Death+in+Religion

__ Back to Culture __ __ Back to Home __ The Changed Perspective of Death Caused by Religion ** Introduction ** The world holds a variety of religions, each of which hold different beliefs about death. Christianity believes in the judgement of souls on whether they'll enter heaven or hell. Buddhism and Hinduism believe in reincarnation where the soul begins a new life in a new body. The existence of religion instigates a constant debate on death and it's existence. Yet, both scholars and philosophers question whether which one is true. Religion may have a greater role in affecting the human psyche away from the concept of death. Our modern society only constitutes a portion of what religion is and it's influence. Religion has existed for centuries and influences our decisions on a constant basis. A single religion cannot define death as a whole. There exists a whole spectrum of different religions, each of which has a different belief and cultural views. Entering modern society, humans question their conscience about death when influenced by their religion. Religion is evolving at a rapid rate as more people partake in their religious beliefs throughout their lives. The involvement of more people creates an ever growing debate and interpretation of their religion and how it affects them everyday. Click here for a more in-depth page about the afterlife in religion. ** Christianity **

Christianity is the largest religion that exists today with over 2.4 billion adherents that follow it's religious beliefs. Humans experience divine judgement and are rewarded with either eternal damnation or salvation (heaven and hell). Christianity is a monotheistic religion, and is based on the teachings of Jesus and that he died for our sins. The existence of Christianity is provided in the Holy Bible where the holy scriptures of Christianity existed and is split between the Old Testament and the New Testament. Jesus is the major figurehead in Christianity as he was brought down by God as the ruler and savior of the world and that humans that committed sin can be reconciled to God. Click here to go to a more in-depth page about Christianity and death. ** Buddhism and Hinduism ** Buddhism has around almost 1 billion followers that follow the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama and Hinduism also has around 1 billion followers and they share the concept of reincarnation. Hinduism is the oldest religion that still exists in modern times and can be split, based on the many gods that are told in their scriptures. Each god represents a certain title such as Brahma the creator, Vishnu the preserver, and Shiva the destroyer. Buddhism on the other hand is entitled to escaping human suffering by reaching nirvana. Human suffering is caused by reincarnation and the only way to escape reincarnation is to reach nirvana. Nirvana can only be achieved following the Eight Fold Path created by Siddhartha Gautama. Buddhism believes in the direct understanding of the Four Noble Truths as a way to reach nirvana. ** Counter Arguments to Religion ** media type="youtube" key="wMc4Jip2Smo" height="480" width="854"
 * [[image:http://www.hinduwebsite.com/buddhism/images/buddhism.jpg width="471" height="190" align="left" caption="This image is provided from: http://hinduwebsite.com/buddhism/buddhist_philosophy.asp"]] || [[image:http://www.nuttyhistory.com/uploads/1/2/1/5/12150034/7851108_orig.jpg width="419" height="181" align="left" caption="This image is provided from: http://www.nuttyhistory.com/hinduism.html"]] ||

As we enter modern society, sociologist and philosophers question the purpose of religion and what it does as the world constantly grows. Some people argue that religion only existed to protect our existential crisis from the idea of death. People such as Charles Darwin, led to increase of skepticism about religion due to the discovery of evolution. Peter Berger, a famous sociologist of religion also questions religion and why its influence has not declined over the years. Also, there is no proof on whether an afterlife exists because no has experienced what death is like. Sources

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"Hinduism." Dr. Hartnell's Nutty the A.D.D. Squirrel. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

VeritasForum. "Why Hasn't Religion Died Out? Peter Berger, Ross Douthat and Kristen Lucken." YouTube. YouTube, 02 Dec. 2015. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

Cross, Karen L. MD., The Afterlife, Journal of Palliative Medicine,. Volume 17., (2014/11/2) Web.

Davis, Stephen T. "Death and Afterlife." Google Books. Claremont Graduate School, n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2016.

Murti, T. R. V. "The Central Philosophy of Buddhism." Google Books. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.

Schirrmacher, Christine. "They Are Not All Martyrs Islam On The Topics Of Dying, Death, And Salvation In The Afterlife." Evangelical Review Of Theology 36.3 (2012): 250-265. Academic Search Complete. Web. 22 Feb. 2016.

Tang, Thich Nguyen. "Buddhist Views on Death and Rebirth." N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.

Tongeren, Daryl R.Raad, Jennifer M.McIntosh, Daniel N.Pae, Jessica. "The Existential Function Of Intrinsic Religiousness: Moderation Of Effects Of Priming Religion On Intercultural Tolerance And Afterlife Anxiety."Journal For The Scientific Study Of Religion 52.3 (2013): 508-523. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection. Web. 22 Feb. 2016.

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