could become a fetish.

Already the earliest types of religion contained the beginnings of not only fantastic ideas - faith, but also sacred rites - cult practice, which usually constituted a secret, protected from the uninitiated. With the development of beliefs and the complication of the cult, its administration required certain knowledge and experience. Religious rituals began to be performed by specially trained people.

The evolution of primitive beliefs led to the fact that the supernatural in the minds of people separated from the natural and turned into an independent (non-material) entity. It is the illusory doubling of the world, the recognition, along with the natural and social existence of the existence of the other world, that constitutes the essence of religious consciousness.

Gradually, a belief in spirits and souls arose - animism. Special people also appeared - shamans (from the Evenki word meaning "frantic"), whose social function was to communicate with spirits.

Animistic beliefs are associated with the animation of nature. The beginnings of them were already in the early primitive communities. Tasmanians, Australians and other tribes of hunters, fishermen and gatherers had vague ideas about the souls of dead people, about evil and good spirits, usually thought of as physically tangible beings. The later transformation of animism is represented by spiritualism, that is, communication with the dead.

There are many religions in the world, many variants of their classifications. If the classification is based on the social conditions of the functioning of religions, then the following types of religions can be distinguished:

Tribal religions that arose in primitive society;

National religions that developed within a particular nation, for example, Confucianism in China or Shintonism in Japan;

world religions.

2. World religions

Religion is a specific form of reflection of reality. It still remains a significant force in the world. Religious worldview in the form of three world religions is widespread in different countries of the world.

World religions include Buddhism, Christianity and Islam. Let's consider each of them separately.

Buddhism is the most ancient world religion. This religion arose in the VI - U centuries. BC e. in India. It is currently distributed in Burma, Vietnam, China, Japan and Korea.

Tradition connects the emergence of Buddhism with the name of Prince Siddhartha (Gautama), who was called the Buddha, which means "enlightened with knowledge." Gautama lived in luxury, married his beloved woman, who bore him a son. The impetus for a spiritual upheaval for the prince, as the legend says, was three meetings. Gautama caught the eye of a decrepit old man, then a severely suffering patient, and, finally, he watched how they carried the dead man to be buried. This is how Gautama first came to know old age, sickness and death - the destiny of all people. The prince secretly left the palace and family. At twenty-nine he became a hermit and died at the age of eight and ten on the day of his birth.

1. Identification of life with suffering. Life is suffering, the cause of which is the desires and passions of people. To get rid of suffering, it is necessary to renounce earthly passions and desires. This can be achieved by following the path of salvation indicated by the Buddha.

2. After death, any living being, including man, is reborn again, but in the body of a new being, whose life is determined not only by his own behavior, but also by the behavior of his "predecessors".

H. Striving for nirvana, that is, for a higher being, which is achieved by renunciation of earthly attachments.

Unlike Christianity and Islam, Buddhism lacks the idea of ​​God as the creator of the world and its ruler.

The set of sacred books of the Buddhist religion is called the Tipitaka, which means "Three Baskets". A written exposition of Buddhist teachings was compiled by the monks of the island of Ceylon in 80 BC. e.

Christianity

Christianity arose in the tenth century. BC e. in the eastern part of the Roman Empire - in Palestine. The Christian religion is a religion addressed to all peoples. It is based on the ideas of messianism, associated with hopes for a divine deliverer, and eschatology, that is, belief in a supernatural end. existing world. The name Christ is a translation into Greek of the Jewish religious term "messiah" - "anointed one, savior of people."

Christianity absorbed the ideas and ideas of a number of other religions, primarily Judaism, from which it borrowed several basic ideas (which underwent a certain transformation).

1. The idea of ​​monotheism, i.e., the recognition of one God who created the world and governs it. In Christianity, this idea is weakened by the doctrine of the Divine Trinity (God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit).

2. The idea of ​​messianism, the idea of ​​a divine messenger called to save people. Christianity develops the doctrine of the salvation of all people (and not just the Jewish people) through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

H. The idea of ​​eschatology is the idea of ​​the death of the existing world as a result of Divine intervention. In Christianity, this idea is associated with the belief in the second coming of Christ, which is borrowed from the ideological views of the Qumran community - the Jewish religious sect. Members of this sect believed that the Messiah was by nature a man whose first coming had already taken place and the second was expected. The purpose of the first advent is to bring the true religion to people and to atone for their sins. The Second Coming means the end of the world, the end of life on Earth, the resurrection of the dead and the Last Judgment.

The main tenets of the Christian faith:

1. The dogma of the Trinity. One God exists in three persons. All persons exist forever, but the Holy Spirit comes from God the Father (or, as Catholics believe, from the Father and the Son). One God in three persons is an image incomprehensible to the human mind.

2. The basis of Christianity is faith in the Savior - Jesus Christ. The second person of the Trinity, God the Son, is Jesus Christ. He has two natures at the same time (Divine and human).

3. The third dogma is connected with the belief in the afterlife.

4. Recognition of the existence of supernatural beings, such as angels - incorporeal good spirits, evil spirits, demons, and their master - Satan.

The holy book of Christians is the Bible. The origin of this word is often associated with the name of the city of Byblos, where papyrus was sold and where, perhaps, alphabetic writing was first used. The material for writing was called in Greek "biblio" - a book. Literally translated from Greek, "Bible" means "books".

The Bible consists of two parts: the Old Testament (39 books) and New Testament(27 books). The first books of the Bible were called by the Jews the Torah (Law); these books are also called the Pentateuch of Moses (it includes the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Deuteronomy).

The Old Testament is the oldest part of the Bible, the sacred books of Judaism. The New Testament, actually Christian works, includes four Gospels (the story of the life of Jesus Christ, the Gospel of the Savior), the Acts of the Holy Apostles, the Epistles and, or the Apocalypse. The Apocalypse is dated 68 AD. e.

Already in the 4th century, Emperor Constantine declared Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire. Now Christianity is not a single religious direction. It breaks up into many streams. In 1054 Christianity was divided into the Western, or Roman Catholic (the word "catholic" means "universal"), the Church, and the Eastern, Orthodox Church. In the 17th century In Europe, the Reformation began - an anti-Catholic movement. As a result, the third main direction of Christianity appeared - Protestantism.

Both Orthodoxy and Catholicism recognize seven Christian sacraments: baptism, understanding of the world, repentance, communion, marriage, priesthood and unction. The source of the doctrine of Western and Eastern Christians is the Bible. The differences consist mainly in the following: in Orthodoxy there is no single head of the church, there are no ideas about purgatory; Western and Eastern Christians unequally accept the dogma of the Trinity.

Catholics consider purgatory as a place of temporary afterlife for souls, who then go to hell, go to heaven. At the head of the Catholic Church is the Pope (from the Greek "papas" - "ancestor, oldest, grandfather on the father's side"). The pope is elected for life. The center of the Roman Catholic Church is the Vatican - a state that occupies several city blocks in Rome.

