World Religions By Judy Chau and Reinier Sese

Hinduism Date of Origin 3102 BC Country of Origin

India

How It Began

Hinduism was created so long ago,

there was no records of the original

founder. It was said that the Four Vedas was revealed to spiritual men, also

known as the rishis, through nature.

Basic Beliefs/Practices/Rules of

Religion

-The 3 in 1 God Brahman. Brahman (creator), Vishu (Preserver), Shiva (The

Destroyer)

- Caste System

- Karma - Reincarnation

- Nirvana

- Polytheistic and pantheistic - 4 stages over their course of life

-Brahmacharga

-Grastha

-Vanaprastha - Sanngasu

- Namaste greeting - Puja (every morning ritual)

- The Sadhu (Devotion to a

god/meditation)

- Reaching Moshka (Peaceful escape from the cycle of reincarnation)

Significant Figures

- Abhinavagupta

- Kabir

- Kalidasa

- Guru Nanak

Important Events

- Vedic Period

- Bhakti Movement

- Reception in the West - Early colonialism

Holy Books/Relics/Symbols - Vedas

- Om (Hindu sacred sound)

- Swastika – good fortune, luck, and

well-being.

Number of Followers - 900 million followers – started in

India spread to SE Asia then all over the

world.

Buddhism Date of Origin 546-324 BCE

Country of Origin India

How It Began - Offspring of Hinduism

- Siddhartha Guatama

-Life on meditation

Basic Beliefs/Practices/Rules of

Religion - Happiness and good attainable by all

- Negative mental states can be

overcome by meditation -Reincarnation

-3 Main Trainings

- Sila- equality, good conduct

- Samadhi- Concentration, meditation, and mental development

- Prajna- Discernment, insight, wisdom

Significant Figures - Ananda - Aung San Suu Kyi

- Bodhidharma

- Miaoxin

Important Events - 6 councils

Holy Books/Symbols/Relics - Tipitaka

- Lion – regality, strength, power - Stupas

Number of Followers -About 500 million followers - Southwards from North India to South

East countries

Confucianism

Date of Origin 551-479 BCE Country of Origin China

How It Began A Chinese philosopher named K'ung

Fu-tzu or Confucius believed that a

society could become perfect, if the people who lived in it exhibited

"beautiful conduct." Confucius was

born in 551 B.C.E. He devoted his life to teaching people how to behave.

Practices/Rules of the Religion/

Basic Beliefs - Great God

- Angels - Spirits of Ancestors

- Doesn’t believe in

hell/paradise/resurrection

- Moral values -T’aishen (protects pregnant woman)

Significant Figures - Master Kong (Confucias)

- Zengzi - Xun Xi

- Zhu Xi

- Mencius

Important Events - First emperor killed Confucian

philosophers - Han dynasty

- Analects – 55 BCE

Holy Books/ Symbols/ Relics - Four Classics - Analects

- The Great Learning

- Doctrine of the Mean

- Mencius - Water Sign

Number of Followers Six million

Christianity Date of origin

33 AD

Country of origin

Palestine

How it began

- Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary.

- Lived as a messenger of God.

- He was crucified, killed, and buried under the order of Pontius Pilate.

- He was resurrected after the 3rd

day

Basic Beliefs/Practices/Rules

- Different sects have different practices and rules.

- Belief in the Holy Trinity:

1. The Father 2. The Son

3. The Holy Spirit

- Christianity’s place of worship is

called a church - Church is attended every Sunday.

- The 10 commandments

- Acceptance of Jesus as your Lord and savior.

Important Events - 2000 years ago December 25: Jesus

Christ was born. - 33 AD: Jesus was crucified, killed,

and buried.

3 days after burial, he was resurrected.

Holy Books/Symbols/Relics - Cross: represents the crucifixion of

Christ and how he died for the sins of

the world. - The Holy Bible: Christianity’s holy

book and the core of the religion.

