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Definitions of the word "religion" and
also of many other religious terms.
None are universally accepted.

There are serious problems when trying to find generally accepted definitions for some English words:

Fortunately, most words are easy to define unambiguously. Otherwise, people would find it impossible to communicate. Consider apple, bottle, car, dog, ellipse, front, ... zebra.

But there are other words that have no universally defined meaning. They seem to proliferate in the field of religion. That is to be expected, because there are a dozen or so large religions in the world that have grown in many different cultures. Also, Christianity alone has 20,000 or 30,000 faith groups worldwide. (sources differ). Many religions and faith groups within religions assign their own definitions to common terms.

There is no czar in charge of religion, so each denomination, and sometimes faith group, congregations or even individual members select their own preferred meaning. Unfortunately, this often causes conflicts when one person believes in the absolute truth of their definition, and rejects all others as false. Communication becomes difficult. Dialog becomes impossible.

More information on the meaning of the term "religion:"

	Introduction to disagreements over religious terms
	Problems with definitions of "religion." Some dictionary definitions
	Definitions of "religion" by academics, etc.
	More definitions of "religion," including the one used on this web site.

Copyright © 1997 to 2018 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Latest update: 2018-FEB-13
Compiler: B.A. Robinson