First of all, most of ya'll are probably thinking 'what the heck does that mean?', because we sure did. (Not comparing your intelligence to ours, but we are pretty smart, Wofford education and all, but we knew where to look to find the answer to our wonderings). Straight from dictionary.com, proselytization means:
to convert or attempt to convert as a proselyte (Don't you just LOVE when dictionaries use the word IN the definition); recruit.
v. intr.
To induce someone to convert to one's own religious faith.
v. tr.
To convert (a person) from one belief, doctrine, cause, or faith to another.
(In other words, EVANGELISM!!) But we didn't want to use that terminology because it does have a Christian connotation, and we are not just talking about Christians. We are talking about faith and religion in general and of all types and beliefs.
In totality (thus far, granted it has not been very long since we started this project), we have interview seven people of all different religious backgrounds and beliefs consisting of three Christians, two Jewish students, one Hindu student, and one Muslim student. In looking back on these interviews, we began to see some common threads (among many differences) between what everyone said regarding this idea of proselytization. Here are the responses for you to check out before we get into more detail:
Rachel, Christian
I think you should demonstrate your beliefs through your actions because in some cases, yes, if they have never heard of Jesus then it is okay to explain it to them, but in other cases people have been exposed to it all their life so they are hardened against it. So a better approach to those people is to give them an example from your own life. I don’t believe in running up to someone and saying “you’re going to hell, believe what I believe now.” (If someone did that to me) I would feel bad for them because I would feel they were missing the whole idea of Christianity. They are going to someone and telling them what they should and shouldn't do instead of showing love and caring for them and actually wanting the best for them. Because the whole idea of Christianity is love. I have a problem with judgmental Christians because it is opposite of what Jesus taught. (This takes away from Christianity and) It misrepresents Christians. It just ties stereotypes to Christianity, like Baptist hell-raising, if you don’t do this you are going to hell. It is more like a liberal Christian non-denominational view. I don’t believe any people should be excluded. Everyone’s path to Jesus is different. it is not your right to tell them they should or shouldn’t do, you just guide them.
Anjum, Muslim
I think it should be a natural thing, I should not have to go to someone and talk to them about religion, I want them to come to me and ask me questions that they have. Religion is very important in my life and I want to share that with people. I am all for it. The Koran says that (what the prophets say) a person that sits in a room and worships alone all day and night and a person who goes out and shares their knowledge will be judged differently on the day of judgement because you are supposed to spread your knowledge. Spreading religion is something that I want to do... Religion is a beautiful feeling and you should be able to feel that on your own and realize that on your own and if you are not ready or don't believe in it than that is your own thing. I respect everyone's religion and I expect them to respect mine. I try to impact as many people as I can through my religion, it is not hounding them with the Koran or preaching them but it is through my actions that I am doing this. My best friend knows that I am not going to sit around and tell people that I am Muslim, you figure that out after you get to know me because of the way I act.
Dwayne, Christian
All Christians are suppose to be evangelists but some are better at it than others. Everyone is (an evangelist) in their own way, through songs, preaching on the corner, but the point is that people have to see Jesus in me because you might be the only Bible they ever see. You should be able to see a Christian and know they are one without even talking to them. A kind word or a kind gesture. Would you rather live your life believing there was a God and find out there wasn’t one, or live your life believing there was no God and find out there was?
Kelsey, Jew
A long time ago our Christian neighbor said that she knew we were going to Hell in her heart because we didn't believe in Jesus, but that she still wanted to be our friend. I get aggravated a lot of times by Christians, especially back in Myrtle Beach, because most of the Christians I saw were the stereotypical southern Baptist, fire and brimstone and all of that. Since I have come to Wofford, I have found out that not all Christians are bad. Some are hypocritical, like they are so religious and then go out and get trashed at a party. But I know a group of Christians here that don’t do bad things and they are just really good Christians, and they don’t damn me to Hell and they don’t really try to convert me. They have tried to get me to go to FCA and tell me that Jesus wants to talk to me, but I tell them that I don’t want to. It bothers me (when someone tries to change my beliefs), especially when the same person keeps doing it. It is kind of annoying. Christianity is everywhere, like we would have small meals and the prayer would be in Jesus’ name and I would get offended and tell them that I don’t accept that. They can pray silently and do whatever they want, but if you are going to say it out loud, don’t say it is Jesus’ name because I am not comfortable with that. Things are changing here though. Like, last year the honor code signing was right after the morning service so we had to go, and they had a nondenominational Christian service and I felt very uncomfortable, so I talked to Ron Robinson and told them, so this year the signing was later that night and we didn’t have to go to the service. No one should be pressured into anything they don’t feel comfortable doing. I hate to say it, but I think that (Christians) are mostly hypocritical. There is the small minority that are very real and honest with themselves and they that they are a good person that does not do bad things and they care about their religion, but the majority I see say they are Christians and they are good people, but they are not. But if someone was trying to force their beliefs on someone else I am not ok with it. Mission trips are great in that they get people to see the world, but I don’t agree with their purpose. I don’t think it is good to go out and convert people. They will go and bring people food and shelter, but I don’t know about the aspect of “be Christian”. When people are giving you so much, you are going to listen to them even if you do or don’t want to believe it, so I don’t like that idea. We don’t proselytize in the Jewish religion. We accept people if they want to convert, but we don’t go out to do that even though we are a dying religion, like 0.2% of the population of the world, which is kind of depressing that we have been slowly exterminated over our entire history. Pretty much every version of a Jewish holiday is, “they tried to kill us, we won, let’s eat”.
