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Ch6/Sec1 cont.: Judaism and Ethnic African Religions Judaism: ~14 million adherents worldwide - 1/3 in the U.S., 1/3 in Israel, 1/3 around the world - In the U.S.: Jews are clustered in NYC - 2 of the 3 universalizing religions have their roots in Judaism: Christianity & Islam - 1st recorded monotheistic religion: only one all-powerful God (v. polytheistic religions that worship multiple gods) - Record their religion & history in the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament): archeological evidence contradict some of their stories - Israelites migrated from Mesopotamia to Palestine (Canaan) (Abraham led the Israelites from the ancient city of Ur to Canaan; got into a covenant w/ God: Yahweh is supreme authority + ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, Abraham is the father of his nation) - Nomadic lifestyle (grazing & herding flocks of animals) - Drought left for Egypt enslaved Moses led them out of Egypt wondered in the desert for 40 years returned to Palestine (Yahweh had to curse the ancient Egyptians w/ 10 plagues in order for Pharaoh Ramses II to free the Israelites) Historians: distinct tribe emerged b/w 1200-1000 B.C. & organized the tribes into a united kingdom of Israel The United Kingdom: by the son of King David: wise King Solomon, 970-930 B.C. - Israelites establish control over Palestine; capital: Jerusalem - Built a temple in Jerusalem: center of their religion & kingdom itself (today its remnants are know as the Western Wall by the Jewish ppl.) - Expanded the gov.’t, the army, & trade height of Israel’s power The Divided Kingdom: after King Solomon’s death, the northern & southern tribes w/in Israel split the kingdom into 2: 1) Israel: in the north; 10 tribes; capital: Samaria; overran by the Assyrians tribes scattered & merged w/ neighboring people 2) Judah: in the south; 2 tribes; capital: Jerusalem; overran by the Chaldeans upper-class people of Judah escaped to Babylonia overran by the Persians, who allowed the people of Judah to return to Jerusalem & rebuild the city (under Persian control until Alexander the Great) The people of Judah survived Jews & the religion of Judaism Stateless religion: belief in God was not tied to one land, b/c Yahweh was the Creator and Lord of the whole world The Spiritual Dimensions of Israel: Monotheistic people: worshipped only one God, called Yahweh (no worship of gods/goddesses or the natural world, e.g. sun, river, etc.) Jews did not accept the gods of their neighbors/conquerors Separation b/w Jews & their non-Jewish neighbors Yahweh ruled the world, all people were his servants Yahweh was good, loving, just, and merciful Each person had a personal relationship w/ Yahweh At the core of Jewish religious tradition: - Covenant (contract) b/w Moses & Yahweh - Obedience to the law of God, the Ten Commandments - Prophets: religious teachers sent by God to teach the people * Golden age of prophecy: during threats by conquests (mid-800s B.C.) * Concern for all of humanity: all nations would one day come toYahweh * End of war * Establishment of peace for all the nations of the world * Live justly, share w/ one’s neighbors, care for the poor and the unfortunate, act w/ compassion they denounced social injustice Ethnic African Religions: ~ 100 million adherents (12% of the continent) Animism: inanimate objects have spirits & conscious lives - Hierarchy of gods: supreme god + multiple assistant divinities - No written holy book(s) or rigid doctrines - Passed down from generation to generation orally The # of adherents to animism is declining (200 million in 1980) Christianity & Islam became dominant (46% Christian, 40% Muslim) Animism is the majority religion only in Botswana