Download Religions & Philosophies

PLACARD 1 - CHRISTIANITY
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Followers are called Christians
Monotheistic
Central figures are God & Jesus
Sacred text is called the Bible (specifically the New
Testament)
• Holy sites are Jerusalem & Bethlehem
• Christianity is found primarily in North and South
America, Europe, Russia, Australia, New Zealand,
the Philippines, and Sub-Saharan Africa
PLACARD 2 - JUDAISM
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Followers are called Jews
Monotheistic
Central figures are God & Moses
Sacred text is called the Torah (the Old Testament)
Holy site is the city of Jerusalem, specifically the
last piece of Solomon’s Temple: the Wailing Wall
• The Jews have spread many times due to diaspora,
eventually ending up in North America, Europe,
and the Middle East
PLACARD 3 - ISLAM
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Followers are called Muslims
Monotheistic
Central figures are Allah, Mohammed
The sacred texts are the Qur’an and Sunnah
Holy sites are the Ka’aba in Mecca & the Dome of
the Rock in Jerusalem
• Islam is found in Asia, Africa, Europe, and North
America
PLACARD 4 - HINDUISM
• Followers are called Hindu
• Polytheistic
• Central figures are the numerous gods and the
Brahman
• The sacred texts are the Vedas & the Bhagavad
Gita
• The Ganges River is considered holy, and is used
for bathing to cleanse the soul
• Hinduism is almost exclusively practiced in India
and its surrounding countries
PLACARD 5 - SIKHISM
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Followers are called Sikhi
Monotheistic
Central figures are God & the first Guru: Nanak
The sacred text is called Adi Granth, or First
Volume
• The Golden Temple in Punjab, India, is considered
to be holy
• Sikhism is found in Asia, Europe, and North
America
PLACARD 6 - ANIMISM
• Includes practitioners of Shintoism, as well as
Tribal and Pagan beliefs
• Polytheistic
• Ancestors, animals, various objects are worshipped
• No central sacred text, as Animism describes many
different religious views
• No central sacred sites, as Animism describes many
different religious views
• Mainly found in developing nations or remote parts
of the world, where tribalism still reigns
PLACARD 7 - BUDDHISM
• Followers are called Buddhists
• There are no real gods, however the Buddha is
venerated
• Important figures include Siddhartha Gautama
(Buddha) & the Dalai Lama
• Some central texts include the Pāli Tipitaka and the
Mahayana Sutras
• Tibet is considered a holy place
• Buddhism is practiced in many different ways in
India, China, Japan, and Tibet
Religions & Philosophies
Christianity
Judaism
Islam
Hinduism
Sikhism
Animism
Buddhism
All Images courtesy of Wikimedia and the Department of Veterans Affairs
Christianity
Christianity is based on the teachings of Jesus,
who is believed to be the son of God. Jesus
taught that all were equal in the eyes of God, and
deserved compassion and love. Later adherents of
Christianity, such as the Apostle Paul and Emperor
Constantine, added more teachings and rules to
Jesus’ initial sermons.
Judaism
Judaism is built on the sacred laws collected in the
Torah, which emphasize devotion to Jehovah,
adherence to family tradition, and the
consumption of kosher foods. Instructions from
Moses on how to worship God throughout the
year during “feasts” are also described.
Islam
Islam is based on the visions of Mohammed, who
is considered to be the last great prophet of Allah
to mankind. Mohammed taught that all good
Muslims adhered to the 5 Pillars, which included:
faith, prayer, alms (charity), fasting, and a
pilgrimage to the Ka’aba (Mecca) at least once in
their lives, called the Hajj.
Hinduism
Hinduism is based on the pursuit of Nirvana, or
true peace and enlightenment. This is
accomplished through samsara, a perpetual cycle
of reincarnation based on the adherent’s previous
actions, or karma. Hinduism also structures
everyday interactions through a rigid caste system.
Sikhism
Sikhism teaches that devotion to God and a
denouncement of superstitious rituals and the 5
Evils (Ego, Anger, Greed, Attachment, Lust)
lead to holiness. All Sikh men are charged with
wearing the 5 Kahaar (uncut hair, a small comb,
a warrior’s iron bracelet, a warrior’s dagger, and
a warrior’s leggings) in order to achieve this
holiness.
Animism
Animism focuses on the aspects of spiritualism, or
the belief that animals, objects, plants, and the
dead all have spirits. Though this is mostly
relegated to tribal or pagan belief systems, it has
influenced the beliefs of other religions, spawning
the belief that souls existed in not only man, but
animals and plants.
Buddhism
Buddhism is based on the teachings of Siddhartha
Gautama, which he began after a revelatory
pilgrimage in his youth. His main principles
revolved around the 4 Noble Truths: the
recognition of suffering, the realization of
suffering’s origins, the cessation of suffering, and
the Eightfold Path to Enlightenment.