1. Religion & Renaissance

2. Babylonia influenced Greek, Egyptian, Jewish, and Arab thought.

3. Persian Zoroastrianism Was the first monotheistic religion recorded in history

4. Hebrew Philosophy must be understood in light of radical monotheism. The Jews were exiled from Judea in 70 A.D. They spread throughout Europe, bringing their ideas with them

5. 1 st – 3 rd Century Followers of Jesus, the Christ (or king) became known as Christians

6. Christianity spread throughout the Roman Empire and became the dominant religion of Europe

7. Christianity split into two different branches: Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox

8. 7 th Century Followers of Muhammad, the prophet, became known as Moslems After Muhammad died, Islam split into 2 different branches: Shia and Sunni Islam spread throughout the Middle East and became the second largest religion in the world.

9. Today’s belief systems Christianity Islam Non-religious Hinduism Chinese Religions Primal faiths Buddhism Sikhism Judaism

10. Islam Muhammad - Prophet of Islam, died in 632 C.E. Moslems – followers Shia – followed Ali as successor to Muhammad Sunni – followed Abu Bakr as successor Muhammad

11. Sunni = 85% Shia = 15%

12. Umayyad Caliphate 661-750 c.e. The capital of the Umayyad Caliphate was in Damascus, Syria.

13. A caliphate is an Islamic State A caliph (successor to Muhammad) is the political, religious, and absolute ruler Abu Bakr, the first Sunni Caliph

14. The Renaissance Europe 1300s – 1600s

15. Renaissance means “rebirth” A period of creativity that followed Europe’s Middle Ages a rebirth of interest in classical (Greek & Roman) art, literature and writing. The School of Athens, by Raphael

16. Scientific Revolution Interest in Classical Greek and Roman thinking led to a renewed interest in logic and reason