1. Christianity and Islam

2. Rise of Christianity
Some Jews began to revolt against Roman rule, resulting in all Jews being banned from Jerusalem
Jesus of Nazareth
Born in the town of Bethlehem
All knowledge about Jesus comes from the Gospels, the first four books of the New Testament
Traveled around preaching people to repent their sins and seek God’s forgiveness
People needed to seek forgiveness for the coming of Judgment Day
People were to practice humility, mercy, and charity

3. As Jesus traveled, he gathered a small group of disciples, or followers
According to the Bible, Jesus performed miracles and defended the poor
Roman authorities feared a political uprising and arrested Jesus and sentenced him to death
Jesus was crucified = nailed to a cross
Some believed he rose from the dead and spent another 40 days teaching his disciples before ascending into heaven
As a result, people began to call him Jesus Christ, the Greek word for Messiah

4. Spread of Christianity
Jesus’ disciples began to teach that all people could achieve salvation
Salvation = forgiveness of sins and the promise of everlasting life in heaven

5. The Apostles – the 12 disciples that Jesus had specifically chosen to carry out his message
Were the earliest Christian missionaries
Mostly only taught in Jewish communities
Paul of Tarsus believed that God had sent him to convert non-Jews
Without him, Christianity might have remained a branch of Judaism
The Christian message of eternal life after death appealed to many
Roman religious toleration contributed to the spread

6. Persecution
Some local officials and rulers, such as Nero, saw Christians as a threat and arrested and killed them
Fed to the lions, made them martyrs
Martyrs = people who die for their faith and thus inspire others to believe
Christianity survived and triumphed

7. Imperial approval of Christianity
Emperor Constantine became the first Christian emperor after he converted after winning a battle
He issued the Edict of Milan, which made Christianity legal within the empire and declared official tolerance of Christianity
Emperor Theodosius outlawed public non-Christian sacrifices and ceremonies
As a result, Christianity was adopted as the Roman religion and polytheism began to disappear

9. The Early Christian Church
Development of ceremonies that inspired people’s faith and made them feel closer to Jesus
Eucharist = held in memory of Jesus’ last supper with his disciples
Eat bread and drink wine in memory of Jesus’ death and resurrection
Baptism = people admitted into the Christian faith
Mass = religious ceremony

10. Hierarchy
Priests ran the ceremonies and instructed a small local community
Bishops = high-ranking church official who oversees a group of churches in a particular area
Many Christians believed that Peter the Apostle founded the Roman Church
Peter had been the bishop of Rome, so later bishops of Rome were seen as Peter’s spiritual heir
They took the name popes
Popes were seen as the head of the entire Christian church

11. Muhammad
Muhammad was born in Mecca and had a successful career as a merchant
While traveling on business, Muhammad met followers of Judaism and Christianity
These faiths influenced his thinking
Muhammad was a religious man who often left his home to live in a cave for extended periods
One of the times at the cave, Muhammad awoke to find himself in the presence of an angel, who commanded him to speak messages from Allah

12. Decides God has chosen him to be a prophet to spread messages
Allah was the one and only true God
Instructions on how to live to please Allah and live in paradise after death
Begins to preach in public and gains a number of followers
Muhammad moves from Mecca to Yathrib, which came to be called Medina, “the Prophet’s city”
This journey came to be known as the hegira, or hijra
The year the hegira took place became year one on the Islamic calendar (622)
This new faith was called Islam, meaning “achieving peace through submission to God”
Followers were called Muslims, claim ancestry to Abraham and his son

14. Basic Religious Teachings
Monotheistic, the Qur’an is the sacred text of Islam
The Qur’an also lays out five basic acts that are central to Islam
The Five Pillars of Islam
Belief – profession of faith
“There is no god but God (Allah) and Muhammad is the messenger of God”

16. Prayer – perform five daily prayers, always facing Mecca
Giving of alms or charity
Fasting = going without food or drink
Do this from dawn to dusk during the month of Ramadan, the month when Muhammad began to report the messages
Muslims believe that fasting is a way to show that God is more important than one’s own body
Pilgrimage, called the hajj, to Mecca
Pilgrims gather by the thousands to pray in the city’s large mosque
Mosque = building in which Muslims worship
Obeying Allah’s will means following the Five Pillars

18. Guidelines for good behavior outlined in the Qur’an
Muslims are forbidden to drink alcohol or eat pork
Must wash themselves before praying and prohibits lying, stealing, and murder
Jihad = “struggle for the faith”
Struggle to defend Muslim communities or to convert people to Islam
Islam is a peaceful religion

20. The Qur’an teaches that Allah is the same God that the Jews and Christians worship
Muhammad considered Abraham, Moses, and Jesus to be messengers of God, but saw himself as the last prophet
Both the Jewish and Christian bibles came from God, but the Qur’an was the final message from God to humanity
Muslims are to respect Jews and Christians as “people of the book”

21. Judaism
Christianity
Islam
Date est. BC
First century AD
600s
Founded by
Hebrews
Jesus/Paul of Tarsus
Muhammad
Where founded
Israel / mid East
Mid East
Followers called
Jews
Christians
Muslims
Main prophet
Moses
Jesus
Claim ancestry
Abraham

22. Judaism
Christianity
Islam
Other prophets
Moses
Moses Jesus
Text
Torah
Bible
Quran
Poly or Mono
Mono
Building worship
Synogogue
Church
Mosque
Feelings violence
Anti-violence
Pilgrimage
Jerusalem
Mecca