The traditional Islamic perspective is that while in one sense Islam was initiated by Muhammad (570-632 CE), Islam in the sense of submission to God was taught by all prior prophets, and so their followers were truly Muslims, that is, truly submitted to God. Dissenters are found among historians of religion, who deny that there is and has always been a common core in all of the worlds religions. (Griffin 2005a) They do, however, take seriously at least many of the unusual religious experiences people report. Attending a culturally diverse institute of education will prepare students for their future in a workplace. Nor can he be fruitful and multiply while living as a celibate Buddhist monk. These, however, are mere associations; there seems to be no obvious entailments between the theories of religious diversity and the above qualities. Such an outlook is commonly perceived as meaningless, hopeless, and devoid of value. Abes views have been criticized by other scholars as misunderstanding some other religions claims, and as privileging Mahayana Buddhist doctrines, insofar as he understands these doctrines as being truer than others. Some characteristics of religion are the worship of gods or prophets, beliefs in a system of norms and values, symbology or places of worship. How can a Theravada Buddhists accept that such a heavenly next life is a good and final end for non-Buddhists? First, we have the protected characteristics, such as race, age, gender and sexual orientation. Facts and Theories of Religious Diversity Scholars distinguish seven aspects of religious traditions: the doctrinal and philosophical, the mythic and narrative, the ethical and legal, the ritual and practical, the experiential and emotional, the social and organizational, and the material and artistic. gender reassignment. (Dupuis 2001, 86-9), However, what about Jews, pagans, unbaptized babies, or people who never have a chance to hear the Christian message? For example, in Theravada Buddhism, one must realize that there is no self, whereas in Advaita Vedanta Hinduism one must gain awareness that ones true self is none other than the ultimate reality, Brahman. While elements within it have been sectarian and exclusivistic, modern Hindu thought is usually pluralistic. marriage and civil partnership. (Dupuis 2001; Meeker 2003; section 3c below) Similarly, Buddhists usually allow that a person may gain positive karma, and so a better rebirth, by the practice of various other religions, helping her to advance, life by life, towards getting the cure by means of the distinctive Buddhist beliefs and practices. (Krkkinen 2003; Netland 2001) The most famous of these has been the view (held by some Christians) that all non-Christians are doomed to an eternity of conscious suffering in hell. Others find it excessive that Smith accepts other traditional doctrines, such as that Platos Forms are not only real but alive, that in dreaming the subtle body leaves the body and roams free in the intermediate realm, belief in siddhis (supernatural powers gained by meditation), possession by spirits, psychic phenomena, and so on. In contrast, exclusivist approaches say that only one religion is uniquely valuable. After catholic Christianity became the official religion of the empire (c. 381), it was usually assumed that the message had been preached throughout the world, leaving all adult non-Christians without excuse. Religion Diversity in the Workplace In today's workplace, there are many rules and regulations to ensure the wellbeing of the employee. Most importantly, it offers a chance to discover the deep self as Being. Or what sense would it make for an Orthodox Jew, whose religion teaches him to be fruitful and multiply, to employ the Buddhist practice of viewing corpses at a burial ground so as to expunge the unwanted liability of sexual desire? A Muslims Proposal: Non-Reductive Religious Pluralism. 2006. On the Plurality of Religious Pluralisms., Long, Jeffery D. Anekanta Vedanta: Towards a Deep Hindu Religious Pluralism., Long, Jeffery D. Universalism in Hinduism., Mawson, T.J. Byrnes religious pluralism., Meeker, Kevin. (Hick 2004; Quinn and Meeker 2000) Hicks approach is original, thorough, and informed by a broad and deep knowledge of many religions. But Heims theory does not require them to be, but only that they occur and may be plausibly thought of as fulfilling to those who have them. Roughly, pluralistic approaches to religious diversity say that, within bounds, one religion is as good as any other. These qualities include but are not limited to: being humble, reasonable, kind, broad-minded, open-minded, informed, cosmopolitan, modern, properly appreciative of difference, non-bigoted, tolerant, being opposed to proselytizing (attempts to convince those outside the religion to convert to it), anti-colonialist, and anti-imperialist. Now that the time is right, the truth may be told, that is, Mahayana doctrine, superseding the old. same? 6). (Hasker 2011) At first Hick evades the issue of polytheism by describing his theory not as a kind of polytheism, but rather as poly-something. He then suggests that two views of the personae are compatible with his theory: that they are mental projections, or that they are real, but angel- or deva like beings, intermediaries and not really gods. Wide distances, poor communication and transportation, bad weather, and the clerical shortage dictated religious variety from town to town and from region to region. religion