In comparing and contrasting the various religious practices with the bible, the following areas are worthy to note:
1. Sense of community by having Place of worship/unity
Most of the identified religions usually have a building or a place where the devotees gather as a community either for worship or generally for the need to be together with people of same faith. This generally speaks about the importance of community. The Trans meditation (TM) devouts though practice meditation in their home, or on the train etc. however still believe in the need for community because they believe in creating unity in collective consciousness. They also believe it is more powerful to do that by coming together in a group because a meditator produces an influence from his own individual consciousness into a field of consciousness, and this affects the people around him when he mediates.
The bible says in Hebrews 10:24-25 “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” and also in Psalm 133:1“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity”!
I believe the sense of community by having a place of worship is biblical and of great importance to the growth of any group. This also is confirmed by the bible verse in Acts 2:46-47 where it says “Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved”.
2. Presence of God in the House (Building)
The Hindu temple is seen by the Hindus as a sacred space into which a devotee enters to receive the sight or vision (darshan) of the deity. They believe the temple is the house of the image (murti) of the deity and not a centre for congregational worship as found in some other religious traditions.
God is omnipresent and thus we can worship God anywhere, in our house, on the street, in the office etc. Acts 17:24 says that "The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands”;
In Jesus’s encounter with the woman at the well in John 4, Jesus clarifies the correct place to worship God thereby providing a proper perspective to address this twisted perception of worship. He said instead of worshipping in a physical temple at a particular place, we should worship God “in spirit and in truth.”
Also 1 Corinthians 3:16, reveals that our bodies are the temple of God hence worship of God can and should take place everywhere we find ourselves.
3. Prayer:
One of the daily practices of the Muslim is to perform five time daily prayers, Salat. Salat means a constant reminder or constant communication with God.
The Bible tells us in Ephesians 6:18 to pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication and also to pray without ceasing in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, however, it should be voluntary, not an obligation.
We can pray at any time and not at certain times of the day though in certain verses of the bible e.g. in psalm 55:17, it mentions to pray in the morning, midday and in the evening but that only confirms the call to pray continuously but not at obligatorily specified times.
Unlike the Muslims whose relationship with God is only of a creator and created, our relationship with God is one of intimacy, confidence and love between a Father and his child. A child talks to his father at any time and about anything not at specific times or in a specific manner. In the same way can talk to God at any time and about anything.
4. Time/days of worship
The Hindus have no special day of the week or times to go to a temple neither is it obligatory for them to go into the temple. This is why, although their temples are often full they believe attendance is just one of a number of spiritually beneficial practices as they go to the temple to fit in with the daily ‘routine' of the deity.
The Muslims go into a mosque at set times of prayer on Friday to pray and are required to visit Mecca during the hajj if they have the means to do so.
The Jews also get ready for the Shabbat at sunset of Friday with a Friday night service. The Shabbat last from this time until sunset of Saturday. At this time they do nothing as they believe the Sabbath is the day of rest commanded by God.
The Christians regard Sunday as special or even sacred, a time when they set aside to give honour to God to Him.
In the Old Testament, the Law required that the Sabbath be kept holy but with the atonement work done by Jesus’s death on the cross, we are no longer obliged to keep the law as earn for our justification. Jesus Christ has fulfilled all the requirements so we are not justified by the Law and thereby are free from it.
Also Col. 2:16-17 and Rom. 14:5-6confirms this to be true. From these passages we learn that every Christian has a right to any day he wishes to observe for God hence if the Sabbath were still obligatory, then we would have no right to which day.
So though it is important for Christians to have a day set apart for God and to do that which the Lord commands (meet together, break bread and take wine in remembrance of him), however, there is no time when God is not, and there's no place where God is not.
For convenience sake however, most Christians choose Sundays to meet.
5. Worship of a Divine being
Hindus are allowed to choose a deity to worship. This is called ishtadeva. The ishtadeva of one Hindu is most likely different form the ishtadeva of another Hindu and they (Hindus) typically become attached to one deity through family tradition or individual temperament. The Hindus believe that the different deities are aspects of one Supreme Being or the representation of the same almighty power or God.
Another practice of the Hindus is the worship of images, for instance as part of their religious ritual, they bath, decorate and dress up a young banana tree as a symbolic bride to a god called Ganesh (the god of good fortune), afterward they keep “the bride” in shelters or set it up on the roadside for people to view and worship. Some others carry their god around from place to place.
This is contrary to biblical instructions because so many places in the bible ( Exodus 20:3, Deuteronomy 5:7,2 kings 17:35-36) we are told not to have any other God beside God nor fear or bow down nor sacrifice to any other god.
