Do Now: 3/17/10 “We have just enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another.”  Jonathan Swift

Do Now: 3/18/10 “There is only one religion, though there are a hundred versions of it.”  George Bernard Shaw Stop. Think. Do you Agree of Disagree? Why?

Five Major World Religions Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism

Abrahamic Religions Christianity – Judaism – Islam

Abrahamic Religions Judaism: Abraham is recorded in the Torah as the ancestor of the Israelites through his son Isaac. Christianity is sourced from Christ, known to be Jewish, and therefore making the same ancestry claim as above. Muslims have a tradition that Muhammed, as a Mecca-region Arab, descends from Abraham's son Ishmael.

Judaism Judaism is the oldest of the Abrahamic religions. Generally referred to as the Children of Israel

Judaism Based on the Hebrew Bible and Torah God = Elohim, Adonai… Judaism awaits the coming of the Jewish Messiah Judaism focuses on this life and how to lead a holy life to please God, rather than future reward.

Christianity Begun in Judea in the 1st century A.D. World’s largest religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth

The Trinity The Father + the Son + the Holy Spirit = Three in one God

Christianity Awaiting the second coming of Christ Most Christians believe that after one dies, there are places that the soul goes such as heaven, hell, limbo, or purgatory or that there is a general forgiveness and all souls are made in the image of God.

Islam Founded in Arabia by Muhammad in the 7 th century. The world’s second largest religion

Islam Muslims believe that the Jewish God is the same as their God, and that Jesus was a prophet inspired by God but was neither God nor His son. Muslims believe that both the Torah and the Gospels (Christianity) were based upon divine revelation but have been corrupted. The Quran is the final uncorrupted Word of God.

Islam Islam awaits both the second coming of Jesus (to complete his life and die, since he arose from the dead) and the coming of Mahdi (Sunnis in his first incarnation, Shiites as the return of Muhammad).

Hinduism Popular in South East Asia (India, Nepal, etc.) Formed of diverse traditions – no single founder Third largest religion

Hinduism Complex concept of God ◦ Believe there is one Supreme Being ◦ God does not live in a far away heaven but within each soul waiting to be discovered ◦ The goal of Hindu spirituality is to discover the supreme being within oneself

Hinduism Karma – “moral law of cause and effect” Believe in reincarnation – cycle is stopped when one realizes their eternal relationship with God Hinduism is based on “the accumulated treasury of spiritual laws discovered by different persons in different times.”

Buddhism Based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha) Northeastern Indian subcontinent (Bangladesh, Nepal) – between 6 th and 4 th centuries BCE

Buddhism Believe in karma Recite mantras to drive away bad karmamantras Believe in rebirth – succession of lifetimes

Buddhism Follow the Four Noble Truths ◦ 1. Life is characterized by suffering. 2. The cause of this suffering is craving and desire. 3. There is a way to end this suffering (Nirvana) 4. The way to end this suffering is to follow a life characterized by 8 ideas.

Do Now: 3/19/10 On this day in history, March 19, 2003, President Bush declared war on Iraq. ◦ President Bush said, “…to disarm Iraq [of weapons of mass destruction], to free its people and to defend the world from grave danger.” ◦ Iraqi radio announced, “…the evil ones, the enemies of God, the homeland and humanity, have committed the stupidity of aggression against our homeland and people.” Stop. Think. Respond to the quotes. Why do they have different opinions?