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The Five Major Religions of The World
The Five Major Religions of The World
Video
Five
Major
World
Religions
• Polytheism vs monotheism
Numbers
• Christianity: 1.9 billion people
• Islam: 1.1 billion
• Hinduism: 800 million
• Buddhism: 325 million
• Judaism: 14 million
• Judaism is a monotheistic and the first major monotheistic
religion in history
• Some believe Judaism dates back to Adam and Eve
• Many historians say that is was established around 1800 B.C. as
part of a covenant between God and Abraham
• Abraham would leave Ur(Babylonia) and go to Canaan(Israel)
• He would be blessed with many sons and his family would be given
Israel
• Moses led the Jews out of Egypt(slavery) around 1500 BC
• The Torah is the first five books of the Bible and contain
the laws and teaching of Judaism
• The Ten Commandments are the foundation of Judaism
613 Mitzvot
•The Sabbath is observed as a day of rest, starting at
sundown on Friday evening
•2.6% of U.S. adults identify as Jewish
Judaism Place of Worship
• Jews believe that there is a single God (Yahweh) who not only
created the universe, but with whom every Jew can have a
personal relationship
• They await the Messiah, who will be an earthly king
• They believe in heaven, but the Torah doesn’t say a lot about it
and focuses more on how to live your lives(613 Mitzvat)
• Ten Commandments is the basic code of law
Kosher Foods
•Foods are kosher when they meet all criteria that
Jewish law applies to food
•Characteristics that make a food non-kosher:
•The mixture of meat and milk
•The use of cooking utensils which had previously
been used for non-kosher food
•The type of animal it is
• Leviticus 11:3 says that Jews may eat all animals that
have cloven hooves and chew their cud
• Six mammals are specifically not allowed:
• Camel
• Hyrax
• Hare
• Pig
• Whales
• Dolphins
• Kosher animals are as follows:
• Cows, goats, sheep, antelope, deer, bison, etc
• Most fish(excluding shellfish, sharks, octopus, eels and squid)
• Chicken, duck, and turkey
• Milk and cheese are kosher but cannot be eaten with meat or mixed
with meat
• Preparation
• The slaughter of animals is designed to minimize the pain—usually
done by a slice across the throat
• This eliminates the practice of hunting for food unless it can be
captured alive and ritually slaughtered.
• All blood and veins must be removed from meat(salting and broiling
are common methods)
7 Holy Days
• Rosh Hashanah-Jewish New Year
• Yom Kippur-A day of fasting and praying which occurs 10
days after the first day of Rosh Hashanah
• The holiest day in the year
• Sukkot-8 day festival of thanksgiving
• Hanukkah-The Feast of Lights is an 8 day Feast of
Dedication
• It recalls the war fought by the Maccabees in the cause of
religious freedom
• Purim-The Feast of Lots recalls the successful plan to
save all of the Persian Jews from slaughter by the
Persians, circa 400 BC
• Pesa(Passover)-The 8 day festival recalls the exodus of
the Israelites from slavery in Egypt circa 1300 BCE
• A holiday meal, the Seder, is held at home
• Shavuot-Pentecost recalls God's revelation of the Torah
to the Jewish people
Problems Facing Jews
• Anti-Semitism in History
• Diaspora
• Pograms-Link
• Holocaust-2/3 of European Jews killed
• Israel established as a Jewish state after WWII(1947)-Led to several
wars and a lot of terrorism in the area
• Israel vs Palestinians
• “land for peace”
• Comments from former Iranian President Ahmadinejad and other
Middle East groups
• Why have Jews been despised throughout history?
• Christians are divided into three main branches: Roman
Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, and Protestantism
• Beliefs are based on the life, teachings, and death of
Jesus Christ and founded in 33 AD
• The cross is a symbol used to represent life, death, and
resurrection
Christian Population throughout the World
• Jesus Christ’s death made salvation and forgiveness of
sins possible for everyone
• Three days after his death he was resurrected and later
ascended to Heaven
• The resurrection of Christ is celebrated on Easter, which
is considered Christianity’s most important holiday
• The first Christians were Jews who came to believe Jesus
was the Messiah
• 78.4% of U.S. adults identify as Christians
Christian Beliefs
• Christians believe that they can have a personal
relationship with God, and that they are saved by faith,
and good works(according to some)
• They believe in heaven and hell
• They believe that the Bible is the word of God
Christian Way of Life
• Theravada
• As close as possible to
Buddha’s teachings
• Mahayana
• More accepting of the
changing world
The Dalai Lama – The present spiritual leader of Buddhism
• 14th Dalai Lama
• Has been DL since 1950
• Has been in exile in India since 1959
• The Islamic crescent and star is the international symbol for Islam
• Islam means “submission (to Allah)” in Arabic
• “Allah” is an Arabic word which means “the One True God”
• Muslims believe that the Quran is God’s word as revealed to the
prophet Muhammad (570-632 A.D.) through the angel Gabriel
• Muslims do not believe that Jesus was the Messiah, although they do
believe he was a prophet
• Islam is very family-oriented
• The primary means of transmitting the religion are
through the family
• Muslims are people that practice Islam
• .6% of U.S. adults follow Islam
• There are two main sects of Islam: Sunni and Shiite
• One of their main differences is in their beliefs about who were
the leaders following the death of Prophet Muhammad
• Sunni, from the Arabic word for “tradition,” accepted the
succession of Muhammad’s elected successors
• The majority of Muslims in the world today are Sunnis
• Shiite, from the Arabic word for “faction,” believe that leaders
must be descendants of Muhammad through his daughter
Fatima and her husband Ali.
• They rule Iran and also have a sizeable presence in Iraq and
Syria.
History of Islam
• Founded in 622 AD
• Founded by Muhammad in Saudi Arabia
• Muhammad is considered to be a prophet, a messenger of
Allah (God)
• Two Major Sects (split c.650CE)
• Sunni
• Shi’a (or Shiite)
5 Pillars of Islam
1. Shahada(witness) is the Muslim profession of faith
- "I witness that there is no god but Allah, and that
Muhammad is the messenger of Allah"
• Muslims say this when they wake up in the morning
and just before they go to sleep at night
• 2. Salat(daily prayer) is a prayer ritual performed 5
times a day by all Muslims over the age of 10
1. Between first light and sunrise
2. After the sun has passed the middle of the sky
3. Between mid-afternoon and sunset
4. Between sunset and the last light of the day
5. Between darkness and dawn