Monotheistic Religions

Monotheistic Religions

1. Judaism

   • Abraham
     • Father of the Hebrews
     • Introduced the belief in a single God
     • Moved his family from Mesopotamia to Canaan
   • Moses
     • Leader of the Hebrews
     • Led the Exodus out of Egypt
     • Gave Judaism the Ten Commandments
     • Forged the Hebrews into a united people devoted to a single God
   • David
     • King of Courage
     • United Israel and Judah
     • Chose Jerusalem for his capital and made it a holy city
     • Bought the Ark of Covenant
   • Solomon
     • King of Wisdom
     • Build the Great Temple of Jerusalem
     • Made treaties with neighboring kingdoms to increase foreign trade
   • The Torah
     • The Torah means " God's teaching" The Torah consists of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. The Christians refer to the Hebrew Bible as the Old Testament.
     • Contains written records and teachings of the Jews
       • The Hebrews were the founders of Judaism.
     • Help historians learned much about the ancient Israelites and the development of Judaism.
   • DOES NOT believe that Jesus is the Messiah.

2. Christianity

   • Jesus Christ
     • Jesus was born in 6 B.C.E, during the reign of King Herod. At age 12, Jesus astonished the teachers, in the great Temple of Jerusalem with his wisdom and his knowledge of Jewish law. When Jesus was about 30, a teacher known as John the Baptist identified Jesus as the Messiah. After 40 days of praying in the wilderness, Jesus began to preach in Galilee.
     • Spread teachings of peace, harmony, and love.
       • Jesus based his teachings on traditional Jewish beliefs but especially taught people about love and mercy. Of all the Jewish laws, he said, two were the most important. The first was, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and all your soul.” The second was, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
     • Considered the savior, or Messiah, the Jews have been waiting for.
     • Was killed by the Romans but resurrected and persuaded his followers that he is the Son of God.
       • He was betrayed by one of his followers called Judas. He was hung on a cross and died but resurrected 3 days later.
   • Constantine
     • The king that made Christianity the official religion of Rome after seeing a cross in the sky, and it said that if he become a Christian, he shall win the battle the day after. He won the war, and made Christian practice legal, and the Christian population has grown ever since. The following kings, such as Emperor Theodosius I has accepted Christianity as well.
     • The first emperor of Rome who supports Jesus' teachings and stopped crucifying Christians
   • DOES believe that Jesus is the Messiah.
   • Paul
     • At first Paul did not support Jesus's teachings, but after hearing a voice he thought was from Jesus, he began to spread Jesus' teachers
     • Converted non-Jews, called Gentiles, to Christians.
     • Paul was imprisoned in Rome for spreading teachings. He was beheaded by the Romans around 65 C.E.
   • Gospels
     • Accounts of Jesus's life that were written in Greek some years after his death.
     • Luke
     • John
     • Matthew
     • Mark
   • Parables
     • Short stories said by Jesus to teach his disciples about important concepts in life