1. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam contribution to Western political thought

2. Judaism Judaism was developed by the Hebrews
People are the children of God according to the Hebrew Bible (the Hebrew Bible is the Old Testament in Christianity)
They believed God gave peole the freedom to choose between good and evil
Each person was responsible for choices he/she made

3. The Hebrews came to be known as the Jews
They developed the Ten Commandments, a written code of law
These laws focused on morality and ethics than they did on politics
The Hebrews felt the community should help the less fortunate
The prophets of Judaism hoped for a world without poverty

4. Christianity
Jesus was born during 6 to 4 BC, when the Romans ruled Judea, homeland of the Jews
At the age of 30, he began preaching many ideas fro Jewish tradition, including the 10 Commandments
He stressed the importance of people’s love for God, their neighbors, their enemies and themselves

5. When Jesus’ teachings threated the power of Jewish priests and the Romans, they put him to death
His followers started a new religion, Christianity, based on his teaching around 1 AD
The apostle Paul preached that all human being were equal

6. Islam Monotheism-belief in one God
Started in southwest Asia in early 600s
The religion taught that all people were equal
It also believed in the worth of the individual and the responsibility of the community to help the unfortunate members

7. Several beliefs of these 3 religions helped to shape democratic ideas:
The duty of individuals and the commnity to help oppressed people
The worth of the individual
The equality of people before God