Yakov, Jew
No one tries to convert others to Judaism and it is wrong to do so because people should make their own decisions about what they want to do, especially with religion. And it is fine that you think you are saving someone but they obviously don't think that, so you should leave them alone about it.
Emily, Christian
(Evangelism is) Frightening but necessary. Our goal as Christians is to preach the gospel to all the world. To quote St. Francis, "preach the gospel and if necessary use words". It is not affective to walk up to someone and tell them they're going to hell. Most people who're completely against Christianity have that view because of Christians who have done that in the past.
Hilna, Hindu
I think someone should want to know about Hinduism and want to experience it. It should not be forced they should want to. I have had an experience where someone came and gave me a bible, but I didn’t take offense to it, it is someones holy book so I kept it, you should appreciate and learn about every religion but they should not have forced it on anyone. There are people out there that tell you that you are going to go to hell because you don’t believe in Christianity, but what are you going to do?
Each of the Christians interviewed expressed a need for proselytization, but to different degrees. Emily seems to be an advocate for approaching people and showing them God whether through words or actions no matter how scary it is. Dwayne also thought it was necessary to evangelize, but that the method was different for each person. He says that "you should be able to see a Christian and know they are one without even talking to them". (I have a feeling this may be a common view among Christians.) This does not mean that talking is not necessary at some point as he goes on to say that a Christian may be the only Bible or Jesus that other people ever see. Rachel was the most liberal view in saying that if someone approached her, she would talk to them, but that she was not going to go out and evangelize. Everyone agreed that it was not right to force your religious views on another person, ultimately agreeing that it was their choice what religion they believed.
Along those same lines, Emily and Rachel made a point to say that it was wrong to force Christianity, but in contrast, the students of religions other than Christianity felt that Christianity had been forced on them at one point, and they had been told they were "going to Hell". This is an interesting paradox. The Christians we talked to acknowledged that there are Christians who stand on street corners and yell to everyone who passes.
(Actually, even other Christians are not immune to the "you're going to hell" speeches. Just a few days ago I was walking down the street when several people began to follow me, pressing pamphlets into my hands and telling me I needed to know Jesus. Even being a Christian I felt very uncomfortable with this, followed by feeling of guilt about knowing what people of other religions would feel if they had this encounter. Or even what I would feel if someone from another religion tried to convert me to theirs. I would feel offended!! How could they think that their religion was superior to mine? I believe mine for a reason and they are condemning me without knowing what I believe at all. There's a difference between willingly learning other faiths and having it forced upon you. Who in their right mind would ever feel lead to believe a religion where the followers judge you at all and that tell you that you are condemned to an eternity of pain and punishment? And when you get right down to it, many of these Christians (I'm NOT saying all) can be hypocritical and will go out and do the very things they preach against.)
So what is the truth? Do the majority of Christians force their beliefs on others, and we were just lucky to interview a few from the minority? Or is it that the forceful ones are just the louder ones, so they are what everyone thinks of when they hear "Christian"? Personally, we think they are just loud. But what type of image are they creating for the entire religion of Christianity if every other religion only sees that side? We'll have to wait and see what the rest of our interviewees say.
However, the reactions of students differed. One said she was greatly offended by what had happened while the other was not offended and even kept the Bible that was given to her because she could not through away a Holy book, even one of another religion. By comparison, Judaism does not believe in spreading the faith at all, even though numbers are dropping. They are willing to take anyone who wants to convert, but don't go looking for converts.
We are going to wait until we have more views of Islam and Hinduism before we make any -clusive (in- or con-) statements. Stay tuned.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Ode to the Religion Department
We love thee, O department of religion,
With your many diverse course offerings.
It started with Byron's New Testament,
the beginnings of a long lasting relationship.
We sat across the room and
learned about Duke Divinity School,
studied in British accents around pools of lava,
discussing apocalyptic eschatology
(but we still can't spell it)
This first class together was the start of an era,
and next to come was Religions of the World.
That one was OK.
Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Judaism,
and assorted East Asian Religions,
we discussed them all.
The Problem of Evil was never solved,
but we learned about the pits of Dante's hell
through the Christian Faith.
Dr. Anderson guided us every day...
for an entire semester.
Nietzsche(after 5 min of searching old papers to figure out how to spell this, I finally tell Weath to look on the internet, and she adamantly tells me she is not on the internet, while typing this online blog...), Dostoyevsky, John Hick, and PJP II,
all names we came to know and love.
Many papers later we found ourselves on Lindsey's futon,
typing our final paper with our reading sprawled around us
With your many diverse course offerings.
It started with Byron's New Testament,
the beginnings of a long lasting relationship.
