Download world religions introduction

Judaism, Christianity, Islam,
Hinduism, and Buddhism
What is religion?
 A way of explaining the mysteries in life
 Why and how was the world created?
 Why is there life and what happens after death?
 A way of explaining supreme being(s)
 One god (monotheism) or many gods (polytheism)
 Who created Earth and why?
 A way of explaining how to lead a good life and what
happens if you don’t
 Code of behavior (like the 10 commandments)
 Final Judgment Day or bad karma
 A way of worshipping
2/3 of the world follows one of the
five major world religions
 Christianity (2.1 billion Christians)
 Islam (1.3 billion Muslims)
 Hinduism (860.1 million Hindus)
 Buddhism (378.8 million Buddhists)
 Judaism (15.1 million Jews)
The histories of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are very closely
tied.
It all began with Abraham
 Before 1800 BC, most
everyone believed in
many gods (polytheism)
 Abraham was born in
Mesopotamia in 1800BC
 He made a covenant
with God to believe in
only one God and was
told if he went to
Canaan he would be
blessed
 Abraham was married to Sarah who at first couldn’t
have any children, so Abraham had a child with her
maidservant Hagar
 Sarah then got pregnant with Isaac and wanted Hagar
and her son Ishmael sent away
 Hagar and Ishmael wondered the desert and ended up
in Mecca (modern day Saudi Arabia)
The Holy Family Tree
Jews
Christians
Muslims
Jacob (Israel)
Isaac
Ishmael
Sarah
Hagar
Abraham
 Abraham’s followers who became known as Hebrews
had to leave Canaan because of drought, they went to
Egypt
 In Egypt the king or pharaoh of Egypt enslaved the
Hebrews
Birth of Moses
 The pharaoh of Egypt said all Hebrew boys must be
killed
 Moses was born as a Hebrew in Egypt
 His mother sent him adrift down the Nile River and he
was found by the Pharaoh’s daughter and raised by
her
 When Moses grew up, he became a Sheppard.
 He came across a burning bush which told him to lead
the Hebrews out of Egypt
 Moses asked the pharaoh if it was okay and he said no
 10 plagues were cast on Egypt (one plague was that all
first born Egyptian sons died)
Exodus of Moses
 Moses led the Hebrews out of Egypt, the pharaoh’s
men chased them, Moses parted the Red Sea to get
away from the Egyptians
 On their way to Canaan, Moses and the Hebrews
wondered around lost in the desert for 40 years
 During this time Moses received the 10
commandments from God, Judaism began
 Hebrews arrived in Canaan and lived there for many
years
 1000 BC, under King David the Israelites (Hebrews
who lived in Canaan aka Israel aka Palestine) set up a
kingdom and the capital was in Jerusalem
Jesus Christ
 Jesus, whose parents were from Nazareth, was born in
Bethlehem
 By 30 AD, Jesus began teaching about compassion and
love, his word began to spread, some Jews chose to
accept his message, others were threatened by Jesus
Jesus was crucified
 In 33 AD, with the support of Jews who disagreed with
Jesus, the Romans crucified Jesus
 His followers claimed that he was resurrected. They said
he was the Son of God and the messiah or savior.
 His followers spread his message and began Christianity,
those who didn’t believe in Jesus remained Jews
Romans conquered Jerusalem
 70 AD, The Romans, whose empire was vast and
powerful, conquered Jerusalem and destroyed
everything except one wall (the Wailing Wall or the
Western Wall)
 Jews were forced to leave their lands
 In 313 AD, the Roman Empire converted to Christianity
That wall still stands!
 That one remaining wall, the Western Wall or the
Wailing Wall, still stands today and is very sacred to
Jews. They believe their messiah will show up there.
Muhammad
 In 570 AD, Muhammad was born in Mecca and later
worked as a merchant
 When he was 40 years old, an Angel told him that he
was the messenger of God or Allah, and that he
needed to spread his word. He was told he was the last
prophet in a long line of prophets that included Moses
and Jesus (Jesus was NOT the son of God)
Remember the Holy Family Tree?
Followers of Muhammad, Muslims, believed that he
descended from Ishmael.
Jews
Christians
Muslims
Jacob (Israel)
Isaac
Ishmael
Sarah
Hagar
Abraham
The creation of the Muslim Empire
 Muhammad left Mecca and went to Medina, his
followers known as Muslims formed an army and
conquered Mecca. They continued to conquer the
lands around them and created a Muslim Empire
Muhammad’s Death
 It is believed that Muhammad died in Jerusalem and
ascended into heaven while standing upon this rock.
 Today the Dome of the Rock is one of the most sacred
places for Muslims
Jerusalem is sacred to 3 religions
 Dome of the Rock and Western Wall
 Also the Holy Church of Sepulcher, church built on the
site where Jesus was crucified
 Since the land is holy to three religions, conflicts have
occurred.
The Muslim Empire Grew and Grew
Mecca is the most sacred place for
Muslims
 Muslims believe that it is important that they make a
pilgrimage at least once in their life to Mecca (called
the Hajj), where Muhammad was born
 The Kaaba is believed to be a building built by Ishmael
Both of these religions began around India
They are NOT monotheistic
History of Hinduism
 Began about 1500 BC
 Began in South Asia around the Indus River
 The beliefs of Aryan people who conquered the region
mixed with the beliefs of people already living in the
region, and Hinduism was developed
History of Hinduism
 There was no single founder
 Beliefs from different people were written down in the
Vedas, which is the sacred text of Hindus
Hindus
 Believe everything is part of the god, Braham
 Also believe in many other gods/goddesses
(polytheism)
 Believe Hindus have duties they must perform, called
dharma
Reincarnation
 Believe that there is a
cycle of life, death, and
rebirth
 Souls are reborn again in
different bodies
 How you behave in this
life determines what or
who you will be reborn
into (Karma)
 Escape from this cycle is
called Moksha
The beginning of Buddhism
 500s BC, A prince named Siddhartha Gautama was
born in Northeast India (modern day Nepal)
 His family most likely practiced Hinduism
Siddhartha’s Journey
 Siddhartha left the comfort of his palace
 While he was gone he saw a sick person, an old person,
a dead person, and a poor monk
 He realized that there was a lot of suffering the world
The Enlightened One, Buddha
 He realized that people suffer because of greed and
their wants
 If people would stop wanting so much then they would
stop suffering
 Siddhartha became the Enlightened One or the
Buddha
Buddhism began
 The Buddha taught people for 45 years
 He said not to worship him like a God
 He taught people to believe in his four noble truths
about suffering and to follow the Middle Way
(Eightfold Path and Five Precepts)
Important beliefs of Buddhists
 People who followed the Buddha’s teachings became
known as Buddhists
 Buddhists also believe in reincarnation, their goal is to
escape this cycle of suffering and reach Nirvana
 Some Buddhists believe in Gods, like Gods of Nature,
but Buddhism technically does not include the belief
in Gods or one all powerful God