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[German Version] I. Law – II. Religious Studies – III. Sociology and Social Ethics I. Law …

[German Version] I. Terminology The term sign usually means something perceptible to the senses that signifies something else, which gives it its specific meaning. In theological and philosophical usage, it differs from the term symbol…

[German Version] Incantations, as ritualized speech or writing, most closely resemble prayers. But whereas a prayer can be either spontaneous or formulaic, an incantation almost always uses traditional formulas. Prayers are addressed to personal powers such as gods, but incantations can also be addressed directly to natural forces. Normally prayers attempt to persuade a personal power through praise, whereas an incantation – also using words of praise and persuasion – attempts to coerce. If a prayer is unsuccessful, its failure is ascribed to the will of the personal power, but the inadequacy of the speaker or a defect in the ritual is blamed for the failure of an incantation. In principle every prayer can be understood and translated, even when spoken in a sacred language unintelligible to the laity. An incantation, on the contrary, may consist simply of potent sounds that do not necessarily have a proper meaning and therefore do not form real words. This is true of both some mantras in Hinduism and some forms of expression taught by the Gnostics to facilitate the asc…

[German Version] Lament I. Religious Studies – II. Bible – III. Systematic Theology – IV. Practical Theology – V. Judaism I. Religious Studies …

[German Version] I. Religious Studies Prayer is one of the most frequent and important religious acts in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. It also appears in other religions – for example the indigenous religions of America. But it does not appear to be universal. Some Buddhist traditions, for example, are atheistic, and in them there is no prayer in the strict sense; these traditions often allow their adherents to pray to gods (e.g. Hindu gods), but they value the goals of such prayer less than enlightenment (Nirvāṇa). According to Stanner and others, indigenous Australians are also unfamiliar with prayer. Prayer may be distinguished from other types of religious act such as meditation, divination, or incantation. In contemplation the subject reflects on a religious object or the cosmos, whereas in prayer he or she speaks to a personal religious object. Prayer is not simply religious communication: communication is reciprocal, but in prayer only the person pra…