>>
>>The Pueblo Indians
>
>This is Paganism, ie worship of the forces of nature.  Whether one calls
that
>"religion" or not is a semantic discussion not worth getting into here,
IMHO.
>

Are you implying that the beliefs of the Pueblo indians are not as
valid as
christianity or other religions?

>> ancient Greeks, and ancient Romans are examples.
>
>In this case, the "religion" is dead, and all we know about it is from
2,000
>years of "telephone", a dubious process.   In any case, if it were a true
>representation of reality, it would hardly be likely to have vanished...

The context of my original message is that, in simple terms, food,
methods
of food acquisition, and other factors affect culture which in turn
affects
that culture's religion.  The interactions between food, culture, and
religion are more complex, but that is a general explanation.  This
rule-of-
thumb applies to "religions" and "paganism" whether dead or not.
Certainly, every culture believes (believed) that their religion is a
"representation of reality".  The ancient Roman religion represented
reality for Romans; it did not represent reality for christians, or
eskimos, or Yanomamo indians, or anyone else.

>
>I'm usually one to cite dictionary definitions.   However, in the case of
>widespread myths, there is no reason to assume that dictionary writers are
>immune.   I assume that many dictionaries and encyclopedias now define
"diet" as
>cutting the fat out of your daily food consumption to improve your
health....
>
>

If "religion" is not a "set of beliefs", what is it?  a set of truths?
a
set of rules?  a set of best guesses?  a set of empirical
observations?
"Religion" is a set of beliefs.  "Religion" is not like the laws of
thermodynamics.

BTW, Merriam-Webster's WWWebster Dictionary defines "diet" as
1 a : food and drink regularly provided or consumed b : habitual
nourishment c : the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person or
animal for a special reason
2 : something provided especially habitually <a diet of Broadway shows
and
nightclubs -- Frederick Wyatt>

>--
>Cheers,
>
>Ken
>[log in to unmask]

Brad