good are rewarded by being born into higher forms of goodness, and those who achieve the highest form of goodness  finally  escape  both  life  and  death.  These people, having reached their final stage of goodness, are not born again and, therefore, do not die again, but remain forever in the Buddhist paradise, called Nirvana. Religious Objects In  Buddhism,  special  objects  may  be  used  in worship services and other ceremonies. BELLS  AND  DRUMS.—  In  pagodas,  bells  or drums are used for announcements. They are located on or near the porch of the pagoda. The bells are used to announce a meeting or special event. The drums are used  to  sound  the  presence  of  dignitaries. GONGS.— In both pagodas and homes, Buddhists use gongs to announce the time of a service or meeting, to mark the different phases of a ceremony, and to set the  tempo  for  chants. BEADS.—   As  an  aid  to  meditation,  devout Buddhists may use a string of 108 beads. Each bead symbolizes  one  of  the  desires  a  devout  Buddhist  must overcome to be eligible to achieve enlightenment. CANDLES AND LAMPS.— Buddhists  commonly use  lighted  candles  and  lamps  to  symbolize  how Buddha’s  teachings  lead  to  enlightenment. INCENSE.—  Burning incense as an offering in memory of Buddha is also widely practiced. FOOD, WINE, AND WATER.— Buddhists  place food, wine, and water before the altar of Buddha. The food, wine, and water signify that the best is first shared with Buddha. Only the presence of the food is essential for the purposes of worship, and the items themselves are  later  consumed  by  the  worshipers. FLOWERS.—    Traditionally,    Buddhists    use flowers  in  several  different  rituals.  Buddhist  families may place flowers before Buddha during worship in the pagoda or on personal altars in the home. A Buddhist may present flowers when calling upon monks or older relatives, or place flowers on graves. Now that we have looked at the fundamentals of Buddhism, let’s   talk   about   another   major religion—Christianity. CHRISTIANITY Of the four major religions, Christianity is probably the most widely practiced among Navy and Marine Corps  personnel  and  their  dependents.  Christianity  was founded upon the life, teachings, deeds, death, and resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ  as  told  in  the  New Testament  of  the  Bible.  In  its  broadest  sense, Christianity embraces all persons who express a belief in Christ and his teachings. As a religious philosophy, Christianity is practiced worldwide through several different  organized  groups  or  churches,  referred  to  as denominations. Within America, Christianity as practiced through its several denominations or branches is one of the largest religious communities. As an RP, you must be aware  of  the  different  criteria  observed  by  each denomination with which you may come into contact and respect the titles and worship traditions of each denomination. You must also remember to use the term denomination  guardedly,  as  many  Christian  churches will consider themselves to be entities and not offshoots of a larger denomination or group. As a major religion, however,  Christianity  includes  the  largest  percentage  of U.S. Navy and Marine Corps personnel, and Christian chaplains  comprise  the  largest  faith  group  within  the military  chaplaincy. HISTORY Christianity started from a little group of men and women  who  followed  Jesus  while  he  was  living  on earth. Less than 300 years later, Christianity was the religion  of  the  great  Roman  Empire.  Despite  its  early oppression, Christianity spread to all parts of the world. From its early history, divisions in the Christian church were extensive. To hold his empire together, the Emperor  Constantine  (A.D.  306-337)  mandated Christianity.  He  encouraged  the  leaders  of  the  church to  gather  publicly. Such  gatherings  were  called Ecumenical Councils because representatives of the full or  universal  church  were  present.  Even  today, Ecumenical  Councils  rule  on  teachings  within  the church, blessing some as proper expressions of the faith while  banning  others. In  spite  of  Constantine’s  attempts  to  mandate Christianity, groups continued to diversify and remove themselves from the Christian mainstream. At first, these  groups  had  few  devotees.  Years  later,  however, these Christian divisions developed into entire regions that  defended  rival  teachings.  The  first  division followed  the  Council  of  Chalcedon  in  the  fifth  century and resulted in the initial break between Greek and Roman  Christianity. About  A.D.  1054,  the  next significant split occurred between the Greek and Latin factions  of  the  church.  Officially,  this  event  marked  the 1-12