We sat across the room and
learned about Duke Divinity School,
studied in British accents around pools of lava,
discussing apocalyptic eschatology
(but we still can't spell it)
This first class together was the start of an era,
and next to come was Religions of the World.
That one was OK.
Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Judaism,
and assorted East Asian Religions,
we discussed them all.
The Problem of Evil was never solved,
but we learned about the pits of Dante's hell
through the Christian Faith.
Dr. Anderson guided us every day...
for an entire semester.
Nietzsche(after 5 min of searching old papers to figure out how to spell this, I finally tell Weath to look on the internet, and she adamantly tells me she is not on the internet, while typing this online blog...), Dostoyevsky, John Hick, and PJP II,
all names we came to know and love.
Many papers later we found ourselves on Lindsey's futon,
typing our final paper with our reading sprawled around us
(please see profile picture).
The trend continued with Buddhism and Dr. Jones,
she put our thinking caps on us
and questioned the very reality of our existence.
(I still don't think I'm here).
This semester was the first time
we didn't have a class together.
Lindsey was in two classes,
Weatherly was in none.
Depression quickly ensued,
so we compromised and created another one.
We still love our faculty,
and all the professors we've had.
(which is, in fact, all of them!)
So thanks for being awesome
but next time don't make the schedule so bad.
The trend continued with Buddhism and Dr. Jones,
she put our thinking caps on us
and questioned the very reality of our existence.
(I still don't think I'm here).
This semester was the first time
we didn't have a class together.
Lindsey was in two classes,
Weatherly was in none.
Depression quickly ensued,
so we compromised and created another one.
We still love our faculty,
and all the professors we've had.
(which is, in fact, all of them!)
So thanks for being awesome
but next time don't make the schedule so bad.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Let the Interviews begin!
So the interviews have started... WOOT!!
The first victim (I mean, interviewee? Is that a word?) was my roommate, Rachel. I figured, hey, why not? I have to interview a lot of different people and I want to practice interviewing before I go and make a total fool of myself in front of a complete stranger. Naturally. So I got out my trusty microcassette tape recorder (the one for my ipod has not come in the mail yet... DON'T get me started...) and we headed to the Campus Life building for lunch. As I said in the last post, the questions are more like guidelines than actually rules to follow, so I tended to stray with her a bit and get more in-depth depending on what her answers were. The interview lasted for about 2 hours, and was full of really interesting stuff. A little background first...
She is a senior psychology major from South Carolina, and a Christian.
Ok, happy Weath? I said a little and there you go. Yes, thank you. fast learner! If I posted the whole interview, it would be massive and I don't think anyone would actually read it... SO I am going to post sections of the interview that I feel are really interesting and comment on them. (In green, of course.)
Me: Do you think you know a lot about other religions?
Rachel: No! That's why I am taking religions of the world! I realized I know nothing.
This is just a hunch, but I feel like this will be a common answer, especially for Christians that we interview. I hypothesize that other religions will know more. There is something about Christianity that tends to deter the learning of other religions, especially in the south, saying that they are wrong or bad. So even if you know the basics, you have a distorted view of what other religions believe, not knowing that your neighbor might follow that religion. You could just ask them about it next time you are going over to borrow an egg, if that's what you need for a good chocolate cake. Something to think about...
Me: What’s your understanding about the divine?
Rachel: The divine is a higher being that we cannot fully comprehend that has all power and is kind of like magical.
Me: Can you have a relationship with this divine power?
Rachel: Normally when there is an overarching divine power, he is represented in a man, such as Jesus in Christianity. In Hinduism I started learning about how that divine power is represented in each of their gods even though they have like 330 thousand or something. Or it becomes a relationship with Jesus so you can talk to Him and comprehend it and not be intimidated.
Me: So a relationship not directly with “god” creator, divine, supernatural being, but more his embodiment?
Rachel: Kind of. It also depends on what you are more comfortable with. Because they are kind of the same person it just depends on your preference, if you would rather pray and commune with the higher being or Jesus. I guess it depends on your past. Like, if you had trouble with a father figure and so you would not be comfortable with god the father, so you feel more comfortable with Jesus or maybe the other way around.
This was an interesting answer to me in that it presents the opportunity to believe in whatever embodiment you want, because they are the same. This might be an idea that people struggle with, because of the whole monotheism vs. polytheism vs. trinity thing. Do you consider Hindus to be monotheists if they believe in one god? But what about all the deities? What about Christianity? The trinity is definitely three parts, but one God, so is that poly or mono? Tricky theological questions lead to differing answers among the same religion... hmmm... I am excited to ask more people this question. I can't wait to ask this question or maybe clarify with someone of this Hindu faith. A few years ago I asked a Hindu man how the gods of their faith are interconnected. The explanation he gave was very similar to how Christians explain God in three persons: a man has a different relationship with different people, for example he is a father, brother, son, uncle, and friend. I don't want to get into this too much right now, but we will come back to it later.
That was not the only that part of Rachel's response here that was interesting, but also how she tied psychology into her religion. I wonder if people do choose to pray to one aspect of their god based on something like that, I have never really thought of it. Maybe that's why Catholics like Mary so much.
