religions
The Five Major Religions
Social Studies Online
BluePrint Skill: Grade 7 History
• Compare and contrast the tenets of the five major world religions
(i.e., Christianity, Buddhism,
Islam, Hinduism, and Judaism).
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Top Ten Organized Religions of the
World
• Statistics of the world's religions are only very rough approximations.
• Aside from Christianity, few religions, if any, attempt to keep statistical records; and even
Protestants and Catholics employ different methods of counting members.
• Christianity 2.1 billion 33.0%
• Islam 1.5 billion 21%
• Hinduism 900 million14%
• Buddhism 376 million 6%
• Judaism 14 million 0.22%
Christianity
Founder
Types
Where
Jesus Christ, who was crucified around A.D. 30 in
Jerusalem.
One How many gods?
Holy writings
Beliefs
The Bible
Jesus taught love of God and neighbor and a concern for justice.
In 1054 Christians separated into the Eastern Orthodox
Church and the Roman Catholic Church. In the early 1500s the major Protestant groups (Lutheran, Presbyterian, and
Episcopalian) came into being. A variety of other groups have since developed.
Through its mission work, Christianity has spread to most parts of the globe.
Christianity
• The early Hebrews who eventually developed into the Jewish religion became the foundation of
Christianity.
• Jesus, or the Messiah, was a Jewish boy who disagreed with some of the
Jewish principles of his day began to profess a new way of thinking.
• This eventually led to the beginning of the Christian religion.
Christianity
• Christianity started about 2000 years ago about the same time of
Jesus.
• The central point of Christian belief is that God, the Father, entered into human history as the Son, Jesus of Nazereth, and arose as the Holy Spirit.
Christian Philosophy
• God is the Creator of the universe.
There is one God, Who is
Three Persons-
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
• Jesus is both fully man and fully
God. He was born of the Virgin Mary
Crucified, resurrected from the dead, and ascended to the Father.
Christian Philosophy
• Sin and Evil are realities in our existence.
• The Bible is the Holy Book that records God's revelation.
• All believers are promised life everlasting.
• The leader of Christianity was
Jesus, and the followers was his
12 disciples.
Buddhism
• Founding person of Buddhism is
Guatama, the Buddha
• The Dalai Lama is a Buddhist monk who remains the leader of the
Tibetans.
• Buddhism is a major religion in
China, Japan, India, and Tibet.
Buddhism
Founder
Where
Siddhartha Gautama, called the Buddha, in the 4th or 5th century B.C. in India.
How many gods?
Holy writings
Beliefs
Types
None, but there are enlightened beings (Buddhas)
The most important are the Tripitaka, the Mahayana Sutras,
Tantra, and Zen texts
The Four Noble Truths: (1) all beings suffer; (2) desire —for possessions, power, and so on —causes suffering; (3) desire can be overcome; and (4) the path that leads away from desire is the Eightfold Path (the Middle Way).
Theravada (Way of the Elders) and Mahayana (Greater
Vehicle) are the two main types.
Buddhism is the main religion in many Asian countries.
The Major Philosophy of Buddhism
• Love: without conditions
• Compassion: or feeling at one with the person who is suffering
• Sympathetic Joy:Celebrate the happiness of others, and do not resent their good fortune.
• Impartiality: Treat everyone equally, and do not use others for personal gain or to win approval.
The Major Philosophy of Buddhism
• Buddhism states that existence is a continuing cycle of death and rebirth called reincarnation.
• Each person's position in life is determined by his or her behavior in the previous life.
This is known as their "karma"
(also a Hindu belief).
Buddhism
• Buddhism is the world's oldest universal religion and it is the second fastest growing religion.
Islam
Founder Muhammad, who was born in A.D. 570 at Mecca, in Saudi
Arabia.
How many gods?
Holy writings
Beliefs
Types
Where
One, Allah
The Koran (Qu’ran)
The Five Pillars, or main duties, are: profession of faith; prayer 5 times a day; charitable giving; fasting during the month of Ramadan; and pilgrimage to Mecca at least once.
Almost 90% of Muslims are Sunnis. Shiites are the secondlargest group. The Shiites split from the Sunnis in 632 when
Muhammad died.
Islam is the main religion of the Middle East, Asia, and the north of Africa.
Islam
• ISLAM is the name given to the religion preached by the prophet
Muhammad in the 600s A. D.
