Hi, John, At 11:25 AM 12/10/2003 -1100, you wrote: >>While science and religion are two wings of man, the logician may have trouble >>jumping into the mystical ocean. "I and the father are one". What can this mean?<<
We may or may not have the fuller context for that statement. However, Jesus admitted speaking in parables. IMO, given that He regularly used an analogical pedagogy, it should not be surprising that His disciples also used metaphor in describing the events after His passing, such as the Resurrection. >>If you logically analyze it you can pull it apart. I went to an atheist site to get >>their view of a definition of religion and found the following:<< That article actually includes several different definitions, both functional and substantive. Most sociologists of religion prefer the former over the latter. Functional definitions allow the researcher to include a greater variety of organizations under the rubric of religion than would be possible with most substantive definitions. An example of a functional definition of religion, from Emile Durkheim, is a system of beliefs and praxes (practices), focused on the sacred (the extraordinary, not necessarily the supernatural), which unites people into a moral (normative) community. Substantive definitions, on the other hand, may specify particular beliefs, praxes, or objects of worship as *criterion variables*. However, if I define a religion as a belief in supernatural beings or in prayer, I am forced to exclude numerous religious organizations and traditions from this social institution, such as Confucianism and Ethical Culture. >>Religion seems to me to have something to do with the heart of man reaching out to >>the infinite. Each person has his own unique religiousview of life.<< Such a unique religious view, if there is such a thing, would, IMO, be a personal belief system, not a religion. Sociologically, religion is a social institution, i.e., the institution of religion. In a particular country, the various religious organizations (denominations, sects, cults, and, where applicable, churches or "official" ecclesia) are examined in the context of this greater structure. Unstated, or unshared (if that is possible), personal beliefs would not be considered religious phenomena by most sociologists. Sociologist Richard Niebuhr (Reinhold's brother), wrote a book I read years ago called, _The Denominational Society_. It describes the normative structure of the American religious institution as denominational (cooperative and pluralistic). Although not all religious organizations in the U.S. are denominations, those that are not in this category may experience degrees of cultural tension. Mark A. Foster * http://MarkFoster.net http://CompuServe.m.foster.name ---------- You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Baha'i Studies is available through the following: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://list.jccc.net/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=bahai-st news://list.jccc.net/bahai-st http://www.escribe.com/religion/bahaist (public) http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED] (public)
