Part Eight VIII › Division I I › Section 811 811

Knowledge and Understanding of Religion

Subject Outline

AThe philosophy of religion: diverse views of the nature and characteristics of religion
- 1Basic questions and problems
  - aThe existence of the divine or sacred (God)
  - bThe attributes of the divine or sacred
  - cThe extent to which mankind can have knowledge of the divine or sacred
  - dThe special problems of free will, evil and suffering, and immortality
- 2Questions about the nature and character of the divine or sacred
  - aWhether the divine or sacred is personal or impersonal
  - bWhether the divine or sacred is one or more unique beings or powers
BReligious experience: its nature, elements, and varieties
CReligious phenomenology: the basic patterns of religious thought, action, and association
DTheology as an attempt to understand and state the rationale of religious belief
- 1Theology in relation to divine revelation
  - aThe role of Sacred Scriptures
  - bDoctrine and dogma
  - cArticles of faith: religious creeds
- 2Mystical theology: immediate experience of the divine or sacred
- 3Doctrines concerning God or the gods
  - aPolytheism
  - bReligious dualism
  - cMonotheism
    - iTheism
    - iiDeism
    - iiiPantheism and panentheism
  - dAtheism and agnosticism
- 4Doctrines of creation
- 5Angelology
- 6Doctrines of divine government and providence
- 7Eschatological theories
- 8Doctrines of grace and salvation
- 9Sacramental doctrines
- 10The doctrine of the Covenant
- 11Miracles
EThe study and classification of religions
FOther systems of belief
- 1Myth and mythology
- 2Magic
- 3Witchcraft
- 4Shamanism
- 5Astrology and alchemy
- 6Ancestor worship
- 7Hero worship
- 8Nature worship
GReligion in relation to other aspects of human experience
- 1Religion and art [see also Part Six]
- 2Religion and science
- 3Religion and society [see also 521.D.6.]
- 4Religion and morality [see also 10/52.B.6.]