AP HUG Test Chapter 6
What are the 2 Gods that those who practice Hinduism tend to follow?
The average Hindu has allegiance to a particular god or concept within a broad range of possibilities. The manifestation of God with the largest number of adherents—an estimated 80 percent—is Vaishnavism, which worships the god Vishnu, a loving god incarnated as Krishna. The second-largest is Shaivism, dedicated to Shiva, a protective and destructive god.
Sunni vs. Shiite
Two branches of Islam divided by the question of who should lead after the Prophet Mohammed died. The group now known as Sunnis chose Abu Bakr, the prophet's adviser, to become the first successor, or caliph, to lead the Muslim state. Shiites favored Ali, Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law. Ali and his successors are called imams, who not only lead the Shiites but are considered to be descendants of Muhammad.
congregation
a group of people assembled for religious worship
Cao Dai
"High palace"; a syncretic religion that began in Vietnam and that blends Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, and Catholic Christianity
Theravada Buddhism
"Way of the Elders" branch of Buddhism followed in Sri Lanka and much of Southeast Asia. Theravada remains close to the original principles set forth by the Buddha; it downplays the importance of gods and emphasizes austerity and the individual's search for enlightenment. Believes that Buddhism is a full time job, so one must become a monk
What is the most widely practiced religion in every country of the Western Hemisphere and in most countries of Europe and sub-Saharan Africa?
Christianity
Buddhist Pagodas
- contain relics that Buddhists believe to be a portion of Buddha's body or clothing. - are not designed for congregational worship.
Local Autonomy in Islam
-Among the three large universalizing religions, Islam provides the most local autonomy -Islam has neither a religious hierarchy nor a formal territorial organization -The only formal organization of territory in Islam is through the coincidence of religious territory with secular states -Strong unity within the Islamic world is maintained by a relatively high degree of communication and migration, such as the pilgrimage to Makkah.
Hinduism's South Asian Landscape
-As an ethnic religion of India, Hinduism is closely tied to the physical geography of India. According to a survey conducted by the geographer Surinder Bhardwaj, the natural features most likely to rank among the holiest shrines in India are riverbanks and coastlines. Hindus consider a pilgrimage, known as a tirtha, to be an act of purification. Although not a substitute for meditation, the pilgrimage is an important act in achieving redemption. -As an ethnic religion of India, Hinduism is closely tied to the physical geography of India. According to a survey conducted by the geographer Surinder Bhardwaj, the natural features most likely to rank among the holiest shrines in India are riverbanks and coastlines. Hindus consider a pilgrimage, known as a tirtha, to be an act of purification. Although not a substitute for meditation, the pilgrimage is an important act in achieving redemption.
Why might utopian communities disappear?
-Cannot attract immigrants -Residents move away in search of better economic conditions
Christian Church
-Churches dominate Christian landscapes -The word church derives from a Greek term meaning "lord," "master," and "power." Church also refers to a gathering of believers, as well as the building at which the gathering occurs. -The church is prominent because all 3 branches believe that worship at church is immportant -Since Christianity has many denominations, no one type of church building dominates
Judaism's Jerusalem
-First temple (King Solomon) -Roman's destroyed 2nd temple -Western wall survived- a site for Jews
Hindu temples
-Important Hindu religion functions are more likely to take place at home through family -Hindu temples are designed to bring individuals closer to their Gods -They are a place for individual reflection and meditation -Hinduism has an unknown origin and temples have existed since the beginning of recorded time
Battles over the Arabian Peninsula
-In the seventh century, Muslims from the Arabian Peninsula came and captured most of the Middle East, including Palestine and Jerusalem. The Arab Muslim presence diffused the Arabic language across the Middle East and subsequently converted most of the people in that region from Christianity to Islam. -To recapture the Holy Land from its Muslim conquerors, European Christians launched a series of military campaigns, known as Crusades, over a 200-year period. -The Muslim Ottoman Empire controlled the Palestine region for most of the four centuries between 1516 and 1917. Inspired by other nationalist movements and the rise of anti-Semitism in the late nineteenth century, Jews began returning in larger numbers to their historic homeland. Upon the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I, the United Kingdom took over Palestine, under a mandate from the League of Nations. - As violence initiated by both Jewish and Muslim settlers escalated after World War II, the British announced their intention to withdraw from Palestine, setting the scene for the region's contemporary disputes.
Islam's Jerusalem
-Most important structure is the Dome of the Rock -Place where Muhammed ascended to heaven -Their second temple, al-Aqsa Mosque was built on top of the ruins of the Jewish second holy temple.
Sikh Gurdwaras
-Sikhs come together for worship at a gurdwara. The most important gurdwara is the Harmandir Sahib, or Golden Temple, in Amritsar, India -The Golden Temple houses Sikhism's holiest book, the Guru Granth Sahib. Most gurdwaras imitate the layout of the Golden Temple. A gurdwara is identified by the Sikh flag flying from a tall flagpole.
