Study of Religion

The overall study of religion is naturally intriguing. The greatest problem that this field of knowledge has encountered is a direct result of its original appeal. Religion at its core deals with supernatural forces and questions of God. Now as science deals with relative validity and observable evidence, it is with no dismay that the two have been at ends since the dawning of the Scientific Revolution. Even furthering confusion, due to the lack of evidence confirming religion, a wholly different question can be inspired: What is religion?

Luckily for us, as students of the 21st century, we can put together our own makeshift guidelines as to what constitutes a religion quite well. We have been fortunate enough to have had the luxury of reading and rereading and yet again rereading the many different definitions of 'religion' put forth by learned individuals. One can agree for the most part that in order for a certain set of beliefs to be deemed a religion, it needs to: have some sort of ideal on the meaning to life (supernatural or not), a collection of scriptures and holy books relating these beliefs, a set of historic symbols and artifacts, a group of leaders administering the preservation of the faith, and finally a body of devout lay persons.

Many scholars, in the fields of religion and otherwise, have added their opinions to the understanding of religion. For the most part most scholars have had negative tendencies towards religion: Freud saw it as an illusion, and Marx saw it as a result of alienation. Rudolf Otto's theories are especially enjoyable to me. This 19th century German Protestant Theologian gained fame and notoriety alike for discussing religious experience. Otto stated that at the core of all world religions was the numinous. The numinous is described as a non-rational feeling whose primary object is outside the self. These mysteries cause fascination and trembling and we try to explain them through our wonder as religious experiences of grace. Such feelings of connected-ness with a higher being or state of being are found in all world religions.