Unit 3- Ch 6 Flashcards
(19 cards)
Autonomous religion
A religion that does not have a central authority but shares ideas and cooperates informally
Animism
Belief that objects such as plants and stones or natural events like thunderstorms and earthquakes have discrete spirit and conscious life
Branch
A large and fundamental division within a religion
Caste
The class or distinct hereditary order into which a Hindu is assigned according to religious law
Cosmogony
A set of religious beliefs concerning the origin of the universe
Denomination
A division of a branch that unites a number of local congregations in a single legal and administrative body
Diocese
The basic unit of geographic organisations in the Roman Catholic Church
Ethnic religion
A religion with a relatively concentrated spatial distribution whose principles are likely to be based on the physical characteristics of the particular location in which its adherents are concentrated
Fundamentalism
Literal interpretation and strict adherence to basic principles of a religion
Ghetto
During the Middle Ages a neighbourhood in a city set up by law to be inhabited only by Jews; now used to denote a section of a city in which members of any minority group live because of social legal or economic pressure
Hierarchical religion
A religion in which a central authority exercises a high degree of control
Missionary
An individual who helps to diffuse a universalising religion
Monotheism
The doctrine or belief of the existence of only one god
Pagan
A follower of a polytheistic religion in ancient times
Pilgrimage
A journey to a place considered sacred for religious purposes
Polytheism
Belief in or worship of more than one god
Sect
A relatively small group that has broken away from an established denomination
Solstice
Time when the sun is farthest from the equator
Universalising religion
A religion that attempts to appeal to all people not just those living in a particular location
