Download general beliefs held by the Christian religion

Ethnic Religion: Religions
whose adherents are
born into the faith and
whose members do not
actively seek converts
Ex. Hinduism, Judaism
A Universalizing Religion
attempts to be global, to
appeal to all people
wherever they live, not just
those of one culture or
location.
Ex. Christianity, Islam,
Buddhism
What are the general beliefs held
by the Christian religion?
Christianity is:
Monotheistic.
One God who is a Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit , New Testament salvation to those who believe in Jesus Christ and his teachings.
Christianity was founded by:
Jesus of Nazareth. Christians believe
that he was the son of God
Christianity’s Important Holidays:
Christmas (Birth of Jesus), Easter
(Death of Jesus)
Christianity’s Important Places:
The Vatican, Bethlehem, Jerusalem
Hearth = Modern Day Israel
3 Types of Christian Diffusion
Relocation Diffusion
• Missionaries moved bringing the teachings to new places.
• Roman Soldiers as they conquered new lands.
• Through trade routes
Contagious Diffusion
• As people converted, they spread the teachings from person to
person.
Hierarchical Diffusion
• As leaders of countries were converted, their influence caused
their subjects to convert as well.
Diffusion of Religions
Place of Worship = Church
Cross
Steeple symbolizes
reaching towards
God
What are the three major branches
of Christianity?
Three Major Branches of Christianity
Roman Catholicism
• 51% of Christianity
• Vatican City, Pope
• Started by Apostle Paul in Rome
Protestantism
• 24% of Christianity
• Martin Luther, idea of personal relationship with God, split from the Roman
Catholic church in the 16th century, “Protest”ing the Catholic Church
• Ex. Baptists, Presbyterians, Methodists, etc.
Eastern Orthodox
• 11% of Christianity
• Split from the Roman Catholic church in the 11th Century, 14 self-governing
churches
• Concentrations in Eastern Europe and Russia.
Predict: Number of followers?
Text?
Universalizing or Ethnic?
•2 Billion (largest in
world)
•Bible
•Universalizing
Islam
What are the general beliefs held
by the Muslim religion?
Islam is:
Monotheistic. Muslims believe in the
Judeo-Christian God, 5 Pillars
●
5 Pillars of Faith
●
●
●
●
●
Creed “There is no God but Allah”
Prayer 5 times a day facing Mecca
Giving to the poor
Month of Ramadan
Pilgrimage to Mecca
Islam was founded by:
Muhammad. Muslims believe that he
was a prophet of God.
Islam’s Important Holidays:
Ramadan (A month of fasting and
prayer)
Islam’s Important Places:
Mecca, Saudi Arabia
Hearth = Mecca
What are the origins and diffusion
patterns of Islam?
Diffusion of Religions
Diffusion
• Organized armies to spread
religion throughout world
• Successful diffusion led to the
Crusades in the 11th and 12
centuries to “save” and “take
back” lands
Muslim Distribution Map
How is a map at this scale an incomplete representation of the
geography of religion?
How does the diffusion of Christianity
and Islam differ?
Islam initially spread by word of mouth which transitioned into
conquest of other lands and the establishments of trade routes.
Place of Worship
• Minarets – Reach up to Allah
The Two Main Branches of Islam
Sunnis
• 83% of all Muslims
• The country with the largest Sunni population is Indonesia.
• Believe that Muhammad’s Successor should be chosen by
religious leaders.
Shiites
• 16% of all Muslims
• Concentrated in a few countries: 40% live in Iran, 15% in
Pakistan
• Believe that Muhammad’s Successor should be a member of
his family.
Sunni and Shia Muslims
Sunni more diffused, Shia predominantly in Iran and parts
of Iraq and Afghanistan
Predict: Number of followers?
Text?
Universalizing or Ethnic?
• 1.6 Billion (2nd largest in world)
• Koran/Quran/Qu’ran
• Universalizing (fastest growing religion)
Hinduism
*Mistake on Chart – Hinduism
should be first, then Buddhism
Hindus believe in:
One Supreme Reality (Brahman)
manifested in many gods and goddesses,
Reincarnation, Caste System
Founded By
• Based on ancient practices of indigenous
people in India, no single founder
• Most famous Hindu = Mahatma Gandhi who
worked to free India from England’s colonial
rule in 20th century.
