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Abstract
There are well over 19 independent religions in the world. These religions have been further subdivided into 270 groups. They differ mostly in terms of origin, ethical and sacred texts, and in numerical strength (percentage of the believers in the world population and their absolute numbers). According to (David, 2001 p.12-14), considering the worlds population by the year 2000, 33% are Christians, !9.6% are Muslims, 13.4% are Hindus, 12.7% are Non-Christians, Chinese Folks are 6,4%, Buddhists are 5.9% and the rest form the remaining portion. Religion, as has been lately revealed is more than a simple belief in a deity; it is a peoples way of life; with beliefs that are very strange to be imagined by others in a different faith. Most of these Religious organizations though are diverse, do share quite a number of similar aspects (they have so much in common than anyone can possibly imagine). This research paper will look at some notable differences and similarities between Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.
Comparing and Contrasting Christianity, Islam, and Judaism in Terms of Origination, Foundation, Beliefs, Rituals, and Major Prophets
The Islamic Religion
The Islamic religion was founded in the year 622CE within a doctrine text of the Quran and Hadith. The leader of this group of believers is called an Imam and they do their worship in a Mosque. Their main code of ethics as given in the Quran are the famous points of five pillars; The first pillar is the Shahada , which means a confession of faith, This pillar has it that Allah is the only God and Mohammad his prophet transmitted his faith through the Quran. The second pillar is the Prayer . It holds that any Muslim must submit themselves to Allah by constantly praying at least five times a day. The third pillar is Charity . Support to the less unfortunate in the society is encouraged by every means; at least 2.5% of the come of the upper-class people and 0.025% of the middle-class annual income should be donated for this course. Ramadan is the fourth pillar, which is the period of fasting coming at the fourth month of the Islamic calendar. And finally, the fifth pillar is the Pilgrimage geared to increase a Muslims devotion to Allah. At least once in a lifetime, one is expected to make it to the Holy City of Mecca-the city which is believed to be where God first revealed Himself. (Sahib, 2009).
Islam means submission to God . The religion was founded by Prophet Mohammad who started to preach contrary to the then only known Arab religion which gave reference to hundreds of idols, gods, and goddesses as representatives of God on earth. God revealed himself to Mohammad while on Mt. Hera through Angel Gabriel. After this revelation, Islam was born through Mohammads Peace be Upon Him messages which targeted to preach harmony between the varied social classes. After Mohammads death in 632 AD at the age of 63, his successor Abu Bakr carried on with the good messages of peace, dignity, and justice to the far and wide regions and managed to conquer the hearts, of people especially in the Middle East (Weigel, 2002). It has since then steadily spread into almost every country in the world.
Christianity
Christianity was founded in 30 CE within reference to their beliefs drawn from the New Testament of the Holy Bible; the head of a Christian organization can either be a pastor, priest, or a minister depending on the churchs setting. A Christians place of worship can either be referred to as a temple, a church, a mission, or a cathedral. It is the largest religious group, but the latest report indicates that there is some slight decline-reasons to this are so far remain unexplained. The Christian religion was founded by Jesus Christ-the only son of God (Gospel books of Mathew, Mark, Luke, and John-NKJV). Jesus was born out of a virgin mother (Mary) and a poor carpenter father (Joseph). He grew up to be a sinless man who represented God on earth and his deeds were miraculous. He performed different kinds of miracles, preached, and was finally put to death on the cross. The Holy Bible holds it that Jesus rose from the dead and ascended to heaven to be with his father, God, where he acts as the Christian believers great advocate. Through his death, God showed how much he loved humanity to send his only son to die and save humans kinds from sin. Christians base their actions in society to be righteous if they go by Gods Laws given in Exodus 20-NKJV.
