The Diversity of Religion 

Introduction 

The concept of religion has always been something that I have found interesting. It’s fascinating how around the world or even in the region of New York City that so many people practice different religions. We have those who practice monotheistic religions the best known are: Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. These three religions are known as monotheistic because of the fact that they only believe in one god or one divine creator. While others practice polytheistic religions such as Hinduism which is the most well known where it is believed that there is more than one god.  Then there are religions like Buddhism that don’t believe in a creator or God but accept the idea of many long lived gods but see ultimate reality (Nirvana) is beyond them. 

Audience 

The audience of “Different religions, Diverse gods” is quite broad as in anyone who wants to learn more about religion. However, the level of detail put into this piece gives me reason to believe that it’s for those who study philosophy of religion at a higher level. This is shown through Dr. Gall’s word choice or vocabulary as he uses words such as “exclusivism, inclusivism, and pluralism” (Gall 10) which prove the level at which he is writing at.

The audience of “Religion: Why faith is becoming more and more popular” is for those who want to be informed and are curious about religion and its growth. For example, the article states “Islam is the fastest-growing religion in the world – more than twice as fast as the overall global population.” (Sherwood 25) This article is simply giving facts about religion to inform curious readers. 

The audience of “The World’s Religions” is for any individual interested in learning about the different types of faith. “Religion alive confronts the individual with the most momentous option life can present. It calls the soul to the highest adventure it can undertake, a proposed journey to jungles, peaks, and deserts of the human spirit.” (Smith 1)  This shows a build up to where he goes onto discussing and comparing different religions. 

The audience of this article are people who are in need of data on the religious diversity of New York City; these people would include politicians and researchers of religion or diversity. This is evident because this article showcases the percentages of each religion in each of the 5 boroughs.  

Author’s Tone 

The author’s tone of “Different religions, Diverse Gods” is very direct. Dr. Gall has no bias and is not prejudiced against any religion whatsoever. Especially, when he discusses other articles and their viewpoints on religion he indicates any bias that they have. For example, when reviewing an article that contradicts itself about pluralism in religion he states that “  This passage is problematic and revealing in a number of ways”. (Gall 3) 

The author’s tone in this article is displayed as formal and assertive. The formal tone emphasizes directness as it utilises full words rather than contractions and puts an emphasis on facts. “Most Buddhists (72%) live as a minority in their home countries. There are seven countries where Buddhists form the majority of the population: Bhutan, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Mongolia, Sri Lanka and Thailand.”(Sherwood 49) This shows her focus on facts as she’s giving us data on buddhism. 

The author’s tone throughout the book is straightforward and respectful. Smith analyzes larger sects within each religion, and how they differ from the central teachings. The chapter on Hinduism is the longest in the book, in part because of the various faces of Hinduism, primarily in India.  Further on, The Hindu concept of God appears on the surface to be polytheistic, but when scratched deeper, the many faces Hindus paint of God all amount to a composite of the one Supreme Being. He is very clear and direct at explaining as he puts lots of information into the hinduism chapter. 

The author’s tone of the article is informative; Jones displays percentages and numbers of religion in the five boroughs of New York City.  

Author’s Purpose 

The author’s purpose in writing this article is that when discussing religion or the idea of what is divine it is important that we approach this question with the acknowledgement of the diversity of religion. The author demonstrates “ In this paper, I want to argue that this alternative – religious diversity and an acknowledgment of the diversity of the divine – is a more “realistic” approach to our understanding of religion and our experience of what is divine.”(Gall 2) Therefore, Dr. Gall believes that the diversity of religion should be considered when making judgement on what is divine.  

The purpose of the author is clear and concise. Sherwood wants to explain how faith is growing around the world and what it means for the future while showing the positives and negatives. “Of course – there are huge consequences to religious belief and practice. Firstly, countless wars and conflicts have had an overt or covert religious dimension throughout history right up to the present day.”  As a result of these consequences, adherents of the majority of major religions report increased hostility and, in many cases, violence. 

