The Encyclopedia of World Religions

worship S 479

House of I SLAM , which goes beyond any political boundaries. Most worship communities have leaders: RAB BIS , cantors, priests, ministers, deacons, IMAMS —in family worship, fathers or mothers. Many worship communities also have subcommunities that per form special tasks. Many congregations in North America have choirs. The structure of worship communities may also reflect gender and racial exclusiveness, sometimes despite an egalitarian ism in the general society. In Orthodox J UDAISM , a worshipping community must have at least 10 men (males). In Catholic and Orthodox C HRISTIAN ITY , only men may be priests. Hindus do not allow non-Hindus to enter certain temples. WHAT IS WORSHIPPED? Religions often reserve the term “worship” for activities done in relation to the supreme being or beings. Other worshipful activities may be called “veneration.” Some Christians venerate M ARY , the mother of J ESUS . Buddhists often venerate accomplished beings known as BODHISATTVAS . Christians, Mus lims, and Jains, among others, venerate SAINTS . Especially Christians and Buddhists venerate REL ICS . Ancient Romans were required to venerate the emperor. These acts may resemble worship strictly speaking, but they often differ from it in subtle ways. Many religions also identify certain forms of worship as improper. In Judaism and Christian ity, the first commandment forbids the worship of any god but YHWH (“the Lord”). The second commandment forbids the use of cult images. In Islam, shirk is a cardinal SIN . It means giving any created object the respect and adoration that only the creator deserves. WHERE DO PEOPLE WORSHIP? Some forms of individual worship can take place anywhere. But human beings often set aside spe cial areas for the performance of rituals, including worship. Some speculate that the European caves painted in prehistory were areas where ancient ini tiation rites took place ( see INITIATION , RELIGIOUS ).

Roughly in 6000 B . C . E . a community at Catal Huyuk in modern Turkey apparently dedicated many rooms to the worship of a GODDESS . Sacrifi cial worship often takes place at an ALTAR . Ancient Greeks, like other peoples, performed some acts of worship in sacred groves or woods. Among the Mayans and Aztecs as among ancient Babylonians some important altars sat on top of tall pyramids. Much worship has taken place at temples—places where a divinity is present, often in the form of a statue. Congregations often meet in special build ings for worship, such as SYNAGOGUES , churches, and MOSQUES . WHEN DO PEOPLE WORSHIP? Some worship activities take place every day. Mus lims formally pray five times a day in the direc tion of M ECCA ( see SALAT ). Some traditional Hindu householders perform rituals at the “twilights,” dawn and dusk. Some Christian MONKS AND NUNS perform a series of daily services: vigils, matins, prime, tierce, sext, nones, vespers, and compline. In addition, many religions have calendars of special festivals. The Islamic calendar is strictly lunar. As a result, Islamic observances, such as the Ramadan fast, move throughout the year. The Jewish calendar is partly lunar, partly solar. As a result, P ASSOVER and Shavuot occur in the spring, Rosh ha-Shanah and the D AY OF A TONEMENT in the fall. Other festivals, such as C HRISTMAS , occur on specific dates in a solar year. Finally, some festi vals take place only after several years. For exam ple, the Aztecs performed the New Fire Ceremony after every 52 years. IN WHAT WAYS DO PEOPLE WORSHIP? There is practically no limit to the actions that wor ship can include. Worshippers speak to religious beings in PRAYER . They sing to them in songs and hymns. They offer them gifts. They kill animals and sometimes people in SACRIFICE . Religions that use images often treat the images as honored guests: They wake them, bathe them, clothe them, perfume them, feed them, entertain them, and put them to bed. Some worshippers eat and drink; con sider the E UCHARIST in Christianity. Some worshippers