● God ● wiki

dict -:: the one Supreme Being, the creator and ruler of the universe. ::-

vocab -:: the supernatural being conceived as the perfect and omnipotent and omniscient originator and ruler of the universe; the object of worship in monotheistic religions. ::-

lexico -:: the creator and ruler of the universe and source of all moral authority; the supreme being -:- a superhuman being or spirit worshipped as having power over nature or human fortunes; a deity. ::-

m-w -:: the supreme or ultimate reality -:- a being or object believed to have more than natural attributes and powers and to require human worship. ::- 

● deity ● wiki

dict lexico m-w -:: a god or goddess. ::-

vocab -:: any supernatural being worshipped as controlling some part of the world or some aspect of life or who is the personification of a force ::- 

● henotheism ● wiki

dict -:: the worship of a particular god, as by a family or tribe, without disbelieving in the existence of others.::-

lexico -:: adherence to one particular god out of several, especially by a family, tribe, or other group. ::-

m-w -:: the worship of one god without denying the existence of other gods ::- 

● monolatry ● wiki

dict -:: the worship of only one god although other gods are recognized as existing.::-

vocab -:: the worship of a single god but without claiming that it is the only god ::-

collins -:: the exclusive worship of one god without excluding the existence of others ::- 

● prophet ● wiki

dict -:: a person who speaks for God or a deity, or by divine inspiration. ::-

vocab -:: someone who speaks by divine inspiration; someone who is an interpreter of the will of God -:- an authoritative person who divines the future. ::-

lexico -:: a person regarded as an inspired teacher or proclaimer of the will of God.::-

m-w -:: one who utters divinely inspired revelations -:- one who foretells future events ::- 

● reincarnation ● wiki

dict -:: the belief that the soul, upon death of the body, comes back to earth in another body or form.-:- rebirth of the soul in a new body.::-

vocab -:: a second or new birth -:- doctrine that a person may be reborn successively... depending on the person's own actions::-

lexico -:: the rebirth of a soul in another body.::-

collins -:: the belief that on the death of the body the soul transmigrates to or is born again in another body -:- the incarnation or embodiment of a soul in a new body after it has left the old one at physical death ::- 

● karma ● wiki

dict -:: the cosmic principle according to which each person is rewarded or punished in one incarnation according to that person's deeds in the previous incarnation.::-

vocab -:: the effects of a person's actions that determine his destiny in his next incarnation ::-

lexico -:: the sum of a person's actions in this and previous states of existence, viewed as deciding their fate in future existences.::-

m-w -:: the force generated by a person's actions to perpetuate transmigration and in its ethical consequences to determine the nature of the person's next existence ::- 

● shaman ● wiki

dict -:: a person who acts as intermediary between the natural and supernatural worlds, using magic to cure illness, foretell the future, control spiritual forces, etc. ::-

vocab -:: one acting as a medium between the visible and spirit worlds; practices sorcery for healing or divination ::-

lexico -:: a person regarded as having access to, and influence in, the world of good and evil spirits. Typically such people enter a trance state during a ritual, and practise divination and healing.::-

m-w -:: a priest or priestess who uses magic for the purpose of curing the sick, divining the hidden, and controlling events ::- 

● anthropomorphism ● wiki

dict -:: an anthropomorphic conception or representation, as of a deity. ::-

vocab -:: the representation of objects (especially a god) as having human form or traits ::-

lexico -:: the attribution of human characteristics or behaviour to a god, animal, or object.::-

m-w -:: an interpretation of what is not human or personal in terms of human or personal characteristics ::-

● pareidolia ● wiki

dict -:: the illusory perception of meaningful patterns or images of familiar things in random or amorphous data, as a face seen on the moon.::-

vocab -:: the tendency to look at a random shape or pattern and imagine you can see a specific, familiar object in it. If you perceive a smiling face in an electrical outlet, you've experienced pareidolia.::-

oxford -:: misperception of random stimuli as real things or people, as when faces are vividly seen in the flames of a fire.::-

cambr -:: a situation in which someone sees a pattern or image of something that does not exist, for example a face in a cloud ::-

Beyond that, there are some general observations and peculiarities we can make about religion(s):-

• Language is just not good enough - For what it is trying to describe, the language available to us is generally inadequate. Probably, the scriptures were trying to describe things beyond the cope of the language then. Often, attempts to explain differing concepts are dejected by limited words like "spirit" or "heaven". When Western explorers encountered eastern traditions of spiritual reverence, they then described everything (somewhat condescendingly) as "their gods".

• Inefficiencies in Literature - Religious scripture was not written down properly. Different revelations being told to different people at different times led to religious history having many variations. It's not anyone's fault. In an age of mass illiteracy, there were "reciters" who memorised what they were told; but they were not scribes. The scribes would write down what they were told; but they were not priests nor apostles. 

• I'm going to heaven to be with God - Most religious scriptures describe Heaven and Paradise as 2 separate concepts. 

  • Heaven is where God(s) reside(s) and is in a different dimension from the corporeal world of us humans. 

  • Paradise is a place in the afterlife of tranquility and beauty where the souls of the good go to as their reward. 

  • Modern interpretations have syncretised the 2 places as being the same. 

Interestingly, ancient Mesopotamian religion had the prime gods residing in their realms of duty (work); namely land, sea, air & heaven; heaven being an administration centre requiring special access. Paradise was a place the gods went for their vacation.

• Supernatural beings - Beyond God(s), most cultures have traditional myths of supernatural beings. Many of these beliefs even predate the introduction of their current religions. Are these supernatural beings a part of religion(s)?

  • They believe in spirits - ...or fairies, ghosts, phantoms and spectres. Most cultures which have these beliefs generally just treat these beings as just another thing which exists; but usually not specifically as part of their religion. Although many cultures do treat the supernatural beings with some respect or fear or veneration, this often misleads outsiders to think these supernatural beliefs are religious. 

  • She prays to angels - Some supernatural beings are connected to religion or mentioned in scripture; although they are directly treated as God(s). We can treat their appearance in religion as incidental. These include angels, genies, holy creatures, titans, giants & demons. Some people do pray to these supernatural beings which are connected to religion. But is this religious worship or just respect?

  • He prays to dead people - The 2 main examples of veneration of the dead are (a) ancestor worship, and (b) saints. Generally, veneration of the dead is not mentioned in religious scripture but is a traditional practice of respect and ethics. 

Global Study - Religious Switching

Religion :   - 2015 data - | - Projected 2010 to 2050 

  -        No. of People       Switch IN   Switch OUT

  -       (billions) %age      (millions)  (millions)

Christianty    2.3  [31%]        40.06      106.11 

Islam          1.8  [24%]        12.62        9.4  

Unaffiliated   1.2  [16%]        97.08       35.59 

Hinduism       1.1  [15%]         0.26        0.25 

Buddhism       0.5   [7%]         3.37        6.21 

Folk Religion  0.4   [6%]         5.46        2.85 

Other Religion 0.1   [1%]         3.04        1.16 

Judaism        0.01  [0.2%]       0.32        0.63 

TOTAL          7.41 bil.        162.21 mil  162.2 mil