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What is Religion?
:a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally
agreed upon by a number of persons
88% of the people worldwide
hold some religious belief
Number of followers of leading world religions
 Christianity: 2.3 billion followers (largest)
 Islam: 1.6 billion (2nd largest)
 Secular-non-religious: 1.1 billion
 Hinduism:950 million (3rd largest)
 Buddhism: 465 million (4th largest)
 Tribal and African religion: 400 million
 Chinese religion: 350 million
 Sikhism: 23 million
 Judaism: 14 million (12th largest)
World’s Least Religious Places
 North Korea:71.3%
 Sweden: 31.2%
 Czech Republic:43.8%  Latvia: 30.4%
 China 39.5%
 Estonia: 38.6%
 Mongolia: 36.3%
 Netherlands: 27.5%
 Uruguay: 34.5%
 Kazakhstan: 34.4%
Judaism
Christianity
Islam
Islam
Judaism
Christianity
Muslims
Jews
Christians
Middle East, SE Asia
Israel, Europe, USA
Europe, N & S. America,
Africa
mosque
synagogue
church, chapel, cathedral
Koran or Qur’an
Bible: Tanakh
Bible
Muhammad
Moses/Abraham
Jesus Christ
One God: Allah
One God: Yahweh
One God: Yahweh, Holy
Trinity, God
Judaism
Christianity
Islam
1. Symbol :Star of David-six pointed star
made up of 2 intersecting triangles
2. Believe there is only one God-Yahwehwho has revealed himself to Abraham,
Moses and the Hebrew prophets
3. Hebrew Bible: Tanakh
4. Most sacred text: Torah-composed of
the first 5 books of the Old Testament and
the Tanakh
•
founding father of the Judaism
•
God promised Abraham and his wife Sarah a son if Abraham
pledged his faith in God. They were both old-Abraham was 100 and
Sarah was 90 and Sarah couldn’t have any children. They named
their son Isaac.
•
God promised them numerous descendants who would form a great
nation in a land called Canaan.
•
He believed the entire universe was the work of a single Creator and
began teaching this to others
•
Under Judaism, people identify themselves as children
(descendants) of Abraham
• Greatest of the prophets:
spokesperson for God
• Received the Torah on Mount Sinai
translated as “law” from God on stone
tablets
• Led the Jews out of exile in Egypt
back to Canaan the “Promise Land”
a. Refer to God as Yahweh
(YHVH): creator & ruler of the
universe, source of all goodness
& morality-not allowed to say
God out loud
b. Pray regularly-Shema (prayer) in
the morning & night
c. Believe one day a Messiah
(person from God) will one day
rule Jerusalem and rebuild the
Temple destroyed by the Romans
d. The Torah contains everything
from food & clothing to rituals
& festivals. Follow these laws
through the way they live
e. The Torah is hand-written in
Hebrew on a scroll and kept in a
cabinet called the Ark. The text
can never be changed.
f. Rabbis are their spiritual leaders
a. Sabbath-Saturday (sunset on
Friday & ends at sunset on
Saturday)
b. Most important Jewish holy
day: -Ten days into the new year
-Yom Kippur - “Day of
Atonement” 25 hr. fast to make
amends for sins of the past year
c. Passover: 8 days, celebrate
the escape of the Jews from
slavery in Egypt & their return
to the Promised Land
d. Hanukkah: “Festival of
Lights” celebrates religious
freedom and the rededication of
the temple in Jerusalem
e. Bar and Bat MitzvahWhen boys and girls turn
thirteen they promise to
follow the commandments
of God
f. Ceremonial worship can
occur either the home or
Synagogue (Temple)
1. Based on the teachings of Jesus
Christ
2. God chose Mary, a virgin, to carry
his son Jesus Christ, in order that he
might save humanity from sin
3. Little is known of his childhood and
young adulthood. At 30 he began
preaching, teaching and healing.
