Transcript WC 1-6 World Religions Notes

The Five Major
Religions of the
WORLD!
Main Menu
Judaism
Hinduism
Christianity
Buddhism
Islam
Judaism
Judaism was the first to teach belief in
only one God= Monotheism.
Two other important religions
developed from Judaism: Christianity
and Islam.
Judaism
Jews think that God will send a Messiah (a
deliverer) to unite them or bring about a
messianic age and lead them in His way.
Christians believe that Jesus was the Messiah.
The Jewish people do not agree; they
anticipate His arrival in the future.
Judaism teaches that death is not the end
and that there is a world to come.
Judaism
The "Torah," the first five books of the
Hebrew Bible, is the most important
Jewish scripture.
It contains the basic laws of Judaism
such as the Ten Commandments.
Another important book is the
"Talmud," serving primarily as a guide
to the civil and religious laws of
Judaism.
Judaism
The Jewish house of worship is called a
synagogue.
Rabbis (spiritual leaders) conduct services,
act as interpreters of Jewish laws, and deliver
sermons.
Today there are over 18 million followers of
Judaism scattered throughout the world. A
large number of those people live in the
Jewish nation of Israel.
Over six million live in the United States.
History of The Israelites
2000 B.C.–Abraham migrates from
Mesopotamia to Canaan, where he founds
the Israelite nation.
Famine forces Israelites to migrate to Egypt,
where they are enslaved.
Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt.
Israelites enter Canaan, the promised land.
1000 B.C.–David unites Israelites into
kingdom of Israel.
Solomon builds capital at Jerusalem, but his
rule inspires revolts.
History Continued
 922 B.C.–Kingdom weakens after splitting into Israel
and Judah.
 722 B.C.–Assyrians conquer Israel.
 586 B.C.–Babylonians capture Judah – Babylonian
Captivity under ruler Nebuchadnezzar, marked the
start of Diaspora = scattering of the Jews.
 Persians conquer Babylon under leader Cyrus and
free the Jews from captivity.
 100s B.C. Jews lived within the Roman Empire during
the Pax Romana, absorbing Greek customs and
experiencing turmoil.
Jewish Philosophy
 God is one and unique
 God is the creator
 God is transcendent
 God is immanent.
 God is lawgiver
 God is personal
 We have the obligation to worship
 The Torah is God's law
 God is judge
 The Messiah will come.
How would you best describe
the history of the Israelites?
The Israelites were often displaced,
poorly treated and forced to migrate in
and out of their homeland by various
conquerors.
Diaspora= Scattering of the Jews
Christianity
 Christianity started about 2000 years ago.
Jesus, or the Messiah, was a young Jewish
carpenter who disagreed with some of the
Jewish principles of his day and began a new
way of thinking.
He traveled preaching his and God’s love for
mankind.
Jesus’ teachings were rooted in Jewish
tradition.
This eventually led to the beginning of the
Christianity.
Christianity
Jesus traveled teaching the need for justice,
morality and service to others =Christianity
, but was eventually considered a threat to
Roman power.
The Romans persecuted the Christians.
 Jesus was taken and Crucified by the Roman
authorities.
Roman persecution of the Christians finally
ended in A.D. 313.
 with Emperor Constantine, who passed
the Edict of Milan = granted freedom of
worship to all citizens of the Roman Empire.
Christianity
The Christian community considered all its
members equals.
The central point of Christian belief is that
God, the Father, entered into human history
as the Son, Jesus of Nazareth, and arose as
the Holy Spirit.
The apostles added ideas from Plato, the
Stoics, and other Greek thinkers to Jesus’
message.
Christian Philosophy
God is the Creator of the universe. There is
one God, Who is Three Persons:
Father, Son and Holy Spirit. (The Trinity)
Jesus is both fully man and fully God. He
was born of the Virgin Mary, Crucified,
resurrected from the dead, and ascended to
the Father.
Christian Philosophy
Sin and Evil are realities in our existence.
