World Religions

The major world religions that are dealt with are Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism and Islam.

Christianity

Life and death of Jesus

This history of Christianity is focussed on the life, death and resurrection of one person, Jesus Christ, the son.

Background to the life and death of Jesus Christ

The traditional story of Jesus tells of his birth in a stable in Bethlehem in the Holy Land, to a young virgin called Mary who had become pregnant with the son of God through the action of the Holy Spirit.

The story of Jesus' birth is told in the writings of Matthew and Luke in the New Testament of the Bible.

His birth is believed by Christians to be the fulfilment of prophecies in the Jewish Old Testament, which claimed that a Messiah would deliver the Jewish people from captivity.

Jesus' ministry

After the story of his birth, little is known about Jesus until he began his ministry at the age of about 30.

He then spent three years teaching, healing and working miracles.

He taught in parables - everyday stories which had divine messages for those who would hear it.

He had twelve disciples whom he called to follow him and help him in his work.

Persecution and death

Jesus stated publicly that he spoke with the authority of God.

This claim angered the religious authorities in Palestine and they handed Jesus over to the Roman authorities as a revolutionary.

He was tried for heresy, condemned and put to death by means of crucifixion.

Resurrection

On the Sunday following his execution, some of his women followers discovered that the tomb into which his body had been placed was empty.

Jesus then appeared to them, alive, as the Jesus they had known prior to his death. His followers realised that God had raised Jesus from the dead.

Jesus was seen by many of his disciples and followers over the next few days before, according to the Gospel accounts, he was taken up into heaven.

For further information click on the following link:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/history/history_1.shtml

Hinduism

Although it is not easy to define Hinduism, we can say that it is rooted in India, most Hindus revere a body of texts as sacred scripture known as the Veda, and most Hindus draw on a common system of values known as dharma.

Hinduism originated around the Indus Valley near the River Indus in modern day Pakistan.
About 80% of the Indian population regard themselves as Hindu.
Most Hindus believe in a Supreme God, whose qualities and forms are represented by the multitude of deities which emanate from him.
Hindus believe that existence is a cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, governed by Karma.
Hindus believe that the soul passes through a cycle of successive lives and its next incarnation is always dependent on how the previous life was lived.
The main Hindu texts are the Vedas and their supplements (books based on the Vedas). Veda is a Sanskrit word meaning 'knowledge'. These scriptures do not mention the word 'Hindu' but many scriptures discuss dharma, which can be rendered as 'code of conduct', 'law', or 'duty'
Hindus celebrate many holy days, but the Festival of Lights, Diwali is the best known.
The 2001 census recorded 559,000 Hindus in Britain, around 1% of the population.

Who is Brahma?

Brahma is the first god in the Hindu triumvirate, or trimurti. The triumvirate consists of three gods who are responsible for the creation, upkeep and destruction of the world. The other two gods are Vishnu and Shiva.

Vishnu is the preserver of the universe, while Shiva's role is to destroy it in order to re-create.

Brahma's job was creation of the world and all creatures. His name should not be confused with Brahman, who is the supreme God force present within all things.

Brahma is the least worshipped god in Hinduism today. There are only two temples in the whole of India devoted to him, compared with the many thousands devoted to the other two.

Judaism

Is Judaism a Religion?

Clearly, there is a religion called Judaism, a set of ideas about the world and the way we should live our lives that is called "Judaism." It is studied in Religious Studies courses and taught to Jewish children in Hebrew schools. See What do Jews Believe? for details. There is a lot of flexibility about certain aspects of those beliefs, and a lot of disagreement about specifics, but that flexibility is built into the organized system of belief that is Judaism.

However, many people who call themselves Jews do not believe in that religion at all! More than half of all Jews in Israel today call themselves "secular," and don't believe in G-d or any of the religious beliefs of Judaism. Half of all Jews in the United States don't belong to any synagogue. They may practice some of the rituals of Judaism and celebrate some of the holidays, but they don't think of these actions as religious activities.

The most traditional Jews and the most liberal Jews and everyone in between would agree that these secular people are still Jews, regardless of their disbelief. See Who is a Jew? Clearly, then, there is more to being Jewish than just a religion.

References:

http://www.jewfaq.org/judaism.htm

http://www.jewfaq.org/beliefs.htm

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/307197/Judaism

Islam

The word Islam means 'submission to the will of God'.

Islam is the second largest religion in the world with over 1 billion followers. The 2001 census recorded 1,591,000 Muslims in the UK, around 2.7% of the population.

Muslims believe that Islam was revealed over 1400 years ago in Mecca, Arabia.
Followers of Islam are called Muslims.
Muslims believe that there is only One God.
The Arabic word for God is Allah.
According to Muslims, God sent a number of prophets to mankind to teach them how to live according to His law.
Jesus, Moses and Abraham are respected as prophets of God.
They believe that the final Prophet was Muhammad.
Muslims believe that Islam has always existed, but for practical purposes, date their religion from the time of the migration of Muhammad.
Muslims base their laws on their holy book the Qur'an, and the Sunnah.
Muslims believe the Sunnah is the practical example of Prophet Muhammad and that there are five basic Pillars of Islam.
These pillars are the declaration of faith, praying five times a day, giving money to charity, fasting and a pilgrimage to Mecca (atleast once).

Reference:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/ataglance/glance.shtml