There are three main branches of Protestantism: Anglicanism, Calvinism and Lutheranism. Protestants consider that the condition for the salvation of a Christian is not the formal observance of rituals, but his personal atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. During the Reformation, the Protestants proclaimed the principle of universal priesthood, which means that every layman can preach. Protestants are characterized by asceticism in rituals, for example, the number of sacraments is reduced to two.

Islam originated in the 7th century. n. e. among the Arabs of the Arabian Peninsula. It is the youngest religion in the world. The followers of Islam, Muslims, live mainly in Africa and Asia (the word "Islam" is translated as "submission"; the word "Muslim" comes from the Arabic "Muslim" - "faithful"). The founder of Islam, Muhammad, is a historical figure. He was born around 570. in Mecca. Mecca was a major city at the crossroads of trade routes (Muhammad was engaged in trade in his youth). In Mecca there was a shrine revered by most tribes - the pagan temple of the Kaaba.

Muhammad was orphaned early. His father died a month after the birth of his son. His mother died when Muhammad was six years old. Muhammad was brought up in the family of his grandfather, a noble family, but impoverished. At the age of 25, he entered the service of a wealthy Meccan widow and soon married her. At the age of 40, around 610, Muhammad appeared as a religious preacher. He declared that God (Allah) chose him as his prophet. The ruling elite of Mecca did not like the sermon, and in 622 Muhammad had to. move to the city of Yathrib, later renamed Medina. The year 622 is considered the beginning of the Muslim chronology, and Mecca is the center of the Muslim religion.

The basis of Muslim doctrine, the Qur'an (literally "recitation"), is a processed record of the sayings of Muhammad. During the lifetime of Muhammad, his statements were perceived as the direct speech of Allah and were transmitted orally. It wasn't until two decades after Muhammad's death that they were written down and compiled the Qur'an. The book consists of 114 chapters.

In the doctrine of Muslims, the Sunnah - a collection of instructive stories about the life of Muhammad - and Sharia - a set of principles and rules of conduct that are mandatory for a Muslim (the word "Sharia" is translated as "the right way") play an important role. The most serious sins among Muslims are usury, drunkenness, gambling games and adultery.

Muslim places of worship are called mosques. Islam forbids depicting humans and animals, so mosques are decorated with various ornaments.

In Islam there is no clear and strict division into clergy and laity. Any Muslim who knows the Qur'an, Islamic laws (Sharia) and the rules of worship can become a mullah (priest). The cult of Islam is simple. A Muslim must fulfill five basic requirements:

1. Pronouncing the formula of the confession of Faith - "There is no god but Allah, and Mohammed is his prophet."

2. Performing the obligatory fivefold prayer (prayer).

3. Fasting in the month of Ramadan. During this month, one should not eat or drink from sunrise to sunset.

4. Distribution of alms to the poor.

5. Making a pilgrimage to Mecca.

3. Religion in the modern world.

So, religion is a worldview, attitude and the behavior of people determined by them based on belief in the existence of a supernatural sphere. This is the desire of man and society for a direct connection with the absolute, the universal foundation of the world (God, the gods, the unconditional center of everything that exists, the substance, the main shrine).

The position of religion in modern society is quite contradictory and it is simply impossible to assess its role, possibilities and prospects in any unambiguous way. It can definitely be said that the development of the secularization of public consciousness is a characteristic and natural process for modernity. However, secularization determines the general trend, which does not exclude the possible strengthening of the positions of religion under the influence of factors that are favorable for it.

Religion, due to its universal nature (it applies to all manifestations of people's lives and gives them its own assessment), the obligatory nature of its requirements for the fulfillment of basic moral and legislative norms, psychological insight and vast historical experience is integral part culture.

In history, religion has always coexisted with secular elements of culture, and in certain cases opposed them.

At present, a fairly stable historical balance is emerging between the main religions of each country, on the one hand, and the secular sector of culture, on the other. Moreover, in a number of countries the secular sector occupies a significant position.

After a long period of atheistic propaganda and the forcible exclusion of religion from the public sphere during the dominance of the Bolshevik ideology in modern Russia there is a process of restoring the positions of traditional religions (Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and believers who are able to more or less systematically avoid direct analogies with earthly events, experiences and circumstances in their reasoning about the deity. Nevertheless, in any religion, even the most refined (i.e., e. purified), the image of God always has the seal of the earthly conditions that gave birth to and nourish it. This is also indicated by the personal characteristics of God (holiness, mercy, justice, etc.) in various religious systems. About a thousand such characteristics of Allah are contained in Islam; in Judaism God is presented as inaccessible and requiring sacrifice; in Christianity, God appears as the Father for all those who believe in him.

Another feature of religion is the system of religious rites, rituals, actions - cults (reverence), unfolding on the basis of ideas and ideas about God (deities). Such are sacrifices, ceremonies, various mysteries in world (Christianity, Buddhism, Islam) and many national religions (Judaism, Confucianism, Shintoism, etc.). They follow each other in accordance with the order and sequence provided for by the respective church-religious calendars. Center for religious worship - a temple, a prayer house with a set of various religious accessories (icons, crucifixes, frescoes or wall painting with biblical stories, etc.).

Another feature of religion is the direct emotional experience by the believer of the events of myths and cult actions. This experience is due to the fact that religion refracts and reflects the most important events of human existence: the secrets of birth and death, the self-awareness of the child, the entry of a young man and a girl into an independent life, marriage, the appearance of offspring, etc.

Finally, most religions of the modern world have a special organization - a church with a clear distribution of responsibilities at each level of its hierarchy (structure). For example, in Catholicism and Orthodoxy, these are the laity, the white clergy, the black clergy (monks), the episcopate, the metropolis, the patriarchy, etc.

The huge influence of religion on the life of society is due to the fact that its structures are present in one way or another in all the most important historical events and events in the private life of citizens. Therefore, it had a noticeable impact on the sphere of public morality, especially in those conditions when it was the dominant spiritual and organizing force of society.

Conclusion

The conclusion is as follows. Science is both a powerful creative and destructive tool in the hands of educated humanity. We are able to direct this instrument for good only if we retain in ourselves a sense of direct participation in the world, the cosmos and that high reality that man calls Divinity. Science and religion are two scales, and for the balance of forces in this world, their balance is necessary as a unity of knowledge and faith, without which the cultural development of mankind is unthinkable.

With the help of religious symbolism, the experience gained by mankind is built into the deep worldview layers, forming a religious worldview in its integrity and inclusiveness. Like science, religion can be understood as a symbolic model of the world, generalizing and, according to certain principles, ordering the entire experience of man's relationship to nature and the cosmos, to himself and all of humanity.

Religion intertwines, sometimes bizarrely, the components of general humanistic, formational, civilizational, class, ethnic, global and local. In specific situations, one or the other comes to the fore: religious leaders, thinkers, groups may express these tendencies by no means in the same way. All this is directly connected with socio-political orientations; history shows that in religious organizations there were and are different positions: progressive, conservative, regressive. Moreover, this group and its representatives do not always strictly adhere to any particular one. In modern conditions, the significance of the activity of any institutions, groups, parties, leaders, including religious ones, is determined, first of all, by the extent to which it serves to affirm general humanistic values.

