And how does it happen

Worldview is a system of stable views of the individual on the world around him and the phenomena occurring in it. It is acquired throughout life consciously or spontaneously, it can change. Based on the vision of the world and the experience gained

principles, beliefs, ideals, goals are formed, that is, what distinguishes a mature self-sufficient personality. Any worldview includes three components: attitude (emotional-sensory component), worldview (rational-theoretical level) and worldview (value attitudes formed on the basis of the previous two components). According to the classifications of psychologists, worldview can be worldly (ordinary), religious, scientific, mythological and philosophical. Each of them has its pros and cons and does not pretend to be the only correct one. In this article, we will analyze in more detail only the religious worldview. It is the most controversial in the modern world.

The main features of the religious worldview

As it becomes clear from the name, this type of perception of reality is significant in that things and phenomena occurring in the world are perceived through the prism of religion and faith in divine Providence. Religious worldview has a number of

distinctive features:

1. The personality of a believer is closely connected with God, any act is interpreted on the basis of religious precepts.

2. Faith is valued above knowledge, since it alone is the only way to salvation.

3. The purpose of human life is the knowledge of the truth (or the achievement of insight) through the service of God and the observance of his commandments.

4. The world is divided into physical (visible) and spiritual (mental), where evil and good entities live, which are invisible to a person, but directly affect his life.

5. Religion is practical, that is, "faith without works is dead."

6. Often, the religious worldview runs counter to generally accepted scientific theories that deny the existence of God. For example, in such fundamental questions as the creation of the world and the evolution of man.

7. Religion can be not only mono- (Christianity, Judaism), but polytheistic (Shintoism).

8. In contrast to the mythological worldview, in religion there is a clear division into subject and object, there is a clearer systematization of concepts.

Religious worldview and its role in society

The reaction of modern secular society to various faiths

is ambiguous. On the one hand, the specificity of the religious worldview is such that it calls into question many scientific truths and comes into conflict with them. Many scientists speak sharply against religion, which, in turn, encourages people to look at the world differently and understand that there are things that exist, despite the fact that we do not believe in them. Despite this, there is an undoubted advantage of religious education: the promotion of a highly moral way of life and thoughts, which helps to maintain a healthy moral atmosphere in society. As a representative of one of the Christian communities said: "Secular humanism, so widespread in our time, under the guise of philanthropy, justifies our lowest passions and vices. And only faith in God can elevate a person above his sinful nature, showing the way to the truth."

Historically, the first type of worldview was the mythological worldview, which was, in addition to everything else, a special kind of knowledge, a syncretic kind, in which ideas and the world order are fragmented and not systematized. It was in the myth, in addition to man's ideas about himself, that the first religious ideas were also contained. Therefore, in some sources, the mythological and religious worldview is considered as one - religious-mythological. However, the specificity of the religious worldview is such that it is appropriate to separate these concepts, because the mythological and religious forms of the worldview have significant differences.

On the one hand, the ways of life presented in myths were closely connected with rituals and, of course, served as an object of faith and religious worship. In and myth are quite similar. But on the other hand, such similarity was manifested only at the earliest stages of coexistence, then the religious worldview takes shape in an independent type of consciousness and worldview, with its own specific features and properties.

The main features of the religious worldview, which distinguish it from the mythological one, are that:

The religious worldview provides for consideration of the universe in its divided state into the natural and supernatural worlds;

Religion, as a form of worldview, as the main worldview structure, presupposes an attitude of faith, not knowledge;

The religious worldview implies the possibility of establishing contact between the two worlds, the natural and the supernatural, with the help of a specific cult system and rituals. A myth becomes a religion only when it is firmly included in the cult system, and, consequently, all mythological ideas, gradually being included in a cult, turn into dogma.

At this level, the formation of religious norms is already taking place, which, in turn, begin to act as regulators and regulators. public life and even consciousness.

