1.
The four expectations of religion and healing, as explained by Martin E. Marty, are attempts to give answers to what believers have in their minds as they show hope by claiming that the faith which they have could be used to explain matters concerning their health. These four expectations are monergism, synergism, autogenesis and Empathy (Barnes & Sered, 2005). Simply summarized by Marty as being in union with something of infinity, synergism in religious terms alludes to humanity or believers acting in cooperation with activities that are superior to the abilities of human beings. This is borrowed from the synergism in medicine which is simply a representation of cooperation between two individually distinct entities, for example, a painkiller medicine and muscle so that the overall effects of the two (relief or healing) is greater than the effects of the two acting independently. This religious synergism does not associate human beings with God but simply associate human beings with invisible powers or forces which at the same time cannot be scientifically proven to exist. Religious synergism, therefore, considers scientific medicine as just a mere supplement to the force of nature. The synergistic approach to explaining healing and faith may also exist amongst other approaches, for example, Adventism, Christian Science and monergists exhibit certain features of synergism. Evidently, God is almost invoked in all the approaches (Barnes & Sered, 2005).
The empathetic approach is a move or an advancement form synergism in that in involves the belief in God which is a divine agent that human being seek healing (Barnes & Sered, 2005). The divine agent is therefore considered to empathize with believers. As Marty simply summarizes the empathy approach, it simply means “God is in the same experience with the faithful. In Greek, the word thos means suffering and empatheia loosely translates into suffering, the two in combination simply alludes to a belief that our burden is as a result of something we have done to God and therefore we must do something to appease this God. Considering this approach, God is the highest of ranks and his influence manifest in various forms. Believers in this approach tend to almost relate today’s events to those that occurred in the biblical times. They interpret the current experiences and activities using biblical events and also appreciate the manifestation of this divine force (Barnes & Sered, 2005). This approach, therefore, fuse a little with the synergistic approach which revolves around a divine force but not God. However, even with a strong belief in healing linked directly to God, it seems that this approach, which represents most of today’s theists, is not self-sufficient to explain healing amongst believers.
It is very common to see proponents of these approach borrowing elements of other approaches to seek healing. A typical example is the fact that those from the Islamic faith proclaim the existence and healing from God but do not believe in the existence of miracles.
Traditionally, some Catholics sought healing from shrines, this represents the synergism approach as shrines are simply natural energy; however, such Catholics still believe in the existence of God and seek his interventions for healing. Perhaps more liberalism amongst modern day believers in empathy are Adventists and modern Catholics who have built hospitals to seek scientific healing also pray to God while others still visiting sacred shrines (Barnes & Sered, 2005). The latter might represent a group that fuses synergism and empathy.
Autogenesis is the third approach to explaining expectations from healing. Autogenesis can simply be summarized as self-generated which means emanating from within an organism. When incorporated in the context of religion and healing, autogenesis simply means natural human processes working in cooperation with human efforts so arrive at an individual’s well-being (Barnes & Sered, 2005). This approach does not recognize the existence of a God as in the empathetic approach nor does it appreciates the synergism approach which involves belief in the existence of powerful force within nature that works to provide healing. However, this approach has been criticized by many as not being religious since religion, in the open parlance, has always be seen as belief in the existence of a God, gods or divine power.
Atheists and agnostics have been considered to belong to this group; however, they have dissociated themselves with this as they would not like to be considered to be religious. A majority of those who claim autogenesis believe that they possess some sought of internal resources that provide them with healing. They do not consider themselves to have any associations with deity; however, such people have been found to close to people whose belief in a superior universal power or God is very little.
Monergism, unlike synergism, does not require cooperation between human beings and God. Monergism believes that the rebirth or regeneration of human beings will occur through a spirit and does not require any human beings to cooperate with that spirit in the process (Barnes & Sered, 2005). To a monergist, a human being is born with fixed spiritual status and hence does not require any regeneration in the cause of their life. Monergists, for example, believe that Christians do not require any form of salvation for they are born with some fixed form and hence cannot change. Synergists, on the other hand, believe that man requires cooperation with nature to get healing, this nature represents God’s agent hence is a spirit which is divine but not God. Christian synergists, therefore, believe that for man to be saved, human beings require collaboration with the Holy Spirit (Barnes & Sered, 2005). That is to say that the rebirth of a human being requires an individual’s free choice.