Significant Figures - Jesus: Son of God and savior. - Pope: Leader of the Catholic Church

Number of Followers 2.1 billion worldwide

Judaism Date of origin 2000 BCE

Country of origin Palestine

How It Began - God granted Abraham and his wife a

son, Isaac

- Abraham was asked to kill his son to test his faith.

- Abraham agreed, but the last minute,

God spared Isaac. - Abraham passed his test of loyalty.

Basic Beliefs/Practices/Rules - Rules include the 10 commandments

- Monotheistic - Place of worship is called Synagogue

Important Events - 1841 BCE: Abraham’s son, Isaac is

born. - 1939 – 1944: Genocide of Jews in

Europe.

Holy Books/Symbols/Relics - Torah: Holy book

- Menorah: Symbol for the Jewish holiday, Hanakkuh.

- Star of David: Insignia of the religion

Significant Figures - Abraham: Founder/Patriarch of

Judaism - Moses: Led the Jews out of Egypt and

received the 10 commandments atop of

Mt. Sinai.

Number of Followers 14 million followers

Islam Date of origin 610 AD

Country of Origin Saudi Arabia

How It Began - Muhammad experienced an angelic

visitation from Gabriel.

- Muhammad dictated the Qur’an

Important Events - 638 AD: First introduced by prophet

Muhammad.

- 622 AD: Muhammad migrated to Makkah.

Holy Books/Symbols/Relics - The Qur’an: Holy book and center of

Islam.

- Star & Crescent: The insignia of the

Ottoman Empire and Islam adopted it.

Significant Leaders/ Figures - Muhammad: prophet that introduced Islam.

- Allah: supreme Lord

- Jesus: was born of the Virgin Mary,

but not believed to be the Messiah.

Number of Followers

1.8 billion followers

Current Events

Hinduism

Comments on Obama’s Wall: Part 1- India US Roadmap for Strategic Partners

1) Name the two countries that formed a partnership. America and India

2) Predict can get peace and security because of the

partnership? Asia

3) Analyze what Obama did. Created a foundation of a strategic partnership for the interest

of both countries.

4) Recall what country became a new global power. India

5) Draw conclusions whether or not this was a good choice. Yes, it is, because it benefits America and India.

Current Events

Buddhism Buddhism Struggles for Relevance

1) Why are temples becoming bankrupt? The only time people usually go is to attend funerals.

2) What do the monks wish for? They wish for temples to become a part of everyday li fe

again.

3) Analyze and explain how temples try to attract more

people. They hold seminars; conduct Western -style weddings,

concerts, etc.

4) Did the priests ever have this money problem before? No. There used to be many people attending the temple.

5) What do priests do to get more money? They start getting second jobs.

Current Events

Confucianism Confucianism for modern persons in dialogue with Christianity

and modernity .

1) Recall what China did in 1911. China completely dismissed the original Confucianism and

created a more modern Confucianism.

2) Analyze how many generations of Confucianism there

was. There was three generations.

3) Create reasons as to why Confucianism is changing. Because it was so long ago, they had to make it more

modern to fit today’s lifestyle.

4) Identify what the artic le said Confucianism

generations represent. They signify a significant evolution of thoughts and goals .

5) Identify the periods Confucianism went through. Confucianism went through the classical period, Han

Dynasty, middle period, Song until the end of Qing dynasty,

and twentieth century.

Current Events

Christianity Oh Father Where Art Thou?

1) Analyze Europe’s situation on Christian faith. Europe’s Christians are losing devotion to the religion and

the number of followers are dwindling.

2) Predict what will happen to the amount of believers in

the future. I believe if the decline of Christians continues, Christianity

may well be equivalent to Islam.

3) Compare the number of Muslims to Christ ians in

Europe. Muslims in Europe number more than 37 million.

Christians, however, still includes 550 followers and

dropping.

4) Name the largest sect of Christ ianity in Europe. Roman Catholic.