The religious worldview acquires significant social functions, the main of which is to help the individual in overcoming life's troubles and rise to something high, eternal. This is also the practical significance of the religious worldview, the impact of which was very tangibly manifested not only on the consciousness of an individual person, but also had a huge impact on the course of world history.

If anthropomorphism is the main parameter of myth, then the religious worldview describes the surrounding world based on its already indicated division into two worlds - the natural and the supernatural. According to religious tradition, both of these worlds were created and controlled by the Lord God, who has the properties of omnipotence, omniscience. In religion, postulates are proclaimed that affirm the supremacy of God not only as a higher being, but also as a higher system of values. God is love. Therefore, the basis of the religious worldview is faith - a special type of concept and acceptance of the values ​​of the religious worldview.

From the point of view of formal logic, everything divine is paradoxical. And from the point of view of religion itself, God, as a substance, requires a different approach from a person to mastering and accepting himself - with the help of faith.

This contradiction, in fact, is one of the most important paradoxes of the religious worldview. Its essence is that the understanding of God became an example of phenomenal idealization, which then only began to be applied in science as a methodological principle. The concept and acceptance of God made it possible for scientists to formulate many tasks and problems of society and man.

In this context, the consideration of God as the main content phenomenon of the religious worldview can even be presented as the most outstanding achievement of Reason.

AT primitive society mythology was in close interaction with religion, however, they were not inseparable. Religion has its own specifics, which is not a particular type of worldview. The specificity of religion is due to the fact that the main element of religion is a cult system, that is, a system of ritual actions aimed at establishing certain relations with the supernatural. Therefore, any myth becomes religious to the extent that it is included in the cult system, acts as its content side.

Worldview constructions, being included in the cult system, acquire the character of a dogma. What gives the worldview a special spiritual and practical character. With the help of rituals, religion cultivates human feelings of love. Kindness, tolerance, duty, etc., linking their presence with the sacred, the supernatural.

The main function of religion is to help a person overcome the historically changeable, transient, relative aspects of his being and to elevate a person to something absolute, eternal. In the spiritual and moral sphere, this is manifested in giving the norms, values ​​and ideals the character of an absolute, unchanging character.

Thus, religion gives meaning and meaning, and hence stability to human existence, helps him overcome everyday difficulties.

Within the framework of any religion there is a system (a system of answers to questions). But philosophy formulates its conclusions in a rational form, while in religion the emphasis is on faith. Religion presupposes ready-made answers to questions.

Religious doctrine does not tolerate criticism. Any religion offers a person ideals and is accompanied by rites and rituals (specific actions). Each developed religious doctrine contains imprints of a pronounced systemic character. The religious worldview is also characterized by the following features:

• 1. Symbolism (every significant phenomenon in nature or history is considered as a manifestation of the Divine will), through the symbol, a connection is made between the supernatural and natural worlds;
• 2. It has a value-based attitude towards reality (reality is the spatio-temporal extent of the struggle between good and evil);
• 3. Time is also connected with Sacred history (time before and after the Nativity of Christ);
• 4. Revelation is recognized as the word of God and this leads to the absolutization of the word (logos), the logos becomes the image of God.

Mythological consciousness historically precedes religious consciousness. The religious worldview is more systemic than the mythological one, it is more logically perfect. The systemic nature of religious consciousness presupposes its logical ordering, and continuity with mythological consciousness is ensured by using the image as the main lexical unit.

Religious outlook and religious philosophy are a kind of idealism, i.e. such a direction in the development of social consciousness, in which the original substance, i.e. the foundation of the world is the Spirit, the idea. Varieties of idealism are subjectivism, mysticism, etc. The opposite of a religious worldview is an atheistic worldview.

