 Cite regions or places where

specific religions evolved.

 Analyze the culture of the region
that gave rise to specific religions.
 Explain how geography influences
religion and religion affects culture.
 Conduct a group activity that
demonstrates the influence of a
religion in certain culture.
Give example of a region in
the country which has a
huge number of
populations in religion?
 What culture of that region
that gave rise/increase the #
of followers of that religion?
 Origin of World Religion
• Religions- are born in the history & they
gradually develop into living traditions &
affect the lives of their followers.

Belief systems originate in certain localities

within the context of culture & even
geography.
From their rudimentry forms, religions
continually envolved into complicated
systems replete with rites & practices
that made recruitment of members
necessary.
 Significant dates in the history of the
establishments of several world religions
Date Significance
2000 B.C.E Time of Abraham the patriacrh of Israel
1200 B.C.E Time of Moses, the Hebrew leader of the Exodus
1100-500 B.C.E Hindus compiled their holy texts, Vedas
563-83 B.C.E Time of the Buddha, founder of Buddhism
551-479 B.C.E Time of Confucius, founder of Confucianism
200 B.C.E The Hindu book, Bhagavad Gita was written
2 to 4 B.C.E – 32 C.E Time of Jesus Christ , the Messiah and founder of Christianity
32 C.E The Crucifixion & Resurrection of Jesus Christ
40-90 C.E The New Testament was written by the followers of Jesus Christ
100 C.E Beginnings of Shintoism (no known founder)
500-580 B.C.E Time of Lao Tze, founder of Daoism
570-632 C.E Time of Muhammad, who recorded the Q’uran as the basis of Islam.
 Abraham
• Prophet and Patriarch.
• Played the major role in the establishment of the
3 monotheistic religions.
• Christian view Abraham as “father in faith” as
narrated in the bible & the Ancestor of Jesus
Christ.
• Jewish people regard him as ancestor of the
Israelites.
• The Muslim’s consider Abraham’s son Ishmael as
the ancestor of the Arabs.
 3 Monotheistic Religions &
Known as Abrahamic Religions
Judaism
Christianity
Islam
Share some commonalities in their basic tenets.
They worship 1 supreme God.
Hebrews
- Call their God “Elohim, Adonai or Yaweh”

Muslims
- They call their God as “Allah”.
- They believe that Muhammad is the final
prophet or the “Seal of the Prophets.
Christianity
- 12 apostles the primary disciples of
“Jesus Christ”.
- Some of the Apostles wrote parts
of the “New Testament”.
Judaism
- Has 48 prophets.
- 7 prophetesses.
- Early prophets include: Abraham,
Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron & Joshua.
4 Great Religions originated in India

• Hinduism
• Buddhism
• Jainism
• Sikhism
 Buddhism
• Centers its attention on the figure of the
Buddha.
• He was not a God but a human being who
came to discover how to terminate
sufferings in order to “escape the painful &
continous cycle of rebirth”.
• Buddhist followers revere Buddha in the
same way that members of other world
religions worship their Gods.
• Spread far & wide from India to Sri Lanka
& to Southeast Asia.

• The religion was transported to China &

gained much headway as it reached
Korea, Japan, & Vietnam.

• Presently “Buddhism” has become more

popular outside its place of origin while
Hinduism has remained entrenched in
India throughout many centuries.
Siddharta Gautama
• 6th Century B.C.E.

• His life is closely linked with the

historical & religious development of
Buddhism in India.
Confucius
• Developed meritocracy as a basis of
government officials.
• Chinas greatest Philosopher and teacher
who lived at the same time as Siddhartha
Gautama in India.
• Deals aspire to harmonize human relations
& serve as guide to social behavior.
Laozi (Lao-tzu)
• Written Dao De Jing (Tao Te Ching)
The Book of the Way and its Power.
Writings of Daoism
• Centers on the concept of “Dao” as
a “way” or “path” signifying
appropriateness of ones behaviour
to lead other people.
Confucius & Lao-tzu
- followers of the “Dao”.

West Asia
- Is home of 3 great religions.
1. Judaism
2. Christianity
3. Islam
The cultural Milieu - World religions can be
regarded along the lines of their exclusivity or non-
exclusivity.

Exclusive Religions- Non-exclusive Religions-

they are monotheistic. Polytheistic in nature.
• Judaism • Hinduism
• Christianity • Buddhism
• Islam • Confucianism
• Taoism
• Shintoism
 On Monotheism & Universality
• Monotheism or the belief in one God is an
ancient idea that predated the establishment of
Arabic religions.

