Introduction
A ritual is defined as a patterned behavior that recurs sequentially. It is the vehicle that allows basic ideas, for instance, in defining what is good and evil, as well as the proper existence of social relationships, to be impacted to a particular group. However, these rituals are very important components in religion because of the following discussed reasons.
First, a ritual plays an important role in the process of making a covenant. For example, Christians believe that circumcision was a covenant between God and Abraham. Therefore, some still follow that act in the Old Testament bible by performing circumcision rituals, such as singing and dancing, and are commonly seen in African communities. Similarly, the Muslims believed in ‘Hajj’ (the Mecca pilgrimage); where many rituals are performed in order to bring them closer to God. Secondly, rituals are used in many religions as a rite of passage from one category to another. For instance, in Christianity, fresh converts (those saved for the first time by giving their life to Christ) are made spiritually born-again through baptism, which is a form of Christian ritual performed to transform them spiritually (also known as salvation ritual). Thirdly, situational rituals are important in religion because it enables churches as well as the mosques in order to address the issue in the community, such as war, famine, or floods. Last, but not least, it is sometimes considered important to perform religious rituals in order to prevent the occurrence of disasters or natural calamities, such as famine or floods.
Nevertheless, religion also directs/constraints our behavior through various ways. First, in Christianity, there is the commandment that plays an important part in directing the conduct of the followers, and same applies to other religions. For example, one of the commandments forbids stealing and the other murder. Furthermore, the other directive that religion provides is that of administering justice, and these are the basic principles applied in our law courts. Moreover, there are other religions that restricts female gender from having authority in the church or taking responsibilities in the church, especially when it is intended for men. For example, among the Muslim religion, women are restrained from visiting the mosque during their menstrual period, or taking any responsibility in the church because their religious tradition does not allow them. Lastly, religion also determines the type of marriage that one practices. For instance, in Muslim religion, men are allowed to be polygamous (having more than one wife) while in Christianity monogamous (having one partner) is encouraged, and these tend affect the behavior of the follower/believer. The other example is whereby the Muslim women are not allowed to many from Christians, and yet their male counterparts can.
However, the above factors influence the way we interact with other people in the following ways. For example, it is rare to find Muslim women falling in love with Christians, or even having relationship with them because their religion does not permit them. In addition, in Christianity, there are some ways followed by the pagans (those not yet delivered by Christ), and the born-gain Christians cannot follow on them because they fear breaking their relationship with their creator. For instance, going to clubs and dancing of secular music is believed not to be appropriate for Christians. Finally, religion sometimes restricts its followers from being part of the other congregation maybe because of suspicion or a belief that the other denomination worships the devil, which is always not the case in most cases.
Works Cited
Stein, Rebecca, L. and Stein, Philip, L. The Anthropology of Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft, Third Edition. California: Pearson Publishers, 2011. Print.