The first historical type of worldview was mythological, the second historical type of worldview was religion. The religious worldview has many common features with the mythological worldview preceding it, but it also had its own characteristics. First of all, the religious worldview differs from the mythological one in the way of spiritual assimilation of reality. Mythological images and representations were multifunctional: they intertwined cognitive, artistic and evaluative assimilation of reality in an as yet undeveloped form, which created the prerequisite for the emergence of not only religion, but also various kinds literature and art. Religious images and representations perform only one function - evaluative and regulatory.

An integral feature religious myths and representations is their dogmatism. Having arisen, religion retains a certain stock of ideas for several centuries.

Religious images are ambiguous: they allow their various interpretations, including absolutely opposite ones. Therefore, on the basis of one system of religious dogmas, there are always many different directions, for example, in Christianity: Catholicism, Orthodoxy, Protestantism.

Another feature of religious images and ideas is that irrationality is hidden in them, which is subject to perception only by faith, and not by reason. The latter reveals the meaning of the image, but does not refute or destroy it. This feature of the religious image underlies the recognition of the priority of religious faith over reason.

The central place in any religious worldview is always occupied by the image or idea of ​​God. God is considered here as the origin and fundamental principle of all that exists. Moreover, this is no longer a genetic principle, as in mythology, but an initial principle - creating, creating, producing.

The next feature of the religious and ideological way of mastering reality is the universalization of the spiritual-volitional connection, the idea of ​​which is gradually replacing the mythological ideas of universal kinship. From the point of view of the religious worldview, everything that exists and happens in the world depends on the will and desire of God. Everything in the world is governed by divine providence, or a moral law established and controlled by a higher being.

Religion is characterized by the recognition of the primacy of the spiritual over the physical, which is not in mythology. The attitude to reality, determined by the religious worldview, differs significantly from the illusory-praxeological mode of action associated with the mythological worldview. This is a passive attitude towards reality. The dominant position in religion is occupied by propitiatory actions (veneration of various objects endowed with supernatural properties, prayers, sacrifices and other actions).

Thus, the religious worldview is a way of mastering reality through its doubling into natural, earthly, this-worldly and supernatural, heavenly, other-worldly. The religious worldview has passed a long way of development, from primitive to modern (national and world) forms.

The emergence of a religious worldview was a step forward in the development of human self-consciousness. In religion, the unity between different clans and tribes was comprehended, on the basis of which new communities were created - nationalities and nations. World religions, such as Christianity, even rose to the point of realizing commonality and proclaiming the equality of all people before God. At the same time, each of them emphasized the special position of their followers.

The historical significance of religion consisted in the fact that in both slave-owning and feudal societies it contributed to the formation and strengthening of new public relations and the formation of strong centralized states. Meanwhile, there have been religious wars in history.

It is impossible to unequivocally assess the cultural significance of religion. On the one hand, it undoubtedly contributed to the spread of education and culture.

Topic 2. Religion as a sociocultural phenomenon

The concept of religion. The specificity of the religious worldview.

The structure of religion.

Religious consciousness. Faith. religious experience.

Religious activity.

Religious organizations and institutions. Church, sect.

The main functions of religion. The role of religion in modern society.

The concept of religion. The specificity of the religious worldview

The religious worldview historically originates in the depths of mythological consciousness and initially bears the imprint of polytheism and pantheism, which are consistently overcome in the process of the formation of world religions. They are characterized by pronounced monotheism (monotheism) (for example, Christianity, Islam) or a tendency towards a monotheistic understanding of the universe (Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism). In the process of rationalization and value debunking of myths, faith in tribal gods is increasingly giving way to faith in the necessity that dominates all - Fate, Doom. This monistic trend in the evolution of mythology ultimately leads to the allocation of a dominant figure in the pantheon of mythical creatures, the most important functions of which are cosmogonic (creation of the world) and ontological (maintenance of its existence). Thus, a set of ideological and worldview prerequisites for the formation of a religious dogma is gradually taking shape.
Religion is a type of worldview based on faith in a single, absolute and sacred principle of the world - God, whose essence is inaccessible to human understanding.

