Types of religion (and their differences in beliefs and ideas).

A classification of the different religious currents and forms of faith, according to various criteria.

The phenomenon of religions is not something homogeneous and easy to understand just by reading one of the sacred texts of a certain religious faith.

The fact that religion has been present since the beginning of the intellectual activity of our species has made the amount of beliefs, rituals and customs so great that it is necessary to to take into account the different types of religion to understand what this way of understanding the world consists of. It is not possible to take the part for the whole.

Below we will see in broad strokes what are the characteristics of these types of religions and in what aspects they differ.

The different types of religion

Classifying the different religions is not easy, among other things because there is no single criterion for dividing them into groups.

In addition, the whole religious phenomenon is based on interpretations, which means that there is no absolute truth when it comes to understanding them (beyond religious dogma).This means that there is no absolute truth when it comes to understanding them (beyond the religious dogma of the most fundamentalist believers).

Non-theistic religions

This type of religion is made up of currents of thought and traditions that are not articulated around the are not articulated around the belief in divine beings with an intelligence and will of their own..

For example, certain branches of Buddhism and Taoism are often considered non-theistic religions. However, there is also the possibility of understanding them as philosophies, even though a broad definition of the concept of religion may include them, since they are based on dogmas and certain traditions and rituals.

Forms of pantheism

Pantheism is based on the idea that the divine and nature are the same, a single unity that cannot be divided. This means that the divine does not exist beyond the natural and vice versa, and that, furthermore and that, furthermore, there is no metaphysical subject that orders everything that happens in nature, since nature is self-sufficient.

In a sense, pantheism can be seen as a romantic philosophy through which atheism is viewed.

Theistic religions

This is the most widespread type of religion today, and is based on the idea that the world has either been created or is run by entities with supernatural power. entities with a supernatural power that, in addition, they exercise as moral referents..

Theistic religions can be divided into two categories: monotheistic and polytheistic.

1. Monotheistic religions

In this type of religion it is clearly established that there is only one godwhich is the entity with the greatest virtue and power. If there are other supernatural entities, they are below this divinity in terms of their power, or have been created by it.

The three Abrahamic religions, Judaism, Islam and Christianity, belong to this branch, but also other less known religions, such as Mazdeism (related to the prophet Zarathustra) or Sikhism, well known in India.

2. Dualistic religions

In dualist religions there are two supernatural entities of the same rank that embody opposite essential principles and that fight against each other. and that fight against each other. This struggle, in turn, explains all the processes that can be seen in nature and in the behavior of people.

An example of this type of religion is Manichaeism.

3. Polytheistic religions

In polytheistic religions there is neither one god nor a duality, but several gods, regardless of their rank or degree of power, who form a pantheon. form a pantheon. Hinduism or well-known religions of antiquity such as those of Egypt or Greco-Roman culture are examples of this category, as well as the deities of Scandinavian mythology.

Classification by ancestry

The types of religion can also be divided according to criteria that do not have to do with the content of the beliefs on which they are based, but by their geographical origins and the ethnicities to which they are linked..

Hundreds of categories and subtypes can be included in this classification, but I will include only the broadest and best known types.

1. Semitic religions

Also known as Abrahamic religions, they are those based on beliefs related to the figure of Abraham and the region of the Fertile Crescent. the Fertile Crescent region.

2. Dharmic religions

This category includes the numerous religions originating in the area of India, such as Jainism, Judaismsuch as Jainism, Hinduism, Sikhism and Buddhism.

• You may find this article interesting: "Karma: what exactly is it?"

3. African religions

The diversity of cultures present on the continent where our species first appeared is reflected in a great proliferation of different cults, many of whichmany of which are based on animism, i.e. the idea that many elements in our environment (be they animals, objects or landscapes) contain a spirit and specific intentions. However, animism has also been very present in cultures all over the world.

4. Amerindian religions

This type of religion belongs to the peoples of pre-colonization America. Historically, like African religions, they have been based on oral tradition, have been based on oral traditionAmong them there is much diversity both because of the relative isolation of these peoples and the rather small size of their communities, which facilitates the emergence of unique characteristics.

Types of religions according to their influence

It is also possible to differentiate types of religions according to the way in which they have transcended their ethnic origins.

1. Cross-cultural religions

This group of religions contains the most widespread religions, such as Christianity or Islam, which are not confined to a particular nation or culture.

2. Indigenous religions

These religions are very localized in specific areas and are closely linked to tribes and family lineages. Of course, this category encompasses very diverse belief systems, but in general they are all characterized by the attribution of souls, reasoning capacity and clear intentionality to multiple types of animals, plants and objects, and the absence of sacred texts.

3. Neo-paganism

These are cults that have been born recently from a recovery of the rituals and basic beliefs of old religions displaced by the dominant ones. For that reason, they try to investigate about rituals and doctrines of the past to generate their symbols and habitual practices. Wicca, for example, is an example of this group..

4. New religious movements

This is a category of very diffuse limits that includes forms of religious expression that have appeared recently and that do not respond to the need to recover traditional values, but rather assume their birth in a globalized society.

• Related article, "The smarter, the less religious?"

Beliefs are changing

Although it is possible to create categories to classify the different types of religions, we must not forget that in all cases they are belief systems with poorly defined limits and that with the passage of time they are changing. A clear example is Christianity, based on a series of sacred scriptures describing a God who is sometimes infinitely kind and sometimes terribly cruel, and who sometimes encourages his followers to behave like saints, and sometimes encourages them to behave like warriors, and which in many regions has been mixed with the beliefs prior to Christianization, resulting in syncretic religions.

The boundaries we want to establish between religions are always like any other boundaries: social constructs generated by consensus. The reality of what is embodied in this kind of faith escapes definition.

Bibliographical references:

• Artigas, M. (2000). The mind of the universe. 2nd ed.
• Jaki, S. L. (1985). The Road of Science and the Ways to God. 3rd ed.