World Religions

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam  All three of these religions began in Southwest Asia and can all trace their history back to a man named Abraham.  They are all monotheist which means they believe in only one God.

 Oldest of the three major religions  Roots are traced to Abraham  Followers are called Jews  Holy Book is the Torah which are the first 5 books of the Christian Bible Worship in a synagogue  Main symbol is the six pointed “Star of David”

 Second oldest of the three major religions  Roots are traced to Jesus of Nazareth who Christians believe was the son of God  The Christian Bible is the sacred text (Holy Book)  Place of worship is called a church  Main symbol is the cross

Christianity has three major branches: Protestant – or Protestantism Catholic – or Catholicism Eastern Orthodox – or Orthodox

 Youngest of the three major religions  Roots are traced to Mohammad who Muslims believe to be a prophet of Allah (Muslim name for God)  Followers are called Muslims  Place of worship is a mosque  Sacred text is the Quran (Koran)  Symbol is the Crescent and Star

Note the overlap between language and religion! For the most part: Germanic = Protestant Christianity Romance = Catholic Christianity Slavic = Orthodox Christianity