An Analysis of Religious Manifestation: Belief Systems and Practices

This essay delves into the multifaceted nature of religious manifestation, examining its core elements and diverse expressions. It begins by highlighting the complexities of human belief systems and the varied interpretations of religious practices across different communities. The essay thoroughly investigates key components such as belief systems, which are fundamental to the structure of any religion; the role of community in fostering shared faith and support; the significance of central myths and rituals in shaping emotional experiences and providing a sense of belonging; and the ethical systems that guide believers' behaviors. It also explores the material expressions of religion, including sacred objects and practices like giving to the poor, and concludes with a comparative analysis of astrology as a religious practice, emphasizing the importance of rituals, sacredness, and emotional experiences. The essay ultimately prompts reflection on the role of religion in addressing human curiosity and existential questions, such as life after death, and why diverse religions exist in the world.

Running –Head: RELIGIOUS MANIFESTATION 1
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RELIGIOUS MANIFESTATION 2
Religious Manifestation
Elements of Religion
The way of life for human beings is quite complex when the subject of religion is brought
about. This is because different people have diverse beliefs and they believe that they are right.
They have proofs from experiences and some are actually real and persuasive. For this reason,
some people advise that one needs to have a firm principle so that they are not swayed right, left,
center and back in the name of religion. This paper will examine the subject of religious
manifestations in depth and put into consideration a number of elements such as a belief system,
community, central myths, rituals, an ethical system, emotional experience, material expressions
of religion and sacredness.
Most religions have a system of beliefs. For instance, the Christians believe in one
Supreme Being whom they refer to different names which they accept as true and sacred as well
as fitting to Him. There is no religion that can survive without an organization or rather a belief
system. For instance, Christian gathers together in different churches during Christmas to
celebrate the birth of The Messiah. They also perform ceremonies to remember His death and
resurrection. This shows that there is an element of a system of beliefs that they all share as
religion (Jacobs, 2005).
Many communities are formed as a result of sharing the same religion. These
communities are aimed at keeping watch of the faithful in addition to share in the burdens they
experience in their journey of life. A community is an important part of religion because it helps
the faithful to come together and worship as one. It also brings about a sense of belonging to the
faithful ( Tolstoi 2014).

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The emotional experience is part and parcel of religion. For instance, the emotions that
that bring hope to the individuals (Ryder, 1932). The religious rituals facilitate the emotional
attachment to religion. Such includes, fear, reverence, hope and humility. These emotions help
individuals to stay in order and not trespass against themselves or their neighbors. These
emotions give us one conclusion; there is a reality of God to the believers.
Various religions have rituals and ceremonies that can only be associated to them. These
ceremonies as noted in the previous paragraph play an important role in the emotional experience
the believers. As such there are emotional practices as well as ceremonial ones. In Christianity,
the believers pray, they fast, they also read the bible and retell the stories of the bible, the
Christians also partake the symbolic last supper in remembrance of Christ Jesus their savior
(Morgan, 2007).
Sacred objects such as the mosques for Islam, Temples for the Jews and the Hindus, the
Christians believe in the cross while the Muslims regard the Quran (Young, 2010) as their most
sacred object. These sacred objects are handled with much care and reference and most of the
believers do not do certain things while having the sacred objects. The Muslims and the
Christians cannot play or even tear a paper from their Holy Books. They believe calamities befall
on people who dare do the abominable with their sacred books.
Material expression of religion on the other hand involves in giving back to God tithes
and offerings to God the creator. This is to show thanks giving and humility that if it were not for
God, they wouldn’t have achieved anything. The Hindus bring food stuffs to their gods in the
temple while Muslims believe in sadak which they give in the mosque. Apart from that, helping

RELIGIOUS MANIFESTATION 4
the poor and the needy, praying for the sick, visiting prisoners is religious practices in each of the
mentioned religions.
Examine an alternative
One religion that perturbs me up to date is the one practiced by astrologers. These
believers study the heavenly bodies such as the sun, the moon and the starts. They have names
for these starts and each star has a meaning their religion. Furthermore, they also foretell the
future using the stars and the most fascinating thing is that most of it comes to pass. In this,
religion, there are elements such as rituals, sacredness and emotional experience. They might not
have sacred books because of their knowledge is from scientific research, but they rituals they
perform and a system of beliefs (Jackson et al, 2017).
Conclusively, at this time and age, there are very many questions to ask about religion.
These questions are like does religion satisfy the human nature of curiosity? Does it have all
questions in regards to death and life after death? Lastly, why is it that we have different
religions yet we are all human beings?

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References
Jackson, C., & Jackson, J. (2017). Astrology. London: Orion Books.
Jacobs, H. E. (2005). Elements of religion. Whitefish, MT: Kessinger Publishing.
Morgan, J. H. (2007). "In the beginning-- ": The Paleolithic origins of religious consciousness.
South Bend, IN: Cloverdale Books.
Ryder, W. S. (1932). Men and religion, a functional approach. Boston, MA: Stratford.
Tolstoi, L. N. (2014). What is religion. Place of publication not identified: Book On Demand.
Young, T. C. (2010). Near Eastern culture and society: A symposium on the meeting of East and
West. Charleston, South Carolina?: Nabu Press.