Pagan Religions
Looking at the Pagan religions, which could probably be traced to a very beginning of the civilization, one can not but notice a minute role devoted to men. People are weak and irrelevant; what is important are gods, their characteristics and their worship. The deeds of men only make sense in the context of gods worship. The well being of men and society at large also depends on how successful men are at the Devine worship. No act in itself is virtuous; it is good if it pleases god or gods being worshiped. Men can be a hero if gods favor him, typically for possessing some characteristics of those gods. In the Pagan world gods are also well described, we know how they look, what they like, how to worship them, even their daily routine, their powers and characteristics. And it is not surprising - gods after all are of outmost importance, the only meaning of existence, and the only hope for men to achieve something.
All of that changes with appearance of monotheism and eastern contemporary religions. Now men become a true hero – Moses, Jesus, Buda, etc. Of cause in the religious tradition, greatness of these men comes from worship of God. But it is a different kind of worship, it is no longer so much about pleasing gods, it is much more about being certain TYPE of MAN. Now it is more about adhering to certain morals, it is about dialog between men and God. Men’s life, atchievment and way of being are now the subject of study. As I will show in my paper, that the one theme that could be traced through these religions is that a man is the centerpiece of the creation. What I mean is that the only and true thing worthy of attention is people with their virtues, needs, desires and aspirations.
In each religion I examine, I will try to distinguish three things. I want to find out what is the role of the men in the universe, what a man has to do for a God and what God does for men in return, and finally what is considered virtuous.
Let us consider Judaism first. The religion is based on the Old Testament. According to the tradition, it is Biblaic figure of Abraham, whom we have to thank for founding of Monotheism. He was the one to realize that there is one G-d and to push away idle worship. Is this opinion supported by the bible? I think so; Abraham after all is clearly considered founding father of Jewish nation, people who accepted Judaism (or Old Testament) and carry on the religion. So if Abraham is the founder, let us consider – what is it we know of him from the Old Testament? The story of Abraham does not start with how he served or worshiped G-d. Story begins with G-d telling Abraham : “Go from your lend, and from your fathers home into the land that I will show you. And I will make you a great nation….”. On the contrary the whole story begins with G-d blessing Abraham to become a father of the great nation. G-d supports this promise by leading Abraham into Promised Land, where G-d precedes to do all sorts of thing to make sure Abraham does in deed inherit the land. Thus we see a completely
new role a man takes upon himself. He is no longer a faceless worshiper or a toy in the hands of quarreling gods, now Man is the father of the nation, the one who inherits the earth, a creator of his fate. Oral tradition calls Abraham – a friend of G-d. Is it so
according to the book? It seems so. On one occasion Abraham hosts Angels, who treat him with great respect. Then Abraham proceeds to argue with G-d as to the fate of two sinful cities, and finally makes a “Breas” which is an agreement between men and G-d. The g-d seem to care about every aspect of Abrahams life, starting with children and finance and ending with the way in which he is dies and buried. I feel the relationship of Man with G-d gets redefined right there.
What does the man has to do for G-d in the context of Judaism? Well, let us turn to Ten Commandments. Well, first man has to recognize the One G-d and forsake all other gods or idols. Not only forsake all the idols, but not even make image of one and destroy all such images, existing in Israel, where Jews were heading. Let us examine this one Law, probably a cornerstone of Judaism. In pagan society men always relay on something stronger, something Devine, It could be a wisdom of Athena, or strength of Rah, or fertility of Shiva; either way the emphasizes are always outward, on some outside force to be worshiped and relayed on. Men in its nature is weak and insignificant, at best he can carry certain characteristics of g-ds, thus gaining in importance.
And the Devine attributes were always well displayed and depicted, so the men knew what is important, what to cultivate and worship. Now one day Monotheism comes along, and suddenly all that we kept holy is gone, no image, hardly a description. Naturally, one might get confused – what can I relay on? I don’t see any Devine figure present that I can comprehend and can ask for help. Yes, I do have one true G-d now, but I cannot even begin to imagine him, He is beyond it. Infinite power, knowledge and so on, which by the law and common sense cannot be imagined or depicted. What can I relay on? I think the only possible answer is myself. Once again a man takes on the new role, someone who is responsible and decides an outcome of things, one of creator instead of servant. Does the Old Testament support this view? Well, I could find only one place where it gives some sort of description that we can use to create some sort of tangible idea what G-d is like, I mean besides infinitely powerful creator; try imagining that. And that place is right in the beginning where G-d says: “Now let Us create men in our image and likeness. “. So there you have it, want to know what Devine is – look at man, created in an image of G-d. This confirms my position that men begins to gain the central place in the world.