As the basic relationship of a person with the universe, she establishes a supernatural, irrational relationship of a person with God, based on love for him, boundless faith and reverence. The postulate of the uniqueness and absoluteness of the deity entails, along with monotheism, the next feature of religion - theocentrism. As a result, such a picture of the world is emerging, in which the whole system of ideas about the status of man and society in the universe is radically changing. In the religious picture of the world, a single and absolute center of power appears, the source of all diversity, the father and almighty, whose power over the created cosmos is immeasurable and cannot be limited by anything. Due to the essential difference between God and the world, God, as the transcendent Absolute, is infinitely higher than natural reality, does not merge with it, although he permeates everything on earth with his radiant energy. The world as “created” (created by God) is infinitely lower than the creator, both in terms of value and substance. He is imperfect, relative, secondary, finite in time and space, and completely dependent on his will.

These characteristics of the relationship between God and the world extend to the understanding of man's connection with God. Created in the image and likeness of God, man is radically different from other beings and therefore occupies a special position in the cosmos. His purpose lies in the consistent and difficult spiritualization of the flesh, in overcoming the depravity of his being, and through this - of any created nature. That is why man was destined by God to dominate the earth and govern natural world. However, being entirely in the power of the Absolute, a person considers his relationship with him as the most significant, because it is on them that the fate of his immortal soul depends. At the same time, a number of value oppositions are built. Man is weak and limited, his possibilities are relative, God is absolute, omnipotent and limitless, he personifies the highest good, truth, justice and love. Man is finite, mortal, limited by space and time, while the deity is not just immortal, but, by virtue of its absoluteness, is the true source of life and eternity. Man is sinful, his soul is burdened with the weakness of the flesh, and God is the absolute foundation of morality and the personification of perfection.

The specificity of the religious worldview is also manifested in the fact that beliefs play a special role in its structure. Being a pronounced form of spiritual and practical assimilation of reality, the religious worldview assumes as an obligatory rule the strict correspondence of a person's life to the content of his religious ideas and ideas. Faith as the basis of religion presupposes the correspondence of thoughts to actions and deeds, the correspondence of the cult to dogmas. Therefore, a religious worldview inevitably gives rise to a religious way of life and strict regulation of cult practice.

Finally, religion, being, like myth, an authoritarian, dogmatic, traditionalist form of culture, nevertheless contains, in contrast to mythology, a significant element of rationality. This has a lot in common with philosophy. The rationality of the religious worldview is already manifested in the nature of ideas about God, which is only metaphorically likened to an absolute personality and, due to this, acquires anthropomorphic features. Within the framework of the theological tradition, God is recognized as an unknowable and inaccessible entity for human perception, devoid of any sensory-empirical content.

Being an absolutely transcendent principle, it is conceived outside the sensory-empirical context of reality, outside space and time. The very division of the universe into the empirical and transcendent world, beyond cognition, inevitably turns God (when trying to think of him) into some kind of abstract first principle of explaining reality, a philosophical category. Religion completely overcomes the syncretism of mythological thinking and its characteristic pantheism, which assumes that the divine and the natural are mutually dissolved in each other. Due to these features of the religious worldview, it historically developed in parallel with the philosophical one, in close interaction and interpenetration of these two forms of spiritual culture.

The Structure of Religion

The main elements of religion are:

1) Belief in God (or gods) is the main feature of religion. In different religions different gods, but there is something in common in the ideas about them: God is a person, a subject, a being; God is a rational being, immortal, possessing supernatural abilities, incomprehensible to man. The similarity between man and God is explained within the framework of religion by the fact that God created man "in his own image and likeness."

2) Emotional attitude towards God. Faith in God is not just a rational belief in his existence, but a religious feeling. The believer relates to God with love, fear, hope, feelings of guilt and remorse, and this emotional relationship with God forms a special kind of "spiritual experience."