Judaism
It is an Abrahamic religion; meaning Prophet Abraham was considered as a Patriarch in this religion. It is mainly common among the Jews and their total number makes a mere 0.2% of the worlds population. But their influence is vast, reaching every corner of the globe. Judaism was formed when God made a covenant with Abraham (the head patriarch of the three patriarchs- Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) as described in the Tanakh (Old Testament of the Holy Bible). The book is divided into their sections namely the Torah (Pentateuch) books, the Neviim, and the Ketuvim. A total of 39 are where the Jews derive laws to live by in their daily life. A Judaism religious group is headed by a Rabbi and they worship in a Synagogue. The Jews have a total of thirteen beliefs but some of them are being disputed by the modern liberal Jews of today. Some of these beliefs include; God exists, eternal, one and unique, Moses was the greatest of all prophets, God will punish the evil and reward the good and the dead will resurrect among others. (Wright, 1996, p.26-69).
Differences
While Christianity bases its spread on persuasion, Islam employs force through jihad to recruit their followers by force or else face a severe punishment&which can amount to death. Contrary to what the Christians and Judaism teach, the Islamic does not believe in the return of good for evil, the Quran has it that any wrongdoer must face the full wrath of the law; they should be punished to equate the extent of the harm that they caused. Further, Christianity has Joseph as an extra patriarch on top of the three (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) who are recognized by Judaism. Judaism does not agree with the Christian belief of Original Sin and they also refute the Christians argument of the need for a savior to be able to go to heaven. On their part, they have it that prayers and salvation come directly to the man and not through anybody. Finally, while the Judaism and the Christianity Culture acknowledge the Sabbath on Saturday, the Islamic religions official day of worship is on Friday (Parsons, 1997, p.155-236).
Similarities
The Islamic have common ground beliefs with Judaism and Christianity as far as a common ancestry with Abraham is concerned. All those Bible personalities like Moses, Adam, Abraham, and Jesus are all in the Quran but the only difference is that to Christians, Jesus is God while the other individuals are just faithful men of God, but in the Quran, all of them are prophets headed by their chief prophet Mohammad. On the other hand, Jews believe that Moses was the greatest of all prophets (Huntington, 1998, p.65-66).
Christianity is so similar to Judaism so much to an extent that they use the same religious text (the Holy Bible); the only difference comes in whereas the Christians base their teachings on the New Testament and a few isolated cases from the old, the Judaism religion strictly follow the Old Testament Teachings. Another controversy brewing between Judaism believers themselves about the Christians view on Jesus. A good number of Jews say that Jesus was a great teacher, others consider him a false prophet, an impostor, an idol for the Christians, and more serious are the group of Judaism sect who consider the name Jesus a sin amounting to giving honor to an idol. Christianity and Judaism believe in the Sabbath (once a week), which begins at dusk on Friday to Saturday at dusk. A day that is supposed to be of rest and worship.
Conclusion
Human beings are faced with countless challenges in their daily lives emanating from their neighborhoods, social classes and backgrounds. This is the main reason why human beings seek to be associated with at least one religious group with a sole purpose of having somewhere to address difficult questions which only require spiritual intervention to be conclusively answered; such questions like the origin of mankind and what lies after death?, among others can only be addressed in a spiritual context. This research paper has managed to illustrate that every religions. particularly Islam, Christianity and Judaism offer its followers an opportunity to transmit the important values from one generation to the other and influences the way in which human beings relates with the environment and among themselves&through following the relevant religious teachings, every person in the society stands a chance to have a purpose of living and a surety of leading a meaningful life. A conclusion to the meaning of religion can therefore be drawn be a philosophy of life that involves conducting of rituals and living within some specified code of ethics.
References
David B. Barrett, et al. (2001). World Christian Encyclopedia: A Comparative Survey of Churches and Religions in the Modern World, Oxford University Press. P.12-48. Web.
Huntington Samuel. (1998). The Clash of Civilizations and the remaking of world order, Touchstone Books. p.65-66.
Parsons H. Greg. (1997). U.S. Center for World Mission . Pasadena, CA; News Service. P 155-236.
Sahib M. Ali. (2009). Web.
Weigel George. (2002). World religions by the numbers, Catholic Educators Resource Center. Web.
Wright J. W. (Ed). (1996). The Universal Almanac . Andrews & McMeel, Kansas City. P.26-69.
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