Exam 13: Religion

Hindus venerate the cow (even when they create serious traffic hazards) in order to fully embrace the idea of ahimsa, the practice of nonviolence toward all living things. For a Hindu, then, the cow is much more than an animal with four legs. How is the cow vital in this religious system?

A megachurch refers to a large, often evangelical or Protestant church that employs business practices, showmanship, rock music, and spectacle to attract congregations. Many megachurches televise their sermons, reaching audiences too far away to attend in person. These churches reveal how technology and marketing, as well as the larger force of ________ , are changing religion today.

Emile Durkheim argued that which of the following was key to allowing a society to regenerate its sense of social solidarity?

Anthropologist Clifford Geertz examines the role of symbols in religion. He argues that each symbol has deep meaning and evokes powerful emotions and motivations in the religion's followers. What are two different examples of religious symbols used in the world today? What meaning do the symbols have for the religious followers? What emotions and motivations do the symbols evoke in followers and why? How do these symbols help followers make sense of their worlds? What purpose do these symbols likely serve regarding community life? Do you think symbols are imperative to religious beliefs and practices? Why or why not? What are some of the problems posed by Geertz's approach to religion?

What term is used to identify Victor Turner's final stage of a rite of passage that involves the return of the individual to the everyday life of the community?

Anthropological research illustrates that people make a religious tradition come alive in their own context through local expressions and adaptations. Which of the following is an example of this?

Anthropologist Marvin Harris suggested that human culture is a response to the practical problems of earthly existence, arguing that society is shaped by:

Which of the following is an individual considered exceptionally close to God, who is then exalted after death?

Which of the following, according to Victor Turner, is the first stage of a rite of passage that involves the physical, psychological, or symbolic removal from the daily activities of the group?

Karl Marx argued that which of the following played a key role in keeping the working poor from engaging in revolutionary social change that he believed was necessary to improve their situation?

The state of Chiapas in Mexico and the work of Charlene Floyd illustrate the relationship and tension between religion and power. What were the circumstances that led to the Zapatista uprising? Was it successful in its goals? Why was the Catholic Church indicted as a co-conspirator in this rebellion? How does this particular example illustrate the connection between religion and other social systems of power?

The forces of globalization are affecting religion generally and religious practices specifically. Provide three examples that illustrate how globalization is affecting religion and religious practices, and explain how. Conversely, are the religions and practices in your three examples affecting globalization, and if so, how? How do your three examples also reveal the relationship between religion and other social systems of power? How will future forces likely affect the religion and practices of your three examples? How will future forces likely affect the general status of world religions and practices? Do you think religion will be less or more prominent in people's daily lives in the future? Why do you think this will be the case?

Anthropologist Victor Turner (1920-1983) considered religious pilgrimage to be a unique form of religious ritual. What is a religious pilgrimage? What are three specific examples of religious pilgrimage and what do they entail? What stages of process do the pilgrimage examples you provided entail? What purposes does religious pilgrimage serve for the individual and his or her community?

In his research in Niger, West Africa, anthropologist Paul Stoller apprenticed with a local sorcerer as a means of exploring the role of religion in community life there. During his apprenticeship, Stoller's work came to an abrupt end and he fled back home to the United States. What did his research and experience demonstrate regarding the power of religion in people's everyday lives? What risks do anthropologists take by immersing themselves in others' religious belief systems and practices? Do you think it is possible to comprehend another group of people's religious beliefs and practices without accepting that they are real for believers? Why or why not? What does it mean for a religious belief or practice to be considered real, and who should determine whether or not it is real?

What do anthropologists call a part-time religious practitioner with special abilities to connect individuals with supernatural powers or beings?

E. E. Evans-Pritchard conducted fieldwork among the Azande and rebuffed Max Weber's earlier assertion that science and modernization would lead to the decline of magic. What was a key element of magic highlighted by Evans-Pritchard's work?

In Japan, the second Monday of January is a national Coming of Age Day. Young people who have turned 20 years old in the past year wear traditional clothing, attend ceremonies in local government offices, and celebrate at parties afterwards. Coming of Age Day is an example of:

According to Max Weber, the values of self-denial and self-discipline provided the ethic necessary for:

In the view of Talal Asad, religion has been defined by Western anthropology. What does "religion" then become?

Catholic religious services often have the priest intoning the liturgy in Latin, and this helps to preserve the continuity of both the religion and the service. In Durkheim's view, what might this be considered a form of?