As N. Bor wittily remarked, “humanity has made two greatest discoveries, one - that God exists, the second - that there is no God. And, perhaps, it is not so important which of these points of view each of us adheres to in his self-determination in the world, but it is important to find the road that will lead us to the Temple.

Bibliography:

1. “Religious Studies” M. “Aspect Press”, 1994

2. Garage. M., 1995

3. "History of Religions" M. "Thought", 1975

4. "Religion and modernity" M. Publishing house of political literature, 1982

5. , “Sociology” M. “Center”, 1997

6. Tokarev in the history of the peoples of the world. M., 1986

7. Eliade M. Space and history. M., 1987

It is generally accepted that religion at different stages of the history of mankind, it played a significant role in the socio-political structure of the state, gradually leveling into the industrial and post-industrial eras. The influence of religion in the modern world is based on certain norms, in different cultures they are different and have (or hinder) a different impact on the development of society.

One of these "functions" of religion is to justify social inequality. In principle, in all world religions (including national ones) there is an idea of ​​personal salvation, punishment and encouragement, which distracted the population from the problems of everyday life. For example, in Christianity, the concept of hell and heaven serves as an incentive for an honest lifestyle that encourages the rejection of excessive material goods. Hinduism determines the caste structure of Indian society, and without the possibility of changing it. The ban on alcohol and gambling in Islam and a kind of "directive" to war with other religions. Abstinence from passions in Buddhism. Judaism, on the contrary, to a certain extent stands apart from other religions, without making any prohibitions on achieving socio-economic and political goals.

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A post-factum look at the influence of religions allows us to state that Christianity (especially the Protestant branch) achieved the greatest success, which had an overall positive effect on the intensity of the socio-economic and political development Europe. Buddhism and Islam, from this point of view, can be recognized as religions that have achieved much less achievements, primarily in material terms. History knows at least one case when religion became an important mechanism economic development. England is a classic example of this development. It was Protestantism that created the prerequisites for the formation of elements of democracy and capitalism: civil society, entrepreneurship, private property, separation of powers. One of the well-known studies of this phenomenon is the work of Max Weber "The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism", which analyzes countries (USA, England, Germany) with a Protestant population. As a result, Weber concludes that the economic upswing is determined precisely by the presence of Protestantism.

Of course, it is worth recognizing that in the modern world religion no longer plays the role that it played, for example, in the times of Antiquity or the Middle Ages ( Crusades, confrontation between Catholics and Protestants, jihad), being, however, more often than not just a pretext for war. In many ways, this situation is true for Western countries, where the church does not encroach on political power. A different situation is observed in the countries of the East, where religion, albeit to varying degrees, but has an impact on the life of society: from Islamic fundamentalism in the Middle East, which directly determines the nature of the political process, to religious India and China, where religion permeates the life of society, affecting politics.
Why does religion still play an important role in some states, while in others it occupies a secondary position? The civilizational division or, in the terminology of Samuel Huntington, the “clash of civilizations” takes place against the background of the export of Islam to Europe, the connection of the problems of the world community (terrorism) with radicalization political regimes countries of the Middle East. However, two countries are of the greatest interest - India and China. Both of them are the most populated with a low standard of living. Jared Diamond notes that, despite its technological advantage over the rest of the world, China remained an object of expansion until the 20th century. Not least because of the significant influence on politics of Confucianism, which formed a passive type of social outlook. India with a passive-contemplative religion, the division of society into castes also remained (backward by the standards of European states) until the 20th century an agrarian colony.

Thus, the role of religion in the modern world is not unequivocally reduced, but rather modified in an implicit form. On the surface, religion ceases to fulfill the function of strengthening interstate relations, with the exception of Muslim countries. Traditional religion has competitors in the face of sects, various subcultures, which in modern conditions continue to perform the function of an alternative vision of phenomena lost by traditional religion. In the internal cut - the role of religion is to form a certain perception of the world - the mentality, which determines the holistic vision of the world.

Practice shows that the religious component, forming one or another type of mentality, mindset at a certain historical moment leads to the transformation of the existing order. Such changes occur in a combination of elements necessary for a qualitative transition. For example, the economic rise of China, in principle, is not compatible with the ideas of Confucianism, but the fact remains. Another example is India, with a similar type of religion, is also a fast growing economy.

An interesting and unique historical example is Russia, the development of which demonstrates the dual influence of religion on society and the state. To date, Russia is the only country of a sovereign nature that officially professes the Orthodox branch of Christianity. This allows us to consider Russia in terms of comparison with European civilization, mainly Protestantism. Such a comparison is akin to correlating Protestantism with Catholicism or any other religion, that is, it will be in favor of Protestantism. Under the influence of Orthodoxy, and then geographical expansion, a mentality was formed that united Western and Eastern types of cultures. Interestingly, the philosopher Nikolai Berdyaev also defined the psychological type of the Russian people as oriental.

In our opinion, it was precisely the traits of a national character similar to the Eastern mentality (paternalistic worldview) that allowed Russia to remain an independent state, despite the fact that until the Revolution of 1917 it remained a predominantly agrarian country.

Western civilization today demonstrates a crisis of development. A sharp breakthrough associated with the strengthening of scientism, rationalism, and manufacturability was short-term. There has been a castling of the subjects of the world order - the place of developed states is occupied by yesterday's developing countries. In Western countries, there is a scientific revolution, a decrease in the role of religion. This process has continued up to the present century. AT global scale the activity of European civilization declined against the backdrop of the rise of non-Western societies (including Russia to a certain extent).

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Abstract on the topic:

Religion in the modern world.

ATconducting

Religion is an integral part of the modern world, since it performs three blocks of social functions. Firstly, religious institutions carry out the spiritual formation of believers, which is manifested in the organization of the "man-God" connection, in the education of religiosity and citizenship, in the saturation of a person with good and the removal of evil and sins. Secondly, religious organizations are engaged in religious and special secular education, mercy and charity. Thirdly, representatives of churches actively participate in social activities, contribute to the normalization of political, economic and cultural processes, interethnic and interstate relations, and the solution of global problems of civilization.

The current perception of the cultural situation as a break forces us to reconsider the old research dogmas. The point is that the actual syncretism of religious and cultural spheres, which has long been inherent in them, should be considered as a significant fact not only in distant epochs, but also in modern phenomena, as well as in culture as a whole.

Seemingly relic, sometimes very hidden, religious background for identification and analysis needs a very sophisticated culturological toolkit, enriched with the history of religions and understanding of the knowledge accumulated by them.

The reversal of ideals and behavioral norms in modern culture in comparison with the previous one to some extent corresponds to the craving for reformism in traditional religion, the radicalization of inter-confessional and intra-confessional contradictions, the active search for heretics, all kinds of enemies of the true faith, etc. The information boom corresponds to a sharp increase in missionary work and preaching using all means of information transmission.

1 . Scientific view of religion

A kind of key to understanding the role of religion in the ongoing processes is a free from extremes, scientific understanding of this phenomenon. The concept of "religion" comes from the Latin "religare", which means "to bind, connect, unite." Religion is a person's idea of ​​universal world connections, expressed through specific behavior. Consequently, religious doctrine is nothing else than a systematized representation of a person about universal world connections.

