THE FIVE MAJOR WORLD RELIGIONS

RMS IB Middle School

2012-2013

AGENDA OBJ: The scholar will be able to identify

the five major world religions by completing the World Religions Chart.

1. Warm-up: CNN Student News2. Notes: 5 Major World Religions3. World Religions Chart4. Reflection

WHAT IS RELIGION? A religion is an organized system of

beliefs and practices, often centered on one or more gods.

Monotheistic- one god Polytheistic- many gods There are five major world religions:

BuddhismChristianityHinduism Islam Judaism

BUDDHISM

Began in India in the sixth century. Founded by Siddhartha Gautama who

became known as the Buddha. He taught his followers that the way to end

suffering was by practicing the Noble Eightfold Path.Right opinions, right desires, right speech, right

action, right job, right effort, right concentration, and right meditation

Today, most Buddhist live in Sri Lanka, East Asia, Southeast Asia, and Japan.

CHRISTIANITY

The largest religion in the world.

Based on the life and teachings of Jesus, the Son of God.

The Holy Bible serves as the holy text with both the Old and New Testament.

SECTS OF CHRISTIANITY Protestants

Founded by Martin Luther when he challenged the authority of the pope resulting in the Protestant Reformation.

The Virgin Mary is not central to their worship.

SECTS OF CHRISTIANITY Catholics

The Pope has universal authority within the Catholic church and serves as the figure head of the church.

Catholicism is distinguished from other sects of Christianity for many reasons including administration of the sacraments, special regard to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the pope and priesthood, and the apocrypha.

HINDUISM Hindus believe that a supreme being

called Brahman is the soul of the universe.

The same presence, they believe, can be found within each person.

People can be freed from suffering and desires once they understand the nature of Brahman.

The major religion of India and Nepal.

ISLAM Islam is a religion based on the teaching of

the Qur’an, the religion’s holy text. Followers of Islam are known as Muslims. Islam believes there is only one God, the

same God in Christian and Jewish traditions. He is called Allah.

They show their devotion through the Five Pillars of Islam:Faith, prayer, charity, fasting, and pilgrimage to Mecca

Mostly found in southwestern and central Asia and parts of Africa.

SHI’A AND SUNNI MUSLIMS

After the death of the prophet Muhammad, Sunni Muslims thought the new leader should be elected from among those capable of the job.

Other Muslims believed that leadership should have stayed within the Prophet's own family.

JUDAISM First major monotheistic religion Basic teachings come from the Torah,

the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. Judaism teaches that a person serves

God by studying the Torah and living by its teachings.

Many Jews live in Israel, but the religion can be found all over the world.

WORLD RELIGIONS CHART Listen to all directions before beginning your work. Create a comparison chart for the five major world religions.

You need to have the following for all five religions: The name of the religion The founder and god Holy Text Basic belief One interesting fact Picture or symbol

You need to be neat and creative. Be sure to include all the information for all five religions.

When you are finished, fold the paper in half and put it in your binder. DO NOT TURN IT IN!

You will need the following to complete this assignment: A copy of the gold Africa, Asia, and Australia textbook (pgs. R3-

R49). Markers/colored pencils/crayons A sheet of long paper

REFLECTION Use the last 10 minutes of class to

reflect on what you learned during this class period.

Complete your reflection on the left side of your interactive notebook, across from your notes.