Material Culture of Religion: Glossary of (selected) Religious Terms, Concepts, People, Etc. A ad

Rama
Hindu: The seventh avatar of Vishnu; a prince, hero of the Ramayana epic.

Rama Krishna Jayanti (=Sri Krishna Jayanati)
Hindu (holiday): The celebration of the birthday of Sri Krishna, an incarnation of Lord Krishna.

Ramadan (Arabic: "The month of great heat")

1. 
   Common usage (Muslim): The ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar.
   
2. 
   Muslim: The month of the Muslim calendar during which observant Muslims do not eat or drink between sunrise and sunset. The fast celebrates the month in which Muhammad received the Qur'an.
   

Ramanavmi
Hindu (holiday): The celebration of the birth of Lord Rama.

Ramsey, Andrew (Chevalier)
Philadelphians: Member/leader. b. 1680 Scotland, d. 1743.

Ramsey, Michael
Anglican: Archbishop of Canterbury, 1961-1974.

rasi (Sanskrit: "constellation")
Hindu: The names of the 12 constellations in the zodiac are Mesha, Vrishabha, Mithuna, Karkataka, Simha, Kanya, Tula, Vrischika, Dhanus, Makara, Kumbha and Meena.

Rastafarians
Members of any of a variety of dynamic religious movements originating in Jamaica and Dominica since the 1930s among poor landless men. Many current (male) practioners wear their hair in dreadlocks. The movements were inspired by Marcus Garvey's "Back to Africa"movement and the accession of Ras Tafari (hence the name) as Emperor of Ethiopia.

rasul (Arabic: "messenger")
Muslim (Shi'ite): A member of a particular category of prophets who bring a message for a particular subset of humans.

Rawana
Hindu: The anti-hero of the Ramayana epic.

rawda (Arabic: "preachment")

reactive mind
Scientologist: That part of the mind which works on a totally stimulus-response basis, which is not under a person’s volitional control, and which exerts force and the power of command over his awareness, purposes, thoughts, body and actions.

rebbe (=reb; Yiddish)

1. 
   :Jewish: A >rabbi.
   
2. 
   Jewish: A title used to acknowledge a person who not only has rabbinical ordination, but also is a spiritual master.
   
3. 
   Jewish: A more informal title than rabbi, showing affection as well as respect.
   

red (color)
Buddhist: Used to symbolize the fire of passion purified into a longing for wisdom.

reductionism
(Philosophy): The search strategy used to find points of entry into otherwise impenetrable complex systems.

Reformation
Christian: A 16th century movement in Western Europe to reform the Roman Catholic Church led by Martin Luther (in Germany), John Calvin (in Switzerland) and others, resulting in the formation of the Protestant churches.

Reformation Day
Christian (Protestant): Celebration of 31 October 1517, when Martin Luther posted a belief statement on the door of the churchin Wittenberg, Germany.

Reformed Epistemology
Christian (Protestant): An Anglo-American philosophy of religion,which criticises evidentialism and classical foundationalism in order to argue in support of the rationality of religious belief.

reformer
An innovator who protests practices that belie the original vision of a religion (as he/she sees it).

Regency
Christian (Roman Catholic): A two- or three-year period after First Studies when a Jesuit lives in community while working in a ministry.

Regina Kuhl
See Kuhl, Regina.

rehab (=rehabilitation)
Scientologist: An auditing action which is used to help a person regain a former ability, state of being or more optimum condition which has been discredited, denied or suppressed.

religion

1. 
   A system of belief and ritual with subjective depth and social extension.
   
2. 
   The sort of human activity that deals with the ultimate and most important questions of life.
   

religious

1. 
   Common usage: Of or pertaining to religion.
   
2. 
   Christian: Used as a noun, it refers to monks or nuns who join together in communities that are dedicated to living out a religious vision; Roman Catholic nuns, for example, are sometimes referred to as women religious.
   

Religious Daughters of St. Joseph
Christian (Roman Catholic): Order of nuns.

Religious Teachers Filippini
Christian (Roman Catholic): Order of nuns founded by St. Lucy Filippini and Cardinal Mark Anthony Barbarigo in 1692 in Montefiascone, Italy.