Me: What do you think is the purpose of life?
Rachel: Well, what I want out of life is to serve God by serving others. I would like a family and be a great wife and a great mother, and teach my children right and wrong, and about God, so they can help the world and make a difference. I just don’t want to be a little speck.
Each person's idea of the purpose of their life is going to be interesting to compare. I am anxious to see that.
Me: What about an afterlife? Do you believe in that?
Rachel: Yep. I believe if you pray to Jesus and ask Him to forgive your sins and you give your life to him and you actually believe that… I have issues with the whole right before you die all the sudden you pray to Jesus. I know it works and everything but I think you really do have to feel it and really do believe it; it can’t just be something you say right before you die because you hear your whole life you should repent and if you repent you go to heaven. I don’t believe in hell, per say, I believe everyone has their own personal hell that they go to. Not a huge big flaming fiery pit that everyone goes to together.
I feel that this answer is going to be different than the majority of Christians. Fundamental Christian belief is that the second you say the words and ask Jesus for forgiveness, everything is okay, even if it is right before you die. She is more oriented in the relationship and no as much in faith; that even if you say you believe but you don't have a relationship with God that is not enough. I wonder if the idea of hell that she is referring to stems off of Dante's inferno.
Me: What about good and evil?
Rachel: I don’t believe a person is fully good, maybe they can be mostly evil, but no one can be completely good, except Jesus of course, because everyone has selfish thoughts. As a little kid you can see it. They are so like, “me, me, me, me, me!!” and then you grow up and develop and start to understand that you help people. It seems like some people are more good than others, but it could all be a front, you never really know.
Again, psychology oriented. This idea is also common among Christians, the idea that people are mostly bad and that God makes everything better. Slightly pessimistic view of humanity though.
Me: What are your beliefs on your creation of the world?
Rachel: It could not have happened by chance so there had to have been some divine hand in it, because so many things could have gone wrong, and it couldn’t have worked. We are so complicated and nature is so complicated. So I don’t believe God’s concept of time is the same as ours so when the Bible says that earth was created in 7 days, that is a lot longer, it is billions of years. I know that there is common decent because there is undeniable evidence in DNA. I think God orchestrated that too.
Me: So how do you explain in Genesis the whole each day creating something different and on the last day creating man; how do you process and explain what you read in the Bible vs. what you know to be scientifically proven? How do you make comparisons between the two and make that okay in your religious beliefs?
Rachel: So you have the earth and one celled microorganism that evolves into all the animals. Then cavemen and our type won out and that was how God meant it to be when he means “creating man”. So basically, it was God who made evolution, and each step in the story is the next evolutionary line. I don’t believe Adam and Eve have to be taken literally, but are more symbolic.
This might be considered intelligent design with a twist? A good combination of science and religion, and probably much different than the typical Christian idea. MAYBE we should introduce this idea into the schools...
I LOVE this last question. It is one of those topics that you can debate on for hours, but never really come to a conclusion. I believe that the theory that Rachel describes is called theistic evolution, but I will check on that.
Me: What is your version of the Gospel story? (This is my favorite question because I really wonder what differences we are going to get as far as the focus in the story)
Rachel: Once there was Mary and fiancé who did not get her pregnant. An angel came and said that God was going to impregnate you and you are going to have a baby. Everyone will think that you are sketchy but you are really not. Then the little baby Jesus came and was born in hay, which made him common and more like man. Then Jesus grew up and was smart and never did anything wrong. Then Jesus started teaching on his own and got disciples and started establishing Christian beliefs and healing people. Depending on which story you read either tells or does not tell that he was the son of God, but from the very beginning, from his very first teaching, he says exactly what he is going to do and he carried it all through and he did it. He was stoned, whipped, crucified, hung up there and came back from the dead and went up to Heaven with God. That’s my children’s story version.
I feel like Rachel might have gotten this story out of The Message Bible, or something (haha, joking!) but if you take this apart, you see that her primary focus is on the birth and not so much the death and resurrection of Jesus (and actually a lot about Mary). This could be correlated with society's cultural influence with Christmas being a much bigger holiday than Easter. Just a thought. I also want to point out how she added in her own theology interpretation into the story when she mentions why Jesus was born in the hay. Interesting reading though.
Me: What are your views on evangelism?
Rachel: I think you should demonstrate your beliefs through your actions because in some cases, yes, if they have never heard of Jesus then it is okay to explain it to them, but in other cases people have been exposed to it all their life so they are hardened against it. So a better approach to those people is to give them an example from your own life. I don’t believe in running up to someone and saying “you’re going to hell, believe what I believe now.” Intense!
Me: How would you feel if someone did that to you?
Rachel: I would feel bad for them because I would feel they were missing the whole idea of Christianity. They are going to someone and telling them what they should and shouldn’t do instead of showing love and caring for them and actually wanting the best for them. Because the whole idea of Christianity is love. I have a problem with judgmental Christians because it is opposite of what Jesus taught.
Me: Do you think that is a big problem in society now?
