Religion in Bloomington - Essay Example

Religion in Bloomington Introduction Did you know that man and religion are tied together? Different people have different kinds of religion, which they use to seek spiritual intervention. Religion has been part of man before the era of civilization. This has made it to be socialized in the society and continues to influence the young ones. Similarly, religions are part of man because it brings hopes to the hopeless. It plays different roles that make it meaningful in the lives of man. Religion came to Bloomington, Indiana way back before colonization. Christianity was the first religion to spread in Bloomington because colonizers who came from Europe were Christians. Subsequently, other religions emerged as witnessed today. However, one might wonder if there are evidences of religion in Bloomington, Indiana. There are many evidences that indicate that Bloomington is a religious centre. Faithful from different religions have established their centers in this place that is an indication of religious freedom. In the school I learn, IUB, there are religious courses offered which is an indication that people are religious. In this paper, I will analyze the evidences of religion in Bloomington, Indiana using pictures, descriptions, statistics, and interviews quotations. Evidence of religion Just as mentioned earlier, religion plays a fundamental role in the lives of the human beings making it part of them. Americans are religious people with statistics showing that 48.78 % of the populations are religious. With the high number of the religious population, around 20% are Catholic faithful or belongs to that denomination and around 10% attend Baptist churches or denomination (Sperlings 1). The religious nature of Americans is spread across the states and other countries. For instance, 48% of Bloomington, Indiana residents are religious. Catholics comprise about 9%; Baptist comprises of 8%, Methodist 6%, Islam 3.8%, and the statistics continue with other churches and religions (City-data.com 1). Therefore, there is enough evidence from this statistics to believe that religion is present in Bloomington, Indiana. Similarly, there is evidence that residents of Bloomington do not attend to one religion; there are many, and individuals have options of choosing from the available ones. However, there is a surprising turn from what is written in the literatures and what is on the ground. Bloomington has been a religious place from the past centuries and decades since this is where some clergy and activist like Martin Luther King Junior lived and arrested. Their stories show the great diversity of the population that lived here. Although there is mixed race in this city, the same mixture in reflected in the diversity of the churches the population goes. One of the standing evidence of religion in Bloomington, Indiana is the Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Centre and Kumbum Chamste Ling Temple. This is one of the religious centers in the region and believed to house the extended family of the Dalai Lama (Spiritual Travel 2). The place has a long history and it is regarded as a holy place with its peaceful and contemplative atmosphere bringing one to his or her gods. The place has many decorations and pathways leading to different places for the religious purposes. Its presence also serves many functions to the residence of Bloomington, Indiana other than the Buddhists. As one approaches the venue, the fist-impressing site is the ornamentally decorated Tibetan-style gate (Tully 3). It has a winding road leading to the cultural center housing a gift shop, library, educational displays and many meeting rooms (Spiritual Travel 2). This place offers educational services to people who want to know more information on Tibetan Buddhism dating from the ninth century. The ability to this holy place to offer information services is an indication that religious places offer more services other than the known divine services. Besides the cultural center, other important structures have religious duties among the Bloomington residents. For instance, this religious center has a structure that contains Tibetan prayer wheels. It is made of bronze and contains over 80 million copies of prayer books used by Buddhists (Spiritual Travel 2). The wheel also serves divine services, as it is believed that turning the wheel to face the direction of the sun results to blessings among the suffering. From this description, it is evident that spiritual intervention is real among the population in Bloomington, Indiana and the place plays a critical role in linking them with the gods or spirits. Importantly, the temple plays an interfaith mission where it links together all religious practices to one. Through this, it helps in integrating different faithful from different denominations and religions. This is evidenced through the presences of many statues other than that of the Buddhists. There are sacred objects or arts from other religions ranging from the Koran, Jewish to common prayer books Christians use. Moreover, the interfaith mission of this holy place was also evidenced when it was consecrated because there was a help of traditional eleven denominations. The guest of honor who also hosted the ceremony came from a different religion. Besides, some other activities as well as religious meetings and crusades confirm the presence of religion. The presence of religion does not just mean people attending church, mosque, or temple services but entails much more. The way people affiliate to their spiritual interventions is a form of religion. This implies that even those who do not believe in god are also considered religious since they pay or seek divine intervention in a particular way. Additionally, other religious events are also publicized as it calls for the resident’s participation (Indiana Public Media 1). For examples, the website, http://indianapublicmedia.org/events/ has a list of religious events taking place in Bloomington, Indiana. They can also be found within the campus notice boards. Additionally, there are many religious bookstore situated all over the place and there is a website that assist residents in locating them (Religious Bookstore 1). For example, the website, http://religious-bookstores.find-near-me.info/in/bloomington-in has a list of religious bookstores and their locations within the streets of Bloomington, Indiana. This is an indication that religion is highly regarded in Bloomington, Indiana. From my experience, I can confirm that what I saw is evidence that religion is present in Bloomington. The region has a rich history of religion, making it act as a religious center for many denominations. Christianity might have first spread here before going to other places. From my experience, I saw signs of religion's presence wherever I walk. There are signboards of churches as well as tall buildings with the architectural design of a religious place. For instance, there are different churches or prayer houses, which signify religious activities. From where I walk and books, I read, symbols of religion are all over. There was signpost of churches as well as those denoting religious tolerance. Bloomington is made of different religions are discussed before hence religious tolerance is fundamental in this place. The religions co-exits peacefully and tolerate one another. There is also a website containing list of religious institutions in Bloomington which is an indication that religion is present (Bloomington Online 1). For instance, the website, http://www.bloomingtononline.net/directory/category/Churches,-Temples,-Mosques/3 is an indication that many religions exists in Bloomington, Indiana. The presence of above worshiping centers symbolizes the religious practices of the residents. Moreover, as one walks along the Bloomington streets, one can hear the bells from worshiping centers around midday, late evening and in the morning. The bells are mostly associated with the Catholics in the morning and Islamic religion. One can also see the Catholic nuns, priest walking along the streets with robes, which signify their religious nature, and church activities they are involved. Similarly, religious head scuffs are common among the Muslims, and that is evidenced in the streets more so on Fridays when they are from prayers. I talked to some students who were around me and they happen to be Buddhist and Muslims. They were happy by the freedom of religion guaranteed in the school. They are free to attend their religions without discrimination. This was enough confirmation that religion is present in Bloomington, Indiana. Additionally, I confirmed the evidence of religion as well as its freedom when I talked to some student about their views on religion in Bloomington, Indiana. The response of a Muslim student was that, “I haven’t experienced any problem, discrimination of religion, I am free to go to mosque anytime I want and I thank the government for the religious freedom,…. Other students to respect my religion and they give me ample time…” Similarly, one Buddhist student replied, “ There is no problem with religion in Bloomington, Indiana compared to other nation I have been such as Saudi, there people are forced to Islamic….”. All these indicate the religious diversity in the learning institution. Despite the religious presence being realized in Bloomington, Indian, there are some tough laws that influence religion. For instance, many residents have criticized Religious Freedom Restoration Act as discriminatory. Because of this perception, there has been a protest for its amendments. Different administrators have been requested to review the act and no result has been achieved so far (Harrington 1). Conclusion Religion is part of humanity, and different theories argue that humankind came into existence because of religion. Religion has lived with humanity for a long time and there is evidence that it was there prior to man’s civilization. Bloomington is one of the regions where religion is present. Literature points out that nearly half of the population is religious, and they belong to different denominations and religious affiliations. The diversity of this population makes it possible to have different religions and denominations. For instance, there are Muslims, Christians, Buddhist among other religions. They both conduct different religious practices, making the area a cultural center. Works Cited Bloomington Online. Index of local churches, temples, mosques in Bloomington. 2015 Online http://www.bloomingtononline.net/directory/category/Churches,-Temples,-Mosques/3 City-data.com. Bloomington, Indiana. 2015. Online Indiana Public Media. Community Events. April, 2015. Online Harrington, Barbara. About 200 protest RFRA at Bloomington rally. 2015 Online 12, 2015] Religious Bookstore. Religious Bookstore Near me. 2015. Online http://religious- bookstores.find-near-me.info/in/bloomington-in Sperlings. Religion in Bloomington, Indiana. 2015 Online Spiritual Travel. Bloomington’s Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Center & Kumbum Temple. 2015. Online http://www.spiritualtravels.info/articles-2/north- america/bloomingtons-tibetan-mongolian-buddhist-cultural-center-kumbum-temple/ Tully, Mathew. Tully: In Bloomington, a welcome dose of common sense. 2015. Online http://www.indystar.com/story/opinion/columnists/matthew-tully/201 Read More