René d'Anjou

1. 
   Duke of Lorraine, 15th Century France; b. 1408.
   
2. 
   Priory of Sion: Grand Master.
   

Requiem
Christian (Roman Catholic): A Mass said for the dead.

restimulation
Scientologist: The "awakening" of an old engram, which occurs when a person’s present environment contains enough similarities to the elements found in the engram to cause a reactivation of it.

resurrection

1. 
   Common usage: Returning alive after death; arising from the dead.
   
2. 
   Christian: A core tenet of faith. On the third day after his crucifixion, Jesus was resurrected.
   

retentions
Common usage: The collection of memories, practices and artifacts of a people from a past culture.

revelation
Western Europe: From the 17th century, this word has been used to designate external sources of authoritative religious knowledge (e.g. Scripture or prophecy). Examples of revealed religions are Biblical Christianity, Qur'anic Islam and Talmudic Judaism.

riba (Arabic)

1. 
   Common usage: Bank interest.
   
2. 
   Muslim: The practice, forbidden in the Qur'an, of charging or paying "usurious interest".
   

Richard Allen
See Allen, Richard

Ridvan
Baha'i: The commemoration of the twelve day period in 1863 when Baha'u'llah declared that he was God's messenger for this age. Work is to be suspended on days 1, 9, and 12 of the festival.

rimpoche
Buddhist (Tibetan): The abbot of a gompa.

Rinzai (=Chinese: Linji)
Buddhist (Zen): A Japanese sect of Zen Buddhism.

rite
A specific ritual action or practice, including physical movements and any accompanying words.

ritu (Sanskrit: "season")
Hindu: There are six seasons in the religious calendar: Vasanta, Griishma, Varsha, Sarat, Hemanta and Sisira.

ritual
Patterned behavior, often communal, consisting of prescribed actions performed periodically and/or repetitively.

Robert Boyle
See: Boyle, Robert

Robert Fludd
See Fludd, Robert.

Rogation Sunday
Christian: An occasion to ask God to bless the land for growing crops and to also ask forgiveness of sins.

Roguszys
Pagan (Lithuanian): Guardian spirit of pickling (the process of salt-curing vegetables).

Rohatsu
Buddhist: The celebration of the enlightenment of Buddha.

Root Race
New Age: A concept of the origin of humans developed by W. Scott-Elliot in Los Lemuria.

Rosarian Dominican Sisters
Christian (Roman Catholic): Dominican order of nuns.

Rosh Hashanah (Hebrew)
[incomplete]
Jewish (Holy Day): This is the "New Year," which marks the beginning of the lunar year in the autumn. It is the first day of the Ten Days of Awe in which the Jews examine their lives in order to bring them into accord with the Mosaic Law. Yom Kippur is the tenth day. In the Hebrew Bible, Rosh Hashanah is called by three names: Shabbaton, "day of rest," Zikhron Teru'ah; "day of the proclamation of a memorial with the blast of the shofar" (Lev. 23:24); and Yom Teru'ah, "day of blowing the shofar" (Num. 29:1). (See also Rosh Hashanah)

Rosicrucianism
Secret Society: [incomplete]

R6EW
Scientologist: The auditing process used on Grade VI.

ruba'i (pl. rubaiyat; Persian?)
Common usage: A poem (esp. in Persian) of four lines in which usually the first, second and fourth lines rhyme. Each poem is separate, not part of a longer poem.

Rudrayana (Nepalese)
Hindu (Nepal): A Kathmandu Valley nature Goddess, also known as Shekali Mai.

Rule of St. Benedict
Christian (Roman Catholic): Set of regulations for monastic communities attributed to 6th Century Italian monk, St. Benedict. See Rule of Benedict.

rundown (=RD)
Scientologist: A series of related actions which culminate in a specific end result.

Ruth Norman
See Norman, Dr. Ernest and Ruth.

ru'yah (Arabic: "dream", "vision")

S

SAAWS
Muslim: Abbreviation of transliterated Arabic for salla-Allahu alayhi was salaam ( "may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him”), a ritual honorific added by (some) Muslims following each mention of the Prophet Muhammad's name in speech or in print. This usage is less common in the U.S. than the addition of PBUH (“peace be upon him”) following mention of his name.