Rachel: It just ties stereotypes to Christianity, like Baptist hell-raising, if you don’t do this you are going to hell. It should be more like a liberal Christian non-denominational view. I don’t believe any people should be excluded. Everyone’s path to Jesus is different. It is not your right to tell them they should or shouldn’t do, you just guide them.
I hope that I interview someone who is a Southern Baptist and see what they have to say about this. :)
The first victim (I mean, interviewee? Is that a word?) was my roommate, Rachel. I figured, hey, why not? I have to interview a lot of different people and I want to practice interviewing before I go and make a total fool of myself in front of a complete stranger. Naturally. So I got out my trusty microcassette tape recorder (the one for my ipod has not come in the mail yet... DON'T get me started...) and we headed to the Campus Life building for lunch. As I said in the last post, the questions are more like guidelines than actually rules to follow, so I tended to stray with her a bit and get more in-depth depending on what her answers were. The interview lasted for about 2 hours, and was full of really interesting stuff. A little background first...
She is a senior psychology major from South Carolina, and a Christian.
Ok, happy Weath? I said a little and there you go. Yes, thank you. fast learner! If I posted the whole interview, it would be massive and I don't think anyone would actually read it... SO I am going to post sections of the interview that I feel are really interesting and comment on them. (In green, of course.)
Me: Do you think you know a lot about other religions?
Rachel: No! That's why I am taking religions of the world! I realized I know nothing.
This is just a hunch, but I feel like this will be a common answer, especially for Christians that we interview. I hypothesize that other religions will know more. There is something about Christianity that tends to deter the learning of other religions, especially in the south, saying that they are wrong or bad. So even if you know the basics, you have a distorted view of what other religions believe, not knowing that your neighbor might follow that religion. You could just ask them about it next time you are going over to borrow an egg, if that's what you need for a good chocolate cake. Something to think about...
Me: What’s your understanding about the divine?
Rachel: The divine is a higher being that we cannot fully comprehend that has all power and is kind of like magical.
Me: Can you have a relationship with this divine power?
Rachel: Normally when there is an overarching divine power, he is represented in a man, such as Jesus in Christianity. In Hinduism I started learning about how that divine power is represented in each of their gods even though they have like 330 thousand or something. Or it becomes a relationship with Jesus so you can talk to Him and comprehend it and not be intimidated.
Me: So a relationship not directly with “god” creator, divine, supernatural being, but more his embodiment?
Rachel: Kind of. It also depends on what you are more comfortable with. Because they are kind of the same person it just depends on your preference, if you would rather pray and commune with the higher being or Jesus. I guess it depends on your past. Like, if you had trouble with a father figure and so you would not be comfortable with god the father, so you feel more comfortable with Jesus or maybe the other way around.
This was an interesting answer to me in that it presents the opportunity to believe in whatever embodiment you want, because they are the same. This might be an idea that people struggle with, because of the whole monotheism vs. polytheism vs. trinity thing. Do you consider Hindus to be monotheists if they believe in one god? But what about all the deities? What about Christianity? The trinity is definitely three parts, but one God, so is that poly or mono? Tricky theological questions lead to differing answers among the same religion... hmmm... I am excited to ask more people this question. I can't wait to ask this question or maybe clarify with someone of this Hindu faith. A few years ago I asked a Hindu man how the gods of their faith are interconnected. The explanation he gave was very similar to how Christians explain God in three persons: a man has a different relationship with different people, for example he is a father, brother, son, uncle, and friend. I don't want to get into this too much right now, but we will come back to it later.
That was not the only that part of Rachel's response here that was interesting, but also how she tied psychology into her religion. I wonder if people do choose to pray to one aspect of their god based on something like that, I have never really thought of it. Maybe that's why Catholics like Mary so much.
Me: What do you think is the purpose of life?
Rachel: Well, what I want out of life is to serve God by serving others. I would like a family and be a great wife and a great mother, and teach my children right and wrong, and about God, so they can help the world and make a difference. I just don’t want to be a little speck.
Each person's idea of the purpose of their life is going to be interesting to compare. I am anxious to see that.
Me: What about an afterlife? Do you believe in that?
Rachel: Yep. I believe if you pray to Jesus and ask Him to forgive your sins and you give your life to him and you actually believe that… I have issues with the whole right before you die all the sudden you pray to Jesus. I know it works and everything but I think you really do have to feel it and really do believe it; it can’t just be something you say right before you die because you hear your whole life you should repent and if you repent you go to heaven. I don’t believe in hell, per say, I believe everyone has their own personal hell that they go to. Not a huge big flaming fiery pit that everyone goes to together.
I feel that this answer is going to be different than the majority of Christians. Fundamental Christian belief is that the second you say the words and ask Jesus for forgiveness, everything is okay, even if it is right before you die. She is more oriented in the relationship and no as much in faith; that even if you say you believe but you don't have a relationship with God that is not enough. I wonder if the idea of hell that she is referring to stems off of Dante's inferno.
Me: What about good and evil?