There are world and folk-national religions. Religious scholars include Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam as world religions, i.e., such religions that are supranational in nature and develop outside the specifics of the mono-national self-consciousness of a certain ethnic group. The formation of folk-national religions - Judaism, Confucianism, Shintoism, etc. - is possible only on the basis of a mono-ethnic community (no more than 10-15 percent of foreigners) due to the presence in public consciousness given ethnic group of people of national exclusivity.

Developed religions form religious systems with the following structure: 1 - faith in God; 2 - dogmatic theology; 3 - moral theology and the corresponding moral imperative of behavior; 4 - historical theology; 5 - system of cult (ritual) practice; 6 - the presence of churches (mosques, prayer houses, etc.), preachers, ministers.

Dogmatic theology deals with the systematic presentation of religious views, as well as the interpretation of religious dogmas. Dogmas (from the Greek verb "to think, believe, believe") are undoubtedly true and indisputable principles about God and man, which constitute a symbol of faith in every religion. Features dogmas: 1) speculation or contemplation: they are comprehended by faith and do not require rational proof; 2) revelation of God. dogmas are given to man directly by God, therefore they are sincere, indisputable and unchanging, once and forever recorded in the sacred writings; 3) ecclesiastical dogmas are recognized by all churches of a given religious system, it is the churches that preserve and interpret dogmas as divine revelation, convince believers of their immutability and truth, 4) general obligatory for all members of the church, all believers must unconditionally believe in the truth of dogmas and must be guided by them in life, otherwise excommunication from the church follows.

The main differences between religious systems are the features of the perception of God (God is, as it were, “dissolved” in Buddhism, trinity in Christianity, one in Islam, etc.). Each of the religions dogmatically solves its own important problem. There are also differences in historical theology (i.e.) interpretation of history universal church and specific churches), in the system of cult or ritual practice, are manifested in the activities of priests and laity.

So, the difference in the understanding of God and his ways of communicating with a person leads to the functioning of various religious systems, characterized by specific religious practices and independent religious associations. At the same time, religions have been and remain the spiritual core of the development of earthly civilization.

Is there a decline in religion?

Is religion losing its former significance, its influence on society? Modern man, having mastered the scientific methods of consciousness, no longer sees the need to turn to God to explain the world. In the past, the weakness of man as an acting being gave rise to and supported faith in the "almighty" God - the compensator of human impotence, but now people have learned to overcome their weakness, they are becoming more and more confident masters of the world around them and themselves. There is an opinion that the God proposed by traditional religion has now been overcome and discarded as a natural-science, political, moral and philosophical hypothesis.

We can agree that the traditional faith and the usual image of God as a miracle worker and deliverer have largely lost their former meaning and degree of influence. According to some estimates, under the influence of science and the development of education, the proportion of people who believe in God in his traditional form - "God the Father", "God as a person", etc. has decreased over the past three centuries, since 1700 by one third, although this data is, in principle, controversial. As some studies show, many believers today believe in God as they themselves understand him, and this understanding often diverges from what the church teaches: God is presented as a kind of embodiment of goodness, a reasonable principle, etc., that is, as a kind of abstract principle, not necessarily supernatural, often impersonal.

But such data only record the decline of traditional religion. They can talk about the fact that the sources that previously fed it are drying up. But they by no means rule out that new ones may appear and that the religious need itself, capable of nourishing religious creativity in some renewed forms, may remain urgently needed.

In the political sphere, religion was supplanted, first of all, by the development of the modern state - secular, separated from the state. In the 20th century, especially in its first half, transformations in many countries proceeded under anti-religious slogans (Russia, Turkey, China, etc.). After the First World War, religion suffered very tangible, but still temporary losses. Religion managed already in the second half of the twentieth century. strengthen their positions by joining the movement for national liberation and revival in many regions (India, Israel, the Arab world, etc.) Religious organizations have become increasingly involved in activities aimed at resolving the most pressing problems of our time (ecology, apartheid, anti-war movement, etc.).

How far can religion go on the path of seeking agreement with the world, on the path of compromise?

All questions concerning the future of religion come down to the fact that society is becoming more complex, people's lives are changing in something significant, and they are striving for new spiritual values, including understanding the meaning of religion. Religious consciousness manifests itself in new, often unexpected and unusual forms. Important is the growing conviction that it is impossible to draw a radical division between the sacred and the secular, the sacred and the secular, if we are to understand today's gods. It is also important to understand that the emergence of highly organized religions with bureaucratic structures, occupying a dominant position in society at one stage of history or another and at the same time acting with universalistic claims, is rather not a rule, but a special type, a historical accident, an exception.

First of all, as a spiritual and moral force, and not as a state authority or a church-organized institution, religion today has received the opportunity to enter into a dialogue with the world, the fate of which is now so dependent on the moral viability of the human community in the face of the sometimes global challenges facing it. , problems of various kinds. This dialogue is made possible by the fact that, at the core, the cultural values ​​shared by most modern religions are such universal human values ​​as love, peace, hope, and justice. However, on this general basis, the political, social and cultural orientation of specific religions turns out to be dependent on specific circumstances, which are very different.

There is such a fairly noticeable factor as religiously motivated activity aimed at rebuilding society, eradicating social evil and injustice. The loss of confidence in various social projects and secular utopias makes many today turn to the idea of ​​a Christian civilization or a Muslim state, a religious-national revival.

The currently observed growth of interest in irrationalism, craving for occult phenomena, Eastern meditation, astrology, divination, etc., is symptomatic. These phenomena are closer to what is commonly called magic, and it is traditionally separated from religion. However, there is also a phenomenon of a more general order here - a protest against the growing rationalization and bureaucratization of modern society, in which a person turns out to be an appendage of the machine, disappointment in the consequences of scientific and technological civilization, disappointment, which is often associated with a craving for the irrational and an orientation towards what lies behind, lost " golden age".

Religious restoration often cultivates the spirit of religious exclusivity and intolerance, a religiosity that is "closed" to the uninitiated and is the property of the elect and the faithful. The basis of claims to exclusivity is the belief in the monopoly possession of the truth.

In the religious consciousness today there is, and quite widely, the opposite trend, the type of religiosity, which can be characterized as "open" - open to contacts with other religions, interreligious dialogue, and even with such a phenomenon as humanism. This trend is represented in Russian religious thought at the beginning of the century, which put forward a program of religious revival and renewal, in modern Catholic and Protestant thought, which found religious meaning in the humanistic aspiration to help a person be a person, gain a sense of solidarity with other people and share responsibility for their fate. This trend - the religious discovery of humanism - is deeply consonant with the spirit of the time of the birth of "planetary consciousness", the ethics of universal human solidarity, overcoming those traditions that divide and oppose people.