or belief. Religious diversity is the coexistence of more than one religion in the same setting. Spiritual and Religious Diversity Religious and spiritual beliefs can be a personal determinant of enablement. Religious pluralism in some contexts means an informed, tolerant, and appreciative or sympathetic view of the various religions. Among young adults (age 18 to 29), the most common religious identity today is none; more than one in three (34 percent) young adults are religiously unaffiliated. RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY. (Morales 2008), Within the pluralistic mainstream of Hinduism, a popular slogan is that all religions are true, but this may be an expression of almost any sort of positive religious pluralism. A core pluralist claims that all religions of some kind share a common core, and that this is really what matters about the religions; their equal value is found in this common core. However, he thought that it is arbitrary and indefensible to hold that only ones own experiences or the experiences of those in ones group are veridical, while those of people in other religions are not. (Prothero 2010). All religions, then, are equal in that they are responses to the ineffable Ultimate Reality which equally wellor for all we can tell equally wellbring about an ethical improvement in humans, away from self-centeredness and towards other humans and the Ultimate Reality. Generally, a belief should affect your life choices or the way you live for it to be included in the definition. While some characteristics of diversity include age, gender, the color of the skin. We should respect freedom of religion by rejecting the kinds of false and damaging claims that are sometimes made about religion, especially Islam. How could a perfect being fail to be available to all people in all the religions? State University of New York at Fredonia Early bishop Ignatius of Antioch (c. 35-107) writes that if any follow a schismatic [that is, the founder of a religious group outside of the bishop-ruled catholic mainstream] they will not inherit the Kingdom of God. (Letter of Ignatius to the Philadelphians 3:3) Leading catholic theologian Origen of Alexandria (c. 186-255) wrote: outside the Church no one is saved. (Dupuis 2001, 86-7) Yet Origen also held, at least tentatively, that eventually all rational beings will be saved. Moreover, it seems a necessary truth that if the concept personal doesnt apply to the Real, then the concept non-personal must apply to it. Of adult Americans, 89% believe in God, down slightly from 2007. Other Buddhists experience Amida Buddha, while Christians experience Christ, and Jews Yahweh, Hindus Isvara, and Muslims Allah. Here we can survey only a few of the criticisms that have been made. As to religious diversity, Abe suggests that we view the dynamic activity Emptiness (also called Openness) as ultimate, and as manifesting as various Gods, that is various monotheistic deities, and Lords, which are human religious teachers, whether manifestations of a god, as in the case of Jesus, or just pre-eminent servants of a god, as with Moses or Muhammad. There are other major ones which remain unseen. Immigrant Asians were slightly more likely than U.S.-born Asians to be homeowners in 2019 (60% vs. 56%). All the theories discussed in this article are ways that (usually religious) people regard other religions, but here we discuss them abstractly, without descending much into the details of how they would be worked out in the teachings and practices of any one religion. (Sharma 1999, ch. 1) Race as a negative social construct: physical appearance is used to discriminate, to exclude, to exploit, to abuse, and/or to profile, as in educational systems, traffic and criminal systems, housing and banking/mortgage lending, and medical care. It is not hard to find religions or religious cults which would not plausibly be thought of as good in the way(s) that a pluralist has in mind. Equally, Advaita Vedanta Hindus must let go of their insistence on Nirguna Brahman as ultimate. In this and in a later book Heim asserts that such a plurality of ordained religious goals is implied by the doctrine of the Trinity. A difficulty for any pluralist theory is how to restrict the group of equally good religions without losing the appearance of being all-accepting or wholly non-judgmental. (Burton 2010; Kiblinger 2005; and section 4c below) But in modern times, some have constructed a novel and distinctively Buddhist pluralism using the Mahayana doctrine of expedient means (Sanskrit: upaya). 3 There are many ethnic groups in the United States, due in large part to its immigrant population; each of these groups contributes to America's cultural heritage. (Hick 2004, ch. Scholars distinguish seven aspects of religious traditions: the doctrinal and philosophical, the mythic and narrative, the ethical and legal, the ritual and practical, the experiential and emotional, the social and organizational, and the material and artistic. Diversity in religion is one of the world's strengths, not one of its weaknesses. The term exclusivist was originally a polemical term, chosen in part for its negative connotations. But these lesser ways should and eventually will give way to Christianity, the truest religion, intended for all humankind. An improvement upon naive pluralism acknowledges differences in all the aspects of religions, but separates peripheral from core differences. Physical appearance becomes a way of