WORLD RELIGIONSWorld Religions

Baha’i Faith

Buddhism

Christianity

Confucianism

Islam

Judaism

Shinto

Hinduism

Wicca

Taoism

Christianity31%

Islam22%

Non-Religious16%

Hinduism13%

Chinese Traditional6%

Buddhism5%

Indigenous4%

Other3%

Catholicism

Protestantism

Eastern Orthodoxy

Oriental Orthodoxy

Anglicanism

Nontrinitarianism

Nestorianism

Christianity2,100,000,000 members

Catholocism53%

Protestantism30%

Eastern Or-thodoxy

9%

Oriental Or-thodoxy

3%

Anglicanism4%

Nontrinitarianism1%

Nestorianism0%

Christianity

Christianity

Represents the crucifixion of Jesus Christ

Symbol - Cross

ChristianityGeneral Beliefs

• Christians believe that there is only one God

• Triune God – Father, Son, Holy Spirit

• Jesus, son of God, was crucified for the sins of man.

• Jesus will return again one day to judge all people

• Life after death in Heaven or Hell

• Holy text is the Bible

ChristianityGod

Jesus

Holy Bible

• The Catholic religion has been around since the time of Christ.

• Leader of the church is called the Pope.

• More emphasis on Mary, mother of Jesus, than Protestants

ChristianityCatholicism

St. Peter’s BasilicaVatican City

ChristianityCatholicism

St. Peter, disciple of Jesus, is considered the first Pope. He was crucified upside-down.

Pope Benedict XVI is the current Pope.

ChristianityProtestantism vs. Catholicism

Catholic Protestant

Includes apocrypha

Excludes apocrypha

Purgatory No Purgatory

Prayer to saints No prayer to saints

Mary – key role Mary – mother of Jesus

Mary, mother of Jesus

• Protestant religions formed when people protested the actions of the Catholic Church.

• Began in 1517 with Martin Luther

• Angry with Catholic church selling indulgences (forgiveness of sins)

ChristianityProtestantism

Martin Luther

• Baptist• Lutheran• Methodist• Reformed (Calvinism, Presbyterian, Congregational)• Anabatism (Amish & Mennonites)• Pentacostal• Non-Denominational• African initiated• Seventh-day Adventist

ChristianityDenominations

Baptist17%

Lutheran14%

Methodist12%

Reformed12%

Anabatism1%

Pentacostal21%

Non-denominational13%

African initiated7%

Seventh-day Adventist3%

Orthodox

Reform

Unaffiliated andSecular

Conservative

Reconstructionist

Judaism14,000,000 members

Conservative30%

Unaffiliated and Secular30%

Reform25%

Orthodox13%

Reconstructionist1%

Judaism

JudaismSymbols

Star of David Menorah

JudaismGeneral Beliefs

• Oldest faith among the major religions

• Same God as Christians

• Believe God’s will for humans was revealed to Moses when he was given the 10 commandments

• Do not believe Jesus was the Son of God

• Holy text is the Torah

• Followers called Jews

Judaism

Moses and the Ten Commandments

Torah

JudaismOther Facts

• A Jewish church is called a Synagogue

• Jewish ceremonies are often performed in Yiddish, or Hebrew.

•A Jewish leader is called a Rabbi

• Do not believe Jesus was the Messiah

• Holy text is the Torah, comprised mainly of Old Testament

• Followers are called Jews

Sunni

ShiiteAhmadiyya

Druze

Islam1,500,000,000 members

Sunni88%

Shiite11%

Ahmadiyya1%

Druze0%

Islam

ISLAMIslamSymbol

Star and Crescent

ISLAMIslamGeneral Beliefs

• Founded in the 7th century by Muhammad

• Believe in one God

• God is not triune, Jesus is not God’s son

• Call their God Allah

Allah, written in simple Arabic calligraphy

ISLAMIslamGeneral Beliefs

• Holy text is the Quran

• Believe in angles, including Gabriel, who brought the Quran to Mohammad

• Believe Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus were prophets, but Muhammad was the final prophet Prophet Mohammad

ISLAMIslamGeneral Beliefs

• Followers of Islam are called Muslims

• Muslims worship in temples called mosques

• Muslim priests are called imams

ISLAMIslamShiites & Sunnis

• When Mohammad died, his preference to follow him was Ali, the husband of his daughter. While the family was busy burying the Mohammad, the leaders of Medina elected the aging Abu Bakr, the father of the Prophet's favorite wife, as the successor.

