Religions/ Belief Systems
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Transcript of Religions/ Belief Systems
Religions/Belief Systems
Islam - Origins
• Developed on the Arabian Peninsula in the year 622 CE, and quickly spread to other regions.
• Monotheistic
• Founder is Mohammad (prophet)
Five Pillars of Faith
First Pillar
• The Declaration of Faith
– “There is no god but God, Muhammad is the messenger of God.”
– God is Allah– Monotheistic
Second Pillar
• Daily Prayer– Muslims face the holy city of Mecca to pray 5
times a day– Muslims worship in mosques
A Holy Mosque
Third Pillar
• Giving charity to the poor
Fourth Pillar
• Fasting from sunrise to sunset during the holy month of Ramadan– Akeem Olijawan – NBA basketball star– Kareem Abdul-Jabar – NBA– Mohammad Ali - boxer
Fifth Pillar
• Hajj – pilgrimage to Mecca–Muslims in the US (NYC) charter
planes to complete this
–Muslims are trampled
The Quran (Koran)
• Islamic holy text• Retains the sacred
word of God as revealed to Muhammad
More Hajj Pics
Islam-Impact today?
• Islamic Fundamentalists – show opposition to westernization
• Dominant throughout the Middle East, including Southwest Asia and North Africa
• Fastest growing religion
Judaism
• Oldest monotheistic religion
• Founder-Abraham is generally recognized as the founder of Judaism due to his covenant with God. However, Moses is also considered a founder due to his role in the liberation of the Hebrews from Egypt.
• Geographic Origin-Developed in the Middle East in and around the area that is currently Israel.
• Currently Practiced-Worldwide, but the greatest majority of Jews reside in Israel, the United States, and the former Soviet Union.
• Sacred text – Torah (Old Testament)
Judaism - Teachings
• God made a covenant with Abraham to be the god of the Hebrews
• God chose the Hebrews as his people
• Moral standards and justice
• One true god is present everywhere
• Strongly influenced Christianity and Islam
Impact?
• Constant persecution– Romans expelled Jews from Palestine in 135
AD – Diaspora – scattering of Jews– Holocaust
Christianity
• Christianity is currently the most popular religion in the world based on the number of worshippers found throughout the world.
• Monotheistic religion
Origins/Founder
• Founder-Jesus of Nazareth and his disciples who helped spread his teachings.
• Geographic Origin-Developed in Judea (now Israel), located in the Middle East bordering the Mediterranean Sea sometime around the year 30 CE.
• Currently Practiced-Christianity is the dominant religion in North America, South America, Europe, and Russia.
• Significant Writings-The Holy Bible, consisting of both the Old Testament and the New Testament.
Christianity – beliefs/teachings
• Place of worship – church
• Many different sects of Christianity– Catholicism– Protestant
• Lutheranism• Baptist• Episcopalian• Presbyterian
Christianity - teachings
• Faith in one god
• Achieve salvation and eternal life
• Jesus was the son of God and the Messiah
• Bible includes the Old and New Testament
• Mercy, sympathy for poor
Impact?
• After persecution, Theodosius made it the official religion of the Roman Empire
• Holds western Europe together during the M.A. and becomes very powerful
• Crusades – 1050, holy wars,– Christian goal is to win back the holy land from
Muslims– “One of history’s most successful failures.”
• Protestant reformation– Luther– 95 Theses– Printing press
Hinduism
• Established- Elements of the Hindu religion can be traced back to the ancient Indus River Valley civilization (approximately 3000 BCE) in modern-day Pakistan.
• Founder- no specific founder
• Geographic Origin-Developed on the Indian subcontinent.
• The soul never dies, it is just reborn.
• Polytheistic – belief in many gods• In Hinduism, salvation is achieved through a
spiritual oneness of the soul, atman, with the ultimate reality of the universe, Brahman.
• To achieve this goal, the soul must obtain moksha, the endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth.
• As a result of these basic teachings, Hindus believe in reincarnation, which is influenced by karma (material actions resulting from the consequences of previous actions), and dharma (fulfilling one's duty in life).
• Ahimsa – non-violence
• Support the caste system
Impact
• Caste system today?
• Non-violence– Gandhi
• Salt March, civil disobedience• Rejects the caste system; everyone should be
equal
• Ganges River – horribly polluted, yet sacred to Hindus
Buddhism
• Founder-Siddhartha Gautama, or Buddha, which means "enlightened one."
• Geographic Origin-Developed in India.
• Currently Practiced-Most common in Southeast Asia and Japan
• Significant Writings-Tripitka, or Three Baskets of Wisdom.
• Places of Worship-Buddhism may be practiced individually, but temples and monasteries do exist.
• Significant Religious People-The Dalai Lama
Four Noble Truths
• Life is full of pain and suffering.
• Human desire causes this suffering.
• By putting an end to desire, humans can end suffering.
• Humans can end desire by following the Eightfold Path.
Eightfold Path
• Right conduct• Right intentions• Right mindfuless• Right speech• Right conduct• Right livelihood• Right effort• Right meditation
Ultimate Goal
• Nirvana – union with the universe and release from the cycle of death and rebirth
• Karma
• Darma
• Reincarnation
• Monks and nuns
Confucianism
• Founder - Confucius
• China
• 551 BC
• The Analects – a collection of Confucian ideas and teachings
Five Relationships
• Older brother to younger brother
• Ruler to subject
• Husband to wife
• Father to son
• Friend to friend
Other ideas
• Filial piety – respect for your elders
• People are naturally good
• Education is the road to advancement
• Maintaining social order
• Ethical behavior
Taoism (Daoism)
• Founder is Laozi
• China
• 500’s BC
• Teach people to live in harmony with nature
• People should contemplate the Tao, or the way
• The best government is the one that governs the least
• Yin and Yang - balance
Animism
• Africa
• Traditional values• Story telling - griot• Animists practice nature worship. They believe
that everything in the universe has a spirit. • Ancestor worship
Shintoism
• Japan
• 500 BCE
• Respect for nature
• “Ring of fire”
• Everything has a spirit or kami