The Major Religions of the World

How Many Do You Know?  List all of the religions of the world that you can think of.

We will study these….  Judaism  Hinduism  Buddhism  Christianity  Islam  Mormonism

World Religion #1 Judaism

The First Israelites  First monotheistic religion – Judaism – Established about 1800BCE – Believed that they were the descendants of Abraham – Spoke Hebrew  Built a kingdom in Canaan in 1000BCE – Today Lebanon, Israel and Jordan  Wrote their beliefs in the Torah – First five books of the Old Testament

Moses leads the Israelites out of Captivity

Moses receives the “laws” from God

The Kingdom of Israel  First King was Saul  War against the Philistines – David slays Goliath and becomes King – David’s son Solomon builds a famous temple Now the famous “Wailing Wall”

The Western “Wailing” Wall

The Growth of Judaism  Ancient Israelites met once a week on the “Sabbath,” a holy day of prayer  They met in “Synagogues,” houses of worship  They read from the Torah (Hebrew Bible), Prophets and 34 other books

The Jewish Way of Life  Great importance placed on sons  Jews can only eat certain foods = Kosher  Major Holy Days = Passover, Rosh - Hoshana (New Year), Yom Kippur, Hanukkah  Jewish men wear head coverings as tradition  Jewish leaders called Rabbis

World Religion #2 Hinduism

 Third largest religion in the world  Formulated by 1500BCE  Based on basic principles are found in 4 Vedas – sacred writings  Priests are called Brahmins  There is no “leader” or “founder”

Early Hinduism  Thousands of deities are all part of one universal spirit – Brahman  Reincarnation – passing through many lives to reach the Brahman  Karma – consequences of how a person lives

Hinduism Beliefs  God in Hinduism is the Supreme Being – Everywhere, all-knowing, and all-powerful  The purpose of life is to obtain liberation from the cycle of reincarnation.  Everyone has three “debts” – God – Saints and sages (wise-men) – Ancestors

World Religion #3 Buddhism

Who is the Buddha?  Founder-Siddhartha Gautama (c.520BCE) – Known as the Buddha or “enlightened one”  Present spiritual leader -Dalai Lama – Head of Buddhist Church  4 th largest religion in the world today – Mainly found in China, Japan, Korea, SE Asia

Buddhist Beliefs  Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path  The only way to the truth is to give up all desires  Purpose of life is to escape the cycle of rebirth and attain nirvana – Nirvana – a state of wisdom

The Dalai Lama – The present spiritual leader of Buddhism

World Religion #4 Christianity

History of Christianity  Founded c.33CE in Palestine – Founded by Jesus and his followers (disciples) – Jesus is believed to be the messiah  Currently, main locations are: – Europe – North America – South America

Christian Population throughout the World

Christianity Beliefs  Sacred Text – The Bible (Old and New Testament)  Purpose of Life – To know, love, and serve God  Major Holidays – Easter, Christmas, Lent, Advent  Belief in God – One God (a trinity of Father, Son, Holy Spirit)

Christianity Facts  Over 2B followers…largest religion in the world  Major Sects – Roman Catholic (RCC) – Eastern Orthodox (EO) – Protestant  House of Worship – Church or Chapel  Leaders of the Church – Hierarchy of priests and Pope (RCC) and (EO)

Canterbury Cathedral, England

World Religion #5 Islam

History of Islam  Founded in 622CE – 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 – Shia (or Shiite)

Muhammad

Islamic Beliefs  One God – Allah  Five Pillars of Islam – Faith-one god, Allah – Prayer-5x/day – Charity-give to poor – Fast-during Ramadan – Pilgrimage-to Mecca

Islamic Beliefs  Sacred Text – Qur’an (Koran) – Hadith  Religious Law – Sharia  House of Worship – Mosque  Leaders of the Religion – imams

Islam Facts  Over 1B followers…second largest religion in the world  Major Areas in the World – Middle East – SE Asia

Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Blue Mosque Istanbul, Turkey

World Religion #6 Mormonism

 The Church of Ladder-Day Saints (LDS) – Followers are known as Mormons  Founder-Joseph Smith – Translated a sacred history of the Americas, known as the Book of Mormon in 1830

The Mormon Church  Way of Life – Belief in prophets (Gordon B. Hinckley) – God (Father), Christ (Son), & the Holy Ghost are three separate individuals – Must give up alcohol, tobacco, coffee, tea – Must give 10% of income to church – House of Worship: Temple or Church

San Diego Mormon Temple San Diego, California

Salt Lake Temple Salt Lake City, Utah

The Mormon Church  Sacred Texts – The Book of Mormon, the Christian Bible, Doctrines & Covenants  Current Headquarters: Salt Lake City, Utah  To Achieve Salvation : Faith and works…works are emphasized (missionary)  Today there are more than 12 millions followers, half outside the US