• The Sunni follow Abu

• The Shiites follow Ali

Islam

Sunni Shiite

ISLAMIslam• While some Muslims have

engaged in acts of terror in the name of their God, the majority of Muslims are NOT terrorists.

Vaishnavites

Shaivites

Neo-Hindus &Reform Hindus

Veerashaivas

Hinduism900,000,000 members

Vaishnavites70%

Shaivites26%

neo-Hindus & reform Hindus3%

Veerashaivas (Lingayats)1%

Hinduism

HinduismSymbol

Om or Aum

It represent several important triads:

1. The three worlds - earth, atmosphere, and heaven

2. The three major Hindu gods - Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva

HinduismGeneral Beliefs

• Three-in-one God known as Brahman

• Brahma (the creator)

• Vishnu (the preserver)

• Shiva (the destroyer)

HinduismGeneral Beliefs

• Caste System

HinduismGeneral Beliefs

• Karma.  The law that good begets good, and bad begets bad.  Every action, thought, or decision one makes has consequences – good or bad – that will return to each person in the present life, or in one yet to come.

• Reincarnation.  This is a journey on the “circle of life,” where each person experiences a series of physical births, deaths, and rebirths.  With good karma, a person can be reborn into a higher caste, or even to godhood.  Bad karma can relegate one to a lower caste, or even to life as an animal in their next life.

HinduismGeneral Beliefs

• Nirvana.  This is the goal of the Hindu.  Nirvana is the release of the soul from the seemingly endless cycle of rebirths.

• Part of Brahman within you, called the atman. Similar to the idea of a soul in Christianity

• Many sacred texts including the Vedas and the Bhagavad Gita

Theravada

Mahayana

Lamaism

Buddhism376,000,000 members

Mahayana56%

Theravada38%

Lamaism6%

Buddhism

BUDDHISM

The most different of the five major religions is Buddhism. It is more a lifestyle that focuses on ending desire, thus ending

suffering.

376 million

BUDDHISM

• Buddhists don’t really worship a god - they believe god is everywhere, and that when we end desire we are at peace with ourselves and nature.

BUDDHISM

• Many people believe that Buddhists worship statues of Buddha, like the one at right. Not so.

BUDDHISM

• Buddhist priests are called lamas or monks. The Buddhist scriptures are called the Tripatakas, or three baskets.

BUDDHISM

• One thing Buddhists and Hindus have in common is the belief in reincarnation. They believe you come back in a different form based on your actions in this life.

BUDDHISM

• Most Buddhists live in Asian countries such as China.

HINDUISM

• Brahma is the senior God, and creator of the universe.

What god does each religion believe in?

What is the scripture for each religion?

Match the religion with its place of worship

• Synagogue• Church• Cathedral• Mosque• Temple

• Muslim• Protestant• Jewish• Catholic• Buddhist & Hindu

Match the term to the religion

• Priest, Bishop• Monk, lama• Imam• Rabbi• Minister, Reverend• Guru

• Judaism• Buddhism• Protestant• Hindu• Catholic• Muslim

Match the geographic location to the religion

• Middle East• Israel, Europe, U.S.• N. & S. America, Europe• Asia• India• U.S., Australia

• Protestant• Muslim• Jewish• Hindu• Catholic• Buddhist

What is the BIG difference between Christians and Jews and Muslims?

HINT: J.C.

How was each religion created?

• Judaism Abraham• Catholicism Jesus’ teachings• Hinduism unsure• Protestant Protesting Catholicism• Buddhist Buddha• Islam Mohammed

How does each religion view the afterlife?

Which religions believe in reincarnation?