Sacrifice

[[File:Suovetaurile Louvre.jpg|thumb|right|166px|Ancient Romans bring sacrificial animals to the altar]]
{{religion}}
'''Sacrifice''' is the practice of offering food or the lives of animals or people to the [[god]]s, as an act of propitiation or of worship. Offerings may be practical (real) or [[symbolism | symbolic]]. Sacrifice often involves a ritualistic ceremony.

The term "sacrifice" is also used [[metaphor]]ically to describe [[Altruism| selfless good deeds for others]]; or to characterise a self-serving ploy in chess.

==Theologies of sacrifice==
The '''[[theology]] of sacrifice''' remains an issue, not only for religions that continue to practice rituals of sacrifice, but also for those religions that have animal sacrifice in their [[scripture]]s, [[tradition]]s, or histories, even if sacrifice is no longer made.  Religions offer a number of reasons for why sacrifices are offered.

*[[God]]s need sacrifice to sustain themselves and their power, without which they are diminished.
*Sacrificed goods are used to make a bargain with the god, who has promised some favour in return for the sacrifice ("Kharis" as is known in [[Classical mythology|Greco-Roman religion]]). {{wpl|votive offering|Votive}} altars and other memorials in Latin often bear the inscription VSLM, which stands for ''votum solvit libens merito'', "he/she fulfilled a vow, willingly, as deserved"; the gods have answered the devotee's [[prayer]]s and a promised monument has been erected in return. 
*The lives or blood of sacrificial victims contains mana or some other [[supernatural]] [[Vitalism|power]] whose offering pleases the god.    
*The sacrificial victim is offered as a [[scapegoat]], a target for the wrath of a god, which otherwise would be visited on the followers.
*Sacrifice deprives the followers of food and other useful commodities (i.e, offer a cow such way and you lose a source of milk, more cows, and eventually meat especially in agrarian societies), and as such constitutes an ascetic discipline.<ref>See generally, Hubert, Henri; Marcel Mauss (1981). ''Sacrifice: Its Nature and Function''. U of Chicago Press(reprint, orig 1898). ISBN 0-226-35679-5.</ref>
*Sacrificed goods actually become part of a religious organisation's revenue; it is a part of the economic base of support that compensates [[priest]]s and supports temples.<ref>See, e.g. {{bible|Numbers|18|21|25}}.</ref> 
*The sacrifice is actually a part of a festival and is ultimately consumed by the followers themselves (again, what happened in Greco-Roman religion save for the fat and bones, that were burned, and for Underworld deities that got the entire sacrifice).
*The sacrifice is performed as a form of [[divination]]; frequently encountered forms are called haruspicy or extispicy, in which the liver and other entrails of the sacrifice are inspected for [[omen]]s.<ref>{{wpa|haruspex}}</ref>   
*In the [[Old Testament]], God issues a number of commandments for Israelites to offer animal sacrifices in the portable sanctuary, known as the Tabernacle. Once the Israelites were settled in the land of [[Canaan]], all sacrifices were ordered to be ended except those offered in the Temple in Jerusalem. In the [[Bible]], God asks for sacrifices as a sign of a covenant between himself and the Israelite people.

==Sacrifice in Judaism==
In the Bible, two sorts of animal sacrifice are set forth.  One is the ''burnt offering'', also historically called the "holocaust",{{efn|After the [[Greek]] for "wholly burnt"; Hebrew קָרְבַּן עוֹלָה‬, ''korban olah''.}} which was entirely destroyed by fire.  This was offered to expiate for sin or other ritual impurity.<ref>[[Leviticus]] 6.</ref>  

Other animal sacrifices offered by Jews during the Temple period were voluntary, such as the offering of thanksgiving<ref>Hebrew זֶבַח הַתֹּודָה ''zevak hatodah''.</ref> that was offered voluntarily as an act of worship, and consumed as a holy feast by the offeror and his family.<ref>[[Leviticus]] 7.</ref>

===Later interpretations===
In [[Judaism]], a sacrifice is known as a ''Korban'' from the [[Hebrew]] root ''karov'', meaning to "[come] Close [to God]". [[Medieval]] Jewish [[rationalist]]s like {{wpl|Maimonides}} reinterpreted the need for sacrifice. In this view, God always held sacrifice inferior to [[prayer]] and [[philosophical]] [[meditation]]. However, God understood that the Israelites were used to the animal sacrifices that the surrounding [[pagan]] tribes used as the primary way to commune with their gods. As such, in Maimonides' view, it was only natural that Israelites would believe that sacrifice was a necessary part of the relationship between God and man. Maimonides concluded that God's decision to allow sacrifices was a concession to human [[psychological]] limitations. It would have been too much to have expected the Israelites to leap from pagan worship to prayer and meditation in one step. In the ''Guide to the Perplexed'', he writes:

{{cquote|But the custom which was in those days general among men, and the general mode of worship in which the Israelites were brought up consisted in sacrificing animals… It was in accordance with the wisdom and plan of God...that God did not command us to give up and to discontinue all these manners of service. For to obey such a commandment would have been contrary to the nature of man, who generally cleaves to that to which he is used; it would in those days have made the same impression as a prophet would make at present [the 12<sup>th</sup> Century] if he called us to the service of God and told us in His name, that we should not pray to God nor fast, nor seek His help in time of trouble; that we should serve Him in thought, and not by any action.|||Moses Maimonides<ref>''The Guide for the Perplexed'' (Book III, Chapter 32) by Moses Maimonides, translated by M. Friedlander (1904) Dover Publications, 1956 edition.</ref>}}

The teachings of the [[Torah]] and [[Tanakh]] reveal Judaism's abhorrence of human sacrifices.

