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Religions
Southwest Asia/The Middle East
A Region of Religion
As we have already discussed, both Mesopotamia and Phoenicia were the sites
(place) of some of the earliest civilizations. These early civilizations had religions
where people believed in many gods. The belief in many gods is called polytheism.
Each city-state worshipped different gods.
The Middle East is not only important for these great civilizations but also
because it was the place where three of the world’s greatest religions began. These
three religions would not be based on polytheism. These three religions would be
based on monotheism. Monotheism is the belief in only one god. The three great
religions that began in the Middle East are Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Essential Questions:
1) What is the difference between monotheism and polytheism?
2) What are the three great monotheistic religions?
Judaism
The first great religion was Judaism. Judaism was the religion begun by the
Hebrew people around 2000 BC. The Hebrew people were originally from Sumer but
eventually they moved to the land called Canaan on the Jordan River. Today Canaan
is the country of Israel. Judaism is a 4,000-year-old religion. The Hebrews
worshipped a single God called Yahweh. Jews believe God chose them to be an
example for the world. The Torah is the holy book of the Jewish religion (Christians
call it the Old Testament). Because there was little water in Canaan, the Hebrew
people often went to parts of Egypt to live. The pharaohs (kings) of Egypt did not
like the Hebrews because of their religion—Judaism. The Egyptians made many of
the Hebrew people into their slaves.1
Around 1230 BC a leader named Moses led the Jews out of Egypt back to
Canaan. Moses also gave the Hebrews the Ten Commandments. The Ten
Commandments were the holy laws that the Jewish people were to live by. For
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When the Egyptians captured the Hebrews they made be their slaves. These slaves are the ones who built many of
the pyramids in Egypt.
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example people were not allowed to steal, fight, kill, lie or cheat. In Canaan the
Jewish people built the powerful Kingdom of Israel led by powerful kings like Saul,
David and Solomon. These kings built the first temples. Temples were giant buildings
where the people would worship.
By about 600 B.C. the Kingdom of Israel was destroyed by the Persians. For
the next 700 hundred years or so the Jews of Canaan were ruled by different
nations such as the Persians, Greeks, Syrians and finally the Romans. These
civilizations did not like the Hebrew people and their religion because the Jews only
worshipped one God. The Romans especially did not like the Jews of Cannan. The
Romans were still polytheistic. They worshipped many gods. By 70 AD, the Roman
army destroyed the Jewish holy city of Jereselum. The Jews were forced out of
Cannan. Many of the Hebrew people had to move to other parts of the world. The
movement away from Cannan to other parts of the world was called Diaspora. This
is how many Jewish people ended up living in European countries.
Essential Question:
1) Why were the Hebrew people and their religion of Judaism so significant?
1) What is the difference between these two words—“Judaism” and “Hebrew”?
2) What were Israel and Palestine originally called?
3) Who was Moses and why was he so important?
4) Why do you think many Jewish people went to Europe to live?
Moses and the 10 Commandments
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Christianity
Christianity began 2,000 years ago with the teachings of Jesus and his
followers. Christianity developed from Judaism. During this time the Romans were
persecuting Jews. Persecute means to treat very badly or even kill. In order to
survive some Jews tried to change and live with the Romans. Other Jews became
angry and tried to kill Romans. And finally some Jews moved away from civilization
into the mountains and wilderness. In the wilderness, the Jews hoped to be left
alone. They waited for the Messiah. The Messiah would be a messenger from God
that would help the Jews rebuild the Kingdom of Israel.
This is the world Jesus was born into. Jesus and his followers were Jews.
Jesus felt that many Jews were not living the correct way. Many Jews were not
following the Torah. Jesus felt many of his Jews were sinners. A sinner was anyone
who did not live by the word of God as said in the Torah. He felt there was too much
greed, selfishness and hatred. Jesus went from town to town and taught that all
people must love one another and help one another. Only then would God help people.
Some Hebrews began to follow Jesus. Many other non-Jews also began to follow
Jesus because he promised salvation. Salvation means being saved and forgiven by
God for sins. In other words, all people could go to heaven as long as they believed
in God and Jesus Christ’s teachings. Some of the Jews began to believe Jesus was
the Messiah. They came out of hiding and began following Jesus. His twelve original
followers were called the disciples or apostles. They helped him spread his word.
Soon many people were following Jesus and his teachings.
However, there were many other Jews who did not believe Jesus and did not
believe he was the Messiah. Many Jewish religious men thought that Jesus was
trying to take away their power by telling lies. The Romans did not like Jesus as well.
