Thursday 30 May 2019

The Meaning Of Salvation As Perceived By Main World Religions

By Steven Fox


The meaning of salvation is a dominant part of many main religions of the world. Ideas and theories of how to reach this state of salvation may vary from one belief structure to another, however, achieving this objective of many believers.

Dictionaries define salvation as being delivered from harmful or difficult circumstances, destructive, evil or ruinous forces, or loss. Media organizations may use the word in connection with somebody or something being the salvation of a certain economic or political problem after difficult monetary or political times. Used in the context of a discussion about faith, it refers to being delivered from a sinful state and the consequences of sin.

The teachings of Islam in the Koran tell us that salvation is only attainable through the worship of God alone. A person must believe in God, follow His commandments and worship sincerely. Islamic theologians add that in addition to complete belief, our works, state of repentance and the mercy of Allah are all necessary ingredients, but it is the state of complete submission to the most merciful that is the foundation.

Buddhists believe that salvation is achieved through attainment of a level of Nirvana. The best way to understand this is to imagine reaching a mental state of complete bliss or as believers describe, becoming Buddha. Achieving this state requires a believer to live according to the Noble Eight-fold Path. This doctrine determines the conduct and behavior of Buddhist followers throughout their lives and even includes interacting with nature and our surroundings. The foremost of the eight steps are the Four Noble Truths that deal with the ideology around suffering.

The Christian approach to salvation revolves around belief and total devotion to Jesus Christ. Christians view Jesus as the Son of God who became man for the purpose of spreading His message of love and forgiveness, as related in the Bible, and most importantly, being the Savior of mankind, through grace not deeds, from their sinful state. Persecution by the authorities and death by crucifixion was the fate of Jesus. This, however, is seen as the greatest gift of all for Christians, as it represents the taking away of sin from all those who truly believe and accept Jesus and acknowledge sin through confession.

Judaism as the forerunner of Christianity has a overlapping history which is extensively intertwined. Jews did not see Jesus as the Messiah and Savior in the same way, in fact they do not adhere to the concept of God in human form at all. In many Jewish teachings salvation is perceived as being a release from the various exiles endured over their history. It is linked closely to the concept of redemption or the release from factors and influences that erode the value of human life. To attain deliverance it is a requirement to observe an ethical lifestyle and place a high value on individual morality as presented in the Ten Commandments and other teachings within the Torah.

Dating back a lengthy three and a half thousand years BC, Hinduism is the oldest organized religion on earth. Interestingly the beliefs and prescripts of the Hindus have undergone an evolution over this period resulting in it frequently being referred to as a living religion. The doctrine relating to salvation has also changed as the faith evolved. Referred to as Moksha, the belief is that the process of repeatedly being reincarnated through life and death is halted when an individual reaches a point of completeness. This final state is seen as the ultimate for Hindus as it implies one being at one or in union with God.

It is interesting to see that although belief structures and methodologies may differ, many world religions are pursuing similar outcomes.




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