The author’s main objective in “The World’s Religions” is to bring each group closer to the other by accepting diversity and embracing each other’s beliefs. Smith’s focus is on world religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Islam, Judaism, and Christianity), with one chapter on Primal Religion. “It is one of the illusions of rationalism that the universal principles of religion are more important than the rites and rituals that feed them; to make that claim is like contending that the branches and leaves of a tree are more important than the roots from which they grow.” (Smith 3)

The purpose of “Religion in New York City’s Five Boroughs” is to show the diversity and differences of religion in New York City. Robert accomplishes this with the use of percentages, numbers, and key takeaways. For example, the data is displayed as “Jewish Americans comprise 11 percent of residents in Brooklyn but only two percent of Bronx residents.”(Jones 12)

Genre and Medium

The genre and medium of this piece is a journal article about religion or the philosophy of religion. The article can be found online in the “International Journal for Philosophy of Religion”, it was published in 2001 and is 15 pages long. 

The genre is a magazine article about religion and based on philosophy. The medium is an online journal and there are no other media available.

The genre of “The World’s Religions: Our Great Wisdom Traditions” is a book about religions and beliefs. The medium is an online copy of a book. 

The genre of “Religion in New York City’s Five Boroughs” is a newspaper article as it shows an analysis of New York City’s religious demographic. The medium used to communicate is an online newspaper. 

Rhetorical Situation 

The author wrote this article because he wanted to inform others on an appropriate way to determine what is divine. This was published in early 2001 when immigrants were coming to the U.S.A along with their culture and religion diversifying the region. The cultural expectation of this piece should be mixed because the U.S.A is diverse. 

During the time it was published some of these religions were facing prejudice and persecution. “Christians have been largely driven out of the Middle East, with some calling it a new genocide. Meanwhile antisemitism and Islamophobia are rising in Europe.” (Harriet 67) This shows the article was published to address these issues and raise awareness. 

The publication of this piece was around 1958, where people were not eager to integrate with other religions or learn about the differences and diversity of religion. That is why, in his text, Smith advises people to be impartial and excellent listeners. It is best to educate yourself first before jumping to any conclusions.  

Jones wrote this at the time of the 2016 presidential election and showcased how some boroughs were more religiously diverse than others. Therefore, a question that he wanted answered was how the presidential candidates will use this information and help improve NYC. The cultural expectations of where this newspaper article is to be very religiously diverse because New York City is said to be one of the most diverse cities in the world. 

Author’s Stance 

The author has a very open stance when it comes to this piece. He talks about many different religions and how they differ from each other. He also analyzes others views on the diversity of religion and states if he agrees with them or not and points out any bias with their statements. He then gives his conclusion on how it is necessary to acknowledge the diversity of religion when trying to understand what religion is or what is divine. 

The author has a simple stance. He is direct with stating information about how the different religions are growing all around the world. He supports the information with facts. Perhaps, He compares and contrasts science and religion to demonstrate diverse approaches to religion. He concludes the article by discussing religion’s significant impact. All of this information supports Sherwood’s stance of being simple and clear with the audience. 

The author’s stance on this is complex because of the variety of unique information he concluded. He successfully incorporated information about each religion in the ten chapters of the book. He also emphasizes several key moral aspects that are linked to those philosophical concepts. 

The author’s stance on this article is objective. He is able to display that because of New York’s vast population it is a breeding ground of different religions and them coexisting with each other. However, he does so creatively by using data and making short summaries on the data to explain the difference in percentages of religion in the different boroughs. 

Work Cited

Gall, Robert S. “Different Religions, Diverse Gods.” International Journal for Philosophy of Religion, Vol. 49, no. 1, Springer, 2001, pp. 33–47, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40018280. 

Sherwood , Harriet. “Religion: Why Faith Is Becoming More and More Popular.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 27 Aug. 2018, https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/aug/27/religion-why-is-faith-growing-and-what-happens-next

The World’s Religions: Our Great Wisdom Traditions Book by Huston Smith. Originally published: 1958  https://1lib.us/book/1107228/ee26e1 

Jones, R. P. (2016, May 18). Religion in New York City’s five boroughs. PRRI. Retrieved September 27, 2021, from https://www.prri.org/spotlight/religion-new-york-citys-five-boroughs/