Linking State and Private Religion to Government

Ancient Egypt is the origin to one of the most intricate belief systems in the world. This polytheistic religion was composed of various beliefs and rituals. Polytheistic means that they believed in many deities. All of which were linked to the common theme of immortality. Religion laid the foundation for all aspects of Egyptian lives, political structure, cultural achievement and art. Their religion consisted of up 2000 gods and goddess. Only some were worshiped universally throughout Egypt. They were often represented as being half human and half animal. As an example, the Egyptian god Anubis was half man and half jackal. He is associated with mummification and the afterlife in Egyptian mythology. Egyptian religion was oriented toward people 's’ attainment of immortality signified by mummification/preservation of the dead.

In the typical life of an Egyptian citizen, one was constantly being influenced by their gods and goddesses because of his or her belief in a polytheistic religion. The gods and goddesses were believed to have power over the forces and elements over nature, and myths about them explained the connection they had between their

lives, as if it was a part of them. Ancient Egyptians had many different kinds of gods and goddesses throughout their history. There were nearly 2000 different gods in ancient Egyptian history. There was only a short time of monotheism during Akhenaten's (1380 BC 1334

Religion guided Egyptians in their everyday life. Their religion was based in polytheism, which means they believed and worship many gods. Egyptians believed that the deities were in control of the Earth and its nature. The physical form of the gods were usually a combination of human and animal.Each region or village had their own local deities to worship, but Egyptians also liked to adopt other foreign deities as their own. It is said that they worshiped up to 2,000 gods and goddesses. Each village built a large temple to honor their gods. These large temples were used to communicate with the deities. Priests were in charge of the temples and had to attend the god’s needs in order to gain their favor. Chief priest and kings was the only people

The first primary difference between Egyptian religion and Biblical Truth is worship. The Egyptians worshiped and believed in many gods. The worship of many gods is called polytheism. These gods were invented my man

Egypt is considered the birthplace of many world religions. It contains some of the oldest religious artifacts, texts, and art that can be traced to modern religions. Signs of early Egyptian religion date back to the Predynastic period, beginning with evidence of polytheistic worship. Many scholars have researched the development of Ancient Egyptian religion over the centuries and have studied the direct correlation between it and the modern religions of Judaism and Christianity. Questions arise as to whe Judaism developed because of social and political conditions of Ancient Egypt or rather through conscious adaptation of Egyptian stories, values, and traditions. Was it through divine inspiration that the faiths formed, or was it simply

Religion was not a monolithic institution, it consisted of a large variety of different beliefs and practices, all of which were linked by the common focus on the interaction between the Egyptian people and the divine realm, as the gods of this realm linked the Egyptian understanding of the world. As the Ancient Egyptian Religion was an integral part of ancient Egyptian society. Polytheism the belief of multiple deities usually assembled into a pantheon of gods and goddesses along with their own mythologies and rituals was an essential aspect of ancient Egyptian religion. As the Ancient Egyptian religion included a large and diverse pantheon of gods and goddesses, and around these deities arose a rich mythology that helped explain the

Egyptian religion was unique, and some of its ways have been adapted by other civilizations.

Ancient religion was about the relationship between human man, the gods, and the earth. The Egyptian civilization was a theocratic monarchy, which means “a form of government in which God or a deity is recognized as the supreme civil ruler, the God's or deity's laws being interpreted by the ecclesiastical authorities”(http://www.dictionary.com/browse/theocratic). The Egyptian religion begins with Shu and Tefnut, who mated and gave birth to Geb and Nut, Geb and Nut were brother and sister, but they fell deeply in love. They mated and gave birth to Osiris, Isis, Set, Nephthys, and Horus; these are the five most recognized and important gods in the Egyptian religion, they gave birth to the rest of the gods. The way the Egyptians recognized

Jan Assmann, the famous Egyptologist, covers the essence of researching Egyptian theology in his classic work Theologie und Frömmigkeit einer frühen Hochkultur. Translated to English under the title “The search for God in Ancient Egypt”, the book tackles the complex goal of investigating Egyptian Theology and offers Assman’s scholarly theories on Egyptology. With that said, the focus of the book shifts away from the study of Egyptian deities and mythology but centers rather around the implication of divinity at a societal and individual level. Overviews of theology and piety take precedence over the specific practices and technical beliefs of Egyptian religion, though the latter is also heavily discussed to better elaborate on the former’s context.

In addition, it was an effort to institute a monotheistic tradition in the country that was quite unfamiliar for that era and unexpected for that level of the expansion of ancient Egyptian philosophy and evolution. In fact, religion was extremely important to ancient Egyptian society because people at the era deeply trusted on the natural forces and they created different cults worshiping gods of the sun, earth, and water. In such a way, they believed that through reverencing these gods they could merit their provision and, therefore, ancient Egyptians totaled for higher harvests, revenue and improved existence which they could achieve only with the support of various deities. Moreover, it is obvious the amount to which the attempt of Akhenaten to introduce monotheism in ancient Egypt was radical. It is obvious that the honoring of one god, Aten, should change the opinion of the surrounding world and the position of gods in the life of ancient Egyptian people.

In Christianity, we have one god, but in ancient Egypt, there were over 2,000! Ancient Egypt was the longest-lasting empire, it survived about 3070 years! Along with having so many years under its belt, it also had many deities. While most were personal deities or the guardian of a species, some were very important to Egyptian culture. Some of the most important were Ra, Horus, and Anubis, just to name a few. Great temples were created to honor these gods, in fact, people believe that Christianity was based on some Egyptian gods.

The Ancient Egyptian were polytheistic most of the time, which means that they believed in multiple gods. When Akhenaten was pharaoh, the Egyptians were monotheistic, meaning they worshiped only one god. He ended the worship of other gods and claimed that Aten, the lord of all was the only god in Egypt. The Egyptians didn't like this idea, so on their own,

The ancient Egyptians were very religious minded. Gods and goddesses were part of everyday life of ancient Egyptians. They had gods and goddesses who they had persistent faith. Religious practices of ancient Egypt were linked to movements of holy bodies such as constellations, the sun, the moon, and the planets. Some of the most respected idols of ancient Egyptians are Osiris and Isis. Now, Egypt's population mainly consists of Sunni Muslims and Coptic Christians. People of both religions moderately follow their religious practices. Religious principles are quite noticeable in their daily lives.

In this course, I found the connection between religion and politics the most important concept we’ve studied. With engagement and understanding of politics becoming increasingly important, it’s valuable to study the ways people both interact with politics and form their political opinions—and as we’ve seen, religion can play a huge role in both of these aspects. However, the way religious groups engage with politics can perhaps be generalizing when discussing major religions, seeing as these groups are often widely diverse and brimming with unique experiences. Therefore, I believe it is just as important to discuss the political dimension of religion with the social influences of ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and the interrelations between them.