• From the 3 Abrahamic Religions, however

Christianity has somewhat differed based on its
concept of the trinitarian creed in contrast to
the unitarian creed.
• Judaism & Islam affirm the presence affirm
the presence of one God.
• Christianity acknowledges one God in 3
persons:
1. The Father
2. The Son
3. The Holy Spirit
• Muslim – the basic principles of Muslim faith
are reflected in the “5Pillars of Islam”.

1st Pillar – the profession of the Muslim faith

succinctly states that “there is no
God but Alla.h”.
- Allah is eternal, creator, omnipotent,
infinitely good, merciful, but harsh
on those who oppose his will.
- Muslims are urged to worship Allah alone &
avoid veneration of transitory things of the
world.
Both Christianity & Islam are considered
universalizing religions because tey attempt
to operate on a global scale & are not
inextricably linked to any nation, ethnicity,
or place as opposed to ethnic religions that
attract one group of people residing in one
locality.

Universalizing religions have a variety of

means to transmit their principles & their
followers believe that what they think is
appropriate for humankind.
 Judaism
• Considered an ethnic religion because it draws
members from a specific group of people from a
definite locality with most of its practices & rituals
performed continously throughout generations.

• Rituals & holidays belong to the ethnic religions are

based on the cycle of harvest that are quite
different in the celebrations for for universalizing
religions that are often anchored upon the life
stories of their originators.
 On the Concept of Dharma
• Indians – majority of them are Hindus.
• Buddhism
– originated in India has been absorbed into the
Hindu worldview.
– Centers its attention on the figure of the
Buddha.
– Buddha was not a God but a human being who
came to discover how to terminate sufferings in
order to escape the painful & continous cycle of
rebirth.
– dharma in Buddhism, it means cosmic law & order or the
teachings of the Buddha & the truth of the way things are.

• Hinduism – it is called as “Sanatana Dharma”.

• Dharma
– in Hinduism it could mean duty, righteousness & ethics.
– in all humanity, this s common & evident in virtues such
as peacefulness, empathy & kindness.
– dharma is also found in one’s caste in the present life &
toward another life that could lead to liberation from the
cycle of rebirth.
• Theravada
– dharma is sometimes used to indicate all the
factors of existence.

• For the followers of Dharmic Religions

– meditational & yoga rituals lead to right
behavior & ultimate understanding of universe.
– the final spiritual truth is beyond all delusions
of the physical world where pain & sufferings
exist because of extreme attachment to people &
material things.
 On Nature and Ancestors
• The elements of cult of heaven & ancestor
worship are features of ancient Chinese
culture integrated into Confucian
philosophy & belief.

• Chinese belief systems arrived in Japan &

influenced the local culture & the
indigenous polytheistic religion Shintoism.
• Shintoism
– traditional religion of Japan.
– divinities are closely linked to nature &
natural forces.
– Shinto followers carry out ritualistic
practices conscientiously in order to
establish union w/ the present society & the
nations past.
– majority of its followers also practice
Buddhism.
• The sacred Mount Fuji, an abode of
Japanese gods, is surrounded by
temples & shrines. It is one of the holy
mountains along with Mount Tate &
Munt Haku.
• Confucius
– had a firm conviction in a natural order
that was also a moral order.

– the Confucian stance on the world is

basically encapsulated about an individual’s
understanding of heaven & the people’s
relationship w/ heaven.
– from having a harmonious relationship between
humans & heaven, the establishment of an ideal
human society is also key to Confucian followers.
Central to this objective concerns family
relations as emphasized in the concept of filial
piety being the major pillar of Confucian ethics.

Confucius outlined the 5 basic social relationships:

1. Ruler & subjects 2. Father & Son 3. Husband & wife
4. Older & younger brothers
5. friends or members of the community
– All human relationships had a set of
definite responsibilities & obligations with
participants conforming to & accepting their
roles.
– With all mechanism in mind, a perfect
society is attainable.
–Quite similarly, Daoism promotes
harmonious relationship between
humankind & nature. Appropriateness of
one’s behavior is also integral in the Daoist
teachings.
LONG QUIZ.
 Make a poster presentation illustrating the unity of
world religions . Expalin your work in front of the class.
Your poster will be graded based on the rubric below.

RUBRIC FOR POSTER PRESENTATION

CRITERIA DESCRIPTION POINTS POINTS OBTAINED
The concept was clearly & creatively 6
Organization conveyed.
Important concepts were highlighted & 7
Content explained.
Presentation The idea was clearly presented based on 7
the poster illustration

Total: 20