How World Religions

Began
Kelvin Paul B. Panuncio

Beginning of Religion
Could there be a link between agriculture
and religion. The first farmers began to
cultivate crops in Mesopotamia over
10,000 years ago. Driven by necessity or
just convenience, the nomadic hunter-

Early Agriculture and

Religion
Farming manipulates nature, but at the end of the day both with
the advanced farming technology we have today and as far back
as 10,000 years ago we still need the sun to shine and rain to
fall to produce a good harvest. And throughout the world today
many farmers pray for a good harvest. It's not difficult to see
that ancient man may too have carried out this practice, and a
relationship developed between man and nature, man and God,
a sort of unwritten agreement, a contract, where man pleads
with God or prays to God for sunshine and rain. And as time
moved forward it came to pass that this contract required a
special day of the week, separate from work days, when prayer
could take place. Also required was a special place where the
contract could be honoured along with skilled people who would
administer the carrying out of the contract. Perhaps the
mottopray now, eat lateris apt. In effect we can see where the
apparatus of organised religion, the sabbath, the church and the
priest, may have stemmed from.

Origin of Religion - Ancient

Foundations
The origin of religion can generally
be traced to the ancient Near East
and classified in three basic
categories: polytheistic, pantheistic
and monotheistic.Atheismis really a
modern belief that resulted from the
"Enlightenment" period of the 18th
century.

Origin of Religion Polytheism

The origin of religion and polytheistic systems:
Polytheism (a belief in many gods) is thought to have
originated withHinduismin about 2500 BC. Hindu
beliefs were recorded in the Bhagavad Gita, which
revealed that many gods were subject to a supreme
Brahman god.Polytheismwas also the religion of many
other ancient cultures, including Assyria, Babylonia,
Egypt,GreeceandRome. The ancient polytheistic belief
systems viewed gods as being in control of all natural
events such as rainfall, harvests and fertility. Generally,
polytheistic cultures believed in sacrifices to appease
their gods. For instance, the Canaanites sacrificed to
the male god, Baal, and his female counterpart,
Ashteroth. Baal controlled the rain and the harvest,

Origin of Religion Pantheism

The origin of religions and pantheistic systems:

Pantheism (a belief that all is God) prevailed in
numerous ancient cultures. The belief that the universe
itself was divine was typified in the Animism beliefs of
the African and American Indian cultures, the later
Egyptian religion under the Pharoahs, andBuddhism,
Confucianism and Taoism in the cultures of the Far East.
Pantheistic beliefs are also finding resurgence among
variousNew Age movements. Generally, pantheism is
the principle that god is everything, and everything is
god. Therefore, nature is also part of god. We must be
in harmony with nature. We must nurture it and be
nurtured by it. Mankind is no different than any other
animal. We must live in harmony with them, understand
them, and learn from them, focusing on the relationship

Origin of Religion The origin of religion

and monotheistic systems:
Monotheism

Monotheism (a belief in one God) is the foundation of

the Judeo-christian-muslim line of religions, which
began with a man named Abraham in about 2000 BC.
From this point in history, God began revealing
Himself to the world through thenation of Israel. The
Jewish Scriptures record the journey of the Israelites
from slaves in Egypt to the "promised land" in Canaan
under the leadership of Moses. During a period of
about 1500 years, God revealed what became the Old
Testament ofthe Bible, relating the history of Israel
with the character and laws of God. During the period
of the Roman Empire, Jesus Christ was born in
Bethlehem as the long-awaited Messiah. The ministry
of Jesus ended in about 32 AD with His crucifixion and
resurrection. After Christ's ascension into heaven, the
Christian churchgrew in His name and the New

Origin of Religion - Important Dates in History:

c. 2000 BC: Time of Abraham, the patriarch of Israel.

c. 1200 BC: Time of Moses, the Hebrew leader of the
Exodus.
c. 1100 - 500 BC: Hindus compile their holy texts, the
Vedas.
c. 563 - 483 BC: Time of Buddha, founder of
Buddhism.
c. 551 - 479 BC: Time of Confucius, founder of
Confucianism.
c. 200 BC: The Hindu book,Bhagavad Gita, is written.
c. 2 to 4 BC - 32 AD: Time of Jesus Christ, the Messiah
and founder of Christianity.
c. 32 AD: The Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus

Religions
today:
Some observers believe that modernday religions remain largely a response
to human fear. Their main function is
to provide their followers with a feeling
of security while living in a dangerous
environment in which a person can be
injured, killed or murdered at any time
due to natural causes, accidents or
human hatred and intolerance

David C. James, rector ofSt. John's Episcopal

Church & Diocesan Mission Centerin Olympia,
WA, wrote:
Many times when we think we are
worshipping God, we are actually comforting
our very fragile egos. Im not so nave as to
assume that we build temple and erect altars
to ourselvesdirectly. But our core need to
been safe, secure and sound mandates that
we construct reality systems that will support
us.

 John Shelby Spong, retired bishop of the Episcopal

Church, USA has written:
"Religion is primarily a search for security and not
a search for truth. Religion is what we so often use
to bank the fires of our anxiety. That is why religion
tends toward becoming excessive, neurotic,
controlling and even evil. That is why a religious
government is always a cruel government. People
need to understand that questioning and doubting
are healthy, human activities to be encouraged not
to be feared. Certainty is a vice not a virtue.
Insecurity is something to be grasped and
treasured. A true and healthy religious system will
encourage each of these activities. A sick and
fearful religious system will seek to remove them."