The Romans had their own gods. They saw Jesus as a threat to their rule in Israel.
The Romans crucified Jesus. Crucify means to hang and kill someone on a cross.
Christians believe that Jesus was the Son of God. They believe Jesus was
sent by God as a Messiah or messenger of God.
The Christians believed that
after Jesus was crucified he rose into heaven with God. The rising into heaven is
known as the resurrection.
After Jesus was crucified many of his followers continued his teachings. For
many years the Christians were put to death by the Romans but eventually most of
the Roman people would also convert (change) to Christianity. The Christian Bible is
made up of the Old Testament, including the Ten Commandments and the New
Testament. The Old Testament is the original teachings of Judaism. Christians
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accept the Old Testament, but also believe in the New Testament. The New
Testament contains the story of Jesus and his teachings. Judaism rejects the New
Testament. The Jewish people do not believe that Jesus was the Son of God and
the messiah, while the Christians do.
Essential Question:
1) How and when did Christianity begin?
2) What do all Christians believe?
3) What are the similarities and differences in what Jews and Christians believe.
Draw a Venn Diagram.
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Islam
Islam is the third great religion to come from the Middle East. Just like
Judaism influenced Christianity, Judaism and Christianity also influenced Islam.
Islam is a monotheistic religion that means, “surrender to God’s will”. Today most
people of the Middle East and North Africa follow Islam. They are Muslims. Muslims
are the people who follow Islam. It is the fastest growing religion in the world today
The founder of Islam was a man named Muhammad. He was born around 570
A.D. He lived in Mecca in present-day Saudi Arabia. The people of Mecca and Arabia
worshipped hundreds of gods. Muhammad did not believe in all of these gods. When
he was about 40 years old, Muhammad began to have visions (dreams). He came to
believe there was only one God whom he called Allah. Muhammad continued to have
these visions. He believed these visions were given directly to him by Allah. He
believed Allah gave him these visions so he could teach other people about these
revelations (messages from God/Allah). Muhammad said he was sent by Allah as his
prophet. A prophet is a messenger of God.
Muhammad's message says there is only God. Allah is all-powerful but also
merciful. Muhammad believed there were other prophets in the past who told this
same message. Abraham, Moses and Jesus were also prophets who delivered this
same message. Allah was the same God both Judaism and Christianity worshipped.
Muhammad accepted parts of both the Torah and New Testament as the word of
God. However, according to Muhammad, Allah made him the last great prophet. In
other words, there would be no more messages from God. Muhammad was his last
and greatest prophet.
At first the people of Mecca did not like Muhammad and his teachings about
one God. In 622 there is a plan to kill him. Before they could kill him, he escaped
from the city. Muhammad then went to the city of Medina. Mohammad’s escape
from Mecca to Medina is called the hijra. Muhammad preached his new religion to
the people of Medina and soon had many followers. In 630 Muhammad returned to
Mecca with an army and captured the city. He made Islam the official religion and
declared Mecca to be the holy city of the Islamic religion.
Essential Questions:
1) Who was Muhammad?
2) What was Muhammad’s message?
3) Why do Muslims believe Muhammad was different from other prophets?
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Islam After Muhammad- I
Muhammad died in 632. Soon after his death, some
of his followers began writing down his teachings in a
book. The book was called the Koran. The Koran was
and still is the holy book of Islam. Islam spread like
wildfire (very quickly) throughout the Middle East.
Muslim armies spread Islam across North Africa,
India and even into Spain.
The followers of Islam are called Muslims. Although
Muslims accept much of what the Old Testament and
the New Testament say, they must follow the words
of the Koran. The basic duties of all Muslims are given in the Koran. These basic
duties are known as the Five Pillars of Islam. The Five Pillars are things all Muslims
must do to be accepted by Allah. Here is a list of the Five Pillars that all Muslims
must accept:
1) Faith >Allah is the only God and Muhammad is his most important prophet.
2) Prayer > Muslims must pray five times a day while facing the city of Mecca.
3) Charity/Alms Giving > Muslims must give money to the poor and help the poor. This is
called alms giving.
4) Fasting > Muslims must fast from sun up to sun down during the month of Ramadan (the
9th month on the Muslim calendar). To fast means not to eat. In other words, during Ramadan
Muslims can only eat at night.
5) Pilgrimage > Muslims must try and make a trip to Mecca at least once in their life. This
trip to Mecca is called the hajj.
