Monotheistic Religions

Annotations:

• The Religion for the people who lived northeast of Egypt, the Hebrews. The people who became the Hebrews were originally living in Mesopotamia. At around 1950 B.C.E, they moved to Canaan. They were the founders of Judaism. Judaism is one of the world's major religions. The basic laws are recorded in the Torah, the most sacred text. The Torah contains the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. Judaism is a monotheistic religion. The Hebrews, or known as Jews later, believed in God.
• There are four really important Hebrew leaders, Abraham, Moses, and the kings David and Solomon. They made really important contributions to Judaism.
• The Hebrews were later known as Jews were because when Jerusalem got destroyed and many Israelites are brought to Babylon, they were known as The Judean. The name was later shortened to Jews.

1. Moses

   Annotations:

   • Moses was the leader who led the Hebrews out of Egypt. At around 1300 B.C.E, a large group of people were living in Egypt. They were the descendants of Abraham. There, they became more powerful. The pharaoh feared them and made them slaves. God told Moses that God is sending Moses to the Pharaoh to tell him to free the descendants of Abraham. 
   • When Moses told the Pharaoh to free the people, the Pharaoh didn't want to do it, so God punished the Pharaoh with ten plagues. Finally, the Pharaoh gave in. Moses began to lead the people out of Egypt and back to Canaan. The Pharaoh soon changed his mind and wanted them back. The Pharaoh sent his army to catch them, but at the Sea of Reeds, Moses parted the sea and so the Hebrews could walk to the land while the Egyptians cannot. After that, they wandered around for 40 years.
   • During this time, God gave Moses the Ten Commandments, which were the teachings that the Hebrews need to follow. Moses got the Ten Commandments at the Mountain of Sinai, or the Mountain of the God. Moses helped lead the Hebrews out of Egypt, he helped got the teachings of Judaism, and he united the Hebrews and telling them to respect each other.
2. Abraham

   Annotations:

   • Abraham, also known as the "father of the Hebrews", was the ancestor of the Hebrews. He was born in about 2000 B.C.E in the city of Ur in Mesopotamia. Even though at this time the people of Ur believed in different gods, Abraham believed there is only one God.
   • Abraham was originally called Abram, but because of the special relationship between him and God, God named him Abraham, which means father of many. God visited Abram when he was an old man and told him to leave his country, travel to a new land that God wants him to go, and God promised Abram that he would be the father of a great nation of people.
   • God told Abraham "Leave your own country and your father's house, and go to a country that I will show you." He left with his relatives and move to the land of Canaan. At the age of 99, God spoke to Abraham and told him that he should always devote him and his family to God, and God would help protect his people. The people now think of Canaan as the Promised land. They should always respect. After that, he married to a girl named Sarai. They didn't have any kids. So God named Sarai Sarah, which meant princess. A year later, Sarah gave birth to Isaac. Isaac married to Rebekah.
3. David

   Annotations:

   • After wandering for 40 years, the people moved back to Canaan. They built a kingdom, and Solomon built the First Great Temple. the kingdom was called Israel. David helped unified the people. In about 1000 B.C.E, they were having some problem with the Philistines. The Philistines said that they could be their slaves if they beat their fiercest warrior, the Giant Goliath. David, who was not yet a grown man at that time, was angry about how Goliath was toward God, and he went to fight Goliath. 
   • David had only a sling, and with one mighty throw, he won with a single stone. He became the king after Saul and he united the people of the kingdom. He gave them their own army and officials and created a strong kingdom. He was also a poet.
4. Solomon

   Annotations:

   • Solomon became king in about 965 B.C.E, after David. David helped bring the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem. Solomon was famous for his wisdom. He built the first Great Temple of Jerusalem. He also made peace with the neighbours. 
   • He also added copper mining and he increased the trade with some other people. King David and Solomon made great contributions and helped the other kings rule the place for more than 400 years.
5. Torah

   Annotations:

   • The Torah contains the first five books from the Hebrew Bible. The Hebrew Bible is also called The Tanakh. The word Torah means teaching. The Hebrew Bible contains two more texts known as The Prophets and The Writing. The Christians think that the Hebrew Bible is their Old Testament.

Annotations:

• Christianity is based on the teachings of Jesus. Christians believe that Jesus was the Son of God. As Christianity gained more followers, the Romans fear something bad would happen, so they tried to stop Christianity from going, but at 312 C.E, emperor Constatine had a vision and a dream. He saw a cross hanging in the sky and around has the words "In this sign, you will conquer." The emperor Constatine thinks that if he accepted Christians beliefs, he would win.    
• Emperor Constatine led his soldiers with shields that had the first two letters of Christ on it. They won a great victory, and from then on, Emperor Constatine followed Christianity and his mother also followed Christianity. By 380 C.E, Christianity was the official religion of the Roman Empire.

1. Jesus

   Annotations:

   • Christianity is the teachings of Jesus. Christians believe he was the Messiah and Son of God. Christians believe he was The Chosen One. He lived from about 6 B.C.E to 30 C.E. Jesus was believed to be taught to become a carpenter. His parents were Mary and Joseph. 
   • As more and more followers follow Jesus and his teachings, the Romans fear that Jesus might preach a revolt. Jesus actually never did. The Romans decided to end the problems. One of the disciples, Judas, betrayed him and told the Romans where he could be found after having supper. Christians refer to this as "The Last Supper". As Jesus was led away by the Romans, his disciples fled. At around 312 C.E, Emperor Constatine changed into a christian after seeing a cross hanging in the sky. He won a battle with his soldiers, telling them to have the first two letter of Christ on their shield. After that battle, Constatine became a Christian and helped support Christianity and in 380 C.E, Christianity became the official religion for the Roman Empire.
   1. Parables

      Annotations:

      • Jesus liked to teach other people lessons by saying a simple story, or a parable. Usually, there is a moral lesson inside the parable. One example is that when the younger and older brother had money, the younger brother left his father and went to have parties while the older brother stayed and helped his father. When the younger brother ran out of money, his friends left him and he needed to come back home. when he came home, the father was happy and threw in a party. The older brother was angry, but the father said he shouldn't be because they once lost the younger brother, and now he is back, so they needed to celebrate this.
   2. Gospels

      Annotations:

      • The Gospels are the writings of the life of Jesus. There are four Gospels, written in Greek many years after Jesus. They were written by John, Mark, Matthew, and Luke.
   3. Disciples

      Annotations:

      • There were a small group of people who Jesus chose to be his Disciples. 
      • The disciples are known as: Simon (known as Peter) Andrew (Who was Peter's brother) James (Who was son of Zebedee) John (Jame's brother) Philip Bartholomew Thomas Matthew James Thaddeus (Also known as Judas.) Simon Judas
2. Paul

   Annotations:

   • Paul helped spread Christianity. At first, he wasn't a Christian. He supported and helped the Romans end the problems and threats they think they would get if Jesus continued and got more followers. They did that by tying people to the cross or using nails. Then one day, Paul saw a blinding light, a vision, and heard the voice of Jesus. After that, he started his journey and converted many Gentiles to Christians and teaching other people teachings of Jesus. He was beheaded at last, at about 60 C.E., but he contributed greatly to Christianity.
3. Constantine

   Annotations:

   • Emperor Constantine became the Emperor at about 312 C.E. Emperor Constantine  helped make Christianity the religion of the Roman Empire. At first, he wasn't a Christian. But he gave the Christians the Edict of Milan, which meant that they could practice their religion. And when one day, he saw a cross hanging from the sky, telling him that if he accepts this religion, he would conquer. He told the soldiers to put the first two words of Christ on their shields, and they won a major battle.