Religion and Place. Religion and the Organization of Time

We noted that places can be distinguished by their physical environments, built environments, and social relationships. Religion has considerable impact on all three aspects of place definition. Numerous physical environments are regarded as sacred by various religions. Others sponsor the construction of impressive structures for religious purposes.

Religion also structures social relationships within places whether or not the places are designated as sacred. Some religions restrict entry into various religious buildings to active members. Temples built by the Mormon Church, which are used for religious ceremonies of special significance, are off-limits to non-Mormons.

In the contemporary world, most people accept scientific explanations for changes in such natural phenomena as the seasons, the weather, the growth of plants, and the behavior of animals. Before the advent of modern science, however, many people relied on religion to explain the mysteries of the natural world. Hence, religion and religious practice are closely tied to the natural environment. The connections between religion and the environment are evident in the timing of religious ceremonies and the recognition of distinctive landscape features as sacred.

Some scholars have noted the fact that the major monotheistic religions of the world originated in the same desert environment, whereas the polytheistic religions originated in humid regions. The cultures in which monotheism originated were nomadic herders, wandering from place to place in desert environments with their livestock. It has been argued that the unobstructed views of the stars and planets moving across the clear desert skies conveyed the impression of order imposed by a single guiding hand, and suggested the presence of a single God.

Religion and the Organization of Time. Throughout the world, many religious holidays and celebrations occur near the summer and winter solstices andnear the vernal and autumnal equinoxes. Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 25. This date falls afew days after the winter solstice occurs in the NorthernHemisphere. In fact, most authorities agree that Jesus wasprobably born in the spring or autumn, rather than in thewinter. Biblical accounts of the birth of Jesus describeshepherds "watching over their flocks by night," but itwas too cold for shepherds to be out at night in Palestineduring the winter months. Instead, the midwinter celebration of Christmas coincides with religious festivals heldthroughout pre-Christian Europe to commemorate thewinter solstice. Similarly, the celebration of Easter coincides with pagan festivals marking the vernal equinox andthe subsequent coming of spring.

Of course, the worldwide diffusion of Christianity has obviated many of these original meanings associated with the major holidays of the Christian year. Christians in Australia and South Africa celebrate Christmas in midsummer and Easter in the autumn.

For many religions, the new year begins during that time of year when crops are planted. The Jewish New Year. Rosh Hoshanah, takes place in late September. In the Mediterranean region where Jews originally resided, wheat and barley were planted at that time in order to take advantage of winter rains.

Religion also influences our division of shorter periods of time. The fact that the week is divided into seven days derives from the Biblical conception of the seventh day as a day of rest. According to the Biblical account of creation. God created the world in six days, resting on the seventh. The influence of the Judeo-Christian tradition on the diffusion of the world economy is such that the seven- day week is now observed worldwide.

Religion and Food. Many religions prohibit the consumption of variousfoods. Muslims are forbidden to drink alcoholic beverages. They are also prohibited from eating pork and porkproducts. This religous restriction may have stemmedfrom concern about the disease trichinosis, which isspread by pigs in desert environments. Pork production inMuslim-dominated areas of the world is considerablylower than elsewhere (Figure 5-9). Hindus, on the otherhand, regard cattle as sacred and abstain from eating beef.

Figure 5-9 Pork Production throughout the World. The swine population of the Middle East. North Africa, and Indonesia is minimal, in large part because Islam forbids the consumption of pork. This food taboo may have originated out of concern for the presence of diseases often carried by swine in desert environments

Until recently, Roman Catholics were forbidden to eat meat on Fridays, although this prohibition has been relaxed somewhat in recent years. Catholics may eat fish on Fridays, however. Fish and fishermen are important Christian symbols. Some scholars have argued that the Catholic prohibition of meat consumption was promulgated in order to promote the European fishing industry during the Middle Ages.