Chapter 6: Religion
Where Are Religions Distributed?
Universalizing Religions
Christianity
- Has more than 2 billion adherents
- most widespread distribution
- predominant religion in North America, South America, Europe, and Australia
- has 3 major branches: Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox
- 51% of the worlds Christians,
- in Europe, Roman Catholicism is dominant in the southwest and east.
- 93% of Christians are Roman Catholic in Latin America, and 40% in North America, Protestants have 24%
- 24% of the worlds Christians
- dominant in the northwest
- churches have approximately 82 million members
- 11% of the worlds Christians
- a collection of 14 self-governing churches in Eastern Europe and the Middle East
Smaller Branches of Christianity:
- developed independently of the 3 main branches because of differences of doctrine
- Two small Christian churches survive in northeast Africa, the Coptic Church to Egypt and the Ethiopian Church
Pie Chart of Christianity in the world
Map of Christianity in the world
Countries with the most amount of Christians
Islam
- has 1.3 billion people
- predominant in Middle East
- "Islam" in Arabic means "submission to the will of God"
- Five Pillars of Faith:
- There in no god worthy of worship except the one God, the source of all creation, and Muhammad is the messenger of God
- Five times daily, a Muslim has to pray, facing the city of Makkah (Mecca), as a direct link of God
- A Muslim gives generously to charity as an act of purification and growth
- A Muslim fasts diring the month of Ramadan as an act of self-purification
- If physically and financially able, a Muslim makes a pilgrimage to Makkah
- divided into 2 major branches- Sunni and Shiite
- 83% of Muslims
- largest branch in most Muslim countries in Middle East and Asia
- "Sunni" comes from "people following the example of Muhammad"
- 16% of Muslims
- 30% live in Iran, 15% live in Pakistan, and 10% live in Iraq
- compose 90% of population in Iran and more than half in Azerbaijan
- "Shiite" comes from "sectarian"
- the Muslims who live in the United States
- founded in Detroit in 1930
- led by Elijah Muhammad
- tension between Muhammad and Malcolm X, divided the sect during the 1960's
Buddhism
- 3rd largest of the worlds major religions
- Nearly 400 adherents (mainly China and South East Asia)
- 4 Noble Truths :
- All living beings must endure suffering
- Suffering, which is caused by a desire to live, leads to reincarnation
- The goal of all existence is to escape suffering and the endless cycle of reincarnation into Nirvana ( a state of complete redemption) which is achieved through mental and moral self purification
- Nirvana is attained through an Eightfold Path , which includes rightness of belief, resolve, speech, action, livelihood, effort, thought, and meditation.
- 3 main branches:
- Mahayana- about 56% of all Buddhists. Mainly come from China, Japan and Korea
- Theravada- about 38% of all Buddhists. Mainly come from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand
- Tantrayana- about 6% of all Buddhists. Mainly from Tibet and Mongolia
- All religious functions are performed by monks
- Someone can be both Buddhist and believe in other eastern religions
Other Universalizing Religions
- Sikhism and Baha'i are the 2 other universalizing religions
- Approximately 23 million Sikhs and 7 million Baha'i's
- The majority of sikhs reside in the Punjab region of India and Baha'i's are mostly dispersed throughout Africa and Asia
- Sikhism's 1st Guru was Nanak and God was revealed to him as "The One Supreme Being" or "Creator, Who Rules the Universe by Divine Will".
- Their most important ceremony was by Gobind Singh and that is Amrit, which basically means baptism, where they declare they'll uphold principles in faith.
- They wore turbans on their heads and never cut their beards/ hair. The uniform gave discipline and unity.
- Baha'i grew out of Babi faith (Bab is Persian for 'gateway') and believe Husayn' Ali (One of Bab's disciples) was a messenger of God.
Sikhs ^
Baha'i daily prayer ^
Ethnic Religions
Hinduism
- Largest Ethnic Religion
- 97% of Hindus are concentrated in Indina and Nepal
- Doesn't have a set rule of how to practice or rigid approach to theology; An individual and thier relationship with his/her God is a personal relationship that no other can decide
- Ways to worship God:
- Path of Knowledge
- Path of Renunciation
- Path of Devotion
- Path of Action
- Vaishnavism: Worship Vishu-God incarnated as Krishna
- Sivaism: Worships Siva-A protective and destructive God
- Shaktism: Dedicated to the female form of Vishu and Siva
Other Ethnic Religions
CONFUCIANISM
- Teachings of Confucius (551-479 B.C.)
- Emphasis on the importance of the ancient Chinese tradition of li, (correct behavior)
- Special importance in China
- Confucianism encompasses ethical principles for the orderly conduct of daily life in China; i.e. .fulfilling obligations, treating others with sympathy and respect
- Teachings of Lao-Zi (604-531 B.C.)
- Emphasized the mystical and magical aspects of life rather than the importance of public service
- Daoists seek Dao, which is the virtuous and right path
- Avoidance of daily activities and introspection can a person live in harmony with the principles that underlie and govern the universe
- The religion splits into various sects, some are part of secret societies
- Communists that took control of china in 1949 banned the religion
- Ethnic religion of Japan
- Consider the forces of nature to be divine, especially the sun, moon, rivers, trees, rocks, mountains and certain animals
- Considered a political cult after the reign of Emperor Meiji (1861-1912) where he used the religion to call himself divine
- 14 million Jews in the U.S., 1/3 in Israel and 1/3 in the rest of the world
- considered an ethnic religion as it is based in the lands bordering the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea, Canaan.
- First recorded religion to espouse monotheism
- Traces origines back to Abraham and his sons, including Judah
- Animism: belief that inanimate objects such as plants and stones, and natural events such as thunderstorms are "animated" or have discrete spirits and conscious life
- No holy books or other written documents
- orally passed to next generation
- Major concentration of animists in Botswana
- The number of followers rapidly declines as Christian and Islamic religions grow in Africa
Many Christian Africans Convert To ISLAM in South Africa