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Essential Question:
1) What are the 5 pillars of Islam?
Islam After Muhammad- II
Before Muhammad and Islam, most Arab people were living in small groups or
tribes throughout the desert. Most of these groups had little communication with
each other. When Muhammad introduced Islam to the Arab people, it began to bring
all of these separate groups together. After Muhammad died, his son–in–law Ali took
over and continued his teachings. Ali had married Muhammad’s daughter. Within 200
years the Arab people were united under Islam and had a huge empire that included
all of the Middle East and North Africa as well. The Arab Empire was ruled by the
caliph. The caliph was a leader who claimed to be the successor or follower of
Muhammad. He was almost like a king of the empire. After the Arab Empire
conquered a region, the Arab people did not force anyone to convert to Islam. They
were very tolerant? Tolerant means to allow people to choose things for themselves.
Many people simply chose to convert to Islam because they liked it. The caliph
however, let people choose to worship any religion they wanted to. Christians and
Jews were allowed to practice their own religion.
Essential Question:
1) How did Islam unite the Arab tribes?
2) How were the original caliphs tolerant toward other people?
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Sunni and Shiite
After Muhammad died there was an argument between many of the Muslims
about their religion. The argument was about the imams. Imams are religious
leaders. As a result of this argument the Muslims split into two different groups.
These two different groups of Islam are called Sunni and Shiite.
The Sunni Muslims believe that the Muslim people should pick the imams. The
imam should be a good Muslim as well as have good leadership qualities. The Shiite
Muslims believe that imams should only be people who are direct descendants of
Mohammed’s daughter or son in law Ali. Descendants are the people of our family
who follow us after we die. In other words, the Shiites believe the imams have to
be related to Muhammad and Ali. This argument still divides the Muslim people
today. About 75% of all Muslims are Sunni. The other 25% are Shiite. The Sunnis
disagree with the Shiite belief. They do not feel their leaders must be related to
Ali. They feel their leaders should have good leadership qualities.
Essential Question:
1) What is the difference between a Sunni Muslim And a Shiite Muslim?
Summary of the Three Great Religions of the Middle East
The three great religions have many similarities. All three of the three great
religions are monotheistic. All three have millions of followers. All three share some
of the same beliefs because Christianity developed from Judaism and Islam
developed from both Christianity and Judaism. All three believe in one God. And all
three believe that God sent his prophets to speak to the people. A prophet is a
messenger sent by God to speak to the people. Christians and Muslims accept many
of the same prophets as the Jews. For example, all three recognize Moses and
Abraham as great prophets sent by God.
There are also some differences in the great religions. The Jews reject (don’t
believe) the Christian belief that Jesus was a prophet or the Son of God. Christians
feel that Jesus was the last great prophet of God and the Son of God. The Muslims
do believe that Jesus was a prophet, but do not believe he was the last great prophet.
The Muslims believe Muhammad was the last prophet sent by God. Both the Jews
and Christians reject Muhammad and his teachings. They do not think Muhammad
was sent by God.
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The People of the Middle East- Part I
Objectives- SWILLBAT differentiate between the term Arab and Muslim.
Most people in the Middle East are Arabs. Arabs are people who come from
Arabia or descendants of people who originally came from Arabia. Arabia is a
peninsula in the Middle East between the Red Sea and Southwest Asia. Today most
of it is a country called Saudi Arabia. Over the centuries (a century is 100 years)
Arabs have dispersed throughout the rest of the Middle East and North Africa as
well. When people of a culture disperse it means that they move away from where
they originally lived to many different locations. Because the Arabs moved to all
different areas of the Middle East and North Africa, Arabs have often mixed with
other groups of people.
Many people confuse the word Arab and Muslim to mean the same thing. They
do not mean the same thing! Muslims are people who follow the religion of Islam. It
is important to remember that the word “Arab” does not refer to a religion. It
refers to the people of Arabia. Most Arabs happen to follow the religion of Islam;
therefore they are both Arab and Muslim. However, there are Arabs, who follow
different religions. For example, there are some Arabs who believe in Christianity.
This makes them Arab Christians. Many of the people in Lebanon are Arab
Christians. The opposite could be true as well. There are many Europeans that that
believe in Islam. This means they are European Muslims. They are not Arabs.
Essential Questions:
1) What is the difference between the terms Arab and Muslim?
2) Why do you think people often consider an Arab and Muslim to be the same?
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