Major World Religions

Major World Religions World History World Religions Social Studies Geography

A Look At The Numbers

Pie Chart

Religions by Followers • Christianity • Islam • Hinduism • Buddhism • Sikhism

Christianity • Roughly 2,120,900,550 followers • Monotheistic • God is three persons • Bible- main teachings

Branches • Roman Catholic • Eastern Orthodox • Protestant • Anglican • Amish • Baptist • Lutheran • Presbyterian • Quaker • Seventh-Day Adventists

Major holidays • Christmas – Celebrations of Jesus, their messiah’s birthday. On December 25 • Easter – Celebration of Jesus, their messiah’s resurrection from the dead which their religion is based around.

Life style • Very normal lifestyle, family life is encouraged. • Charity and good deeds are expected from followers • Followers may sometimes be religious sisters and brothers. CHARITY

Islam • About 1,280,780,150 followers • Monotheistic • Based on revelations of their prophet Muhammad. • Founded in Mecca Saudi Arabia in 622 CE • Sacred text is the Qur’an(Koran) • “There is no God but God, and Muhammad is his Prophet.”

Major Pillars • Faith • Prayer • Fasting • Pilgrimage • And Alms • One day everyone will be judged and go to either Paradise or Hell.

Holidays • Ramadan: month long • Eidul-Fitr: festival of breaking fast • Eidal Adha: festival of sacrifice

Some beliefs • There prophet Muhammad they do not believe to be divine. • There life goal is to submit to the will of Allah and make it into the afterlife.

Afterlife • The soul continues on when the body dies. • There is a final judgment that decides between Paradise and hell • There will be a resurrection and day of judgment

Hinduism • Approximately 860,690,890 followers • Has no single founder, Scripture, and no commonly agreed set of teachings. • Elements of it stretch back Many thousands of years. • 80% of Indian population Identify themselves as Hindu. • Supreme god whose qualities and forms are represented by the multitude of deities.

Beliefs • Existence is the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth governed by Karma. • The soul passes through a cycle of successive lives and its next incarnation is dependent on how the previous life was lived. • Believe in complete freedom of belief and worship. • Main texts are the four Vedas and their supplements. • Veda is a Sanskrit word meaning knowledge. • Contain dharma which means code of conduct, law, or duty.

Deities • Brahman- supreme god • Trimurti: • Brahma- creator of the universe • Vishnu- preserver of the universe • Shiva- destroyer of universe to be re-created • Triumvirate consorts are Saraswati, Lakshima, and Paravati • Other gods: Ganesh, Murugan, Krishna • Other goddesses: Durga, Kali, Radha

history • Earliest evidence of religion in India dates back to the late Neolithic in the early Harappan period (5500–2600 BCE). • Beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era (1500–500 BCE) are called the “Historical Vedic Religion.” • Fire-sacrifices, called yajña are performed, but no temples or idols are known. • ‘Hindu’ is derived (through Persian) from the Sanskrit word Sindhu, the name for the Indus River which is first mentioned in the Rig Veda.

Definition • Does not have a declaration of faith or a creed. • Is an umbrella term comprising of and based of the Vedic traditions. • This makes it difficult to define it as a religion according to traditional Western conceptions. • Hinduism is a traditional way of life to its followers. • The World’s oldest, most complex, and most diverse religion • Some Hindus are even atheists

Buddhism • Around 381,610,980 followers • Also a philosophy • Founded by Siddhartha Guatama • Buddha- comes from budhi which means “To awaken” • Son of an Indian warrior-king • Became a monk

Beliefs • Four Truths • Life is suffering • Craving and aversion cause suffering • It is possible to end suffering • Being moral is the path that leads to the end of suffering • Cycle of rebirth is based on Karma • Fortunate Realms- Demigods, Gods, Men • Unfortunate Realms- Animals, Ghosts, Hell • Man is the highest realm because it offers Nirvana or enlightenment.

branches • Two Main Branches: • Theravada- "The School of the Elders“ • widespread following in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar etc.) • Mahayana- "The Great Vehicle“ • found throughout East Asia (China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Singapore, Taiwan etc.) • Vajrayana • Also recognized as a part of Mahayana • practiced mainly in Tibet and Mongolia, and adjacent parts of China and Russia *Buddhism recognized as the fastest growing religions in the world

The three jewels • The Buddha • The Dharma (the teachings) • The Sangha (the community) • Taking "refuge in the triple gem" has traditionally been a declaration and commitment to being on the Buddhist path, and, in general, distinguishes a Buddhist from a non-Buddhist.

Sikhism • Around 25,140,910 followers • Not very well known • Most people would think that Judaism is more popular but it’s about 10,000,000 followers short.

beliefs • One god that can’t be in the form of a human • Goal in life is to be with God • Cardinal vices (or sins) are: • Kam (lust) • Krodh (anger) • Lobh (greed) • Moh (worldly attachment) • Ahankar (pride)

Things to Reject • Fasting • Religious vegetarianism • Pilgrimages • Superstitions • Worship of idols

teachings • Celibacy is not needed for Eternal Life • The Guru Ganth Sahib is their holy book • Deny distinctions like gender or race

Will Christianity Remain? • Some people believe that Christianity will continue to the hold the majority in world religions. • While looking at the map on your right, this would seem to be true.

Judaism • About est. 13.5 million followers world wide, mostly in Israel, the United States, and Russia • Founded by Abraham around 2000 BCE in Israel • 1st known monotheistic religion in the world • Jews have a covenant or agreement with god created by Abraham

Judaism • Moses leads the Jews out of slavery • Delivers the Ten Commandments • The most sacred writing in Judaism is the Torah (first 5 books of the Bible) • The Talmud contains the oral traditions of Jewish law in written form

What’s Next? • Some believe that all major world religions will merge into one super religion. • Others believe that the current trend will be to Atheism. • Religion has been around for over 5,000 years and during all of human civilization. If Atheism were one day to reign supreme, it would likely not occur for thousands of years. • What do you think?

Major World Religions World History World Religions Social Studies Geography

Major World Religions