Renewal of religion in the modern world is possible only on the path of gaining a new religious experience, human experience in a person. Such religious experience today has a serious social basis, namely the formation of human society on a global scale. The life of all people on Earth today is connected into a single whole by a common technical base, new means of communication and transport links, an intercontinental network of scientific and information links, trade and industry, common threats that call into question the very further existence of mankind, a common destiny. Today, people living on our planet have common problems, and they are equally looking for ways to solve them. They can solve many of these problems only together, only by finding the possibility of uniting. But this is not an easy problem. The explosion of ethnic self-consciousness in our days testifies to a living fear of leveling tendencies, fears of losing identity, national traditions. This is one of the factors opposing the development of the world community and, at the same time, an indicator of how necessary the spirit of solidarity and cooperation is today. social basis renewal of religious experience can serve today and such a trend, which is expressed in the creation of "small groups" and which may also be associated with the prospect of the continuation of the existence of religion in a changing world. Unlike the sectarian movements typical of the past, this movement is aimed at establishing contacts between people, not separating them, but awakening the consciousness of community, solidarity.

2. The Moral and Humanistic Role of Religion

Faith today is not only one of the windows to the world, but the synthesis and union of religion and philosophy, religion and art, religion and science. Theology is a whole system of disciplines: metaphysics, anthology, epistemology, natural philosophy, ethics, aesthetics, sociology, philosophy of history, philosophical anthropology - from existentialism to personalism. Perhaps it is she who gives the most fundamental knowledge about man and life. After all experienced knowledge only leads us to the boundaries of being, but however vast this boundary may be, it only leads to the thought of that otherworldly immensity from which all this visibility is drawn.

Religion binds civilization and unites people not only by morality, samabahwa, but by tradition, spirituality, Heaven. Without religious beginning a person loses the main thing - his humanity. A religious idea, unlike a philosophical or scientific one, is accessible to everyone - both high-browed and common people.

If we discard everything superficial, everything too human, then religion has always been a treasury of morality. It not only created the standards of humanity, it did not simply “stupefy” the masses of the people with golden commandments, but it was the only slow process of ethical perfection against which the impatient and lustful always took up arms. Yes, in its development, religion was not without evil, but this evil differed from other human institutions, such as the state or power, in that, in spite of this evil, it attached the masses to the sublime, and through the sublime - to moral beauty. But those who rebelled against the "religious intoxication", having destroyed the "damned cult", did not fail to take full advantage of the negative aspects of churchism - despotism, hypocrisy, Jesuitry, completely rejecting its higher essence, sublimity and humanity. Having destroyed what the church cultivated with such efforts, they got the only thing they could get - total corruption, a cultless cult of lack of culture, the religion of the trough, that is, "satisfaction of continuously growing needs."

Culture sets itself purely earthly tasks, which from now on are self-sufficient and are not in their totality too exalted in relation to the Kingdom of God; let's use a word that has been used many times lately: this is an anthropocentric type of culture. Let us not forget that by virtue of the natural law of growth and under the influence of the evangelical ferment introduced into mankind, a certain process takes place in the bosom of this civilization, and it could be called material, giving this word a broader meaning. philosophical meaning because material culture is progressing not only in the field of scientific and technical means of exploiting nature, but also in the field of intellectual, artistic, spiritual development tools; even the level of moral life or the moral ideal has risen, but of concepts and feelings as means of forming stable conditions for moral life. It is a fragile structure, but in the end, the idea of ​​slavery or torture, or forcing people to do things against their conscience with weapons, and a number of similar ideas today seem to disgust more people than before, in any case, the condemnation of these ideas today it has moved into the category of officially recognized common places, and this already means something.

3. Doctrine of Integration of Religions

The new religious thinking, the creation of new symbols of the integrity and meaning of social life was in many ways the salvation of ancient civilizations. Byzantines of the 5th or 6th century. they attached more importance to theological disputes than to public finances, and they were right: The harmonious doctrine of the Trinity made it possible to create a single Byzantine ethnos from different tribes and peoples, which existed for a thousand years. Unity would not have been possible without new symbols.

In the Mediterranean, India and China, the process took different forms. But everywhere thinking, which passed through philosophy and was not satisfied with philosophy, created world religions addressed to every person, stepping over the disputes of tribes and estates.

Our era can also be called a turning point, and the crisis of antiquity is easier to understand based on one's own experience. Everything that was called progress revealed its destructive character. The productive forces proved to be destructive forces. Their unlimited growth leads to an ecological crisis and the threat of biosphere destruction. But other cumulative processes are also dual. The differentiation of culture forces us to live in a stream of constantly new, unexpected facts, ideas, temptations and threats. The way out of one crisis leads to another, the number of open questions is increasing. Most of the current population of the Earth is lost in such a " open society”, and throughout the underdeveloped world, waves of fundamentalist movements are rolling, attempts to restore a solid medieval hierarchy of values.

The most important obstacle to the integration of cultures is the religious unity achieved in the early Middle Ages. Not the spirit of world religions, the universal spirit, but their dogma, the pride of religion. Christianity is convinced that it is the world religion, Buddhism is convinced of this, and Hinduism is ready to give all religions a place in its structure as embodiments of its spirit.

Ethnic differences are not as strong as they seem. They are very rarely able to resist the preaching of world religions, and before our eyes Africa becomes a confessor of Christianity or Islam. True, it does not create the world. On the contrary, tribal conflicts become more acute if they are supported by a difference of faiths. But from a global point of view, the main difficulty lies elsewhere: neither Christianity nor Islam has been able to defeat the resistance of Hinduism and the religions of the Far East; several centuries of Christian propaganda in India and China produced only islands, enclaves of Christianization that did not change the integrity of culture. Even less was the attempt to wedge into the world of Islam. The experience of global Christianization failed.

Today, global solidarity has proved necessary.

One approach to solving this problem is to understand that all the great religions say the same thing, only in different words. This requires centuries of dialogue, centuries of efforts to understand each other. For example, a Buddhist says: "I am an illusion," and a Christian: "I am the worst." You can emphasize a different approach to the problem, or you can emphasize a single problem: overcoming egocentrism, overcoming the thirst to possess the world, revealing the One Being in each of us. Then it will be revealed that the great religions are just different languages ​​of spiritual experience. Some of them were better expressed in Buddhist language, and some in Christian language. Spiritual pluralism itself appears petty and unprincipled for zealous faith. All words about God are metaphors, which can be as many as you like. The fundamental difference is not at the level of words, but at the level of the depth of feeling, the experience of God. And anyone who knows even a little about the experience itself will not confuse it with a helpless translation of the feeling of eternity into the language of ordinary experience.