5) Recall the decreasing percentage of C hurch attendees

in Britain. 30%.

Current Events

Judaism In Sliver of Indonesia, Public Embrace of Judaism

1) Identify the dominant religion in this part of

Indonesia. Christianity

2) Tell what the town erected to display its Jewish faith. A 62 feet tall menorah.

3) Quote Leo van Buegan’s feelings on Judaism. “We told our children never to talk about our Jewish

origins,” said Leo van Beugan, “so our grandchildren do not

even know.

4) Make observations on the religious beliefs in the rest

of the country. Indonesia has the highest population of Muslims in the

world and that area is mostly Christian .

5) Connect Judaism in Indonesia to Christ ianity in

Indonesia They both are very much dominated by Islam, but a decent

number of Indonesians follow Christianity.

Current Events

Islam Voices of Islam

1) Quote Mustafa ’s feelings on the War in Iraq. He declared, “America's principal interests are oil and Israel.”

2) What does today ’s society perceive Muslims as due to

the current circumstances? People target all Muslims as terrorists and as their enemies.

3) How does Karim feel about Indonesia ’s political

status? “Indonesia can burst apart very easily. The government is not strong.”

4) According to Mustafa, what do Muslims believe about

sacrific ing their own lives? They believe that entrance into heaven is granted with sel f

sacri fice.

5) What is Turkey ’s dominant religion? Islam is Turkey’s dominant religion. .

Resources

Hinduism S y m m on s , D . (1 9 9 8 ) . Th is i s h in d u i sm .

Hindu ism . (2010 , November 29 ). Ret ri eved from rel igionfa ct s .co m

Hindu ism . (2010 , September 20) . Retr i eved from contendermini st ri es .or g

Hindu ism . (2009 , September 2) . Retr i eved from india nexcur sion.ne t

Buddhism Coope r, A. (200 4) . Fa cts a bout bud d hism . Hodd er W a yl and .

Al l a bo ut bud d hism . (200 9, No ve mbe r 1 1) . Ret r i e ve d fro m c at alo gs .co m Bud d hism . (20 10, Oct ob er 25) . Re t r i e ve d fr o m Budd his m. about .co m Bud d hism . (20 10, M a y 12 ). R et r i e ve d fr o m vi e wo nbud dhis m.o r g

Bud d hism . (20 10, Au gu s t 4 ) . R et r i e ve d f ro m bu ddh an et .n e t

Confucianism

P en g , T . (2 0 0 8 ) . Wh a t i s c o n fu c ia n i sm? .

Confuc iani sm . (2006 , Ma y 10) .

Ret ri eved from sa cred -text s .com

Confuc iani sm . (2010 , Ja nuary 5) . Retr i eved from phi losophy. la nder .ed u

Confuc iani sm . (2010 , Apr il 15) . Retr i eved from www2 .k enyon.ed u

Confuc iani sm . (2010 , Ma rch 27) . Retr i eved from i shwar .com/Confu cia ni s m

Confuc iani sm . (2009 , December 13 ) . Retr i eved from

victoria pa cking.com/rel igioninf o

Christianity

Marion, J. (2002). Putting on the mind of christ. Newburyport, MA: Hampton Roads Publishing

Company

Covington, M. (n.d.). What christianity is all about. Retrieved from

http://www.covingtoninnovations.com/christian.html

Judaism

R i c h, T . (1 9 9 5 ) . Wha t I s Ju da i sm ?

J u d a ism 1 0 1 . R et r i ev e d N o v e m b er 3 0 , 2 0 1 0 , f r o m

ht t p : / / www. j e wfa q. or g / ju da i sm . ht m

Islam

Kurzman, C. (1998). Liberal islam: a source book. New York City, NY: Oxford University Press,

inc.

Christian Information Industries, Initials. (n.d.). The religion of islam . Retrieved from

http://ldolphin.org/cisislam.html