The Birth of Three Religions

Judaism, Christianity and Islam

Judaism

• The first religion to affirm the existence of a single God. Monotheism.

• The founder of Judaism was Abraham.

• Religion arose in 4000 B.C

• The holy book is known as the Torah. The Torah consists of the first five chapters of the Hebrew Bible.

• Holy city is Jerusalem

Judaism

• The leader of worship is known as a rabbi. The rabbi teaches the laws of the Torah.

• Jews worship in a synagogue. Jews come to the synagogue to pray and learn the rules of the Torah.

• The Jewish faith celebrates many holidays. The most famous is Hanukkah

Hanukah Words To Know

• Yamica• Latke• Yiddish• Kosher• Matza Balls• Torah• Menorah• Rabbi• Synagogue

A Little Video

• Hanukkah Hey Ya!

Hanukkah

• Many years ago Israel was ruled by the Greeks who wanted to capture the people of Israel. A small group of Jews defeated the Greek army and took the holy temple in Jerusalem.

• When they went to light the Temple’s menorah there was only enough oil for one day. They used the oil they had and it burned miraculously for 8 days.

Hanukkah

• Hanukkah is known as the Festival of Lights. For eight days a candle is lit to represent the defeat over the Greeks.

Symbols

• Star of David-Two intertwined triangles. Six points represent God’s rule over the nation in all six directions, N,S,E,W,Up and Down.

Rosh Shana

• Jewish New Year. Not celebrated like our New Year.

• A time to reflect on the past year and to plan a better year.

Christianity

• Founder of faith is Jesus

• Name for the deity or god is God, Jesus (son) and Holy Spirit. (Holy Trinity)

• Beginning date 30 A.D.

• Holy cities are Bethlehem and Jerusalem

• Sacred writings of Christians is known as the Bible. The Old Testament is part of the Hebrew Bible.

Symbols

• Major symbols are the holy cross, doves, saints, cathedrals and chapels.

Holidays

• Christmas-Celebration of the birth of Jesus the founder of Christianity.

• Easter- Celebration of the day Jesus rose from the dead

Place of Worship

• Christians worship in a church. The architecture of the church can depend upon the denomination of that church. – For example: Catholic is a

denomination. Their churches may look more elegant. They will also have a cathedral, the place where the bishop sits.

Jesus the Messiah• Jesus, the founder of

Christianity, was born in Bethlehem.

• Jesus was Jewish. When he was 30 he traveled and taught the Jewish beliefs. These teachings are called the New Testament.

• Jesus drew many followers. However, some of his teachings the religious leaders did not agree with.

• Jesus was arrested and executed around 30 A.D.

Jesus the Messiah

• According to Christian belief, Jesus rose from the dead after he was crucified. This is known as the Resurrection.