نشریه معرفت ادیان
سال چهارم شماره 3 (پیاپی 15، تابستان 1392)

It is necessary to offer a clear and exact definition of religion in discussing its nature and function. After a period in which one-dimensional definitions of religion were common, researchers of religion resort to multidimensional definition of religion now. Among these definitions, Smart's seven-dimension definition is more acceptable. Sociologists of religion also admit the inefficiency and failure of theories of conventionality of religion and clearly emphasize on sociopolitical function of religion as they elaborate on its various functions. Religion not only gives meaning but also identity and legitimacy, and can play a role in ordering and disciplining the society and even in mental health, education and international relations. The capacity of religions to play each of these roles is not the same and there are clear differences between them. The present paper discusses and analyzes the types of these functions through a philosophical-sociological view.

The institution of family, as one of the most basic pillars of human society, has always been taken into consideration in all divine and secular schools due to its role in man's perfection and felicity or affliction of society. Two Abrahamic religions, Islam and Judaism, attach high status and holiness to family system and issue common injunctions about marriage and family formation although they have some differences in terms of its limits and conditions of formation. The present paper seeks to extract the status and importance of family from authentic sources of these two religions-the Holy Quran, infallible Imam's hadiths, Torah and its valid interpretations- and compare them. Both Islam and Judaism put special importance on the formation of family, emphasize on accelerating the marriage, reproach singleness, and believe that meeting sexual needs is possible only through marriage and within family.

Islam and Christianity have the most followers in the world. Most followers of these religions consider their own religion as the only way of salvation. So, inviting Christians to accept Islam may not be always successful. The question which thinkers face is how peaceful coexistence can be achieved in these conditions. The best method of dialogue between religions is the dialogue between their followers. The difference and similarities of religions are discussed in dialogue between them and most of misunderstanding clears up. The necessity of dealing with this issue is increasingly evident. Henry Corbin, French philosopher, is one of the thinkers who concerns about this issue. He believes that dialogue between Islam and Christianity is possible. The present paper criticizes and analyzes his views in this regard.

The belief in inherent sin is one of the important beliefs in Christianity, according to which, Adam ate the fruit of the tree of knowledge on good and bad while God had forbidden him. This act and sin not only descended Adam but also polluted all his offspring. Agustin and Pelagius are two great Christian thinkers and the most important theorists of inherent sin, and confrontation between their views about inherent sin can be very noteworthy. Using content analysis approach, the present paper reviews this doctrine based on Pelagius and Agustin's views.

In the early years of 1520s, reformists'' thoughts and views were discussed in England, which paved the ground for its people''s massive dissatisfaction at Catholic Church. The rise of reformists and their gaining power in some regions which were under the domination of Pope decreased Pope''s power to a large extent. Although England was the first country which had a strong and stable kingship, the conflict between king and Pope resulted in the establishment of an independent Anglican Church. Anglicanism is an independent and separate sect and belongs to no other Christian sects like Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox. In many parts of the world, Anglicans are combined with liberal Protestant churches. Given the many political, educational and occupational similarities between Anglicans and liberal Protestants, the former is classified as a part of the latter. Today, Elizabeth II is the formal leader of Church of England.

Although Buddha forewarned his followers against discussing such issues as the beginning and end of the universe, the religious texts of main Buddhist schools, later, provide a picture of Buddhist cosmology, which is divided into two main types: spatial or spacial which describes the arrangement of different worlds and temporal cosmology which explains how creatures are created and destroyed. Spatial cosmology is divided into vertical or cakravada (or cakravada) cosmology and horizontal or sahasravada cosmology. It should be noted that there is no single cosmological system in Buddhism, which shows its disharmony.