3) Religious cult. Worship of God is expressed in rites and rituals dedicated to him. An important side of the religious cult is symbolism. Cult objects, actions, gestures - this is a symbolic language in which a person's dialogue with God takes place. As a result of religious activity, the religious needs of believers are satisfied, religious consciousness is revived. There is a real communication of believers with each other, the religious group is united.

4) Religious organizations. There are three types of such associations. The church is a relatively broad association, belonging to which is determined by tradition, the followers are mostly anonymous, the believers are divided into clergy and laity, usually the church cooperates with the state. The sect proclaims opposition to traditional churches, preaches isolationism, chosenness, strictly controls membership, leadership in the sect is charismatic. A denomination is something between a church and a sect: the preaching of the chosenness of members is combined with the possibility of salvation for all. From a sect, a denomination is distinguished by active participation in secular life, effective economic activity, and the desire to develop into a church.

Religion is a form of worldview based on the belief in the presence of fantastic, supernatural forces that affect human life and the world around us. With a religious worldview, a person is characterized by a sensual, figurative-emotional (rather than rational) form of perception of the surrounding reality. Religion illuminates the same issues as myth.

Character traits religions:

̶ the predominance of sensory perception of the world;

̶ "faith" is elevated to a principle;

̶ system of dogmas;

̶ the mind occupies a subordinate position (the credo of religion: "do not think, but believe").

Already on early stage mythology was not the only ideological form in human history. On the basis of the fantastic beliefs and rituals present in the myths, religion (more precisely, religion) is born, which also acts as one of the socio-historical types of worldview coexisting with philosophy for many centuries. Representing a specific form of reflection of reality, religion still remains a significant socially organized and organizing force in the world.

Religion cannot be understood in a simplified or vulgar way, for example, as a system of "ignorant" ideas about the world and man. Religion is a complex phenomenon of spiritual culture. Within the framework of religious consciousness, moral and ethical ideas and ideals arose that helped the development of human spirituality and contributed to the formation of universal human values. So, for example, the unshakable basis of Christian morality is work, which is understood as cooperation with God, and whoever does not work is not a Christian. Religion has made a huge contribution to the process of consciousness of the idea of ​​the unity of the human race and the enduring significance of high moral standards in people's lives, which is relevant at all times.

Religion- mindset and behavior individual person, groups, communities, which are determined by the belief in the existence of a certain Higher Beginning. This is a belief in the existence of one or another variety of supernatural forces or in their dominant role in the universe and people's lives.

religious consciousness- this is the recognition of the real presence in human life, in the existence of all people and the entire Universe of a certain Higher Beginning, which directs and makes meaningful both the existence of the Universe and the existence of man.

It is necessary to emphasize once again that the mode of existence of religious consciousness is faith (more on faith will be discussed in the topic “Philosophical image of knowledge”).

The specificity of religion is due to the fact that its main element is cult system, i.e. a system of ritual actions aimed at establishing certain relationships with the supernatural. And therefore, every myth becomes religious to the extent that it is included in the cult system, acting as its content side.

Worldview constructions, being included in the cult system, acquire the character creeds. And this gives the worldview a special spiritual and practical character. Worldview constructions become the basis for formal regulation and regulation, streamlining and preserving mores, customs, and traditions. With the help of rituals, religion cultivates human feelings of love, kindness, tolerance, compassion, mercy, duty, justice, etc., giving them a special value, associating their presence with the sacred, the supernatural.

The main function of religion is to help a person overcome the historically changeable, transient, relative aspects of his being and to elevate a person to something absolute, eternal. In the spiritual and moral sphere, this is manifested in giving the norms, values ​​and ideals an absolute, unchanging character, independent of the conjuncture of the spatio-temporal coordinates of human existence, social institutions etc. Thus, religion gives meaning and knowledge, and hence stability to human existence, helps him overcome everyday difficulties.

It must be remembered that the mythological-religious worldview was spiritual and practical character. His worldview constructions enter into social and individual interaction in the form images and characters.