Monergism proclaim the existence of God, and that God provides physical healing, however, they also believe that God can impart such healing powers to individuals in the society. Monergism, therefore, associates strongly with faith healers and magicians. When it comes to healing, monergists declare everything mystery, they consider it lack of sufficient faith in this God when certain things do not happen as per their expectations and also give credit to this God when things happen according to their expectations (Barnes & Sered, 2005). Many people who have high levels of education who are well informed sometimes hold monergistic beliefs and contend that God created the natural rules and can at any time interrupt such rules hence causing miracles to happen.
2.
The United Religions Initiatives is a worldwide interfaith community that aims at reducing the religious violence that has been experienced from different religious groups in various countries in the world (Penn, 2004). This initiative aims to promote peace and justice to all religious groups worldwide by coming up with ways that can bridge differences that are in various cultural and religious groups. The purpose of this initiative is to try promoting endurance and interfaith cooperation on a daily basis so as to put to and end violence that is religiously motivated so that peace and justice can be achieved and that all those living on the earth are healed Penn, L. (2004). United Religions Initiatives’ vision is a peaceful world, the activities of this initiatives are carried out both globally and at the grassroots levels.
The thought of having an international body that could unite all religious and cultural group came to Bishop Swing William in the year 1993. The bishop was hosting a service in the town of San Francisco, United States of America. Swing had interacted with various religious leaders, and he noted the desire for dominance amongst various religious group, all were competing to be at the top of the rest Penn, L. (2004). It is then that Swing saw the need to bring various religious and cultural groups together as he realized that the competition exhibited was not healthy for religious groups.
The main areas of focus for United Religion Initiative include peacebuilding, and this is the core of the initiative’s core business (“Action Areas,” 2016). The initiative has created various Cooperation Circles and currently, there are twenty two active in areas experiencing religiously motivated conflicts out of the 30 regions. The CCs are self-funding, and they use the available local resources to get volunteers to address various issues that their communities face. The URI therefore just helps the Ccs with support on networking and helping them cooperate with one another. The second area of focus for the initiative is the youths (“Action Areas,” 2016). In an ingenious plan to target the next generation so as to achieve the required interfaith cooperation. The initiative has launched a leadership program to provide them with connectivity and training as such groups are the next leaders of the world. Since being launched in the years 2008, this CC (Cooperation Circle) has registered increase in membership from one hundred to five hundred, many of which are from the regions of Africa and Asia which have been recording high growth in the population of the youth (“Action Areas,” 2016). The third area of focus to this global initiative is the environment. The environment has become an issue of global concern and today, environmental issues are largely talked of at the global scale. The URI hasn’t been left behind in addressing the growing environmental concerns. The global body has various Cooperation Circles that organize and undertake activities related to environmental issues like pollution, global warming and depletion of natural resources (“Action Areas,” 2016).
The initiative also works towards addressing women and gender issues. The initiative appreciates that there are still cases of inequality and gender discrimination in various parts of the world and these are likely to be associated with economic poverty and violence. The initiative has in response established various cooperation groups that are meant to undertake women empowering programs and mobilization. They hence, though these programs, undertake activities like offering training for skills and jobs in countries like Panama, Mozambique, and Pakistan (“Action Areas,” 2016). The Ccs also provide counseling on domestic violence in Angola.
Some of the activities that have been undertaken by URI include the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative. This was to help in achieving the elusive peace in northern areas of the East African country, Uganda, which had experienced war for a very long time. The same group which was involved in the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative was also involved a World Bank supported project, Northern Uganda Social Action Fund, in the same region (“Action Areas,” 2016). Also, members of URI showed unity in supporting the United States plan which aimed at preventing the continuation of the atrocities which were being experienced in Darfur, Sudan. This initiative was through the Darfur Accountability Act.
Generally, from its launch in 2008, the United Religion Initiative has made various steps to ensure that its mission and vision are on track to being achieved. As a body with that global network, the URI has been able to create self-funding Cooperation Circles and connected them with one another worldwide. With the increasing number of members (Ccs), URI seems to have picked up well and is optimistic that through its activities, global religious tolerance and peace shall be achieved in most areas that have diversified religious and cultural practices, if not in all areas. The groups through which URI activities are felt at the grass root level, the Ccs, are also community-based hence ensuring that issues are handled by communities themselves and not through foreign interventions which some communities are always against.
References
Barnes, L. L., & Sered, S. S. (2005). Religion and healing in America. Oxford University Press, USA.
Penn, L. (2004). False Dawn: The United Religions Initiative, Globalism, and the Quest for a One-world Religion. Sophia Perennis.
Action Areas. (n.d.). Retrieved May 01, 2016, from http://www.uri.org/action_areas