Finally, what is considered virtuous in Judaism? Well, what are some of the characteristics of heroes of Old Testament, which are praised by g-d. Abraham saves
Lot, his nephew, tries to save Sodom and Gomorra, to a degree where he argues with
G-d. Abraham is an entrepreneur, he conquers new land and works hard to build a family to inherit it. What about Moses? He is liberator and a teacher for the nation of Israelites. Him and king David are called Sheppard, because they guided and cared for the nation. Let us consider Joseph. He saves nation from the famine, and then forgives his brothers, who tried to kill him. Forgiveness, caring for others, leadership – these seem to be virtues of men, praised in Judaism. All of these are “by the people and for the people”; I mean – they are manifested by the people for the sake of other people. And the ultimate value remains human well being.
And it is not only the Old Testament; other books support this view as well. Let us look at Job. Job faces a very difficult times, when he loses all he had and falls terribly sick. What is the point, what is this book trying to tell us? As troubles befall Job, his wife is questioning him: “Does though still retain thine integrity?”. And he answers: “What? Shell we receive good at the hand of G-d and shell we not receive evil?”. This is a new understanding, new way of thinking. Man is no longer asking why did this happen, which g-d did I make angry and which g-d shell I appease. There is recognition here – there are good and bad thing in life, and the question is how shell we go through them.
And we should handle difficulties with virtues demonstrated by Job. They are personal integrity and kindness towards others. The emphasis is shifted to man and how he should handle the situation.
Let us turn to Christianity and New Testament now and consider same basic questions – role of men, what is expected of men, and what is virtuous. I find more of the same, only taken to the next level.
If Abraham is thought of as a friend of G-d, Jesus takes on father-son relationship with G-d. It is not even that man is created “in the image of G-d”; he is begotten by G-d.
Not only man has a likeness of G-d in him, but is Devine figure himself. The book brings many fables to demonstrate how much G-d cares for and loves man. Story of the “prodigal” son, reinforces an image of the G-d as fatherly figure, who love and forgives men, even if they have forsaken G-d at some point. Story of the Shepard and lost sheep, tells us that each one of us is important to G-d; like a careful Shepard G-d watches over each one of us, not allowing anyone to get lost. And unlike Old Testament, New Testament is explicit: “…son of men will inherit heaven and earth”. So it is clear – man is the center of the universe, the son of Creator of the universe, the one who G-d loves and cases for.
Now what is it that men are supposed to do? Central theme in new testament seems to be:” Love thy neibour as thyself”. It seems man is to love himself and other people. Indeed Jesus devotes himself to others, even “dies for the sins of men”.
While in Judaism there is still a lot of rituals of G-d worship, though most are aimed to benefit people, Christianity calls to limit the importance of ritual and concentrate on being good to G-d and each other. Being virtuous is considered being kind, loving, peaceful, giving and devoted. We are no longer looking how to please
g-ds or G-d, but rather to cultivate certain virtues in man and thus make our lives better.
Once again man is in the center of attention. I think it is a step in evolution of men kind, a new way of thinking. People started to understand that to survive and live together we don’t need g-ds, we don’t need to conquer the nature. What we need is to learn to live in harmony, become a certain type of man - tolerant, loving, forgiving; and that is what religion started to urge us to do. Moreover, this trend of thinking gave birth to ideas of equality and democracy. Every single individual is important and cared for by G-d and everyone is equal before G-d.
Let us consider a contemporary eastern religion – Buddhism and one of its representative books, Heart sutra. Now G-d or gods are hardly in sight, man is the only source and carrier of happiness, which is atchieved through the state of ultimate well-being – enlightment. Heart Sutra says there are three treasures of Buddhism – “the Buddha, the Dharma, and the teacher”. In other words Man and his teachings take place of greatest importance.
And what is expected of men in Buddhism, what is considered virtuous? Men
are to follow a “Middle way” taught by the Buddha. It means men are not to deprive, as well as not to indulge themselves in anything. This way of life with study and meditation is suppose to help man to find that inner Buddha, an enlightened individual free of hate, anger, obsessions; a man who would be at peace with others and himself. Once again. like with Christianity, it is all about becoming a certain type of men. Who are we suppose to relay on and consider the ultimate source of power – only ourselves. One of the sutras says: “If you were to meet Buddha, chase him away!”. I interpret it to mean that one should not relay on or worship anything as Devine. One taught to relay only on himself and look for the true enlightment within.
I am not challenging the idea of God or gods; I am simply saying that the major change in religious believes must reflect the paradigm shift, a new way in which humanity thought of itself and its role in the universe. As I showed this is also reflected in the content of the holy texts of these religions. The men with his virtues and weaknesses is placed center stage. His life, fate and role in the world are now considered matters of outmost importance.
Now it may be the paradigm shift, which at some point humans became less afraid of nature and its forces. May be at that point humanity became more aware of itself, its importance and ability to control their surroundings. May be these changes gave birth to
Monotheistic religions, may be not, But the fact remains – the theme of men as the center of creation, most important and potent creature is carried through out the Monotheistic and eastern contemporary religions and their holy writings. Men is no longer a servant of the cruel gods, he is god resembling creature, son or a friend of G-d, a carrier of enlightment.