==Animal sacrifice==
[[File:Goat sacrifice Louvre K238.jpg|thumb|165px|right|Hermes leads a [[goat]] to the sacrifice]]
This type of sacrifice is the ritual killing of an [[animal]] as part of a [[religion]]. It is practiced by many religions as a means of appeasing a god or gods or changing the course of nature. Animal sacrifice has turned up in almost all cultures, from the Aztecs to the Hebrews to the [[Greeks]] and [[Romans]] to the Yoruba. A common motif is that the animal is a substitute sacrifice, that is, offered as a replacement for a [[human sacrifice]], to the point the animal may be dressed in human clothes or otherwise treated like a human. For example, the ancient Mesopotamian text "Substitution of a Man for Ereshkigal" claims in order to heal a sick person, a goat must spend a night with the afflicted. At dawn, a priest must prod the sick person with a wooden knife, kill the goat with a real knife, and then hold a funeral for the [[goat]] while the sick person leaves the house.<ref>''The Orientalizing Revolution: Near Eastern Influence on Greek Culture in the Early Archaic Age'' by Walter Burket (1992) Harvard University Press ISBN 0-674-64363-I</ref>{{rp|73-75}}

Animal sacrifice is still practiced today by the followers of [[Santería]] as a means of curing the sick and giving thanks to the [[god]]s.  

[[Islam]] continues to offer an animal sacrifice at the feast that commemorates the sacrifice of [[Abraham]], although in practice the sacrifice is consumed by the Muslims themselves as a part of a feast.<ref>{{wpa|Eid al-Adha}}</ref>

Many varieties of [[Hinduism]] continue to offer animal sacrifices. The [[Veda]]s prescribe an elaborate ritual for sacrificing a horse; this is a very ancient practice that can be traced back to the [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]] roots of the Hindus.<ref>{{wpa|Ashvamedha}} {{wpa|October horse}}</ref> Other Hindus have substituted purely vegetable sacrifices for the animal sacrifices prescribed by the ancient texts.<ref>{{wpa|Animal sacrifice in Hinduism}}</ref>

==Human sacrifice==
[[File:A boy angel appears as Abraham prepares to sacrifice his son Wellcome V0034384.jpg|thumb|right|165px|[[Abraham]] prepares to sacrifice [[Isaac]]]]
{{main|Human sacrifice}}
[[Human sacrifice]] was practiced by many ancient cultures. People would be ritually killed in a manner that was supposed to please or appease some [[god]] or [[spirit]]. While not widely known, human sacrifices for religious reasons still exist today in a number of nations, including [[India]].  In France and Britain, [[Druid]]s were said to preside over human sacrifices, in the account of their activities handed down by Julius Caesar.  

Some occasions for human sacrifice found in multiple cultures on multiple continents include: 

* Human sacrifice to accompany the dedication of a new temple or bridge.
* Sacrifice of people upon the death of a [[king]], high priest, or great leader; the sacrificed were supposed to serve or accompany the deceased leader in the next life.
* Human sacrifice in times of natural disaster. Droughts, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, etc. were seen as a sign of anger or displeasure by deities, and sacrifices were supposed to lessen the divine ire.

==See also==
*[[Altruism]]
*[[Human sacrifice]]
*[[Martyr]]dom
*[[Scapegoat]]

==Further reading==
*''Human Sacrifice: In History and Today'' Nigel Davies;  Dorset Press, 1981  {{Isbn|0880292113}}
*''In India, case links mysticism, murder'' John Lancaster, Washington Post, 11/29/2003
*Bataille, Georges (1992). ''Theory of Religion''. Zone Books. {{Isbn|0942299094}}
*Carter, Jeffrey (2003). ''Understanding Religious Sacrifice.'' Continuum. {{Isbn|0826448801}}
*Hubert, Henri; Marcel Mauss (1981). ''Sacrifice: Its Nature and Function.'' U of Chicago Press (reprint, orig 1898). {{Isbn|0226356795}}
*Adolf E. Jensen, ''Myth and Cult among Primitive Peoples'', University of Chicago Press, 1963
*Bubbio, Paolo Diego (2014). ''Sacrifice in the Post-Kantian Tradition: Perspectivism, Intersubjectivity, and Recognition.'' SUNY Press. {{Isbn|9781438452517}}

==External links==
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1899609.stm BBC news story about muti killings]
*[http://news.indiainfo.com/2003/06/14/14sacrifice.html Indian human sacrifice bid in Kamakhya temple foiled]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2892333.stm Police have arrested a village priest in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh for allegedly carrying out a human sacrifice]
*[http://in.news.yahoo.com/030624/43/25eil.html Hindu monks in India pledge to fight human sacrifice]
*[http://www.time.com/time/asia/magazine/article/0,13673,501020729-322673,00.html  Killing for 'Mother' Kali: A spate of ritual killings in India shows that human sacrifice lives on - TIME Asia magazine]

==Notes==
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==References==
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[[Category:Judaism]]
[[Category:Hinduism]]
[[Category:Religion]]
[[Category:Theology]]

Categories: Judaism, Hinduism, Religion, Theology