|
Religion |
Christianity |
Judaism |
Islam |
Buddhism |
Hinduism |
|
Founder |
Jesus Christ,
crucified ca. 30 AD |
Founded by Abraham
ca. 2000 BC; Moses gave Jews the Torah ca. 1250 BC |
Muhammad, born 570 AD
in Mecca |
Siddhartha Gautama (aka
Buddha), ca. 4th or 5th c. BC in India |
None; the oldest
religion, may date to prehistoric times |
|
Theism |
Monotheistic (God in
3 persons: Father, Son, Holy Spirit) |
Monotheistic (God,
who reveals himself as Person, Creator, Deliverer, & Lord of history) |
Monotheistic (Allah) |
None (although
beings, or Buddhas, are enlightened) |
Polytheistic (Brahma,
Shiva, Vishnu are principal deities) |
|
Key Figures |
Jesus Christ, Virgin
Mary |
Abraham, Moses, David |
Muhammad |
Siddhartha Gautama |
Avatars (deities in
various forms) and Gurus (teachers) |
|
Sacred Texts |
Bible |
Torah (first 5 books
of Moses), Talmud (oral tradition) |
Koran (QuÕran) |
Tripitaka, Mahayana
Sutras, Tantra & Zen texts |
Vedas, Upanishads,
Epics, Puranas & other sacred writings |
|
Beliefs |
Love of God &
neighbor; concern for justice; ultimate values for humanity based on GodÕs
character & His Òrevelation to humanityÓ; salvation from sin through
repentance & faith |
Laws of God &
words of prophets; actions more important than beliefs; ultimate values for
humanity based on GodÕs character; Ten Commandments, other laws of the Hebrew
Bible, & teachings of rabbis are moral guidelines; God grants salvation
to those who repent, trust, & obey Him |
Five Pillars:
profession of faith, prayer, almsgiving, fasting, pilgrimage; Allah judges
human beings for their actions in submitting to Him, obeying the ShariÕah
(holy law) & advancing the Ummah (people of Islam); Allah is merciful |
Four Noble Truths:
(1) all beings suffer; (2) desire causes suffering; (3) desire can be
overcome; (4) path that leads away from desire is the Eightfold Path (Middle
Way), which stresses moral virtue, including right action & right
vocation. Right conduct includes loving-kindness, selfless giving to others
& efforts to alleviate human hurts |
Laws of karma, moral
behavior; deeds are right if they produce good conditions; present existence
is an illusion people are unaware of their oneness with their god; deeds are
wrong if they produce harm to oneself or to the world in general |
|
Afterlife |
Eternal life; Heaven
& Hell |
Ranges from reward or
punishment in Heaven or Hell, vagueness, or denial of afterlife |
Paradise for faithful
believers & punishment in Hell for nonbelievers |
Attainment of Nirvana
(negation of suffering) |
Reincarnation until
re-absorption into Ultimate Reality |
|
Denominations |
Eastern Orthodox,
Roman Catholic, Protestant (great variety) |
Orthodox,
Conservative, Reform Conservative |
Sunni & Shia |
Theravada (Way of the
Elders) & Mahayana (Greater Vehicle) |
No single belief
system unites Hindus; a Hindu may believe in only one god, in many, or in
none |
|
Where most Prevalent |
Universal |
Israel & US |
Middle East, Asia,
North Africa |
Asia |
India |