4. His life is told in the Four Gospels:
(Matthew, Mark, Luke and John)
found in the New Testament
a. Jesus demonstrated his teachings by
example, parables: (earthly story with
spiritual truth) written in the Holy
Bible, sermons, and miracles.
b. People came to hear these stories
when Jesus was on earth
Ex. The Parable of the
Mustard Seed:
Jesus told them (Matt. 13:31-32) "The
kingdom of heaven is like a mustard
seed, which a man took and planted
in his field. Though it is the smallest of
all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the
largest of garden plants and becomes a
tree, so that the birds of the air come
and perch in its branches"
a. God is believed to be manifest in 3
persons: Father, Son and Holy
Spirit/Trinity. The doctrine of Trinity
is rejected by Jews and Muslims.
b. Sacred text: Christian Bible-God’s
word
1. Old Testament is a collection of
selected writings composed and
edited by members of the Hebrew-Jewish
community between the twelfth century
B.C.
2. New Testament: tell story of
Jesus’s life, recount his work, history of
the disciples
1. Christians believe Jesus
is God in the flesh who
came to earth to offer
forgiveness and salvation
to all.
2. conceived as both
human (man of Jesus of
Nazareth) but without sin
and divine (incarnation of
God)
• Symbol: Cross
1. The cross is the symbol of
sacrifice that Jesus made to save
humanity from sin.
• Last Supper: final meal Jesus
shared with 12 followers, known as
the disciples or apostles before his
death
• Eucharist, Mass or Holy
Communion: drinking wine and
eating the bread represent the blood
and body of Christ
• Christians believe that humans are
viewed as created in the image of
God and accepting Jesus Christ as
one’s savior can one be saved
through grace
• Advent: preparation for Christmas
marked by fasting
• Christmas-Dec. 25: celebration of Jesus’s
birth marked by feasting, gift-giving &
church service
• Lent: 40 days from Ash Wed. to Easter-
Jesus’s fast in the desert immediately
before his crucifixion
• Good Friday: remembers the Crucifixion
of Jesus
• Easter Day: Jesus’ Resurrection-when he
rose from the grave and appeared to his
disciples
1. God is referred to as Allah-the
sole creator.
2. “Islam”: submission to the will of
God
3. Green is the color of Islam and its
symbol is the star and crescent
4. Arabic is the language in which
the word of God was revealed to
Muhammad
5. Followers of Islam: Muslims
a. Born in Mecca and at the age
of 40 was called to become the
prophet
b. Under Islam Muhammad is
believed to be God’s messengerfinal revelation
c. 610 CE he had his first
revelation known as the “Night
of Power and Excellence”
d. Must flee Mecca to Medina in
622 CE-becomes known as the
Hijrah: marks the start of the
Islamic calendar each year
a. Sacred text of Islam: Qur’an
b. believed to be words of God
himself revealed to Muhammadcontain the will of all
humankind.
c. It is the lifelong goal of many
Muslims to memorize it.
d. Must live up to the
requirements of the Qur’an,
fulfill their religious duties and
refrain from prohibited actions
a. Shahada: declaring that there is
but one God, Allah, and Muhammad
as his messenger
b. Prayer: participate in prayer,
facing the directions of Mecca, five
times a day
c. Ramadan: during the month, all
able bodied Muslims must fast
during daylight hours-God began to
reveal the Qur’an to Muhammad.
d. Zakat: an obligatory tax (usually
2.5%) that must be paid to the poor.
e. Hajj: All Muslims physically
able to do so are expected to make a
pilgrimage to Mecca at least one in
their lifetime
a. Main difference: not spiritual but political
b. Sunni is comprised of about 85% of
Muslims all over the world
c.
Sunnis believe successors of the Prophet
should be chosen by an election of the
Muslim community
d. Shiite found mostly in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon
It marks the liberation of
Moses from the Pharaoh
e. Shiites claim that leadership should stay
within the Prophet’s own family-hierarchy
f. Day of Ashura (pictured): religious
observance marked every year by Muslims
on 10th day of the Islamic year
More Info:
a. Friday: Muslim holy day
b. Hadith: sayings of Muhammad
and is the second most holy book
c. Prophets : Adam, Abraham,
Moses, Jesus and Muhammad
d. Pork and alcohol are prohibited