Rachel: I don’t believe a person is fully good, maybe they can be mostly evil, but no one can be completely good, except Jesus of course, because everyone has selfish thoughts. As a little kid you can see it. They are so like, “me, me, me, me, me!!” and then you grow up and develop and start to understand that you help people. It seems like some people are more good than others, but it could all be a front, you never really know.
Again, psychology oriented. This idea is also common among Christians, the idea that people are mostly bad and that God makes everything better. Slightly pessimistic view of humanity though.
Me: What are your beliefs on your creation of the world?
Rachel: It could not have happened by chance so there had to have been some divine hand in it, because so many things could have gone wrong, and it couldn’t have worked. We are so complicated and nature is so complicated. So I don’t believe God’s concept of time is the same as ours so when the Bible says that earth was created in 7 days, that is a lot longer, it is billions of years. I know that there is common decent because there is undeniable evidence in DNA. I think God orchestrated that too.
Me: So how do you explain in Genesis the whole each day creating something different and on the last day creating man; how do you process and explain what you read in the Bible vs. what you know to be scientifically proven? How do you make comparisons between the two and make that okay in your religious beliefs?
Rachel: So you have the earth and one celled microorganism that evolves into all the animals. Then cavemen and our type won out and that was how God meant it to be when he means “creating man”. So basically, it was God who made evolution, and each step in the story is the next evolutionary line. I don’t believe Adam and Eve have to be taken literally, but are more symbolic.
This might be considered intelligent design with a twist? A good combination of science and religion, and probably much different than the typical Christian idea. MAYBE we should introduce this idea into the schools...
I LOVE this last question. It is one of those topics that you can debate on for hours, but never really come to a conclusion. I believe that the theory that Rachel describes is called theistic evolution, but I will check on that.
Me: What is your version of the Gospel story? (This is my favorite question because I really wonder what differences we are going to get as far as the focus in the story)
Rachel: Once there was Mary and fiancé who did not get her pregnant. An angel came and said that God was going to impregnate you and you are going to have a baby. Everyone will think that you are sketchy but you are really not. Then the little baby Jesus came and was born in hay, which made him common and more like man. Then Jesus grew up and was smart and never did anything wrong. Then Jesus started teaching on his own and got disciples and started establishing Christian beliefs and healing people. Depending on which story you read either tells or does not tell that he was the son of God, but from the very beginning, from his very first teaching, he says exactly what he is going to do and he carried it all through and he did it. He was stoned, whipped, crucified, hung up there and came back from the dead and went up to Heaven with God. That’s my children’s story version.
I feel like Rachel might have gotten this story out of The Message Bible, or something (haha, joking!) but if you take this apart, you see that her primary focus is on the birth and not so much the death and resurrection of Jesus (and actually a lot about Mary). This could be correlated with society's cultural influence with Christmas being a much bigger holiday than Easter. Just a thought. I also want to point out how she added in her own theology interpretation into the story when she mentions why Jesus was born in the hay. Interesting reading though.
Me: What are your views on evangelism?
Rachel: I think you should demonstrate your beliefs through your actions because in some cases, yes, if they have never heard of Jesus then it is okay to explain it to them, but in other cases people have been exposed to it all their life so they are hardened against it. So a better approach to those people is to give them an example from your own life. I don’t believe in running up to someone and saying “you’re going to hell, believe what I believe now.” Intense!
Me: How would you feel if someone did that to you?
Rachel: I would feel bad for them because I would feel they were missing the whole idea of Christianity. They are going to someone and telling them what they should and shouldn’t do instead of showing love and caring for them and actually wanting the best for them. Because the whole idea of Christianity is love. I have a problem with judgmental Christians because it is opposite of what Jesus taught.
Me: Do you think that is a big problem in society now?
Rachel: It just ties stereotypes to Christianity, like Baptist hell-raising, if you don’t do this you are going to hell. It should be more like a liberal Christian non-denominational view. I don’t believe any people should be excluded. Everyone’s path to Jesus is different. It is not your right to tell them they should or shouldn’t do, you just guide them.
I hope that I interview someone who is a Southern Baptist and see what they have to say about this. :)
Monday, February 18, 2008
Why religious diversity?
This blog is to be a window into a semester long study of religious diversity on Wofford College's campus and beyond. Before we dive into this study we'd like for you to know a little about ourselves and why we're doing it.
My name is Lindsey Lane and I will be typing in green. (hello Lindsey. From: Weath) I am a senior (scary!) biology major, religion minor at Wofford College. I am from metro-Atlanta, GA. I consider myself to be a Christian, though my views are somewhat contrary to those of typical "Bible belt" Christians. One of my favorite aspects of religious studies, and the reason I focused half of my studies at Wofford on religion, is that it ties everyone together (even if they don't want to admit it). Even someone who claims to have no beliefs, whether athiest or agnostic, still believes in nothing or chooses not to know. Just like biology, this is the language of everyone and it is something that we all have in common. I love to challenge things, expecially when people are very set in what they believe, so I play devil's advocate in every class where religion vs. biology is discussed. In the biology classroom, I bring the religious point of view to the table, and in the religion classroom, I bring the biology point of view. Needless to say, one department probably thinks I am an athiest, while the other thinks I am a religious fanatic! But I like it that way... All of that to say, that this semester, with my partner in crime, we will examine real life religious diversity; the diversity that no one thinks is really around us, but we are all a part of.