Holidays
• Many holidays are based on the cycle of
nature.
– change of seasons, celebrate the harvest,
encourage fertile land.
• Others are dedicated to a particular deity.
Places
• Many pilgrimage sites
Hearth
• Indo-Gangetic Hearth – Indus River Valley
• Area between the Indus and Ganges Rivers,
modern day India
Diffusion
• Did not spread far outside of India, does not
actively seek converts
Today, Hinduism is:
The 3rd largest religion in the world
and concentrated in Nepal and India.
How is it the 3rd largest without
widespread diffusion?
Place of Worship
• Hindu Temple
Branches
• No formal branches, but variations in practice
• Some believe it is monotheistic, others believe
it is polytheistic
Predict: Number of followers?
Text?
Universalizing or Ethnic?
• 900 Million (3rd largest)
• No single book, but most use Vedas (four
sacred texts)
• Ethnic
Buddhism
What are the general beliefs held
by the Buddhist religion?
Buddhism is:
Apatheistic. A god or gods hold no
significance. Focuses on eliminating
unwanted desires from soul through
meditation. Rejection of caste system.
Buddhism was founded by:
Siddhārtha Gautama. Buddhists believe
he is the “Most Enlightened One”.
Prince who realized poverty was unjust.
Buddhism’s Important Holidays:
Vesākha (Birth of Buddha), Bodhi Day:
(Day Buddha received enlightenment:)
Buddhism’s Important Places:
Lumbini (Birthplace),
Bodh Gaya (Enlightenment),
Sarnath (First Teaching),
Kusinara (Death)
Hearth
• Indo-Gangetic Hearth – Indus River Valley
• Area between the Indus and Ganges Rivers,
modern day India
What are the diffusion patterns of
Buddhism?
Buddhist Diffusion
Buddhism spread along the Silk Road to China, Korea, Japan,
Tibet, etc. Buddhism is now practically extinct in India.
While Buddhism started in India, it is currently not the
majority religion of that country. What kind of diffusion
could this be called?
Place of Worship
• Pagoda
• Made more for
individual worship
than congregational
worship.
• Burn incense,
meditate
Main Branches of Buddhism
Mahayana
• Do not serve as monk or nun
• Personal meditation and worship
• Mainly in Vietnam, China, Japan, Korea
Theravada
• Monastic (periods of service as a monk or nun)
• Strict adherence to Buddha’s teachings.
• Located primarily in Southeast Asia (Sri Lanka,
Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia)
Predict: Number of followers?
Text?
Universalizing or Ethnic?
• 360 Million
• Many texts
• Universalizing
Judaism
Judaism is:
One of the oldest religions and the
first recorded monotheistic religions.
Belief in One God, Coming of the Messiah still to
come
Founded By
• Abraham
Holidays
• Bar/Bat mitzvah at adulthood
• Rosh Hashanah - Jewish New Year, celebrates
creation of the world
• Yom Kippur - the Day of Atonement
Places & Hearth
• Jerusalem
Diffusion
Diaspora: The Jewish Diaspora was the dispersing of the
Jewish people from their original homeland initially by the
Babylonians (586 BCE) and in the Roman Diaspora after the
destruction of the temple (70AD).
●
- forced Jews to disperse throughout the world.
Ghetto: During the Middle Ages, a neighborhood in a
city set up by law to be inhabited only by Jews
●
Modern Judaism is located: 6 million in the United
States, 4 million in Israel, and 2 million in the former
Soviet Union
●
Place of Worship
• Synangoge
• Usually features a star of David
Major Branches
• Orthodox: See modern society as sinful and try
to avoid its temptations
• Reform: tries to adjust Judaism to current times
• Conservative: Not as strict as Orthodox, not as
liberal as Reform
Predict: # of followers, Text,
Universalizing or Ethnic?
• 18 million
• Torah - original 5 chapters of Bible
• Ethnic
Confucianism
Confucianism is:
Located in China—never spread out of China
Based on teachings of Confucius—ethnic religion
Focused on maintaining relationships, flow of energy, harmony –
Geomancy (feng shui)
Ying and Yang (for every positive, there is a negative)
Children still read Confucius classics in school
His teachings were used on state civil service exams