Sabbat
New Age: The eight Neopagan festivals as a group (see: Beltane, Eostar, Imbolg, Litha, Lughnasa, Mabon, Samhain and Yule).

Sabbatarian Movement
[incomplete]
Christian (esp. American Protestant): Social movement esp. active ca. 1900 working to prohibit pasttimes such as shopping and entertainment on Sundays.

Sabbath

1. 
   Christian/Jewish: The seventh day of a seven day week, set aside as a day of rest and worship.
   “Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; that your ox and your ass may have rest, and the son of your bondmaid, and the alien, may be refreshed.” (Exodus 23:12)
   “And the Lord said to Moses, "Say to the people of Israel, You shall keep my sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you.“ (Exodus 31:12)
   
2. 
   Christian: = Sunday.
   
3. 
   Jewish: = Shabbat, which begins every Friday evening at sundown and concludes Saturday evening at sundown. (See Shabbat).
   

sacrament

1. 
   Common Usage: A ritual encompassing the sacred; a rite.
   
2. 
   Christian (theology): An outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace received from God.
   
3. 
   Christian: Ritual practices.
   
4. 
   Christian (Orthodox and Roman Catholic): Beginning In medieval Christianity, the sacraments are baptism, confirmation, Mass, absolution, extreme unction, ordination and matrimony.
   
5. 
   Christian ( Protestant): Most denominations regard only baptism and communion as sacraments, on the grounds that these two were specifically instituted by Christ, as related in scripture.
   

sacramentals
Christian (Roman Catholic): Minor symbols of the faith such as the sign of the cross, use of the rosary, or the wearing of liturgical vestments symbolic of the season in the church year, but also specific acts of prayer or devotion such as grace at meals, set litanies, and prayers at the stations of the cross.

Sacred Heart
Christian (Roman Catholic): An observance paying homage to Christ's all encompassing love for humanity.

sadaqa (Arabic: "charity")

sadhana
Hindu: Religious practice.

sadhu
Hindu: Mendicant (religious beggar).

Safar (Arabic: "the month which is void")
Common usage (Muslim): Second month of the Islamic lunar calendar.

Safavids
The dynasty ruling Iran from 1501, descended and taking its name from Safi al-Din of Ardabil (d. 1334 CE), the founder of the Safavid religious order.

sahaba
Muslim: Companions of the Prophet.

Said (=Syed, =Syeed) (Arabic)
Muslim (Shi’ite): When used as an honorific, the word indicates that its bearer is descended from the family of the Prophet Muhammad. However, it also is used as a given (first) name by both Sunni and Shi’a Muslims - a cause for confusion among non-Muslims.

saint
(for biographies and images of Christian saints, click here)

1. 
   Common Usage: A holy person.
   
2. 
   Christian (Roman Catholic): A deceased person who has been canonized by an ecclesiastical authority.
   

St. Thomas Aquinas
See Thomas Aquinas

sakina (Arabic)
Muslim: A divine tranquility that is said to descend when the Qur'an is recited.

Sakyamuni ("enlightenment")
Buddhist: Another name for Siddhartha Gautama.

salah
Muslim: Worship of God according to Muslim ritual.

salat (Arabic: “prayer”)
[incomplete]
Muslim: Formal prayer.
Muslim (ritual): Prayer taking place five times each day.
Muslim: One of the Five Pillars. Every male and female adult Muslim is obliged to offer five daily worship-prayers (Qur'an 4:103, 2:177).
Muslim: Prayerful recitation of the opening sura of the Qur'an:

In the name of Allah
The Compassionate
The Merciful
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Creation,
The Compassionate, the Merciful,
King of the Last Judgment!
You alone we worship, and to You alone we pray for help.
Guide us to the straight path,
The path of those whom You have favored
Not of those who have incurred Your wrath
Nor of those who have gone astray.


Salesian Sisters [see: Daughters of Mary Help of Christians]

salla (Hausa)

1. 
   Muslim (African): =Salat
   
2. 
   Muslim (African): Either of the two major festivals of Islam.
   

samadhi
Hindu/Buddhist: The deepest state of trance or yogic self-possession.