My name is Weatherly Meadors, blue obviously, and I am a junior biology major and religion minor. I am from Charleston, SC and love long walks on the beach, especially in the moonlight. Seriously though, I love the outdoors and spend as much time as possible on the water or hiking in the mountains. I have been interested in religion and the ways in which it affects people for some time now, since the mandatory religion classes we had to take each year at my Catholic high school. Upon coming to Wofford I took a new testament class my freshman year and found that I enjoyed looking at the Bible in that type of academic mindset. I took religions of the world the next semester and realized that I really didn't know anything about the major religions besides my own. The religion classes I have taken have enabled me to look at many things, including science, in a different light- when sitting in a genetics classroom I look at the topics not only as a scientist but also in terms of religion, God, and what it means for humanity. The opposite is also true in the religion classroom. This semester Lindsey and I wanted to take a class in which we could apply some of the things we have learned over the past few years and have a chance to go out into the community and talk with people about their beliefs. As this is often a touchy subject, this study is the perfect way to learn about faith with a slightly scientific approach. This study should be fun so keep reading to learn about diversity and all the adventures we will undoubtably have along the way! (We seem to attrach adventures of all kinds- usually the crazier the better!)
We wanted everyone to be as aware of what is going on as we are (which really is not that much but run with it...) so here is a brief description of what we will be doing throughout this semester. YOU are super lucky, because you get to read about it!! (GET EXCITED!)
After much conversation, turmoil, and debate, the Wofford Wonder Twins concluded that the courses offered in the Religion Department at Wofford College were sub par compared to what they could envision (except Dan of course). As a result, they met with the star religion professor known as “Dan”, and together they devised an amazing, extraordinary, groundbreaking, and quintessential study of religious diversity unlike anything done before. They knew that religious diversity existed, but to what extent?
Frequently, religious diversity is thought of in terms of official, organizational lines: Buddhism vs. Hinduism vs. Christianity, etc. Other times religious diversity is thought of in terms of the demographics of a particular religious group – for example, the racial diversity of a particular congregation. Rarely, however, is religious diversity considered from the perspective of individual, idiosyncratic conceptualizations of the divine or religious experience. The basic assumption of this independent study is that there is a myriad of ways that everyday people enact and experience religion, regardless of whether they have official religious affiliations or not.
This course is an independent study designed to explore the ways that religion is thought about and enacted by “normal,” everyday people who may or may not belong to different religions and/or denominations. We will start at Wofford College and will explore the contradictory and complementary ways that different Wofford students conceptualize religion. We will be asking generalized questions to various Wofford students – ones who attend religious services regularly, ones who do so infrequently, and ones who rarely do or do not at all. We will ask all of them about their central ideas about religion, about the divine, about religious practices and so forth. Based on what we find, and after receiving their permission, we will attend religious services with some of those with whom we have spoken. We will speak with other, non-Wofford people who attend those same services as well, asking them similar questions. We will explore with everyone their ideas about why they attend these services, what the worship experience consists of and what it accomplishes in their lives.
The basic goal of the project is to get a sense of the diverse ways that people think about religion. Because we will speak with people representing different religious traditions (Hindu, Jewish, Christian, etc), with people from different “denominations” within those traditions, and with those who are not religiously affiliated at all, we will have opportunity to compare ideas about the religious experience across a broad spectrum. All activities and discoveries will be recorded in this blog.
When Lindsey said "brief" discription, what she really meant was brief in terms of it not being research paper length. But thanks for sticking it out and reading it. I hope you will get to know each of us throughout this semester (being why we are writing in different colors)... I am the smart one. Or so you think... and we apologize in advance for all the times we will steal the computer from each other and do things like, well, this.
OH~ one more thing... you probably want to know what the general questions are for the interviews! (I knew you were on the edge of your seats!!) but remember... the questions are like the pirate's code... like guidelines matey! (Arrrr!!) (We like Pirates, esp. Capt. Jack... he's pretty much our bff)
What is your understanding of the religious experience?
What is your understanding about the divine?
What happens during religious worship?
What is the purpose of life?
What are your beliefs on the creation of the world?
Do you believe in the afterlife? If so, describe your beliefs.
How do you view the ideas of good and evil?
What are your views about proselytization?
Tell your version of the Gospel story. (for Christians only)
How much do you know about other world religions?
If anyone gets really into this and wants to know more, we've also listed the three books we will be reading under our profile section, along with our email address. Questions and comments are welcome!