Even Jesus’s response during his temptation in Luke 4:8 reiterates that we are to Worship the Lord our God and serve Him only.
6. Appropriate mannerism and Dressing:
Many of the religions insist that its members dress in a certain before worship or entering into place of worship. For example, some Christian churches require women to cover their heads while men are expected to remove any head covering. In contrast, Jewish men are careful to cover their heads in a synagogue, whereas Muslims men must be properly clothed covering from their navel to their knees , must remove their shoes and complete a simple ritual of washing before entering a mosque, and the women must be covered completely; only their hands and face can remain uncovered.
While praying the Muslim must observe all the required specifics, which include the sequence of the ceremony and the proper motions of bowing and kneeling. Any deviance to the rituals nullifies the prayer, and as such the prayer will no longer counts as one of the five daily required prayers and the whole process must be repeated from the beginning till the end. Hence, devout Muslims often add an extra prayer just in case they have made some mistake.
There are many reasons for some of these practices ranging from the need to conduct oneself appropriately or respectfully in a place set apart for a distinct purpose, to as a mark of respect and humility or a constant reminder that there is a greater being above humanity.
Scripture does not stipulate any particular dress needed to worship or address God nor does it require us to pray with certain gestures however it calls us to dress modestly with decency and encourages lifting up of hands in praise and supplication to God in certain parts of bible (Psalm 141:2, Psalm 134:2 ) however nowhere is it mandatory to do so.
7. Purification Rituals
The Muslims perform a ritual of washing of parts of the body with water before handling and reading the Qur'an and performing formal prayers. This preparation purification is called ablutions. If no water is available, sand can be used. This purification must be completed before prayers because only those who have purified themselves, may approach God. The individual can become unclean again or have his ablution annulled if he touches body liquids, eats pork meat, drinks alcohol or engages in certain activities like farting or using the bathroom. Women also become unclean by menstruation or giving birth.
If any of these happen the individual is unclean and must then again purify himself and the women must perform all omitted prayers later when they are “clean” again.
Bathing also plays a significant part in the preparations for Hindu worship because, in washing themselves, the devotees attain not just a state of physical cleanliness but also undergo purification before participating in the rituals of worship.
Scripture does not stipulate any physical washings needed to worship or address God nor does it suggest any that is pleasing or acceptable to God.
The bible says in Hebrews 9:22 that under the law everything is purified with blood and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin hence water of ritual purification does not purify us in God’s eyes. The blood Jesus shed on the cross met the requirements (Hebrews 10:14).
Instead of a physical purification, the bible rather calls us to cleanse ourselves spiritually and pursue holiness in the fear of God in 2 Cor 7:1.
Is this course informative or applicative to Christian evangelical goal?
This course has been interesting and exposes the richness of several religions.
This course is also very informative and promotes understanding of the role of several religions in a community and the extent to which religion shapes the lives of individuals and community and also in which religion in turn is shaped by individuals and community.
I believe that the course is very informative and applicable to evangelism as it provides insight on how to reach other religions.
A Christian can arm himself with the knowledge of what other religions believe or teach to reach them. For example most religions believe that salvation is earned by good works. This knowledge affords the Christian an opportunity to preach the gospel of forgiveness that is guaranteed in Christ. By offering them the free gift of salvation that is found in the person of Jesus, they will tend to feel relief from the burden of having to work hard to earn their salvation.
Also by understanding the beliefs and practices of members of other religions in this course, it would help to better know which relevant evangelical approach to employ in reaching members of different religion as different evangelical approach or method would have to be employed for different religions. For instance, for the Buddhist who believes in reincarnation, approaching him with the message of heaven or hell after death would not help as he believes he will come back in another form so it might be better to employ another evangelical approach e.g. the need to have a relationship with God.
References
1. Barker, E. (1989) Appendix II, ‘New religious movements: definitions, variety and numbers', pp.145–8, 149–150, © Crown Copyright.
2. Chaudhuri, S. (ed.) (1990) Calcutta: The Living City, Volume II: The Present and The Future, pp.331–3, 335–6, Oxford University Press, New Delhi.
3. D. Denniston and P. McWilliams, The TM Book: How to Enjoy the Rest of Your Life, 1975, Michigan, Versemonger Press, pp. 14, 20, 44, 48
4. Hinduism: A Cultural Perspective by D.R. Kinsley © 1993. Prentice-Hall, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ.
5. Smart, N. (1989) The World's Religions: Old Traditions and Modern Transformations, pp.10–25, Cambridge University Press.
6. Worlds of Faith, pp.24–48, by John Bowker, 1983, with the permission of BBC Worldwide Limited.
7. Yinger, M. (1970). The Scientific Study of Religion. London: Routledge. York,M