Samhain
New Age: One of the Celtic quarterly feasts, held on 1 November; often adopted as a holiday (sometimes celebrated the day before, 31 October: Hallowe'en) by Neopagans. Samhain marks the beginning of winter, when the way to the "other world" lay open (note that it is the same as All Saints ' Day in the Christian calendar). Decorations are apples and nuts.

The Wheel of Life must always turn
and death is preparation for rebirth,
as darkness deeply holds the seeds of light.
We shall meet and know, and remember, and love again.
-- Neopagan Samhain chant


samsara (Sanskrit,Pali: "wandering")

1. 
   Hindu/Buddhist: The endless cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth causing cosmic suffering.
   
2. 
   Buddhist (Zen): An aspect of world expressed as differentiation, change, becoming, impermanence and desires.
   

samskara
Hindu: Preparation of an individual for study, reflection and planned refinement of the body, mind and intellect so that he or she may attain inward spiritual grace.

Sanatana Dharma (Sanskrit: "eternal truth:)
Hindu: The essence of religion.

san-chiao ("three ways")
Chinese: The three components are the way of Confucius, Taoism, and Buddhism. Because the Chinese do not choose one religion or philosophy and reject the others, their rituals at home, in public life, or for one of their rites of passage are drawn from a variety of sources. This syncretism continues into the present. For example, since World War II, Christian rituals have popularly been adopted for wedding ceremonies.

sanctification

1. 
   [xxxx]
   
2. 
   Christian (Assemblies of God) : Number 9 in the Statement of Fundamental Truths, sanctification is defined as an act of separation from that which is evil, and of dedication unto God.
   

Sandro Filipepi
See Botticelli.

sangat (Punjabi)
Sikh: A place-specific community of Sikh faithful.

sangha
Buddhist: The community of either monks and nuns, or of monks, nuns and laity. An assemblage of those who have formally undertaken to pursue the Buddhist life, and who accept the obligation of conforming to the body of regulations known as vinaya.

Sanhedrin
Jewish: Council of Jewish Elders.

sanskar (Sanskrit, Pali)
Sikh: The life-cycle sacraments, particularly name-giving, marriage, initiation (Amrit) and cremation, all of which include the reciting of prayers and the reading of the Guru Granth Sahib in addition to the sharing of karah prasad and other ritual activities.

Sanskrit
The ancient Indo-European language in which many Hindu and Buddhist scriptures were composed.

Santeria
Christian/Animist: Religion founded in Cuba with Roman Catholic and Nigerian Animist roots. [xxxxx]

sanyasin
Hindu/Buddhist: A religious ascetic who has renounced his ties to society.

Saraswati
Hindu: Goddess denoting knowledge or learning; Brahma’s consort.

Satan

1. 
   [incomplete]
   
2. 
   New Age): One of the four co-equal deities of the Process Church of the Final Judgement.
   
3. 
   New Age (Wicca): A male God.
   
4. 
   Christian Identity: The father (with Eve as the mother) of Cain, and thence, the Jews; see also Christian Identity.
   

Satanism

1. 
   [xxxx]
   
2. 
   New Age: The worship of Satan or other central figures from Christian demonology. Note: There is considerable evidence that this practice is related more to adolescent rebellion than religious conviction.
   

satori
Buddhist (Zen): An experience of enlightenment.

satsang
Sikh: An assembly for religious worship; congregation.

Savonarola
[incomplete]
Christian ruler (Florence, Italy): Burned the "vanities" (non-religious books and artwork) in 1497 ("Bonfire of the Vanities") xxxx.

sawm (=saum; Arabic: "fasting")
Muslim: One of the Five Pillars. Fasting during Ramadan; includes abstaining from food, drink, sex and all sorts of idle and immoral acts from sunrise to sunset. (Qur'an 2:183-187).

sayyid

1. 
   Muslim: A title denoting a descendant of Muhammad.
   
2. 
   Muslim: A common male first name.
   
3. 
   Muslim: A title of respect roughly equivalent to Mr.
   

Scholasticism
Christian: A tradition of medieval thought centered in the universities rather than the monasteries. Its most prominent representative is St. Thomas Aquinas.

