Beginnings of Religions
Religion goes back at least as far as human civilizations. Nobody knows what the first religion was. The Egyptians predate the Jews, The Mesopotamians predate them. The Chinese predate them...etc. Religions with a creation story often claim to be the oldest, since the world began with that creation and with the god or gods of that religion. Others say that animism would be the oldest known type of religion. This is a primitive religion, which sprang up independently in many areas of the world, but in most countries has mainly been replaced by more formal religion. In animism, spirits are considered to inhabit familiar objects in the landscape. For example, Australian aboriginal beliefs probably go back 60,000 or more. Remnants of animal worship survived in Judaism and Christianity. Satan was a serpent; Jehovah, like Osiris, was worshiped as a bull; Christ was the lamb of God, and the Holy Ghost appeared in the form of a dove. However, these are only symbols of the worshiped object, and are not worshiped in themselves. The Egyptian religion can also be considered the oldest religion. Its origins date back beyond 3000 BCE.
Judaism
Judaism is the oldest monotheistic religion, and the history of Judaism cannot be separated from the history of the Jewish people. Its foundation lies in the original covenant made between Abraham and God, circa 1900 BCE, when Abraham was called to leave his home in Ur and travel to Canaan (later known as Palestine and Israel), a land which God promised to give to his descendants. The second and chief covenant was made 450 years later when Moses led the Jews out of slavery in Egypt (the exodus) back to the lands of Canaan. At Mt Horeb (Sinai), God gave the Jewish people the 10 Commandants and other rules to live by (contained in the Torah, the first five books of the Bible), marking the beginning of Judaism as a structured religion.
|
Christianity
Christianity is the religion based on the life, death and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, also known as the Christ or Messiah. Jesus was a Jewish teacher and prophet who lived in Palestine in the first century CE. He revealed himself to be the Son of God in fulfillment of Hebrew scripture, and taught that the Kingdom of God was imminent, bringing with it forgiveness and new life for all who believed. His claim to be the Messiah roused opposition from religious and political authorities and he was imprisoned and crucified (executed on a cross). His followers believe that after his death, Jesus was resurrected before being taken up to heaven.
|
Hinduism
Hinduism cannot be described as an organized religion. It is not founded by any individual; Hinduism is God centered. Although the term Hindu dates from the Mughul (Muslim) period in India of 1200 CE, and Hinduism from only the 19th-20th Centuries during English colonial rule, the religious traditions of Hinduism are over 5000 years old. There is no prophet or founder of the Hindu religion. The history of Hinduism is intimately entwined with the complex history of India (the word hindu comes from the Persian name for the river Indus). Hinduism incorporates an extraordinarily diverse range of beliefs and practices which aim to deliver salvation to its devotees.
|
Islam
Islam means submission to Allah (God). Islam was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad who lived from 570 CE to 632 CE in Mecca in modern-day Saudi Arabia. Muhammad was called to prophethood when God dictated the Qur'an to him through the archangel Gabriel. Although he gained a small following in his tribe, Muhammad was initially persecuted for his beliefs. In 622 CE he fled to Yathrib, now called Medina, where the first Muslim political community was formed. Enlisting the help of nomadic Arab clans, Muhammad returned to Mecca, stripping the city of all signs of pagan belief. He was generous to those he defeated, however, and many converted to Islam. Two years later, in front of the Ka'ba in Mecca, he declared Islam the religion of the people, saying he had fulfilled his mission and that he left behind him the Book of Allah and a set of clear commandments.
|