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What is religion? Religion and language like at the foundation of culture: both confer and reflect identity Religions change and evolve over time Religions are spread through interaction Cultural Landscape The cultural landscape reflects religious preferences, by houses of worship, cemeteries, shrines, and statues It is reflected in the sale of alcohol, dress, and personal habits Ex: Pakistan requires judges to wear a beard Religion A system of beliefs and practices that attempts to order life in terms of culturally perceived ultimate priorities It determines how people “should” behave In some societies, religion determines behaviors during waking hours, and even in sleep (some sleeping positions can be sinful) Most religions have prayers and rituals Rituals Rituals mark important events in people’s lives Births Death Coming of age Marriage Celebration of holidays Prayer Secularism Some societies are predominantly secular, or non- religious Even then, religion seeps into art, history, customs, beliefs, and even the calendar Whether secular or not, it is important to have a basic understanding of religion Religion is one of the most complex and controversial aspects of culture Early Religions Most religions can be classified into one of three broad groups: Monotheistic Polytheistic Animistic History of Religion Up until 3500 years ago, most religions were polytheistic or animistic Zoroastrianism was the first monotheistic religion and laid the foundation for Judaism, Christianity, and Islam Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the belief that there is a single all-powerful good god (Zoroastro), and there is also an evil being trying to destroy good Diffusion of Monotheism Judaism was the second (or first) great monotheistic religion However, it was not until Christianity and Islam emerged that monotheism spread By 500 BCE, there were four hearths of religion: Greece (Greek Philosophy) India (Hinduism) Israel (Judaism) China (Chinese philosophies) World Distribution of Religions Fig. 6-1: World religions by continent. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam Judaism Began in Southwest Asia 4000 years ago Abraham is founder who makes a covenant with God Jews will only worship one God, and in turn, they will be chosen people Incredibly brief history of Judaism Abraham had two sons: Ishmael and Isaac Isaac’s son, Jacob (Israel), will have 12 sons Eventually, the Jews will be enslaved by Egyptians and Moses will lead them out They will break into two groups: Israel and Judah Israel will be defeated, Judah will survive only to be conquered by Babylonians and Assyrians Continued The Jews will come together and build Jerusalem, until the Romans destroy it in 70 CE The Romans will spread the Jews to the furthest corners of their empire (Diaspora) Only a few Jews will remain in Israel/Palestine until the 1948 More info to come… Diffusion of Judaism Judaism has diffused through forced migration and relocation diffusion They do not actively seek converts, so there are between 12-14 million people that practice Judaism worldwide Most are in Israel, the United States, and Europe Christianity Began after the death of Jesus (an actual historical figure) The original Christians were Catholic Once the Roman Empire split into two, two branches emerged: the western empire became Roman Catholic, and the eastern empire became Eastern Orthodox Protestantism emerged during the 15th and 16th centuries Diffusion of Christianity Christians actively seek converts, so some diffusion is contagious (especially through Western Europe) Largest and most dispersed religion Today there are almost two billion Christians on every continent Worldwide diffusion occurred during the Age of Imperialism Today missionaries travel attempting to convert those in other places to Christianity EU and Missionaries Diffusion of Universalizing Religions Fig. 6-4: Each of the three main universalizing religions diffused widely from its hearth Islam Began when Muhammad was 42 years old and received revelations from Allah He spoke the verses of the Qu’ran (Koran), which contains many passages similar to the Jewish and Christian holy books Due to religious turmoil (between Christians and Polytheists) in Mecca, he fled to Medina and began teachings Divisions in Islam After Muhammad’s death in 632 CE, it was unclear who would lead in his place His son-in-law, Ali, was the lawful heir However, some of Muhammad’s followers wanted a different leader This began a series of wars, until the followers were divided into Sunni Muslims and Shi’ite Muslims (the followers of Ali) Diffusion of Islam Before his death, Muhammad had converted kings on the Arabian Peninsula They spread Islam across their empire through invasion and conquest Islam spread across Northern Africa, Southern Europe, and Southeast Asia very quickly Today in North and South America, it is the result of relocation diffusion It is currently the fastest growing religion, and has 1.3 billion adherents Diffusion of Universalizing Religions Fig. 6-4: Each of the three main universalizing religions diffused widely from its hearth