My name is Lindsey Lane and I will be typing in green. (hello Lindsey. From: Weath) I am a senior (scary!) biology major, religion minor at Wofford College. I am from metro-Atlanta, GA. I consider myself to be a Christian, though my views are somewhat contrary to those of typical "Bible belt" Christians. One of my favorite aspects of religious studies, and the reason I focused half of my studies at Wofford on religion, is that it ties everyone together (even if they don't want to admit it). Even someone who claims to have no beliefs, whether athiest or agnostic, still believes in nothing or chooses not to know. Just like biology, this is the language of everyone and it is something that we all have in common. I love to challenge things, expecially when people are very set in what they believe, so I play devil's advocate in every class where religion vs. biology is discussed. In the biology classroom, I bring the religious point of view to the table, and in the religion classroom, I bring the biology point of view. Needless to say, one department probably thinks I am an athiest, while the other thinks I am a religious fanatic! But I like it that way... All of that to say, that this semester, with my partner in crime, we will examine real life religious diversity; the diversity that no one thinks is really around us, but we are all a part of.
My name is Weatherly Meadors, blue obviously, and I am a junior biology major and religion minor. I am from Charleston, SC and love long walks on the beach, especially in the moonlight. Seriously though, I love the outdoors and spend as much time as possible on the water or hiking in the mountains. I have been interested in religion and the ways in which it affects people for some time now, since the mandatory religion classes we had to take each year at my Catholic high school. Upon coming to Wofford I took a new testament class my freshman year and found that I enjoyed looking at the Bible in that type of academic mindset. I took religions of the world the next semester and realized that I really didn't know anything about the major religions besides my own. The religion classes I have taken have enabled me to look at many things, including science, in a different light- when sitting in a genetics classroom I look at the topics not only as a scientist but also in terms of religion, God, and what it means for humanity. The opposite is also true in the religion classroom. This semester Lindsey and I wanted to take a class in which we could apply some of the things we have learned over the past few years and have a chance to go out into the community and talk with people about their beliefs. As this is often a touchy subject, this study is the perfect way to learn about faith with a slightly scientific approach. This study should be fun so keep reading to learn about diversity and all the adventures we will undoubtably have along the way! (We seem to attrach adventures of all kinds- usually the crazier the better!)
We wanted everyone to be as aware of what is going on as we are (which really is not that much but run with it...) so here is a brief description of what we will be doing throughout this semester. YOU are super lucky, because you get to read about it!! (GET EXCITED!)
After much conversation, turmoil, and debate, the Wofford Wonder Twins concluded that the courses offered in the Religion Department at Wofford College were sub par compared to what they could envision (except Dan of course). As a result, they met with the star religion professor known as “Dan”, and together they devised an amazing, extraordinary, groundbreaking, and quintessential study of religious diversity unlike anything done before. They knew that religious diversity existed, but to what extent?
Frequently, religious diversity is thought of in terms of official, organizational lines: Buddhism vs. Hinduism vs. Christianity, etc. Other times religious diversity is thought of in terms of the demographics of a particular religious group – for example, the racial diversity of a particular congregation. Rarely, however, is religious diversity considered from the perspective of individual, idiosyncratic conceptualizations of the divine or religious experience. The basic assumption of this independent study is that there is a myriad of ways that everyday people enact and experience religion, regardless of whether they have official religious affiliations or not.
This course is an independent study designed to explore the ways that religion is thought about and enacted by “normal,” everyday people who may or may not belong to different religions and/or denominations. We will start at Wofford College and will explore the contradictory and complementary ways that different Wofford students conceptualize religion. We will be asking generalized questions to various Wofford students – ones who attend religious services regularly, ones who do so infrequently, and ones who rarely do or do not at all. We will ask all of them about their central ideas about religion, about the divine, about religious practices and so forth. Based on what we find, and after receiving their permission, we will attend religious services with some of those with whom we have spoken. We will speak with other, non-Wofford people who attend those same services as well, asking them similar questions. We will explore with everyone their ideas about why they attend these services, what the worship experience consists of and what it accomplishes in their lives.
The basic goal of the project is to get a sense of the diverse ways that people think about religion. Because we will speak with people representing different religious traditions (Hindu, Jewish, Christian, etc), with people from different “denominations” within those traditions, and with those who are not religiously affiliated at all, we will have opportunity to compare ideas about the religious experience across a broad spectrum. All activities and discoveries will be recorded in this blog.
When Lindsey said "brief" discription, what she really meant was brief in terms of it not being research paper length. But thanks for sticking it out and reading it. I hope you will get to know each of us throughout this semester (being why we are writing in different colors)... I am the smart one. Or so you think... and we apologize in advance for all the times we will steal the computer from each other and do things like, well, this.
OH~ one more thing... you probably want to know what the general questions are for the interviews! (I knew you were on the edge of your seats!!) but remember... the questions are like the pirate's code... like guidelines matey! (Arrrr!!) (We like Pirates, esp. Capt. Jack... he's pretty much our bff)
What is your understanding of the religious experience?
What is your understanding about the divine?
What happens during religious worship?
What is the purpose of life?
What are your beliefs on the creation of the world?
Do you believe in the afterlife? If so, describe your beliefs.
How do you view the ideas of good and evil?
What are your views about proselytization?
Tell your version of the Gospel story. (for Christians only)
How much do you know about other world religions?
If anyone gets really into this and wants to know more, we've also listed the three books we will be reading under our profile section, along with our email address. Questions and comments are welcome!
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