Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
Judaism: ancient religion that developed in 2000 BC in Mesopotamia
Hebrew Bible: written over a thousand years, in the 11th and 12th centuries BC
At the time, Ancient Hebrews were cattle herders in desert and polytheistic
Abraham: cattle herder in Ur and a Hebrew patriarch
God told Abraham only one true god exists
God lead his family and people to Canaan
Canaan is modern day Israel, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan
Hebrew population grew and organized into 12 tribes
People were called the Israelites
Moses and the Exodus:
Exodus was around 1200 BC
Egyptian pharoah felt they would get powerful and enslave them
God asked Moses to lead them back to Canaan
The Ten Commandments:
Moses and Israelites wandered for 40 years. Stopped in Mount Sinai (Egypt)
On the mountain, God revealed the Torah and the Ten Commandments
Includes laws that state how Israelites should behave.
The Ten Commandments are:
You shall have no other gods before me
You shall not make idols
You shall not take the name of the lord in vain
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy
Honor your father and your mother
You shall not murder
You shall not commit adultery
You shall not steal
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor
You shall not covet
Early Kingdoms of Israel:
King Solomon: ruled from 970 - 925 BC. Built the First Temple.
Solomon died in 925 BC and the Kingdom split.
772 BC: Assyria conquered Israel. Forced to settle outside the Kingdom
590 BC: Babylonians captured Judea, destroyed temples, and enslaved Jews.
Moved Jews to Babylonia, and the Babylonians held them captive.
530 BC: Persian Empire defeated Babylonians.
Allowed Jews to return, but not all did. Started the Jewish diaspora.
63 BC: Roman Empire conquered Jewish lands.
Forced them to stop practicing and to worship Roman gods instead.
Beliefs and practices:
Monotheism, obedience to religious laws, and mitzvahs
Important texts:
Hebrew Bible, Torah, and the Talmud
Christianity: ancient religion developed in 33 AD in Judea
Origins: Roman rule of the Jews was tough as Jews awaited the Messiah
Jesus of Nazarath: Those who believed he was the messiah are Christians.
His life and teachings are written in the Bible
Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) and the New Testament
Gained 12 close followers (disciples/apostles)
Christ’s Teachings: compassion, sins can be forgiven, monotheism
Crucification: 30 AD he was crucified by the Romans
Spread of Christianity:
Paul spread the message through the Roman Empire.
Romans are pagans, so they saw Christianity as a threat and executed Paul.
Romans banned the religion and persecuted Christians.
In 300 AD, they became more tolerant. 313 AD the emperor Constantine converted and ended the persecution.
In 392 AD, Christianity was the official religion of the Roman Empire
Beliefs:
Doctrine of the Trinity
Acceptance leads to eternal salvation in heaven
Islam:
Expansion of Islam:
632 AD: Muhammad dies. The first caliph, Abu Bakr, leads and unites Arabia.
634 AD: Under Umar, the Muslims conquer Mesopotamia and extend to North Africa
The Umayyad followed. Expanded Muslim territory to make an empire
749 AD: Abassid caliphate took control and moved the capital city to Baghdad
Golden Age: advancements in math, science, medicine, and architecture
When Northern Africa was conquered, they became trade partners.
Trade spread across more regions. Silk Road helped share beliefs
5 Pillars:
Shahadah: declaration of faith
Salat: five daily pillars
Zakat: charity
Ramadan: fasting during the holy month of Ramadan
Hajj: Sacred pilgrimage to Mecca
Important texts:
Quran (word of God) and Hadith (actions and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad)
Judaism: ancient religion that developed in 2000 BC in Mesopotamia
Hebrew Bible: written over a thousand years, in the 11th and 12th centuries BC
At the time, Ancient Hebrews were cattle herders in desert and polytheistic
Abraham: cattle herder in Ur and a Hebrew patriarch
God told Abraham only one true god exists
God lead his family and people to Canaan
Canaan is modern day Israel, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan
Hebrew population grew and organized into 12 tribes
People were called the Israelites
Moses and the Exodus:
Exodus was around 1200 BC
Egyptian pharoah felt they would get powerful and enslave them
God asked Moses to lead them back to Canaan
The Ten Commandments:
Moses and Israelites wandered for 40 years. Stopped in Mount Sinai (Egypt)
On the mountain, God revealed the Torah and the Ten Commandments
Includes laws that state how Israelites should behave.
The Ten Commandments are:
You shall have no other gods before me
You shall not make idols
You shall not take the name of the lord in vain
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy
Honor your father and your mother
You shall not murder
You shall not commit adultery
You shall not steal
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor
You shall not covet
Early Kingdoms of Israel:
King Solomon: ruled from 970 - 925 BC. Built the First Temple.
Solomon died in 925 BC and the Kingdom split.
772 BC: Assyria conquered Israel. Forced to settle outside the Kingdom
590 BC: Babylonians captured Judea, destroyed temples, and enslaved Jews.
Moved Jews to Babylonia, and the Babylonians held them captive.
530 BC: Persian Empire defeated Babylonians.
Allowed Jews to return, but not all did. Started the Jewish diaspora.
63 BC: Roman Empire conquered Jewish lands.
Forced them to stop practicing and to worship Roman gods instead.
Beliefs and practices:
Monotheism, obedience to religious laws, and mitzvahs
Important texts:
Hebrew Bible, Torah, and the Talmud
Christianity: ancient religion developed in 33 AD in Judea
Origins: Roman rule of the Jews was tough as Jews awaited the Messiah
Jesus of Nazarath: Those who believed he was the messiah are Christians.
His life and teachings are written in the Bible
Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) and the New Testament
Gained 12 close followers (disciples/apostles)
Christ’s Teachings: compassion, sins can be forgiven, monotheism
Crucification: 30 AD he was crucified by the Romans
Spread of Christianity:
Paul spread the message through the Roman Empire.
Romans are pagans, so they saw Christianity as a threat and executed Paul.
Romans banned the religion and persecuted Christians.
In 300 AD, they became more tolerant. 313 AD the emperor Constantine converted and ended the persecution.
In 392 AD, Christianity was the official religion of the Roman Empire
Beliefs:
Doctrine of the Trinity
Acceptance leads to eternal salvation in heaven
Islam:
Expansion of Islam:
632 AD: Muhammad dies. The first caliph, Abu Bakr, leads and unites Arabia.
634 AD: Under Umar, the Muslims conquer Mesopotamia and extend to North Africa
The Umayyad followed. Expanded Muslim territory to make an empire
749 AD: Abassid caliphate took control and moved the capital city to Baghdad
Golden Age: advancements in math, science, medicine, and architecture
When Northern Africa was conquered, they became trade partners.
Trade spread across more regions. Silk Road helped share beliefs
5 Pillars:
Shahadah: declaration of faith
Salat: five daily pillars
Zakat: charity
Ramadan: fasting during the holy month of Ramadan
Hajj: Sacred pilgrimage to Mecca
Important texts:
Quran (word of God) and Hadith (actions and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad)