KALAISAN NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAM

SELF-LEARNING MODULE

Introduction to World Religions and Belief Systems

Week 1

Name: ____________________________ Grade/Strand/Section: _________________

Subject Teacher: ____________________ LRN: ______________________________

Contact #: __________________________

I. Objectives:
1. Give an example of a belief system or a worldview.
2. Differentiate religion from spirituality, theology and philosophy of
religion.

II. Subject Matter:

Definition of Terms

III. Learning Resources:

1. Jerome A. Ong and Mary Dorothy dL. Jose, Introduction to World
Religion and belief Systems (Department of Education, Republic of the
Philippines, 2016), 3
2. https://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Reln101/definitio
ns.pdf
IV. Procedure/Learning Activities:

Understanding Beliefs and Worldviews every individual sees and interprets

the world quite differently from one another. This overall perspective is also
termed worldview which is collection of beliefs about life and the universe
being held by people (Free Dictionary 2014).

According to Ninian Smart there are seven dimensions of worldviews of

religion these are the following:
1. Myth 6. Experiential Dimension
2. Ritual 7. Artistic Dimension
3. Doctrine
4. Ethics
5. Social Dimension

Elements of Belief Systems

1. Monism- there is no real distinction between god and the universe
2. Polytheism- the belief and worship of many gods
3. Monotheism- the doctrine or belief in one supreme god
4. Atheism- disbelief in or denial of the existence of a personal god
5. Agnosticism- god cannot be known

Religion may be defined as an organized system of beliefs, ceremonies, and

rules used to worship a god or a group of gods. The Latin word religio refers
to something done with overanxious or scrupulous attention to detail. This
term may have probably been derived from the Latin verb religare which
means to tie together, to bind fast.

Quite later, religion was used to designate formal belief systems and tenets.
The term was eventually applied to what we now call as religion because of
the manner in which people performed rituals during those days. While
religion may be universal in all stages of human history, it does not follow
that all individuals are religious or even religious to some degree (Parrinder
1971).

Religion may refer to any set of attitudes, beliefs, and practices aimed at
communicating or propitiating with supernatural beings. Humans may
recognize a superhuman being controlling power such as spirit or as god
that seeks worship and obedience from them.

Basic Concepts of Religion

1. Spirituality- is something an individual can have without being

implicated in the ambivalent complexity of human societies and
institutions (Grassie 2010). Thus, spirituality can be described as one’s
integrative view of life and involves a quest for the meaning and ultimate
value of life as opposed to an instrumentalist attitude to life. Hence, one
can be spiritual without being religious.
2. Theology- involves the systematic study of the existence and nature of
the divine. It deals with the study of the nature and purpose of god that
may be undertaken using a particular perspective. Theology is a study,
not a formulation of religious beliefs.
3. Philosophy of Religion- deals with issues concerning religion, which
includes analysis on the existence of a divine being or on sacred texts. It
may involve studying the concepts and beliefs systems of the religions as
well as the prior phenomena of religious experience and the activities of
worship and meditation on which these belief systems rest and out of
which they can have arisen (Hick 1990).

Philosophy of Religion is not a branch of theology but a branch of

philosophy. It is said that this particular study need not be undertaken
from a religious perspective at all because atheists, agnostics, and the
person of faith can and do philosophize about religion.
ACTIVITY:
CONCEPT MAP

Identify the different elements of religion. Use a graphic organizer to

illustrate your answer.

RELIGIO
N

ANALYSIS:
1. Can you give an example of a worldview? Describe this particular
worldview.
2. Do you agree with specific theory of religion? Defend your answer.
3. Do you consider yourself religious, or spiritual? Explain.
4. How does your conception of a divine or Supreme Being compare with
the supernatural beings found in other religious beliefs?

APPLICATION:
Create a character sketches of a person or present a two pictures of a person
who is spiritual but not religious and a person who is religious but not
spiritual, write one paragraph that describes the person.
V. ASSESSMENT:

MATCHING TYPE: Match Column A to Column B.

1. A belief in the existence of one God viewed as the creative source of the
human race and the world.
2. Relating or affecting the human spirit or soul that is one’s personal
integrative view on.
3. The belief that there is only one God who could have designed and created
the universe.
4. The belief in many principal gods among whom no one is supreme.
5. The belief that there is no genuine distinction between God and the
universe.
6. Denial of the existence of God.
7. The belief that God’s existence is unknown and unknowable.
8. An organized system of beliefs, ceremonies, and rules used to worship a
god or a group of gods.
9. A collection of beliefs and about life and the universe held by people.
10. The systematic study of the existence and nature of the divine.

a. theology e. worldview i. religion

b. agnosticism f. monism j. spirituality
c. polytheism g. monotheism
d. theism h. atheism
VI. AGREEMENT:

Prepared by:

MARY KHRISTINE S. GUMILET

Subject Teacher

Checked by:

_________________________

School Supervisor

Noted by:

______________________________________

Name and Signature of Parent/Guardian

__________________________

Date