allowing particular groups of people to feel that they are . One goes so far as to say that the Holy Spirit offers to all [humans] the possibility of being associated, in a way known to God, with the Paschal Mystery [that is, the saving death and resurrection of Jesus]. (Gaudium et Spes 22, quoted in Dupuis 2001, 162) Some Catholic theologians see the groundwork or beginning in these documents for an inclusivist theory, on which other religions have saving value. These, Hick holds, are all mistaken; the Ultimate reality is neither personal nor impersonal. Another, without saying that people may be saved through membership in them, affirms various positive values in other religions, including true teachings, which serve as divinely ordained preparations for reception the gospel. This view has not been widely accepted because the Process theology and philosophy on which it is based has not been widely accepted. Insofar as they in good conscience practice what is good in their religion, people in other religions receive Gods grace and are anonymous Christians, people who are being saved through Christ, though they do not realize it. Religion and belief includes: Atheists Agnostics Bah' Buddhists Christians. Recent Islamic thinkers have independently come to conclusions parallel to those of Rahner, while critiquing various pluralist theories as entailing the sin of unbelief (kufr), the rejection of Islam. (Neuner and Dupuis 2001, 329), Since the Vatican II council (1962-5), many Catholic theologians have embraced what most philosophers will consider some form of inclusivism rather than a suitably qualified exclusivism, with a minority opting for some sort of pluralism. If the core is salvifically effective practice, then all will be equal in that each is equally well a means to obtaining the cure. A common form of negative pluralism may be called verificationist pluralism. This is the view that all religious claims are meaningless, and as a result are incapable of rational evaluation. On the other hand, others seem to make little or no sense outside the context of the home religion, and others are simply incompatible. It is here described as Identist pluralism because his theory claims that people in all the major religions interact with one and the same transcendent reality, variously called God, the Real, and the Ultimate Reality., Hick viewed religious belief as rationally defensible, and held that one may be rational in trusting the veridicality of ones religious experiences. This led to both the questioning and the defense of various exclusivist traditional Christian claims. In reply, Hick urges that his claims are not themselves religious, but are rather about religious matters, and are, as such, philosophical. Finally, Cobb and Griffin emphasize that this approach does not endorse any unreasonable form of relativism and, as such, allows one to remain distinctively Christian or Buddhist and so forth. Religious difference has become a factor in local and global conflicts and peace building. race. Monotheists, after all, take the ultimate being to be a personal god while others, variously called ultimists, absolutists, or monists, hold the ultimate to be impersonal, such as the Dao, Emptiness, Nirguna Brahman, and so forth. (Sharma 1990) This modern Hindu outlook has proven difficult to formulate in any clear way. Though naive pluralisms are not common amongst scholars in relevant fields, they are important to mention because they are entertained by many people as they begin to reflect on religious diversity. Still, given that Muhammad is the seal of the prophets, his teachings and practices should, and some day will supersede all previous ones. But doesnt Christian tradition demand that each person eventually either achieves fellowship or union with God, or is irrevocably damned? This diversity is increasing, even in communities that have previously been relatively homogeneous. Given that it is ineffable, this Being is neither a god, nor the God of monotheism. This in some sense manifests as, acts as, and is not different from a host of Enjoyment Bodies (Sambhogakaya), each of which is a Buddha outside of space and time, a historical Buddha now escaped from samsara and dwelling in a Buddha-realm. (Cohn-Sherbok 2005). However, more recently, it has been argued that all religious doctrines, even Mahayana ones, are expedient means, helpful non-truths, ladders to be kicked away upon attainment of the cure, here understood as a non-cognitive awareness of the ultimate reality. One may object that this above proposal is counter to the equalizing spirit of pluralism. Insofar as a religion claims to possess a diagnosis of the fundamental problem facing humans and a cure, that is, a way to permanently and positively resolve this problem, it will then assume that other, incompatible diagnoses and cures are incorrect. Worldwide, more than eight-in-ten people identify with a religious group. Finally, Hick revises his view: the monotheistic gods people experience are mental projections in response to the Real, and not real selves, but since religious people really do encounter great selves in religious experience, we should posit personal intermediaries between humans and the Real, with whom religious people interact. Finally, because of their fit with many traditional religious beliefs and commitments, sometimes exclusivism and inclusivism are considered as two varieties of confessionalism, views on which one religion istrue andwe must view other religions in the light of that fact. (Byrne 2004, 203). The Epistemological Challenge of Religious Pluralism., Ignatius of Antioch, The Letter of Ignatius to the Philadelphians, in, King, Nathan. Thus, if central Christian teachings are true, then so is at least one central teaching of these two rival religions. Local variations in Protestant practices and ethnic differences among the white settlers did foster a religious diversity. 