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> It is said that "to the Melanesian, a religion is above all a technology: it is the knowledge of how to bring the community into the correct relation, by rite

> It is said that "to the Melanesian, a religion is above all a technology: it is the knowledge of how to bring the community into the correct relation, by rites and spells, with the divinities and spirit-beings and cosmic forces that can make or mar man's this-worldly wealth and well-being." Side note: this is true of most religions throughout history. Bret Devereaux has a great series on this [0]. The bulk of religions throughout history and space more closely resemble what we would consider to be a magic system than they do the Abrahamic religions or Buddhism. They're fundamentally a practical set of rituals that were/are believed to have practical effects, irrespective of belief or morality. [0] https://acoup.blog/2019/10/25/collections-practical-polytheism-part-i-knowledge/ https://acoup.blog/2019/10/25/collections-practical-polythei...

acjohnson55 2y ago
Why do you exclude the Abrahamic religions? They have plenty of magical thinking. When we were in college, I remember my best friend explaining that he blesses his food to prevent food poisoning, for example. I was raised Baptist, and my parents attribute pretty much any good fortune for our family to divine intervention, to this day. I know Catholics who can instantly name the patron saint who can be asked to intercede on just about any topic.
- lolinder 2y ago
  I exclude them because if I include them then a lot of people here will assume that they can extrapolate, and abrahamic religions vary dramatically from the bulk of religions throughout history in that they do have an enormous moral component which is simply missing for most religions. This is especially true in mainline protestantism, which rejects most forms of ritual altogether. When people accuse evangelicals or whatnot of magical thinking they're not talking about the same thing that I'm talking about here. > I was raised Baptist, and my parents attribute pretty much any good fortune for our family to divine intervention, to this day. This is similar in some respects, but a key difference is that for most Baptists they don't believe that the Divine intervention came by performing a specific ritual. It comes by the will of God through the grace of Christ. Many Baptists will even firmly emphasize that your morality plays no role in whether God will intervene, so even the moral component doesn't serve the role of ritual. > I know Catholics who can instantly name the patron saint who can be asked to intercede on just about any topic. Catholicism in general is an exception to this, especially as practiced in places like Latin America. There, there is a large ritual component that does bear a strong resemblance to these kinds of religions. But it's easier to warn people from extrapolating from Abrahamic religions in general than it is to warn people from extrapolating from "Evangelicalism, Protestantism, Islam, Judaism, ...". The exceptions will be discovered, as long as you can interrupt the initial impulse to immediately associate things with what you already understand.

acjohnson55 2y ago

Why do you exclude the Abrahamic religions? They have plenty of magical thinking. When we were in college, I remember my best friend explaining that he blesses his food to prevent food poisoning, for example. I was raised Baptist, and my parents attribute pretty much any good fortune for our family to divine intervention, to this day. I know Catholics who can instantly name the patron saint who can be asked to intercede on just about any topic.

lolinder 2y ago
I exclude them because if I include them then a lot of people here will assume that they can extrapolate, and abrahamic religions vary dramatically from the bulk of religions throughout history in that they do have an enormous moral component which is simply missing for most religions. This is especially true in mainline protestantism, which rejects most forms of ritual altogether. When people accuse evangelicals or whatnot of magical thinking they're not talking about the same thing that I'm talking about here. > I was raised Baptist, and my parents attribute pretty much any good fortune for our family to divine intervention, to this day. This is similar in some respects, but a key difference is that for most Baptists they don't believe that the Divine intervention came by performing a specific ritual. It comes by the will of God through the grace of Christ. Many Baptists will even firmly emphasize that your morality plays no role in whether God will intervene, so even the moral component doesn't serve the role of ritual. > I know Catholics who can instantly name the patron saint who can be asked to intercede on just about any topic. Catholicism in general is an exception to this, especially as practiced in places like Latin America. There, there is a large ritual component that does bear a strong resemblance to these kinds of religions. But it's easier to warn people from extrapolating from Abrahamic religions in general than it is to warn people from extrapolating from "Evangelicalism, Protestantism, Islam, Judaism, ...". The exceptions will be discovered, as long as you can interrupt the initial impulse to immediately associate things with what you already understand.