Sacrifice

Sacrifice is an act or an offering made to a deity.

It can serve as propitiation, which is an attempt to please a god. It can also be an offering of praise or thanksgiving. The Latin term sacrificium comes from sacrificus. This word combines sacra, meaning sacred things, and facere, meaning to make or do. In many languages, the term implies giving something up or doing without something. Even in games like chess, the word is used metaphorically. A player might sacrifice a piece to gain a greater advantage later.

Scholars have developed many theories about why sacrifice exists.

E.B. Tylor suggested sacrifice is a gift to the divine. He thought the gift might be valued for its own merit or the hardship it caused. William Robertson Smith argued that sacrifice allows humans to achieve communion with the divine. He based this on the Hebrew Bible, where priests ate burnt offerings to get closer to God. Émile Durkheim believed sacrifice had a dual function. He argued it provided both social communion and divine communion. He studied Aboriginal Australians to show how sacrifices reinforced communal ties during social gatherings.

Other thinkers looked at sacrifice through different lenses.

Marcel Mauss and Henri Hubert argued that sacrifice is a gift to the gods. They believed there was a social expectation that gods would offer a greater gift later. Sigmund Freud viewed the sacrifice of a totem animal as a symbolic repetition of a primal event. René Girard argued that sacrifice functions as a temporary catharsis. He believed it acts as a form of displaced aggression on an innocent scapegoat. Nancy Jay suggested that sacrifice helps maintain patrilineal kinship structures. She observed that sacrificial rituals were almost exclusively performed by men.

Animal sacrifice involves the ritual killing of an animal as part of a religion.

Adherents use it to appease gods or change the course of nature. It also serves social or economic functions. In many cultures, the edible parts of the animal are distributed to those attending. This practice has appeared in many cultures, including the Hebrews, Greeks, and Romans. The ancient Egyptians had specific rules for these offerings. They were only allowed to sacrifice sheep, bulls, calves, male calves, and geese. Today, followers of Santería use animal offerings to cure the sick and thank the Oriṣa.

Many ancient cultures also practiced human sacrifice.

People were killed in ways meant to please a god or spirit. This occurred during the dedication of new temples or bridges. It also happened when a king or high priest died. The sacrificed were thought to accompany the leader into the next life. Natural disasters like droughts or earthquakes sometimes triggered these rituals. The Aztecs are a well-known example from Mesoamerica. Estimates suggest they performed between two thousand and twenty thousand sacrifices per year. They did this to help the sun rise or to bring the rains.

In ancient China, the sacrificial system was very complex.

During the Shang and Zhou dynasties, the ruling class used sacrifice to honor ancestors. An emperor could use these rituals to unify states and show his strength. Archaeologist Kwang-chih Chang noted that this system promoted production, such as casting ritual bronzes. Confucius supported a system that excluded human sacrifice to maintain social order. In contrast, Mohists believed any sacrifice was too extravagant for society. Today, Chinese folk religions still use offerings like pork, chicken, or fish. During the Ghost Festival, whole goats or pigs might be used.

Christianity offers a different perspective on the concept.

Nicene Christianity teaches that God became incarnate as Jesus. This act was a sacrifice to reconcile humanity with God after the concept of original sin. Theology suggests that God's justice required atonement for sin. Because human beings could not provide sufficient atonement, God sent His Son. This sacrifice replaced the animal sacrifices of the Old Covenant. Many denominations, including Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches, view the Eucharist as a sacrifice. In these traditions, Christ is both the one who offers and the one who is offered.