“Windows To Spirituality”
Presbyterianism Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism, which traces its origins to Great Britain, particularly Scotland. Presbyterian churches derive their name from the presbyterian form of church government, which is governed by representative assemblies of elders. A great number of Reformed churches are organized this way, but the word Presbyterian, when capitalized,...
Novena A novena (from Latin: novem, “nine”) is an ancient tradition of devotional praying in Christianity, consisting of private or public prayers repeated for nine successive days or weeks. The nine days between the Feast of the Ascension and Pentecost, when the disciples gathered in the upper room and devote themselves to prayer, is often considered...
Shahada The Shahada (الشهادة aš-šahādah,”the testimony”) is an Islamic creed, one of the Five Pillars of Islam, declaring belief in the oneness of God (tawhid) and the acceptance of Muhammad as God’s prophet. The declaration, in its shortest form, reads (right to left in Arabic): لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا ٱلله مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ ٱلله lā ʾilāha ʾillā llāh muḥammadun rasūlu llāh...
Basmala The Basmala (بَسْمَلَة, basmalah; also known by its incipit Bi-smi llāh; بِسْمِ ٱللَّٰهِ, “In the name of Allah”, or Tasmiyyah, تَسْمِيَّة) is the Islamic phrase “In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful” (بِسْمِ ٱللَّٰهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ, bi-smi llāhi r-raḥmāni r-raḥīmi). It is one of the most important phrases in Islam and is being used by Muslims mostly...
The Significance Of Reading This article covers the importance and significance of reading. One of the most important subjects in educating your child is “books and reading”. Children should have a target of learning how to read and write, they should not want to be led, but rather promote themselves...
Jewish History Jewish history is the history of the Jews, and their nation, religion and culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions and cultures. Although Judaism as a religion first appears in Greek records during the Hellenistic period (323 BCE – 31 BCE) and the earliest mention...
History Of Christian Thought On Persecution And Tolerance This article covers the history of Christian thought on persecution and tolerance. This article gives a historical overview of Christian positions on the persecution of Christians, persecutions by Christians, religious persecution, and toleration. Christian theologians like Augustine of Hippo and Thomas Aquinas legitimized religious persecution to various...
Babism Bábism (بابیه, Babiyye) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion which professes that there is one incorporeal, unknown, and incomprehensible God who manifests his will in an unending series of theophanies, called Manifestations of God (ظهور الله). It has no more than a few thousand adherents according to current estimates, most of whom are concentrated in...
Yazidism Yazidism, Sharfadin (شهرفهدین ,Şerfedîn), or Dasni (داسنى ,Dasînî, Dasnî) is a monotheistic faith followed by the mostly Kurmanji-speaking Yazidis and based on belief in one God who created the world and entrusted it into the care of seven Holy Beings, known as Angels. Preeminent among these Angels is Tawûsê Melek (also written as “Melek...
Yazdânism Yazdânism, or the Cult of Angels, is a proposed pre-Islamic, native religion of the Kurds. The term was introduced by Kurdish scholar Mehrdad Izady to represent what he considers the “original” religion of the Kurds. According to Izady, Yazdânism is now continued in the denominations of Yazidism, Yarsanism, and Ishik Alevism. The three traditions subsumed under the...
Yazidis Yazidis (also written as Yezidis (Kurdish: ئێزیدی/Êzîdî) are an endogamous and mostly Kurmanji-speaking group of contested ethnic origin, indigenous to Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. The majority of Yazidis remaining in the Middle East today live in Iraq, primarily in the Nineveh and Dohuk governorates. The Yazidi religion is monotheistic and can be...
European Folklore European folklore or Western folklore refers to the folklore of the western world, especially when discussed comparatively. There is no single European culture, but the common history of Christendom during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period has resulted in a number of traditions that are shared in many...
Noahide Laws According to Jewish tradition, the Noahide Laws (Hebrew: שבע מצוות בני נח, Sheva mitzvot b’nei Noach), also called the Brit Noah (“Covenant of Noah”) refer to seven religious laws that were given by G-d to Adam and Noah, which are considered to be morally binding on non-Jews. These laws are listed in the Talmud and...
Venial Sin According to Catholicism, a venial sin is a lesser sin that does not result in a complete separation from God and eternal damnation in Hell as an unrepented mortal sin would. A venial sin consists in acting as one should not, without the actual incompatibility with the state of grace that a mortal sin implies; they do not break...
Actual Sin This article covers the actual sins. Actual Sin is sin in the ordinary sense of the word and consists of evil acts, whether of thought, word, or deed. According to the Western Christian tradition, actual sin, as distinguished from original sin, is an act contrary to the will and law of God whether...
Nondenominational Christianity Nondenominational Christianity (or non-denominational Christianity) consists of churches which typically distance themselves from the confessionalism or creedalism of other Christian communities by not formally aligning with a specific Protestant denomination. Often founded by individual pastors, they have little affiliation with historic denominations, but typically adhere to evangelical Protestantism, and are...
![St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, the largest church building in the world today.[69]](https://slife.org/wp-content/uploads/Petersdom_von_Engelsburg_gesehen-520x390.jpg)
Sin (Catholic Church) This article covers the answer to the question: “What is Sin for Catholics?“ Nature of Sin Since sin is a moral evil, it is necessary in the first place to determine what is meant by evil, and in particular by moral evil. Evil is defined by St....
Morality In Islam Morality in Islam encompasses the concept of righteousness, good character, and the body of moral qualities and virtues prescribed in Islamic religious texts. The principle and fundamental purpose of Islamic morality is love: love for God and love for God’s creatures. The religious conception is that mankind will behave morally and treat each other in...
Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a movement within Western Christianity in the sixteenth-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Roman Catholic Church and papal authority in particular. Although the Reformation is usually considered to have started with the publication of the Ninety-five Theses by Martin Luther in 1517, there was no schism between the Catholic Church...
What Are Virtues Of Belief? This article covers the answer to the question: “What are Virtues of Belief?” In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate Surely We created man of the best pattern; then We reduced him to the lowest of the low, save those who believe and...