3) To say that it is either, Hick realizes, would be to hand an epistemic victory to either the monotheists or the absolutists (ultimists). Thus, for example, the earliest Buddhist and Christian sources prominently feature staunch criticisms of various rival teachings and practices as, respectively, false and useless or harmful. It is also allowed that each major religion really does deliver the cure it claims to (for example, salvation and heaven, Nirvana, Moksha), and is entitled to operate by its own moral and epistemic values. OConnor, Timothy. While this is compatible with some religion being the best in some other respect(s), the theorists using this label have in mind that many religions are equal regarding the central value(s) of religion. In other words, this Ultimate Reality, due to the various qualities of human minds, appears to various people as personae, such as God, the Trinity, Allah, Vishnu, and also as impersonae such as Emptiness, Nirvana, Nirguna Brahman, and the Dao. 3) The highest level in some sense is the human Spirit, the deep self which underlies the self of ordinary experience. Consider the claim that the cosmos was intentionally made. It can build strength of character, pride, and confidence. Thus, Augustine of Hippo (354-430) and Fulgentius of Ruspe (468-533) interpreted the slogan as implying that all non-Christians are damned, because they bear the guilt of original sin stemming from the sin of Adam, which has not been as it were washed away by baptism. Hick realizes the incoherence of dubbing all religions true, for they have core teachings that conflict, and most religions are not shy about pointing out such conflicts. It can be argued that Abe is an inclusivist, maintaining that Buddhism is the best religion, rather than a true pluralist. There are numerous cultures in the world, understood as different visions of the cosmos , of humanity itself and of the world, with their traditions, imaginaries, languages and representations. (Stenmark 2009) He does not advocate this view, but explores it as an alternative to exclusivism, inclusivism, and Hickian identist pluralism. The Religious Diversity Index is divided into four ranges: very high (the top 5% of scores), high (the next highest 15% of scores, which works out to 16% because of tie scores), moderate (the next 20% of scores) and low (the bottom 59% of scores). (For others see Hick 2004, Introduction.). By contrast, the Real in itself, that is, the Ultimate Reality as it intrinsically is, is never experienced by anyone, but is only hypothesized as overall the most reasonable explanation of the facts of religious diversity. (Netland 2001), Others object that Hicks pluralism requires arbitrarily reinterpreting religious language non-literally, and usually as having to do with morality, contrary to what most proponents of those religions believe. (Netland 2001, 23-54) Theories of religious diversity have largely been driven by attacks on and defenses of such claims, and discussions continue within the realm of Christian theology. Appropriating Hindu, Buddhist, and Christian language, Smith says that this spirit is the Atman that is Brahman, the Buddha-nature that appears when our finite selves get out of its way, my istigkeit (is-ness) whichwe see is Gods is-ness. (Smith 2003 ch. (Long 2005) The slogan may also imply that all religions feature veridical experience of that one object, by way of a non-cognitive, immediate awareness. A comprehensive demographic study of more than 230 countries and territories conducted by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life estimates that there are 5.8 billion religiously affiliated adults and children around the globe, representing 84% of the 2010 world population of 6.9 billion. Hinduism., de Cea, Abraham Vlez. But others teach that the ultimate reality is a perfect self, a being capable of knowledge, will, and intentional action. An exclusivist stance is often signaled by the claim that there is only one true religion. Other religions, then, are false. A naive person may infer from this that no claim, or no central claim of any other religion is true, but all such are false. Further, Hick presupposes the correctness of recent socially liberal ethics, for example, sexual liberation, and thus rules out as inessential to any religion any conflicting ethical demands. It has been typical also for Buddhist thinkers to hold that at best, the same is true of other religious traditions. A vast diversity of religious and spiritual traditions exists, and your clients may be affiliated with any of them. People over age 40 are more likely to identify with a religion or engage in religious practices. On the one hand, it is difficult to consistently distinguish inclusivism from exclusivism, because the latter nearly always concedes some significant value to other religions. This is not compatible with his thesis that Vishnu and others are phenomena of the Real, that is, culturally conditioned ways that the Real appears to us. This account is narrower