Free Web Hosting Provider - Web Hosting - E-commerce - High Speed Internet - Free Web Page

Judaism

Judaism is the oldest of the world's three great monotheistic religions and the parent of both Christianity and Islam. There are currently 12 million jews worldwide.

Follow the journey of Abraham and his decendents including an audio presentation of "What do Jews Believe?"

Originated in Israel 4000 years ago, the oldest of the world's three great monotheistic religions and the parent of both Christianity and Islam
12 million adherents around the world, mostly in Israel or USA-93,000 active Jews in UK
Highly culture-oriented and a religion of identity, Judaism is a way of life inextricably entwined with a belief system. The essence of being Jewish is the way one is part of a Jewish community, and lives one's life according to Jewish laws and traditions
The concept of "The Jewish People" is important-many regard themselves as Jews, without being at all observant of religious practices.
Judaism is divided into many subgroups
- According to origin
- According to belief and practice
- Orthodox follow the original teachings closely, "Ultra-Orthodox" (not a term that Jews find helpful) tend to live in separate communities and follow their own customs
Reform Jews incorporate adaptations to changed circumstances in modern life, respecting modern scholarship; other divisions are Conservative, Reconstructionist and Liberal.
God called Abram (later called Abraham) to leave his home and move to a new land. God's promises to Abraham, of descendants and of a land to live in, were confirmed under Moses: to him Torah (guidance including laws) was given, and this became the foundation of the Covenant between God and the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (the Patriarchs).

In his final sermon Muhammad summarised the core of Islam thus:

"Belief in One God without images or symbols, equality of all the Believers without distinction of race or class, the superiority of individuals being based solely on piety; sanctity of life, property and honour; abolition of interest, and of vendettas and private justice; better treatment of women; obligatory inheritance and distribution of the property of deceased persons among near relatives of both sexes, and removal of the possibility of the accumulation of wealth in the hands of the few."

Origin and extent

Originated in Mecca in Arabia in 7^th Century CE, although God’s revelation and religion is much older..
Over 1,000 million adherents around the world - 580,000 active Muslims in UK
Islam is divided into two main groups: Sunni and Shia - largely divided over the successor to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
"Islam" is an Arabic word that includes the concept of submitting to the will of God, thereby achieving peace and security
Founded by Muhammad (pbuh), born in Mecca around 570. Muhammad (pbuh) was a man and not divine, who was used by God to reveal his will

Key elements

There is only one God who:
- is the only God that can exist
- created all things
- is all powerful
- is eternal
- is beyond time
- is present with Muslims all the time
- Muhammad (pbuh) is his messenger
- God is called "Allah" which means "The one who is God"
Core beliefs and values are contained in The Five Pillars of Islam
- Shahada: Affirming that God is the only God, and Muhammad is his messenger
- Salat: Performing set prayers in the direction of Mecca 5 times a day
- Sawm: Fasting each day during the season of Ramadan
- Zakat: Giving alms to the poor
- Hajj: making a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once during one’s lifetime, if physically able. Mecca is the most holy place for Muslims
There is only one life, after which the soul is judged at the day of judgement

Other matters

Holy Book: The Qur’an. The Qur’an was written by God before time began, and has been transmitted into the world through many prophets (pbut), including Moses (Musa) and Jesus (‘Isa), but people mixed their own words into those earlier revelations of the Qu’ran. Only the Qur’an dictated to Muhammad (pbuh) by the angel Gabriel has not been corrupted. It is untranslatable, as only the original Arabic words are the words of God. "Translations" of the Qur’an are, at best, paraphrases of the original.
Other key literature: "Hadith"—traditions of the words and actions of Muhammad (pbuh) and his Companions, that are accepted as a living commentary on the meaning and application of the Qur’an.
The Shari’a, Islamic law, largely derived from the Qur’an and Hadith, is organised in different Schools and governs the ways in which Muslims live their lives.
Buildings specifically for assembly and worship are known as Mosques, from an Arabic word meaning "place of prostration"
Islam has a strong mystical tradition, exemplified by the Sufis
Islam seeks and welcomes converts

Christianity

Jesus Christ lived and worked around 2000 years ago in Palestine and founded a faith that is now practised by nearly 2,000 million people around the world.

Listen to the programmes exploring the meaning of Christianity in its contemporary context.

From the beginning, Christianity has had a strong tradition of seeking to convert people; many modern Christians feel that this should not destroy what is good and true in other cultures and religions.

Buddhism

An old religion was given new life when Prince Siddartha gained enlightenment at Bodh Gaya in North East India, around 500 BCE.

Over the last 30 years Buddhism has seen growth in the West as its non-dogmatic nature, rationality, possibility of a spiritual guide, and opportunity for personal transformation have all made it attractive to post-modern society.

Listen to an audio guide to The Way of the Buddha

Originated in its present forms in 6th and 5th century BCE in Northern India.

There are substantial Buddhist populations in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Kampuchea, (Southern transmission), and in Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, Vietnam, China, Japan, S Korea, Taiwan (Northern transmission).

Around 500 million adherents around the world-45,000 active Buddhists in UK

Many schools and practices of Buddhism exist: the Southern transmission is also known as Theravada or Hinayana Buddhism, based on the Pali canon (collection) of texts; the Northern transmission is known as Vajrayana and Mahayana, which divided into many schools (e.g., Zen).

Founded by Prince Siddhartha Gautama (The Buddha, or "Enlightened One"). He became "enlightened" and then taught others how to attain this state

HINDUISM

'Hinduism' is the name given to related religions in India. They exist in a coalition of beliefs and practices, but there are major differences among them.

Origins

The origins of religion in India can be seen at least 3,000 years ago, but the Indian view of time as an unceasing process of origins, growth, decline and destruction makes the concept of a beginning meaningless · 750 million adherents in the world, mostly in India-155,000 active Hindus in UK. A coalition of traditions, practices and beliefs associated with the people of India, 'Hinduism' is defined more by geography (belonging to India) than a common creed or practice. Thus there are many different beliefs and practices under this name. For many people in India, religion is a matter of practice rather than of well-formulated beliefs or creeds. It's more what you do than what you believe, and 'Hinduism' is a map of the many ways that will lead to a successful rebirth, or even release from rebirth altogether. Living or acting appropriately is known as dharma, so the Indian name for their religion is sanatana dharma, everlasting dharma. Hinduism has no single founder, no unique creed, and no single authority.

Listen to our radio series:

"What do Hindus believe?"

Real Audio 5 episodes of approx. 28 minutes duration