The Encyclopedia of World Religions

416 S Seventh-Day Adventism

tion of sexuality. The social order is fundamen tally based on marriage and the family, and so requires a morality in which sexuality is affirmed but kept within wedlock. However, the quest for salvation, in some eyes, may call for CELIBACY , or at the other extreme, the use of sexual RITUALS outside of marriage. The conventional view is that sexuality is a sacred gift to be used within marriage for pro creation, since a fundamental human obliga tion is, in the words of the book of Genesis, to “be fruitful and multiply.” Fertility is a common religious theme; just as there are prayers for rites on behalf of the fertility of fields and animals, so wedding rites are likely to contain veiled sexual symbols like the wedding ring, and PRAYERS for children. Some gods, like the Hindu S IVA and his companion, Nandi the bull, or the S HINTO Inari, have clear fertility meaning. Some primal societies have had orgiastic festivals to promote fecundity, and obvious sexual symbols can still be seen in some Shinto celebrations. Nonetheless all major religions strongly uphold marriage as the way of life for most people, holding that sexuality is to be expressed fully only within it. Often in prac tice, however, there is a double standard between men and women. Some religious cultures are very particular that brides be virgins, but seem less con cerned about males. At another extreme there is T ANTRISM in H INDU ISM and B UDDHISM , which uses sex or its symbols as a sacrament or sign of the divine. In the Hindu Tantric ritual called maithuna or “union,” the male identifies with Siva, the female with his sakti or energy and the creation; thus they enact the union of HEAVEN and Earth, God and the world. This is a common theme of the art of Vajrayana of T IBETAN RELIGION , though there the rites are usually done symbolically. Similar usage can be found in T AOISM . There is also the widespread practice of celi bacy, or forgoing active sexual expression for the sake of spirituality. It is followed in R OMAN C ATHOLI CISM by priests, and by celibate MONKS AND NUNS within the Catholic traditions of C HRISTIANITY , and in Buddhism, Hinduism, and Taoism. See also HOMOSEXUALITY AND RELIGION .

falls on the date of the old celebration of the rebirth of the sun, and E ASTER is a spring celebration of new life.

Seventh-Day Adventism An American Chris tian group best known for worshipping on Saturday rather than Sunday. Adventists expect the immedi ate return (“advent”) of J ESUS . A Baptist minister named William Miller (1782–1849) predicted that Jesus would return to Earth in 1843 and then in 1844. He did not, but a few remained convinced that Miller got the date right. Instead of returning, they taught, Jesus had entered the heavenly sanc tuary to examine the Book of Life. These people became Seventh-Day Adventists. They took this name because, unlike other Adven tists, they decided that Christians were supposed to WORSHIP on Saturday, not Sunday. They were also convinced that one of their early leaders, Ellen Harmon White (1827–1915), had the gift of PROPH ECY . Although the community began in the United States, it has been very successful overseas. Seventh-Day Adventists have emphasized veg etarianism and a good diet. They indirectly made a very important contribution to American life: breakfast cereal. The head of an Adventist health institute in Battle Creek, Michigan, Dr. J. H. Kel logg, experimented with cereals for his patients. Eventually he and his brother, W. K. Kellogg, went into business making corn flakes. One of Dr. Kel logg’s patients also went into the cereal business: C. W. Post. sexuality and religion The relation of religion to the sexual nature of human life. Human sexual ity has always raised issues for religion and been viewed many different ways. Sexuality can be viewed as a source of temptation that leads one away from G OD .; on the other hand, it is a source of a powerful energy that some have been bold enough to say can be redirected and used in the quest for God. As for religion, its two main func tions, maintaining the social order and offering a means to SALVATION , can be at odds on the ques