WORLD RELIGIONS

FAITH	KEY CONCEPTS
Christianity	Revelation - General revelation is the way GOD reveals Himself through His creation. - Every human has innate appreciation for the wonder of the universe, and this sense of wonder is attributed to the revelation of GOD - Special revelation is the specific understanding of the Christian God – who explicitly revealed himself first to the Jewish people through the Torah – ultimately revealing himself through the life of, death and resurrection of JESUS CHRIST - Scriptures are a source of special revelation and testament to Jesus as God’s revelation of love for humanity Incarnation - God takes the physical form through a person à Jesus - the belief that Jesus is God (Christ incarnate) is a central tenet of Christian faith - Imago Dei – as God created humans in His image and created them as equal, valuable and sacred, Jesus was the visible expression of the Imago Dei. Resurrection - Means the reanimation of the human body after death - For Christians, this refers specifically to the resurrection of Jesus three says after his death, commemorated through Easter celebrations Salvation - The belief that, through the death and resurrection of the incarnate Jesus, all of humanity is freed from sin - Sin is referred to a ‘missing of the mark’ – or the failure to live and act in accordance with the will of God and the teachings of Jesus - Christians believe this salvation (the reunification of the soul with God after death is available to all who believe in Jesus’ sacrifice - While salvation is considered a gift offered by God, one that is unearned, it is incumbent upon Christians to seek atonement for their personal sins when they fail to follow the will of God Human Dignity - Foundational ethical principle in Christianity - It is rooted in the principle that every human is made in the likeness of God (Imago Dei), therefore deserves dignity and respect just for being human - Because of this notion, all humans are seen as equal in the Christian tradition of race, gender, sexual orientation, physical or mental ability, religious tradition or socioeconomic status – hence humans must regard each other with respect and treat each other with equality, respect human rights of all
Judaism	Revelation - G-d reveals Himself, His plans, and His will to humanity (through the instances of Moses, Adam and Eve, and the Jewish people in Exodus) - G-d is concerned about ‘his people’, has witnessed their suffering and has liberated them from it Sin (chet) - Judaism teaches that humans are not inherently sinful - Chet comes from human desires (yetzer), which must be appropriately directed to ensure that Jews follow the Mitzvot and uphold their covenant with God - Sin is the straying from the correct way of behaving because one’s human desires outweigh the desire to follow G-d Repentance - When a person sins, or goes astray, they can seek repentance and rejoin their covenantal relationship with Jewish community and G-d - Process of repenting and seeking forgiveness from God is called atonement (prevalent throughout the Torah) - In seeking atonement, G-d extends forgiveness to those who ask - Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement, highlight the need for Jews to seek forgiveness for their sins and reconnect with G-d Freewill - Judaism acknowledges that humans have free will to follow God or follow their human desires in any given situation Divine and human justice - Concept of justice is a central theme in the Jewish faith and manifests in the range of commandments that broadly categorised by Tikkun Olam – repairing the world Three most prevalent concepts of justice are: 1. Chesed – acts of loving kindness. These are acts of service – raising children properly, visiting/caring for the sick, offering hospitality to strangers, burying the dead and bringing peace to those in conflict 2. Tzedakah – charitable giving to those in need. 3. Tzedek – removing systematic oppression so that charity is no longer needed, where all Jews are called to do so that everyone can live a life of dignity as G-d intended at creation. One who acts out Tzedek is facilitating G-d’s divine justice. Sanctity of Life - Judaism teaches that all life has been created by G-d therefore all life belongs to G-d - made in the likeness, and image of God therefore have a special, sacred quality that commands dignity and respect. - Most important thing a Jewish person can do is save or preserve the life of another person – Pikauch Nefesh – basically saying there isn’t a commandment so binding in the Torah that cannot be ignored to save the life of another
Islam	Revelation to the Prophet - ‘prophethood is conferred to those people to whom Allah has revealed Himself and Him divine will - Muslims believe Allah sent prophets (anbiya) to deliver his divine message to humanity - The Qur’an is the holiest, most complete and final revelation of Allah to the world Predestination - Islam promotes both the concepts of free will and predestination - It suggests that Allah has order the universe according to his will up until the day of judgement - Muslims believe that in any situation, there are 2 predetermined outcomes: 1. The path in line with the will of Allah 2. And the one that is simply not - Humans are free to choose which path they take, but they are expected to take the ideal path of Allah (1). Submission to the will of Allah - Greater Jihad - ‘jihad’ means to struggle – it is used in variety of context in the Qur’an and is expounded in the Hadith - Term is often misconstrued as “holy war” - ‘Greater Jihad’ – is the struggle of believers (both individually and communally) to live out the will of Allah - This is because Allah has predetermined all events in the world – thus Muslim/adherents must struggle
Hinduism	Karma - Karma translates to ‘doing’ or ‘action’ - Karma is the +/- consequences associated with doing one’s dharma, which loosely translates to duty - If one ‘completes their duties’ in life then they will accrue good karma and be on their way to achieving moksha - A person can accumulate good or bad karma depending on their actions, speech and thoughts – human rights Dharma - There are many types of dharma that one is obligated to perform, depending on their gender, life stage and caste. Samsara - Cycle of life, death and rebirth - All humans are bound by karma - Hindus believe that each person has an atman, a soul or divine spirit - This karma is attached to their atman – upon death their karma is measured and will immediately impact their reincarnation Moksha - Good karma will lead to a good rebirth, the ideal is to be liberated completely from the cycle of samsara - This liberation is called MOKSHA - This is where atman achieves reunification with Brahman, the infinite, transcendent reality that encompasses all the energy in the universe - Reunification of the atman wt the Brahman (divine reality), and occurs when a Hindu has accumulated good karma through the performance of vihesha dharma and sadharana dharma Reincarnation - Is the process where the atman will pass from the physical body of the person at death, to a new person or animal being reborn into a new life Karmic Consequences -
Buddhism	Dharma - Refers to the teachings of Buddha contained in the sacred scriptures - Many paths revealed through Dharma, the most important to recall is the relation to the topic of human rights are the 4 NOBLE TRUTHS, the 5 PRECEPTS, and the 8FOLD PATH. - Karma Samsara Nirvana Reincarnation - ‘transmigation’ - Where the elements of a person’s previous consciousness spills into a new existence. Not a rebird. Karmic Consequences - Universal law of causality that binds people to the wheel of samsara - Karma must be accrued through intentional acts – one must intend to act a certain way and the effects of that act will result in either positive or negative karma - How one thinks is central to good karma - Karmic consequences as intentional actions