Week 10

One pattern I noticed from the beginning came from the portion of Geertz's definition about religion being comprised of a system of symbols. Symbols were prevalent throughout all of the works we studied.
The symbols found in the cave paintings and the Indian Mounds are somewhat ambiguous to modern observers . It is unclear what they represent or, in the case of the paintings, if they are religiously significant at all. We can't know from looking at the symbols what the religion was really all about. I think this illustrates how sometimes symbols that are important to a religious group might not be understood by outsiders. Even if someone knows that something is religiously symbolic, they cannot necessarily surmise any concrete information about the religion from it. Symbols in a religion often have a deeper meaning than can be completely understood by an outsider.
Religious texts themselves can be, in a way, symbols. Sacred texts hold a great significance in many religions. The Bible in Christianity. The Torah and various Hebrew texts in Judaism, the Qur'an in Islam, etc. We studied the significance of the Kebra Negast in Ethiopia. These texts hold a great deal of meaning to people who practice the religions and could be considered symbolic in many ways.
Symbols can function within and outside of the religion as well. Some do both. For example, the cross and crucifix symbolize Christianity to people in general. However, similar to the mounds or the cave paintings, while to outsiders, a cross simply means "Christianity," within the religion, it symbolizes specific things (i.e. Christ's death and resurrection). In Rastafari, things such as dreadlocks are representational of the religion to those of us who do not practice it. To people who do, they do not necessarily represent the religion as a whole, but certain aspects of it.
Symbols are prevalent in all religions and are important, but they represent different things to different people, especially when the distinction is made between an "outsider" and an "insider" of the religion.

Jane Addams

The work Jane Addams did could, arguably, be associated with religion simply due to its nature. Much charity work is connected to religion. Most religious groups have some sort of underlying principle of doing good for others, helping the poor, etc.
Jane Addams was raised a Quaker and her upbringing presumably had an effect on her world-view. She did, apparently, turn away from the Quaker tradition later in life. However, it seems that other experiences in her life had more of an effect than her religion. It appears that she was more strongly affected by the poverty she witnessed: at home as a child and later in Europe.
She does discuss the nature of the early Christian church as being non-resistant and sort of "all loving," so to speak. The ideals of embodying Christ through service to others was prevalent in the early church. Addams mentions that there seemed to be a rebirth of these ideals in America at the time she was writing. She mentions the religious and spiritual force behind the Settlement movement, but also seems to feel that the movement is not strictly or exclusively religious.

Haile Selassie did not consider himself a god, yet the people who would become known as the Rastafarians see him as one. Despite the fact that he never said he was a deity, a whole religion and way of life were built upon the belief that he was. His coronation occurred along with several movements (i.e. Garveyism) and cultural conditions that influenced the rise of this belief. As we discussed in class, the belief that Selassie was indeed a god was rather a "perception of convenience." A group of people needed something to believe in and to hang onto and Selassie's coronation presented them with the opportunity.
Selassie himself did not explicitly state that he was a god but also did nothing to dissuade them. He believed he was descended from Solomon, after all, so he did believe he was something special. He did not mind being a symbol for the Rastafari people. Even though he never agreed outright that he was a god, his attitude combined with the social, cultural, and political conditions of the time helped to create the "aura of factuality" needed for people to accept that he was a deity.

Rastafari Video

Many aspects of the video seemed to agree with what we've learned about Rastafari so far. The parts about back to Africa movements as well as fighting oppression were fitting with what we've talked about in class. A lot of what the people interviewed talked about involved fighting oppression and having their culture come out on top. This is consistent with the fighting against "Babylon" we read and talked about. They seemed very proud of their culture and their way of life. They seemed particularly proud of their spirituality and the way they pray. The idea of Rastafari as a way of life was very apparent from the video. The way they lived seemed very much centered around the Rastafari tradition and culture. From what I understand, they do not like to be told what to do and I definitely got that sense from the video.

Week 7, Blog 2

I thought that the historical and cultural conditions behind the emergence of Rastafari were interesting. There were so many different movements that influenced Rastafari. It was heavily influenced by back to Africa movements (i.e. Marcus Garvey). It was because of movements such as Garveyism and Ethiopianism that the crowning of Haile Selassie became significant among certain groups of Jamaicans. It was actually a rather complex combination of elements that led to the emergence of Rastafari.
Geertz's definition of religion talks about the element of "an aura of factuality." Early proponents of Rastafari were able to achieve this through the usage of various biblical passages that backed up their ideas. The various socio-cultural movements going on at the time served a similar purpose in helping give the movement power.
It seems that for a religious movement to gain strength many things have to come together at the right time.

Week 7

It was especially interesting how the writers of the Kebra Negast took a story from the Bible and filled in some holes to weave Ethiopia further into the story. The Queen's role was carefully filled in. I am not entirely sure where this story differs from the Bible, but presumably, the writers of the Kebra Negast answered questions raised by ambiguous portions of the actual Bible story.
The intention was obviously to make Ethiopia look good. Solomon is a well known and respected Biblical figure and tying themselves to him was a way to do this. It is interesting, though, how the queen and Solomon had to behave in less than admirable ways in order to make this connection. However, the writers were careful to make Solomon more of a "bad guy" than queen Sheba, which, given their purpose, makes sense.

Picture

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/160/414062482_05e37724e5_m.jpg

The image of Jesus shown on these cups is quite well known. It can be found in many, many churches all over. While no one really knows what Jesus looked like, the man portrayed in this image is a well known representation of him. I first find it interesting that this particular image is so representative of Jesus in the Christian church when we do not actually know what he looked like. The symbol is so strong that when we look at an image of this man, we think that he is Jesus. It is interesting how this symbol has become such a strong representation of Christianity when it is probably not even an accurate representation of how Jesus looked.
Also, in this photograph, the image has become extremely commercialized. The image of Jesus is a sacred symbol in the Christian church. It is amazing how it has permeated our culture enough to appear in mass quantities on what appears to be some sort of container. (Maybe a candle holder?) The fact that you can go to the grocery store and buy a religious symbol seems to indicate that the symbol has become part of life, even for people who do not observe the religion. This could be caused by the religion, the culture, or both. Religions might put their symbols in the world through their worship or in hopes of influencing others. In a culture, especially one as commercial and material as ours, selling religious symbols is a way to make money. Something that began as a symbol of something greater and more spiritual can quickly become less meaningful.