Essay on Time, Morality, and Religion

http://omeka.lib.fsu.edu/files/original/6b19dea55228147dbc71626ca49462e6.pdf

An analysis of how time affects various religons' view of what is morally acceptable

Brandon Uzice - Fall 2015

This essay goes into an analysis of how peoples’ ideologies change with times and how those changes in turn affect how various religions interpret their respective holy texts in terms of morality. A formulaic approach is utilized so that the reader can fully understand the topics presented. Firstly, through determining how the use of ‘morally acceptable’ is used throughout the essay is given in order to comprehend the examples that follow. Such examples include the major monotheistic religions including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Each religion presents a unique case that shows how the times affect peoples’ ideals and how that ultimately affects how religions determine what is morally acceptable. Specifics include public opinions of the Spanish Inquisition, how various sects of Judaism treat genders when it comes to worship, and the issue of how westerners portray the Islamic tradition of the Hijab. However, these examples only dictate the ends and not necessarily why this phenomenon actually occurs. Additional sources are brought in to relay the point of Darwinian natural selection and how it ties in to religion. A comparison is made to help explain why religions tend to adjust to the ever changing times and ideologies. The drawn conclusion results in portraying religions in a situation not so different from the food chain where religions with a big following outlast those with minimal impact. The point is further expressed by the introduction of New Religious Movements which function in much the same way Reform Judaism brought about Conservative Judaism. New ideas help spark evolution among the major religions is the key point of this essay.