Cultural References

[Splash]

I've figured out that Christianity is a religion.  Can you explain religion to me?

[txanne]

I think I'll let an atheist tackle this one.

[Elizabeth Bear]

I've figured out that Christianity is a religion.  Can you explain religion to me?

No. But some people seem to find a belief system that acknowledges a benevolent supernatural being comforting and possibly essential. There's some speculation that the desire for access to the numinous is hardwired into many human brains--there's an area of the temporal lobe that seems to relate to religious feelings of awe.

Religion may in many cases be helpful, as it can move people to generosity of spirit and altruism they might not otherwise express. It generally becomes harmful only when somebody in a position of power decides that their supernatural being is the only right and proper supernatural being, and then there are fights.

And by fights, we mean everything from shouting matches to armies on the march.

[sdowney]

The Roman Catholic Church, once upon a time several centuries ago, was the sole flavor of Christianity found in most of Europe, and it took the name Catholic as a claim that it was the universal Christian Church when there started being other flavors.  If I'm remembering correctly.

It goes back a bit earlier than that. The Third Ecumenical Council in Constantinople in 381 C.E. added the phrase "Εἰς μίαν, Ἁγίαν, Καθολικὴν καὶ Ἀποστολικὴν Ἐκκλησίαν." to the Nicene Creed. That was later translated into Latin as "Et unam, sanctam, cathólicam et apostólicam Ecclésiam." In modern English, "In one holy catholic and apostolic Church."
And, of course, there have been extensive, and occasionally violent, disagreements about what each of those 4 adjectives mean.

[MadGastronomer]

Yeah, but it was descriptive, not the name of the thing.  For hundreds of years, it was just The Church.  It didn't need a modifier as part of the name until there were others around.

[will shetterly]

MG, there were many other Christian churches. The Catholics called them heretics.

Arguably the best, at least to eat with, were the artotyrites. Mmm, cheese!

[kayjayoh]

It goes back a bit earlier than that. The Third Ecumenical Council in Constantinople in 381 C.E. added the phrase "Εἰς μίαν, Ἁγίαν, Καθολικὴν καὶ Ἀποστολικὴν Ἐκκλησίαν." to the Nicene Creed. That was later translated into Latin as "Et unam, sanctam, cathólicam et apostólicam Ecclésiam." In modern English, "In one holy catholic and apostolic Church."
And, of course, there have been extensive, and occasionally violent, disagreements about what each of those 4 adjectives mean.

My chorus is in the midst of singing yet another mass* (Beethoven's Mass in C) and so reading the above set my brain off and running on the Credo. (Credo, credo in unam Deum, Patrem Omnipotentem...)

*(I guess when You are looking for pieces for large chorus and orchestra, it is inevitable that you will do quite a few masses.)

[MadGastronomer]

MG, there were many other Christian churches. The Catholics called them heretics.

Arguably the best, at least to eat with, were the artotyrites. Mmm, cheese!

My Latin professor once told us, when we objected to a new rule he introduced, that teaching is a process of lying to people at first, and going back and correcting it later, because it's easier for people to learn the big generalizations first and then learn the more detailed explanations later.
So yes, I oversimplified.  Allow me to revise that statement:
The Catholic Church didn't need to give itself a name other than The Church until there were other churches that it couldn't pretend didn't exist.

[Splash]

I think I understand everything now.

Seriously, what Elizabeth Bear (I can't get over her talking to me!) said is something I can understand; I know a lot of people who believe in "a benevolent supernatural being."  Some of them have it all worked out in detail about why it has to be that way, some of them find such beliefs comforting (which is odd, it's kind of scary to me), and some just sort of believe it because they always have.  I'm having trouble grasping having big organizations of people who all believe the same thing, but I think a lot of that might be just plain population.  It is one thing to read that there are six and a half billion people on your world; it is another thing to really understand what that means, and I'm not there yet.

[Mattador]

Maybe this has been answered elsewhere and I haven't seen it, but what IS the approximate population of Mother?

[Splash]

Er.  Um.  You know, it never occurred to me to wonder.  I'll bet I can find it on the Mesh.

[Ada]

Did you find the population of Mother, yet, Splash?