School Sister of Christ the King
Christian: Roman Catholic): Order of nuns founded in 1976 by Bishop Glennon Patrick Flavin in Lincoln, Nebr.

School Sisters of St. Francis of Christ the King
Christian (Roman Catholic): Franciscan order of nuns founded 13 September 1869 in Maribor, Austria.

School Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis
Christian (Roman Catholic): Franciscan order of nuns founded by Mother Maria Hyacintha in 1723 in Hallein, Austria.

science
"Science...is the organized, systematic enterprise that gathers knowledge about the world and condenses the knowledge into testable laws and principles." [Edward O. Wilson, Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge, New York: Vintage Books, 1998: 58]

Scientology
Religion founded by L. Ron Hubbard in United States in 1954. See website.

scriptures (Latin: “writings”)
Common Usage: A collection of religious text which may include writings on instructional matters, institutional concerns and/or theological reflections. Often the books containing these writings are considered holy, such as the Bible, Qur'an and Guru Granth Sahib.

Second Order
Christian (Roman Catholic): The women’s branch of Franciscans, founded by Saint Clare of Assisi.

secondary causes
The causal powers of creatures (for example: free will), in contrast to God, who is the Primary Cause.

Sectarian Shinto
Shinto: One of the three major types of Shinto, it is a relatively new movement represented by the 13 major sects which emerged in Japan around the 19th Century. Each of the 13 sects has either a founder or a systematizer who organized the religious body. New Shinto sects which appeared in Japan after 1945 are included in this type for convenience of discussion.

Seder (Hebrew: "the order")
Jewish (ritual): The order of the festive meal and Passover service which is recited by Jewish families around the dinner table, usually in their homes. Includes haroset, karpas, matzos, hard-boiled egg, seat for Elijah [incomplete].

See
Christian: Geographic area under the jurisdiction of a bishop.

Sefardim
(see Sephardim)

Sefirah (pl. sefirot; Hebrew)
Jewish (Cabala): The spheres or attributes of divine manifestation or creative activity.

Seljuks

1. 
   A Turkish dynasty ruling in Iran, Iraq and Syria during the 11th and 12th Centuries CE.
   
2. 
   A dynasty ruling in central and eastern Anatolia from the late 11th Century to 1302.
   

Seneschal (=Prince Noachite de Notre Dame)
Priory of Sion: Second-level rank, below Nautonnier.

Sephardim (=Sephardi)

1. 
   Jewish: Descendants of Jews of Spanish or Portuguese origin who left the Iberian peninsula at the end of the 15th Century when the Jews were expelled and settled in North Africa, the Levant, the Far East and southern Europe. (As contrasted with Ashkenazi.)
   
2. 
   Jewish: Descendants of speakers of Ladino.
   

seriqa (Arabic?: "theft")

sermon
Christian: Speech about faith or theology, usually including references to a specific Biblical text (see also homily).

serpent

1. 
   Philosophy: The dream equivalent of a (real world) snake. The images of snakes "evoke blends of emotion that fall on a triagular gradient defined by the three points of fear, revulsion, and reverential awe. Where the real snake frightens, the dream serpent transfixes. In the dreamer's paralytic state of sleep the serpent cannot be escaped." [Edward O. Wilson, Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge, New York: Vintage Books, 1998: 78]
   
2. 
   Bible: Genesis xxxx
   

sesshin
Buddhist (Zen): A spiritual practice to inspect one's heart-mind typically lasting a week.

Seth

1. 
   Ancient Egyptian religion: The figure of Seth, represented as a mythical, pig-like animal, was an important pre-dynastic deity.
   
2. 
   New Age: "An energy essence personality no longer focused in physical reality" who was channeled by the late Jane Roberts, and whose philosophy is contained in a 25-volume set written by Ms. Roberts and her husband, Robert Butts.
   
3. 
   Christian Identity: Son of Adam and Eve; father of the white race.
   

Setsubun-sai
Shinto (holiday): The celebration of the coming of spring.