Study guide for World religions sectional 1

muezzin

a chanter who calls people to prayer

sufism

A group of devotional movements in Islam

Ashram

A spiritual community

Atman

The spiritual essence of all individual human beings.

Bhakti

devotion to a deity or guru

jnana yoga

The spiritual discipline of knowledge and insight

kali

"Dark," a form of Devi; a goddess associated with destruction and rebirth

moksha

"Liberation" from personal limitation, egotism, and rebirth.

monism

The philosophical position that all apparently separate realities are ultimately one; the belief that God and the universe are the same, that the universe is divine.

rama

A god and mythical king; a form of Vishnu

shiva

a god associated with destruction and rebirth

Thaipusam Festival

celebrated in the full moon era of the calendar, shuts down streets, huge festival, people sacrifice on day 2, put needles in their face, climb up 513 steps to the top of the mountain, then spears come out of face once at the top, then they pour milk on the statue.

Celebrating the god of war; murugan

ashkenazim

Jews who lived in or came from central Europe

bar mitzvah

son of the commandment

biblical Judaism

Judaism before the destruction of the Second Temple

Canaan

an ancient name for the land of Israel

Conservative Judaism

a branch of Judaism that attempts to blend the best of old and new Judaism

covenant

a contract; the contract between the Hebrews and their God, Yahweh

Essenes

a reclusive semimonastic Jewish group that flourished from 150 BCE to 68 CE

Hanukkah

an early winter festival recalling the rededication of the Second Temple, celebrated with the lighting of candles for eight days

Holocaust

the destruction of European Judaism by the Nazis; also known as the Shoah

Kabbalah

"received", "handed down"; the whole body of Jewish mystical literature

Ketuvim

"writings"; the third section of the Hebrew scriptures, consisting primarily of poetry, proverbs, and literary works

kosher

"ritually correct"; refers particularly to food preparation and food consumption

Orthodox Judaism

the most traditional branch of Judaism

menorah

a candelabrum usually containing seven (and occasionally nine) branches used for religious celebrations

Messiah

a savior figure to be sent by God, awaited by the Jews

midrash

"search"; a rabbinical commentary on the scriptures and oral law

Nevi'im

"prophets"; the second section of the Hebrew scriptures, made up of historical and prophetic books

Passover

a joyful spring festival that recalls the Hebrews exodus from Egypt and freedom from oppression

Pharisees

a faction during the second temple period that emphasized the observance of biblical rules

Purim

a joyous festival in early spring that recalls the Jews being saved from destruction, as told in the book of Esther

rabbi

a religious teacher, a Jewish minister

rabbinical Judaism

Judaism that developed after the destruction of the second temple (70 CE)

Reform

a movement beginning in the nineteenth century that questioned and modernized Judaism; a liberal branch of Judaism

Reconstructionism

a modern liberal branch of Judaism that emphasizes the cultural aspects of Judaism

Rosh Hashanah

"beginning of the year"; the celebration of the Jewish New Year, occurring in the seventh lunar month

Sabbath

"rest"; the seventh day of the week, a day of prayer and rest from work

Sadducees

a priestly faction, influential during the Second Temple period

Seder

"order"; a special ritual meal at Passover, recalling the Hebrews exodus from Egypt

Sukkot

"booths"; a festival in late autumn that recalls the Jews period of wandering in the desert after their exodus from

tallit

a prayer shawl worn by devout males during morning prayer

Sephardim

Jews of Spain, Morocco, and the Mediterranean region

Talmud

an encyclopedic commentary on the Hebrew scriptures

Tanakh

the complete Hebrew scriptures, made up of the Torah, Prophets, and Writings

tefillin

Phylacteries; two small boxes containing biblical passages, which are worn by Orthodox males on the head and left arm t morning prayer during the week

theophany

a revelation or appearance of God

Yom Kippur

Day of Atonement, the most sacred day of the Jewish year

Western Wall

the foundation stones of the western wall of the last temple of Jerusalem, today a place of prayer

yarmulke

the skullcap worn by devout males

Zionism

a movement that has encouraged the creation and support or the nation of Israel

Zealots

an anti-Roman, nationalistic Jewish faction, active during the Roman period of control over Israel

qur'an

The holy book of Islam

Ramadan

the month of fasting; the ninth month of the Muslim calendar

mantra

A short sacred phrase, often chanted or used in meditation.