For example, in our country, the “new religious consciousness” of the beginning of the century made its way to the level of direct spiritual experience. But a movement began in India. Back in the 19th century, convinced that all religions are parts of one Eternal religion, Ramakrishna taught: “You can’t cling to doctrines, you can’t cling to dogmas, or sects, or churches! They are of little importance in comparison with the holy power in each person, that is, in comparison with spiritualization, and the more a person develops this inner power, the closer he is to salvation. Strive for it and do not condemn anything, for all doctrines and sects have the good side. Prove with your life that religion is not an empty word…”

4. Religiosity in everyday life and in popular culture

religion theology culture

The connection between the religious and cultural spheres is manifested in such a historical pattern as the assimilation of purely religious ideas by modern, at first glance, purely secular, realities. For example, the foundation of Abrahamic and pagan religions is the belief in the other world. However, a careful examination of scientific knowledge of the modern type and its functioning in the mentality also reveals an analogue of another world. Indeed, following mathematics, more and more sciences are based on axiomatic, essentially a priori, provisions, which an adherent of this scientific field is supposed to believe in if he wants to be recognized in the community of learned men and women. It is also easy to see that they try to clothe the main body of scientific provisions in terminologically, symbolically and conceptually inaccessible forms for the uninitiated - exactly the same as it takes place, say, in theology, not to mention the so-called "secret knowledge" in non-traditional religions. Let us add that scientific knowledge claims that only with its help it is possible to effectively influence material world on society, on human nature. But the other world in religious systems has about the same ability.

In art, the situation is similar. Art in general exists to create something that goes beyond the ordinary. And here we again meet with a special language of expression, a circle of initiates, etc., which is very clearly seen in elite art. The coinciding features of science, art and religion just make them rivals.

Now there is a widespread opinion about the non-religiousness of modern mass culture. To be convinced of its fallacy, let's continue our excursion along its highways and nooks and crannies. As already noted, the otherworldly from heaven and hell in traditional Orthodoxy migrated to the artistic worlds of art and the mysterious hieroglyphs of scientific knowledge. But not only. After all, all kinds of conjectures and hypotheses about aliens from the same series. And the craze for astrology is fueled not only by its dubious successes, but by the eternally sacred attitude towards the stars. Mystical transferences to other worlds, characteristic of the prayerful and ascetic practice of traditional religions, have been replaced by social methods and drugs. The role of the initiates, which, for example, in Orthodoxy, belongs to the priesthood, the elders and old women, the holy fools, is now assigned by psychologists, artists, teachers, ideologists, sorcerers and sorceresses - all these characters teach and treat a gullible public.

So, we see that modern mass culture is thoroughly saturated with religious vibes, mythologemes, reflections. Probably, there is some little-studied, heterogeneous, unstructured, anonymous religiosity here. A mass person, as a rule, does not realize the nature of his own religiosity or realizes it incorrectly. According to polls, more than half of Russians consider themselves Orthodox, and in fact no more than 5% live in church life.

Let's look at a few not-so-complicated examples. Of the individual phenomena, such as modern wedding rituals, funeral symbols, processions and rock concerts immediately catch the eye. The laying of flowers by the couple at the so-called eternal flame and monuments, as ethnographers know, goes back to the worship of ancestors, especially warriors. Conscious or unconscious belief in the intercession and child-bearing help of ancestors, but this is an element of real religiosity, although most often anonymous. Funeral symbolism is filled to the brim with similar elements: commemorations, tombstones, care of graves are nothing but forms of appeasement of the dead and confirmation of their participation in the present life. The processions, it seems, are completely torn off from the religious basis, but this is not so - there are relics of bypassing and thus mystical fencing of their own possessions (the same function is for religious processions, parades, detours by the rulers of subject territories), and also relics of ritual glorification and curses, public wearing of amulets (posters, flags, etc.). At rock concerts, slightly reduced orgiastic festivities are reproduced. By the way, again, most of the current holidays, including civil ones, have a religious background. Such are the New Year (favor of the cosmic forces and deities); Women's Day and the First of May (impact on the fertile beginning); Defender of the Fatherland Day and the Soviet November holidays, expressing primarily a commemorative connection with ancestors and mythological heroes.

It can be argued that we have before us real religiosity, at least a secret one. But hiddenness is also a well-known feature of religiosity. An in-depth culturological study should, in our opinion, address these phenomena with all seriousness. Let us also note that it is possible that the amazing stability of many customs is precisely due to their religious basis.

Conclusion

Recognition of the fact that faith has been and remains one of the main means of socio-cultural integration, satisfying one of the basic needs of human nature - to have an ideal and an object for worship, does not remove the question of the specific place of religion among other spheres of culture. Being the most important connecting element of any society, the religious worldview and belief in some higher values ​​in general manifest themselves far from unambiguous in such basic areas of a person's spiritual life as science, art and morality.

Modern, so-called post-Christian European culture contains many traces and elements of the Christian tradition. But in the same modernity, the Church is also present - that Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, which recently celebrated its 2000th anniversary. Although today the Church is obviously "unmixed" with culture, at the same time she is "inseparable" from it.

To date, religion has lost its former monopoly on the explanation of natural and social reality, has ceased to be a universal worldview, an institution that integrates various layers. The main integrating factors were politics, law and the market. Society draws its values, norms and ideals to a large extent from secular culture. In Western countries, the influence of the church on political and civil life is noticeably declining. Sociological analysis reveals a more complex picture. Surveys of the population in Western countries show that more than 70-80% of the population, to one degree or another, believe in some kind of divine principle. In the same countries, especially in the USA, hundreds of sects and religious groups exist and continue to arise in addition to the traditional churches. The Pope of Rome travels to different countries of the world, and millions of Catholics listen to him, and the Catholic Church has enormous wealth that allows it to carry out extensive social work.

Thus, we can say that the church today does not have significant secular power and does not determine social and cultural processes, but continues to be present in the world in a significant way. Evidence of this presence is the keen interest in the church tradition, which is gradually increasing in our days.

If the most important thing on which the fate of mankind depends is the human qualities of the billions of people inhabiting it, then the future of religion depends on the extent to which it can be socially significant contribution to the search for an answer to the question of what it means to be human.

List of sources used

1. Garin I. Prophets and poets, volume 5. - M .: Terra, 1994.

2. Maritain J. Knowledge and wisdom. - M.: Scientific world, 1999.

3. Mamontov S.P. Fundamentals of cultural studies. - M.: Ed. Russian Open University, 1994.

4. Sh.N. Munchaev Religion: history and modernity. - M.: Culture and sport, 1998.

5. Metropolitan Filaret Christianity on the threshold of the third millennium - materials of the report of the conference 20.06.2000.

6. L. E. Vand, A. S. Muratova Genealogy of culture and faith - visible and secret. - M.: Rudomino, 2000.

7. G.S. Pomerants From a bird's eye view and point-blank // World Tree, No. 1/92.

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metro stand college

Exam work in social studies

Topic:

“Religion in modern society”

Completed:

Lalich Vladimir Deyanovich

Group #25

Saint Petersburg 2015

Introduction…………………………………………………………………………1

What is religion?.……………………………………………………..2

Diversity of religion on earth…………………………………3

World religions on earth………………………………………..4

The role of religion in the modern world……………………………8

Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………….10

References……………………………………………………….11

Introduction

Religion is one of the oldest forms of culture. In history lessons, you learned that the religious ideas of people originated in ancient times. Like religious rites, cults, they were distinguished by a wide variety of world religions: Buddhism, Christianity, Islam.

At a certain stage in the development of religion, a church arises, in the bosom of which a spiritual hierarchy is formed, priests appear. The Church unites believers of one confession, develops uniform norms their behaviour.

