Engaging with God: A Biblical Theology of Worship Essay

As is well known, the urge to worship is an innate drive of humankind. Through the ages, people from all walks of life have appealed to a deity for assistance, protection, and salvation. Then, through various ceremonies of praise and thanksgiving, countless societies have expressed appreciation for the bounties of life. Further, chapter seven blatantly stresses that the idea during the ancient times in building the church and the assembly of the people for service to God has been a consistent aim in providing the needs of humankind in the most spiritual sense of sagacity. As the Roman Empire crumbled and Christianity ascended, early Christians adopted the basilica as a temple for worship, adapting a secular dwelling to religious needs. The dominance of its form and the dignity of its purpose in accommodating the liturgical needs of the Church seem to have appropriately reflected the triumph of Christianity. But Paul’s use of the word â€Å"justification† has been greatly misunderstood in contemporary theology. For Paul, justification does not denote an event or process by which one is saved. Justification is not â€Å"so much about soteriology as about ecclesiology. † It’s far more concerned with discerning â€Å"who is in† rather than the process through which one â€Å"gets in. † Justification is concerned about how one can discern â€Å"who is a member of the covenant family. † Faith is the â€Å"badge of covenant membership, not something someone ‘performs’ as a kind of initiation test. † The law court is the â€Å"metaphorical mean through which the covenant purposes of God are fulfilled. Some people may even call God different names but the level ground that all these people have is the belief in something higher than the mortal soul. Although some may refute this as merely assumptions but investigating the self clearly, there is this certain uncertainty of being a mortal, of being a mere human being. However, this may be beside the point. Religious tolerance can not only promote appreciation for other religions but it could also stop religious conflicts. People have tendencies on neglecting what is basic on the Commandments of God, it on love thy neighbors and if this love would necessitate tolerance then peaceful interactions could be attained. However, Paul remained in the belief that through the structure of the church, and the gathering of the people in edification, what is seemingly important in such scenario is the idea that these individuals come together in the light of praising God—that whatever it is that may have possibly been â€Å"different† within each other, is not a hindrance to praise one God and spread the word to humankind in that instance. Moreover, incorporating certain characteristics of Greek architecture, but often surpassing it structurally, the ancient Roman temple was likewise a magnificent work of stone visually representing the important role of religion in society. Reflecting the values of secular society, the Roman basilica, a court building and meeting hall, similarly evolved into an imposing form, also prominently situated, while the exterior of the Classical civic temple projected monumentality appropriate for a central public building, the interior, with its spatial organization of narthex, nave, and chancel, echoed solemnity of important functions, including religious ceremonies. Rows of columns defining side aisles adjacent to the nave effused dignity of purpose while rhythmically moving the eye forward to the chancel with its sacred altar. Review on Chapter Nine What is going on around them, in the social and political life of their power of false religion? In most part of the world, Jesus Christ is not a stranger in concept and in fame. Some books in the Holy Bible were even devoted to discussing and retelling the life of Jesus Christ. It could be seen then that the main writers or proponents regarding the accounting of Jesus’ life and works were written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Few words are as deeply freighted as â€Å"religion,† and few raise so many questions. If the first is â€Å"What is the meaning of life? † others follow rapidly. At the pedestrian level of empirical discourse, some obvious ones arise. Is religion one or several? If the latter, what do they have in common, and why are there so many of them? How did they arise? Why are they so different? What has determined their content and their demographic boundaries? What distinguishes religion or religions from other types of human conduct? Why do particular religions emerge and disappear? Is religion a social phenomenon or a property of individuals? Are all individuals religious? Is religion a delusory form of wishful thinking or a kind of understanding? Is it an unavoidable aspect of human existence or a characteristic of one phase of human history? To all these questions and more, different people will give different answers, but one thing is certain: the answers we give on the empirical level will depend on the way we conceive of our humanity. In the light, â€Å"religion† came to designate something apparently common to all peoples: their avowal that they were obligated by supernatural powers to act in certain ways. But beyond that vague similarity, the term had no specific content. Religion was only real, observable, and meaningful in its concrete instances, Latin polytheism, Judaism, Catholicism, Lutheranism, and so forth, and that rich meaning was provided by the adherents of each of those religions themselves. â€Å"Religion† had no ontological status beyond that of a convenient term to point to an amazing variety of real, but mutually contradictory, sets of beliefs about gods or god and the conduct by which they were expressed. One of the most notable conflicts that have been debated by many scholars since the medieval ages is the controversy regarding the place of philosophy and religion in a society. The two have been used to attack each other in order to uphold their own credibility. The study of Philosophy is directed towards the speculation of the things that govern the world and its processes, and the nature of man and his relationship with other individuals as well as with the world (Gasset, 1964). Philosophy attempts to scrutinize and make rational explication of almost everything that can be grasped by the human mind. Yet, it does not really provide sufficient and concrete answers to all its queries. Religion, on the other hand, focuses its scope on explaining things and phenomena that cannot be explained by science and at some point even those that cannot really be made explicit by philosophy. It tries to give reason for everything that is happening. Its justification for every reason that it provides is primarily founded on faith (Nasr, 1996). Hence, by faith, it need not be verifiable. A strong faith or believe could suffice one’s doubt and hesitation.