samasara

The everyday world of change and suffering leads to rebirth, everything of existence, life cycle, a delusion

diaspora

the dispersion of Jews beyond Israel, particularly to Persia, Egypt, and Mediterranean region

Torah

"teaching". "instruction"; the first five books of the Hebrew scriptures; also, the additional instructions of God, believed by many to have been transmitted orally from Moses through a succession of teachers and rabbis

Palestinian Talmud

emphasizes the continued studying of the Torah, covers all the tractates of Zeraim

Babylonian Talmud

Rabbinical study, dominate version, covers only tractate Berachot

Who is the founder of Judaism?

Abraham

Who was Abraham?

-held up as an example of obedience to God's commands -god tested Abraham by asking him to kill his son, Isaac

Who was Moses?

-spoke with God and led the people according to God's commandments-chosen by God to defy the Pharaoh who turned children into slaves and lead the people out of bondage, out of Egypt

Who ruled over Judah and Israel when the two areas were both part of the "UK"

King David and his son, Solomon

who built the first temple?

King Solomon

what happened after King Solomon's death?

The Northern Kingdom (Israel) separated from the Southern Kingdom (Judah)

who did the southern kingdom (Judah) fall to?

Assyria, after which, the Jewish tribes in the kingdom disappeared as a pure ethnic group

what would a Messiah do for the Jewish people?

would come to bring evil times to an end and establish the reign of peace

who destroyed the second temple

Roman legions under Titus

how many books in the Hebrew Bible

24 books TANAKH-Prophets=Nevi'im-writings=Ketuvim

What marked the beginning of Rabbinic Judaism?

destruction of temple in Jerusalem by Romans in 70 CE

when was the state of Israel declared? Which World War led to the creation?

1948; WWI

What is the central Jewish belief?

monotheism -there is one God, the Creator of all existent things

What is the role of the Jewish Synagogue?

the place where Jewish people meet for prayer, worship, and study.

What is the importance of the Jewish Synagogue?

it is where many rites of passage take place.

What could be found in a Jewish synagogue?

an ark where the scrolls of law are kept, an eternal light burning before the ark, two candelabra, pews, and a raise platform where the scriptures are read from.

Orthodoxy

right belief

Orthopraxy

right worship

What are the effects the Holocaust had on Judaism?

over 6 million deaths, families separated, etc.

caliph

successor to Muhammad as political and religious leader of the Muslims

dhikr

A devotional remembrance of Allah through the recitation of his ninety-nine names and other devotional practices.

fana

"Extinction"; the sense of loss of self in mystical experience

hadith

"recollection"; remembrance of an act or saying of Muhammad

Hajj

Pilgrimage to Mecca

Hijra

"flight" Muhammad's escape from Mecca to Yathrib (Medina)

Id al-Adha

The Day of Sacrifice during the month of the Hajj when an animal is sacrificed to recall the submission of Abraham

Id al-Fitr

The festival at the end of the month of Ramadan during which people feast and visit friends and often the graves of ancestors

Imam

a leader of prayer in a mosque

Islam

Submission to the will of Allah

Jihad

"struggles"; the ideals of (1) spreading the Islamic belief and (2) heroic self-sacrifice

Kaaba

"cube"; the square shrine at the center of the Grand Mosque of Mecca

Khadijah

First wife of Muhammad

mihrab

the decorated niche inside a mosque that indicates the direction of Mecca

minaret

the tower attached to a mosque from which the muezzin, or crier, calls the faithful to prayer five times a day

mosque

A Muslim place of worship

muslim

a person who submits to Allah

qiblah

the direction toward Mecca which Muslims face in prayer

Sharia

"Path"; the whole body of Islamic laws that guides a Muslim's life

shiite

a minority branch of Islam, which holds that Muhammad's genuine successors descended from his son-in-law Ali

sunni

the majority branch of Islam; it holds that genuine succession from Muhammad did not depend on hereditary descent from his son-in-law Ali