The religious system of representation of the world (worldview) is based on religious faith and is connected with the relationship of a person to the superhuman spiritual world, a kind of superhuman reality, about which a person knows something, and to which he must somehow orient his life. Faith can be reinforced by mystical experience.

Of particular importance for religion are such concepts as good and evil, morality, the purpose and meaning of life, etc.

The foundations of the religious ideas of most of the world's religions are written down by people in sacred texts, which, according to believers, are either dictated or inspired directly by God or the gods,

Why did I choose this topic?

I chose this topic because I found it the most interesting to study. I often wondered how and in what sphere of life religion influences modern man.

What is religion?

The main question for every person has always been and remains the question of the meaning of life. Not everyone can find the final answer for themselves, not everyone is able to substantiate it sufficiently. But in every normal person there is an ineradicable need to find this meaning and its reasonable justification.

Modern man is surrounded by a wide variety of faiths and ideologies, but all of them can be united around two main worldviews: religion and atheism. The third, often called agnosticism, essentially cannot claim a worldview status, since in principle it denies a person the possibility of knowing such worldview realities as the existence of God, the soul, the immortality of a person, the nature of good and evil, truth, etc.

Religion and atheism should be considered as theories of the existence (or non-existence) of God, in which the relevant scientific and other criteria are applied: the presence of confirming factors and the possibility of experimental verification of the main provisions of the theory. A system that does not meet these criteria can only be considered as a hypothesis.

In such a scientific context, religion and atheism appear in the following form. Religion offers great amount such facts that testify to the existence of a supernatural, non-material world, the existence of a higher Mind (God), the soul, etc. At the same time, religion also offers a specific practical way of knowing these spiritual realities, that is, it offers a way to verify the truth of its statements.

Diversity of religion on earth

In the world there is a variety of beliefs, sects, church organizations. These are various forms of polytheism (polytheism), the traditions of which come from primitive religions (belief in spirits, worship of plants, animals, souls of the dead). different forms monotheism (monotheism) here are national religions - Confucianism (China), Judaism (Israel), etc., and world religions that were formed in the era of the emergence of empires and found supporters among peoples speaking different languages ​​- Buddhism, Christianity, Islam is the world's religions influence the development of modern civilizations.

The concept of Monotheism is relative, since no religion is consistently monotheistic. In the course of the historical development of religion, Monotheism appears very late. In the era of the collapse of the tribal system and the formation of early states, the gods of individual tribes were united into one "pantheon", in which the first place was usually occupied by the god of the most powerful tribe. In some cases, the priests of this god sought to turn him into the only or main god.

Polytheism has long been a subject of debate among anthropologists, religious scholars, theologians, and historians of religion, and its origins and its relationship to monotheism, for a long time and to the present day. The discussion is based on the recognition or denial of the primacy of polytheism in relation to monotheism.

So in the Christian tradition, polytheism is considered secondary to natural monotheism. In this context, polytheism is seen as the degradation and oblivion of the one God, as one of the manifestations of the fall and the general spiritual and moral decline of mankind, and such a state must be overcome by mankind.

world religions on earth

World religion - a religion that has spread among the peoples of various countries and continents. Unlike national and nation-state religions, in which the religious connection between people coincides with ethnic and political ties (for example, Hinduism, Confucianism, Shintoism, Judaism), world or supranational religions unite people of a common faith, regardless of their ethnic, linguistic or political connections. In addition, when considering religion as a world religion, its influence on the course of history and the scale of distribution is taken into account.

At the moment, this term in religious studies refers to three religions (given in the order of chronology of occurrence):

1) Buddhism,

2) Christianity,

3) Islam.

1. Buddhism

Buddhism is the most ancient world religion. It originated in the 6th century. BC e. in India, and is currently distributed in the countries of South, Southeast, Central Asia and the Far East and has about 800 million followers. Tradition links the emergence of Buddhism with the name of Prince Siddhartha Gautama. His father hid bad things from Gautama, he lived in luxury, married his beloved girl, who bore him a son. The impetus for a spiritual upheaval for the prince, as the legend says, was four meetings. At first he saw a decrepit old man, then a leprous sufferer and a funeral procession. Thus Gautama came to know old age, sickness and death, the lot of all people. Then he saw a peaceful, impoverished wanderer who needed nothing from life. All this shocked the prince, made him think about the fate of people. He secretly left the palace and family, at the age of 29 he became a hermit and tried to find the meaning of life. As a result of deep reflection, at the age of 35 he became a Buddha enlightened, awakened. For 45 years, the Buddha preached his teaching, which can be briefly reduced to the following main ideas.

Life is suffering, the cause of which is the desires and passions of people. To get rid of suffering, it is necessary to renounce earthly passions and desires. This can be achieved by following the path of salvation indicated by the Buddha.

After death, any living being, including man, is reborn again, but in the form of a new living being, whose life is determined not only by his own behavior, but also by the behavior of his "predecessors".

One must strive for nirvana, that is, dispassion and peace, which are achieved by renunciation of earthly attachments.

Unlike Christianity and Islam, Buddhism lacks the idea of ​​God as the creator of the world and its ruler. The essence of the teachings of Buddhism boils down to a call to every person to take the path of searching for inner freedom, complete liberation from all the shackles that life brings.

1. Christianity

Christianity arose in the 1st century. n. e. in the eastern part of the Roman Empire Palestine as a religion addressed to all the humiliated, thirsting for justice. It is based on the idea of ​​messianism the hope for the Divine deliverer of the world from everything bad that is on Earth. Jesus Christ suffered for the sins of people, whose name in Greek means "Messiah", "Savior". By this name, Jesus is associated with the Old Testament traditions about the coming to Israel of a prophet, a messiah who will free the people from suffering and establish a righteous life God's kingdom. Christians believe that the coming of God to Earth will be accompanied by Doomsday when He will judge the living and the dead, direct them to heaven or hell.

Basic Christian ideas:

1) Belief that God is one, but He is a Trinity, i.e. God has three "persons": the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, which form the one God who created the Universe.

2) Faith in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ - the second person of the Trinity, God the Son - this is Jesus Christ. He has two natures simultaneously: Divine and human.

3) Belief in Divine grace a mysterious power sent by God to free a person from sin.

4) Belief in posthumous reward and the afterlife.

5) Belief in the existence of good spirits angels and evil spirits demons along with their master Satan.

The holy book of Christians is the Bible, which means "book" in Greek. The Bible consists of two parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament is the oldest part of the Bible. The New Testament (actually Christian works) includes: four gospels (from Luke, Mark, John and Matthew); the deeds of the holy apostles; Epistles and Revelation of John the Theologian.

In the IV century. n. e. Emperor Constantine declared Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire. Christianity is not one. It split into three streams. In 1054 Christianity split into Roman Catholic and Orthodox Church. In the XVI century. The Reformation, an anti-Catholic movement, began in Europe. The result was Protestantism.