The Holy Bible is made up of the Old and New
testament. It includes records of God's
revelation, ideas from the Torah, Jesus’ Gospels,
Paul’s letters and words of the prophets.
All believers are promised eternal life.
The leader of Christians was Jesus, and he had
his 12 apostles.Like Peter and Paul.
 Paul was a Jew that heard Jesus’ teachings and
decided to follow him and became the most
influential apostle to spread Christianity.
 This where B.C. and A.D. comes from.
The Judeo-Christian Tradition
YOUR ASSIGNMENT:
Read Page 39 and Summarize the
main idea of the Judeo-Christian
Tradition.
Islam
ISLAM is the name given to the religion
preached by the prophet Muhammad in the
600s A. D.
The Islamic religion started in the area known
as Palestine in the year 600AD.
It has about 850+ million followers, most of
them in the region north and east of the
Mediterranean Sea=MIDDLE EAST.
By the 1100s in the Middle East, Muslim had
grown and Muslim scholars began to translate
works of Aristotle and other Greek thinkers.
The holy book of Islam is the
"Koran."
Muslims believe its words to
be those of Allah himself,
spoken to Muhammad by the
angel Gabriel.
Continuing the revelations
found in Jewish and Christian
scriptures.
Allah, is the Islamic God.
People who believe these
ideas are called Muslims.
Islam
Islam
Muslims pray five times daily in their
mosques (churches).
While praying, they face the holy city of
Mecca (in Saudi-Arabia) and sometimes
kneel with faces to the ground.
All Muslims are required to make a
pilgrimage (trip to a sacred place) to Mecca
at least once in their lifetime.
Islamic Philosophy
Muslims learn that life on earth is a
period of testing and preparation for the
life to come.
Angels record good and bad deeds.
People should behave themselves and
help others, trusting in Allah's justice and
mercy for their reward.
Buddhism
Founding person of Buddhism is
Guatama, the Buddha
The Dalai Lama is a Buddhist monk who
remains the leader of the Tibetans.
Buddhism is a major religion in China,
Japan, India, and Tibet.
The Major Philosophy
of Buddhism
Love: without conditions
Compassion: or feeling at one with the
person who is suffering
Sympathetic Joy:Celebrate the happiness of
others, and do not resent their good fortune.
Impartiality: Treat everyone equally, and do
not use others for personal gain or to win
approval.
The Major Philosophy
of Buddhism
Buddhism states that existence is a
continuing cycle of death and rebirth
called reincarnation.
Each person's position in life is
determined by his or her behavior in
the previous life. This is known as their
"karma" (also a Hindu belief).
Buddhism
Buddhism is the world's oldest universal
religion and it is the second fastest
growing religion.
Hinduism
HINDUISM is one of the world's oldest
religions.
Over 2/3's of the world's Hindus live in India;
large numbers reside in Africa also.
Hindus believe in many gods, numbering into
the thousands. They recognize one supreme
spirit called Brahman ("the Absolute.")
Hindu Philosophy
Hindus believe in many gods, numbering into
the thousands.
They recognize one supreme spirit called
Brahman (the Absolute).
The goal of Hindus is to someday join with
Brahman.
Until that union takes place, believers are in a
continuous process of rebirth called
"reincarnation.”
Hindu Philosophy
At death, the Hindu's deeds (karma)
determine what the next life will be.
Followers work to break this cycle--birth,
death, re-birth-- (referred to by writers as the
"Wheel of Life") and gain release.
The Hindu's soul then merges with Brahman
in a condition of spiritual perfection
(moksha).
Hinduism
Hinduism has many sacred books, the oldest
being a series called the "Vedas.“
Traditional Hindu society was divided into
groups of four classes (or varnas). This was
known as the "caste system."
***Quiz = 10 points
How much have you learned?
Which Religion was the first to believe
in one God?
What is the world’s oldest universal
religion?
Where is the largest population of
Muslims?