The term "religion" gets thrown around a lot in books, TV shows, everyday conversations, and blogs (including this one!). But what does the term "religion" actually mean?
This is a surprisingly difficult question to answer. If we ask our friend Merriam-Webster, we find three definitions of religion:
1. the belief in a god or in a group of gods
2. an organized system of beliefs, ceremonies, and rules used to worship a god or a group of gods
3. an interest, a belief, or an activity that is very important to a person or groupWhile these three definitions may look similar, they are quite different. Definition 1 defines religion as a mere belief; Definition 2 defines religion as a system of beliefs, practices, AND rules; and Definition 3 defines religion as either an interest, belief, OR activity. So which is it?
The answer, of course, is it can be all three, depending on how a person uses the word. The subjective nature of religion can be seen by the fact that certain traditions are considered a religion by some, and not by others. For this article, we will be looking at one such contested tradition, Theravada Buddhism, to see how it lines up with our three example definitions above.
