Religion

A religion is a system of human thought which usually includes a set of narratives, symbols, beliefs and practices that give meaning to the practitioner's experiences of life through reference to a higher power, deity or deities, or ultimate truth.[1] Religion is commonly identified by the practitioner's prayer, ritual, meditation, music and art, among other things, but more generally is interwoven with society and politics...


It may focus on specific supernatural, metaphysical, and moral claims about reality (the cosmos and human nature) which may yield a set of religious laws, ethics, and a particular lifestyle. Religion also encompasses ancestral or cultural traditions, writings, history, and mythology, as well as personal faith and religious experience.

The term "religion" refers to both the personal practices related to communal faith and to group rituals and communication stemming from shared conviction. "Religion" is sometimes used interchangeably with "faith" or "belief system,"[2] but it is more socially defined than personal convictions, and it entails specific behaviors, respectively.
Religions by country
North America
Canada · United States · Mexico
Cuba · Haiti · Dominican Republic
Trinidad and Tobago · Nicaragua
South America

Colombia · Peru · Bolivia
Brazil · Argentina Paraguay
Europe

Iceland · Ireland · United Kingdom
Portugal · Spain · Italy · France
Netherlands · Belgium · Germany
Switzerland · Luxembourg · Austria
Denmark · Sweden · Norway · Finland
Poland · Lithuania · Moldova · Russia
Albania · Serbia · Montenegro
Bulgaria · Romania · Greece · Cyprus · Malta Turkey
Middle East

Egypt · Israel · Lebanon
Jordan · Armenia · Azerbaijan
Iran · Iraq · Syria · Cyprus · Turkey
Africa

Algeria · Nigeria · Sudan · Ethiopia · Seychelles
Uganda · Zambia · Kenya · South Africa
Asia

Afghanistan · Pakistan · India
Nepal · Sri Lanka · Vietnam
China · Hong Kong · Macau · Taiwan
North Korea · South Korea · Japan
Malaysia · Singapore · Philippines
Oceania

Indonesia · Papua New Guinea
Australia · New Zealand · Fiji

Religion Portal v • d • e

The development of religion has taken many forms in various cultures. It considers psychological and social roots, along with origins and historical development.

In the frame of western religious thought,[3] religions present a common quality, the "hallmark of patriarchal religious thought": the division of the world in two comprehensive domains, one sacred, the other profane.[4] According to the futurist Raymond Kurzweil, "The primary role of traditional religion is deathist rationalization—that is, rationalizing the tragedy of death as a good thing."[5] Religion is often described as a communal system for the coherence of belief focusing on a system of thought, unseen being, person, or object, that is considered to be supernatural, sacred, divine, or of the highest truth. Moral codes, practices, values, institutions, tradition, rituals, and scriptures are often traditionally associated with the core belief, and these may have some overlap with concepts in secular philosophy. Religion is also often described as a "way of life" or a life stance.