NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
"Religious festivals in Christianity and Hinduism" The concept of religion has many different definitions, particularly amongst different societies and cultures. Many of the assumptions we hold about the characteristics of religion are given to us by the society we live in or by our community. Which for some people may be a religious community. When dealing with the signs of religion, there would be general agreement that Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Sikhism are religions, if for no other reason than because this is how they are described. Christianity is a community which holds certain beliefs in a commune, a faith community.
It is a set of beliefs which draws the Christian community together. At the heart of the Christian faith, is the assertion that Jesus, a God-made man was put to death in a way that many people could not comprehend. Christianity shares a number of beliefs and practices with other religions, particularly Judaism and Islam. With Judaism and Islam, Christians believe in one God, who created the Universe and all that is in it.
All believe that this God is active in history, guiding and teaching his people. All three religions, including Christianity, have been called, "ethical monotheism." This term emphasises the belief in one God, and the fact that following this God commits us to a number of ethical rules or principals. India's population consists of many followers of many religions and many people who have rejected religion in any form. The Republic of India has a constitution which allows the religious freedom of all, but does not give a privileged position to any one religion.
More than eighty percent of India's population are Hindus. Hindus worship not one, but many "Gods", they tend not to think of Hinduism as a religion, but as a "way of life." The classical theory of the origins of Hinduism, traces the religions roots to the Indus civilisation circa 4000 to 2200 BCE. The development of Hinduism was influences by many invasions over thousands of years. The major influences occured when light-skinned, nomadic "Aryan" Indo-European tribes invaded Northern India (circa 1500 BCE) from the steppes of Russia and Central Asia. They brought with them their religion of "Vedism." These beliefs mingled with the more advanced indigenous Indian native beliefs, often called the "Indus Valley Culture." An important thing that these groups all have in common is that they come together to express their beliefs and practices. They also celebrate festive days.
Hindu festivals often combine the marking of the deity or duties. The emphasis given to specific festivals and to aspects of the same festival will vary from region to region. Individuals attend festivals for many reasons: to honour the deity, as an opportunity to seek guidance and practical help from the deity, to share in what is after all a performance, and to be a part of a family and community gathering. "Durga Puja", which is a festival celebrated under various different names, like "Navratri", and "Dasshera", and with different meanings across India. In contemporary India, popular festivals are usually marked by state holidays.
The great festival of "Durga Puja", in Bengal, which falls at the end of monsoon season, is just one example of an occasion for a huge public celebration. Some families in the city take advantage of the festival holiday to visit family in the countryside, for many others, it would unthinkable to leave Calcutta and miss the public celebration of "Durga puja." The growth of cities like Calcutta has provided new arenas for public worship, and has stimulated the traditional crafts involved in supplying the images and other materials necessary for the celebration of the festival. The festival of "Durga Puja", plays an important role in the Indian community, for long, it has ceased to remain a religious manifestation. It has emerged as a social occasion, where people come out and mingle freely in the crowd, spending the days in a very easy, laid-back manner. The four days of "Durga Puja", give the people a respite from the daily grind, which means a space for renewing contacts with old acquaintances. The most important festival for Christians is that of Easter.
In Christian countries it is celebrated as the religious holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the son of God. However, the celebrations of Easter has many customs and legends that are pagan in origin and have nothing to do with Christianity. Scholars accepting the derivation proposed by the 8 th century English scholar St. Bede, who believed that the name Easter came from the Scandinavian "Opera", and the Teutonic, "Often." The Christian celebration of Easter embodies a number of converging traditions with emphasis on the relation of Easter to the Jewish festival, "Passover", or "Pesach." The early Christians, many of whom were of Jewish origin, were brought up in the Hebrew tradition and regarded Easter as a new feature of the "Passover" festival.
Easter is at the end of Lent season, which covers a forty-six day period that begins on Ash Wednesday. Holy week, the last week of Lent, begins with the observance of Psalm Sunday. For Christians, the Easter festival involves worship and feasts which usually take place on Sunday, the holy day. The Easter celebrations allow the Christian community to socialize with family and freinds. It is also considered a time when people can relax, and take time off work.
Most of the major religious holidays around the world are bound up with pre-Christian celebrations. Halloween is probably the most famous of these Pagan holidays. Christmas and even the "not-so-religious" New Year, all have connections to non-Christian versions of these seasonal holidays. Therefore, there are various members of the Christian community that have rejected any holiday that's "tainted" by association with earlier Pagan customs. This means that there are many different branches of the Christian religion and community who have different beliefs or opinions on when a certain holy day should be celebrated or what should be worshipped. Most people have an idea of what religion is.
Not everyone shares the same beliefs, or is totally involved in any particular religion, but they almost always have ideas about it. Religions have taught of one God and of many Gods, of one life and of many lives. Through their holy books, their views have taken many avenues and faces. Yet all of them look towards an infinite power, which is superior by far to ourselves: a power which gives us some reason to our existence, for without it, there are many who would find life pointless and without value.
Communities all over the world rely on some form of belief for comfort and reassurance. As humans, we do not like the idea of being "alone." We want to feel that there is a supreme power that crafted the universe. Religious festivals are important because they bring a community together. A community which shares a certain belief. The social aspects of a festival help to reassure or can even stabilize a community.
Free research essays on topics related to: one god, judaism and islam, religious festivals, beliefs and practices, christian community
Research essay sample on Judaism And Islam Beliefs And Practices