• The Islamic religion started in the area known as Palestine in the year
600AD.
• It has about 850 million followers, most of them in the region north and east of the Mediterranean Sea.
Islam
• The holy book of Islam is the "Koran." Muslims believe its words to be those of Allah himself, spoken to Muhammad by an angel.
• Allah, is the Islamic God.
• People who believe these ideas are called Muslims.
Islamic Philosophy
• Muslims learn that life on earth is a period of testing and preparation for the life to come.
• Angels record good and bad deeds.
• People should behave themselves and help others, trusting in Allah's justice and mercy for their reward.
Islam
• Muslims pray five times daily in their mosques (churches).
• While praying, they face the holy city of Mecca (in Saudi-Arabia) and sometimes kneel with faces to the ground.
• All Muslims are required to make a pilgrimage (trip to a sacred place) to
Mecca at least once in their lifetime.
Hinduism
Founder
Where
Hinduism has no founder. The oldest religion, it may date to prehistoric times.
How many gods?
Holy writings
Beliefs
Types
Many (all gods and goddesses are considered different forms of one Supreme Being.)
The most ancient are the four Vedas.
Reincarnation states that all living things are caught in a cycle of death and rebirth. Life is ruled by the laws of karma, in which rebirth depends on moral behavior
No single belief system unites Hindus. A Hindu can believe in only one god, in many, or in none.
Hinduism is practiced by more than 80% of India's population.
Hinduism
• HINDUISM is one of the world's oldest religions.
• Over 2/3's of the world's Hindus live in India; large numbers reside in
Africa also.
• Hindus believe in many gods, numbering into the thousands. They recognize one supreme spirit called
Brahman ("the Absolute.")
Hindu Philosophy
• Hindus believe in many gods, numbering into the thousands.
• They recognize one supreme spirit called Brahman (the Absolute).
• The goal of Hindus is to someday join with Brahman.
• Until that union takes place, believers are in a continuous process of rebirth called
"reincarnation."
Hindu Philosophy
• At death, the Hindu's deeds (karma) determine what the next life will be.
• Followers work to break this cycle-birth, death, re-birth-- (referred to by writers as the "Wheel of Life") and gain release.
• The Hindu's soul then merges with
Brahman in a condition of spiritual perfection (moksha).
Hinduism
• Hinduism has many sacred books, the oldest being a series called the
"Vedas.“
• Traditional Hindu society was divided into groups of four classes (or varnas). This was known as the
"caste system."
Judaism
Founder The Hebrew leader Abraham founded Judaism around 2000
B.C. Moses gave the Jews the Torah around 1250 B.C.
How many gods?
Holy writings
Beliefs
Types
Where
One
The most important are the Torah, or the first five books of
Moses. Others include Judaism's oral tradition, the written form of which is known as the Talmud.
Jews believe in the laws of God and the words of the prophets. In Judaism, however, actions are more important than beliefs.
The three main types are Orthodox, Conservative, and
Reform. Conservative Jews follow most traditional practices, but less strictly than the Orthodox. Reform Jews are the least traditional.
There are large Jewish populations in Israel and the U.S.
Judaism
• JUDAISM is a religion of just one people: the Jews.
• JUDAISM was the first to teach belief in only one God. Two other important religions developed from Judaism: Christianity and
Islam.
Judaism
• Jews think that God will send a
Messiah (a deliverer) to unite them and lead them in His way.
• Christians believe that Jesus was the
Messiah. The Jewish people do not agree; they anticipate His arrival in the future.
• Judaism teaches that death is not the end and that there is a world to come.
Judaism
• The "Torah," the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, is the most important Jewish scripture.
• It contains the basic laws of
Judaism.
• Another important book is the
"Talmud," serving primarily as a guide to the civil and religious laws of Judaism.
Judaism
• The Jewish house of worship is called a synagogue.
• Rabbis (spiritual leaders) conduct services, act as interpreters of
Jewish laws, and deliver sermons.
• Today there are over 18 million followers of Judaism scattered throughout the world. A large number of those people live in the
Jewish nation of Israel. Over six million live in the United States.
Jewish Philosophy
• God is one and unique
• God is the creator
• God is transcendent
• God is immanent.
• God is lawgiver
• God is personal
• We have the obligation to worship
• The Torah is God's law
• God is judge
• The Messiah will come.
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