Orthodoxy and Catholicism recognize seven Christian sacraments: baptism, chrismation, repentance, communion, marriage, priesthood, and unction. The source of doctrine is the Bible. The differences are mainly as follows. In Orthodoxy there is no single head, there is no idea of ​​purgatory as a place of temporary accommodation for the souls of the dead, the priesthood does not give a vow of celibacy, as in Catholicism. At the head of the Catholic Church is the pope, elected for life, the center of the Roman Catholic Church is the Vatican, a state that occupies several blocks in Rome.

1. Islam

Islam originated in the 7th century. n. e. among the Arab tribes of the Arabian Peninsula. It is the youngest religion in the world. There are more than 1 billion followers of Islam.

Mohammed, the founder of Islam, is a historical figure. He was born in 570 in the city of Mecca, which at that time was a fairly large city at the crossroads of trade routes. In Mecca, there was a shrine revered by most pagan Arabs, the Kaaba. Muhammad's mother died when he was six years old, his father died before his son was born. Muhammad was brought up in the family of his grandfather, a noble family, but impoverished. At the age of 25, he became the manager of the household of the wealthy widow Khadija and soon married her. At the age of 40, Muhammad acted as a religious preacher. He declared that God (Allah) chose him as his prophet. The ruling elite of Mecca did not like the sermon, and by 622 Muhammad had to move to the city of Yathrib, later renamed Medina. The year 622 is considered the beginning of the Muslim chronology according to the lunar calendar, and Mecca is the center of the Muslim religion.

The holy book of Muslims, the Koran, is a processed record of Muhammad's sermons. During the lifetime of Muhammad, his statements were perceived as the direct speech of Allah and were transmitted orally. A few decades after the death of Muhammad, they were written down and will compose the Qur'an.

In the doctrine of Muslims, the Sunna plays an important role - a collection of edifying stories about the life of Muhammad and Sharia a set of principles and rules of conduct that are mandatory for Muslims. The most serious among Muslims are usury, drunkenness, gambling and adultery.

The place of worship for Muslims is called a mosque. Islam forbids depicting humans and animals; hollow mosques are decorated only with ornaments. There is no clear division between clergy and laity in Islam. Any Muslim who knows the Qur'an, Muslim laws and rules of worship can become a mullah (priest).

The role of religion in the modern world

The rapid development of world religions and the emergence of many new religious movements at the beginning of the 21st century caused an ambiguous reaction in society, as some people began to welcome the revival of religion, but another part of society strongly opposed the increase in the influence of religious denominations on society as a whole. If we characterize the attitude of modern society towards religion, then we can notice some trends that apply to almost all countries:

A more loyal attitude of citizens towards religions that are considered traditional for their state, and a more hostile attitude towards new trends and world religions that "compete" with traditional beliefs;

Increasing interest in religious cults that were common in the distant past, but have almost been forgotten until recently (attempts to revive the faith of ancestors);

The emergence and development of religious movements, which are a symbiosis of a certain direction of philosophy and dogmas from one or several religions at once;

The rapid increase in the Muslim part of society in countries where for several decades this religion was not very common;

Attempts by religious communities to lobby their rights and interests at the legislative level;

Protest against the growing influence of religion on public life

The emergence of currents that oppose the increase in the role of religion in the life of the state.

Despite the fact that most people have a positive or loyal attitude towards various religious movements and their fans, the attempts of believers to dictate their rules to the rest of society often cause protests in atheists and agnostics. One of the clearest examples demonstrating the dissatisfaction of the unbelieving part of society with the fact that state authorities to please religious communities, they rewrite laws and give members of religious communities exclusive rights.

For example, at the moment Russia, in which the right of every person to freedom of religion is legally enshrined. Now religion in modern Russia is going through a stage of rapid development, since in the post-communist society the demand for spiritual and mystical teachings was quite high. According to polls, if in 1991 a little more than 30% of people called themselves believers, in 2000 - about 50% of citizens, then in 2012 more than 75% of the inhabitants of the Russian Federation considered themselves religious. It is also important that approximately 20% of Russians believe in the existence of higher powers, but at the same time do not identify themselves with any confession, so at the moment only 1 out of 20 citizens of the Russian Federation is an atheist.

The most common religion in modern Russia is the Orthodox tradition of Christianity - it is practiced by 41% of citizens. In second place after Orthodoxy is Islam - about 7%, in third place - adherents of various currents of Christianity, which are not branches Orthodox tradition(4%), then - adherents of the Turkic-Mongolian shamanic religions, neo-paganism, Buddhism, Old Believers, etc.

Religion in modern Russia is playing an increasingly important role, and it cannot be said that this role is unambiguously positive: the spread of various destructive sects, attempts to introduce one or another into the school educational process. religious tradition and conflicts arising on religious grounds in society are negative consequences, the cause of which is the rapid increase in the number of religious organizations in the country and the rapid increase in the number of believers.

Conclusion

One can argue a lot about the position of religion in modern society. However, it is simply impossible to unambiguously assess its role, capabilities and prospects. The entire experience of the twentieth century. showed the inconsistency of unilateral forecasts regarding the future fate of religion: either its imminent and imminent extinction, or the coming revival of its former power. Today it is clear that religion plays a prominent role in the life of society and that it is undergoing profound and irreversible changes. The position of religion in modern society is decisively influenced by the two main forces of modernity - science and politics. Their evolution in modern society leads to ambiguous consequences for religion: by destroying traditional institutions, they sometimes open up new opportunities for it. Advances in the mastery of nature with the help of technology, achieved in the twentieth century on the basis of a giant increment scientific knowledge had a profound effect on religious consciousness. However, the expectations of the imminent end of religion, typical of the last century, did not come true as a result of the development of science. Science has not supplanted religion, but it has caused profound changes in the religious consciousness in the understanding of God, the world, man. Having solved many problems of cognition of the world and man's mastery of the forces of nature, science has pushed the boundary of cognition to even more complex problems than before. Today, science has gone far beyond the limits of what is sensually accessible to man, visual. This gives a new chance for a religious outlook, not to mention the fact that the enormously increased power of human action on a scientific and technical basis now confronts us with the problem of the consequences of scientific and technological progress and its moral viability. As a result, the conclusion suggests itself that science and technology alone - without religion - do not yet provide a solution to modern problems.

Bibliography

1) Textbook Social studies grade 11 of educational institutions: basic level 2008 Bogolyubov L.N., Gorodetskaya N.I., Matveeva A.I.

2) Textbook Social Studies Grade 10 / Bogolyubov L. N. (5th ed. - M .: Education, 2009)

3) Political and spiritual development of modern society. Grade 11. Materials for the course "Man and Society. Fundamentals of Modern Civilization": E. I. Zhiltsova, E. N. Egorova, I. N. Sukholet: "Enlightenment" 1993

4) Religions of the world. Under the editorship of Corresponding Member. RAS Ya.N.Shchapova Moscow: “Enlightenment”, 1994

5) http://studentbank.ru/view.php?id=21335

6) http://www.grandars.ru/college/filosofiya/mirovye-religii.html

7) http://nameyouscool.blogspot.ru/2012/02/blog-post_10.html