than pluralism is usually thought to be, but it is arguably a version of it. It is far from clear that Heim is correct that this stance will be consistent with the claims of the home religion. Among these purported facts, for Hick, is that the great religions equally well facilitate the ethical transformation of their adherents, what Hick calls a transformation from self-centeredness to other-centeredness and Reality-centeredness. Some have urged that it be replaced by the more neutral terms particularism or restrictivism. (Netland 2001, 46; Krkkinen 2003, 80-1) This article retains the common term because it is widespread and many have adopted the label for their own theory of religious diversity. Legenhausen, Hajj Muhammad [Gary Carl]. Following these same steps, our second . one? Ethnic or national origins include, for 2; see section 3c below). Judaism and Other Faiths., Datta, Narendra [Swami Vivekananda]. A Cross-cultural and Buddhist-Friendly Interpretation of the Typology Exclusivism-Inclusivism-Pluralism., Griffin, David Ray. While there have been Buddhist teachers and movements who have been exclusivists, in general Buddhism has been inclusivist. The Equality Act replicates the provisions of previous legislation. (Heim 1995, 154-5, 161) This is an important qualifier, as various religious goals clearly presuppose contrary claims. It attracted widespread discussion and criticism, and Hick has engaged in a spirited debate with all comers. This view was affirmed by Pope Pius X (r. 1846-78) in his Singulari Quadam (1854): outside the Apostolic Roman Church no one can be savedOn the other handthose who live in ignorance of the true religion, if such ignorance be invincible, are not subject to any guilt in this matter before the eyes of the Lord. (Neuner and Dupuis 2001, 311). You are protected under the Equality Act 2010 from these types of discrimination. In his earlier writings, monotheistic concerns seem important. (OConnor 1999; King 2008; Bogardus 2013), Others object that given the transcategoriality or ineffability of the Real, even with the above qualifications, there is no reason to think that interaction with the Real should be ethically beneficial, or that it should have any connection at all to any religious value. (Peterson et. This seems incompatible with Heims agnosticism about which, if any, of the diagnosed problems is the fundamental one. In other contexts, religious pluralism is a normative principle requiring that peoples of all or most religions should be treated the same. Characteristically Religious Feelings Awe, a sense of mystery, a sense of guilt, and adoration are "religious feelings" which tend to be aroused in religious believers when they come in the presence of sacred objects, in sacred places, and during the practice of sacred rituals. It's also important because in the 21st century there are global problems and issues which seemingly have religious origins and which will take a concerted effort of people of different faiths to help resolve. Finally, inclusivist theories try to steer a middle course by agreeing with exclusivism that one religion has the most value while also agreeing with pluralism that others still have significant religious value. For example, all non-Christians go to hell, or all non-Buddhists fail to gain Nirvana, or to make progress towards it. It is a matter of dispute whether certain famous Sufi Muslims such as Rumi (1207-73) and Ibn Arabi (1165-1240) have held to some form of religious pluralism. The various planes are not distinct from it, and it is the ultimate object of all desire, and the deepest reality within each human self. While such naive exclusivist positions are rarely expounded by scholars, they frequently appear in the work of pluralists and inclusivists, held up as unfortunate, harmful, and unreasonable theories which are in urgent need of replacement. In the terms explained above, a religion claims to have a diagnosis (section 1 above). It offers a fall from primordial spirituality into modern spiritual poverty, cured by adopting the outlook sketched above. With the split of the catholic movement into Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox branches, the church was understood in Western contexts to be specifically the Roman Catholic church. U. S. A. First, some religious claims can be empirically confirmed or disconfirmed. John Cobbs Whiteheadian Complementary Pluralism., Hasker, William. This, it is hoped, rules out anyone having grounds for believing any particular religion to be the uniquely best religion. It is difficult to make a fully clear distinction between exclusivist and inclusivist approaches. However, his theory seems to depend crucially on the existence of many human problems, each of which may be solved by participation in some religion or other. Legenhausen, Hajj Muhammad [Gary Carl] Why I am not a Traditionalist. 2002. The classic discussion of this is in the Lotus Sutra (before 255 C.E. true? The formation and development of religious diversity is a manifestation of the free expression of human thought, belief, and practice, as well as a historical premise and ideological condition for the gradual recognition and integration of modern religions into modern political values. Later theologians added a baptism of desire, which was either a desire to be baptized or the inclination to form such a desire, either way enough to secure saving membership in the church.
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