Migration patterns of Muslims
-Southwest Asia & North Africa is home to 20 percent of the world's Muslims but attracts 34 percent of the migrants. -Saudi Arabia is the country that attracts the largest number of Muslim migrants, accounting for 10 percent of the world total. Egypt sends the largest number of migrants to Saudi Arabia. -Europe, with only 3 percent of the world's Muslims, attracts 34 percent of Muslims who migrate internationally. Russia, Germany, and France are all world leaders in attracting Muslims. --The largest numbers of Muslims who have migrated to Europe have come from Turkey to Germany and from Algeria to France. -Morocco has been the origin of a large number of Muslims, divided between France and Spain. North America receives only around 1 percent of Muslim migrants
Bahá'í houses of worship
-dispersed to different continents to dramatize the religion as a universalizing religion with adherents all over the world
Unknown Origin of Hinduism
-no specific founder, no recorded history -India- Hinduism brought by Aryans-1st settled in Punjab (Ganges River) -living in same area as Dravidians modified religious beliefs -God=Shiva -Elements of Hinduism may have originated in the Indus Valley civilization, which flourished between approximately 2500 b.c. and 1500 b.c. in the valley along the Indus River in present-day eastern Pakistan. Archaeological evidence of possible rituals from that era includes bathing rituals, animal sacrifices, and sculptures that may depict Hindu gods
Muslim Mosques
-space for community assembly -found in large cities of the Muslim world -simple structures may serve as places of prayer in rural villages
How long ago were the earliest surviving Hindu temples constructed?
1500-2000 years ago
Judaism
2/5 of the world's 14 million Jews live in the United States, and another 2/5 in Israel The name Judaism derives from Judah, one of the patriarch Jacob's 12 sons; Israel is another biblical name for Jacob. The Tanakh recounts the ancient history of the Jewish people and the laws of the Jewish faith. Tanakh is an acronym for Torah Judiasm was the first Monotheistic religion
What percent of people live in a country where their religion is the minority?
27 percent of the world's people live in countries where their religion is in the minority. This includes 3 percent of Hindus, 13 percent of Christians, 27 percent of Muslims, 29 percent of unaffiliated, 59 percent of Jews, 72 percent of Buddhists, 99 percent of folk religionists, and 100 percent of other religious groups.
Grouping of world religions
4 largest religions (77%), folk religions (6%), other religions (1%), unaffiliated (16%)
Distribution of Hinduism
97 percent of Hindus are concentrated in just one country (India), 2 percent are in Nepal, 1 percent are in Bangladesh, and small numbers are elsewhere. Hindus comprise more than 80 percent of the population of India and Nepal, while about 9 percent live in Bangladesh, and a small minority are found in every other country
Agnotism
A belief that the existence of God cannot be known or proven.
Denomination
A division of a branch that unites a number of local congregations in a single legal and administrative body.
Pilgrimage
A journey to a place considered sacred for religious purposes.
branch
A large and fundamental division within a religion
Parishes
A local Christian community led by a priest. The area and population of parishes and dioceses vary according to historical factors and the distribution of Roman Catholics across Earth's surface. In parts of Europe, the overwhelming majority of the dense population is Roman Catholic. Consequently, the density of parishes is high. A typical parish may encompass only a few square kilometers and fewer than 1,000 people.
water burial
A method of body disposition that typically involves ceremonially sliding the corpse off the side of a ship ("burial at sea") or, less commonly, placing the corpse inside a boat that is set aflame and then set adrift. Disposal of bodies at sea is used in some parts of Micronesia, but the practice is much less common than in the past. The bodies of lower-class people would be flung into the sea; elites could be set adrift on a raft or boat. Water burial was regarded as a safeguard against the living being contaminated by the dead.
Sikhism
All but 3 million of the world's 23 million Sikhs are clustered in the Punjab region of India. The founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak (1469-1538), lived in a village near the city of Lahore, in present-day Pakistan. Nanak traveled widely through South Asia around 500 years ago, preaching his new faith, and his many followers became known as Sikhs Nine other gurus succeeded Guru Nanak. In 1604, Arjan, the fifth guru, compiled and edited the Guru Granth Sa-hib (the Holy Granth of Enlightenment), which became the book of Sikh holy scriptures.
Confucianism
A philosophy that adheres to the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius. It shows the way to ensure a stable government and an orderly society in the present world and stresses a moral code of conduct.
Universalizing Religion
A religion that attempts to appeal to all people, not just those living in a particular location. Examples are Christianity, Islam and Buddhism
Syncretic
A religion that combines several traditions
Autonomous religion
A religion that does not have a central authority but shares ideas and cooperates informally. Islam and some Protestant denominations are good examples.
Hierarchical religion
A religion that has a well defined geographic structure that organizes territory into local administrative units. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Roman Catholicism are examples of hierarchical religions.
Cosmogony
A set of religious beliefs concerning the origin of the universe. The universalizing religions Christianity and Islam consider that God (or Allah, for Islam) created the universe, including Earth's physical environment and human beings. The cosmogony underlying Chinese traditional ethnic religions, is that the universe is made up of two forces, yin and yang, which exist in everything. The force of yin (earth, darkness, female, cold, depth, passivity, and death) interacts with the force of yang (heaven, light, male, heat, height, activity, and life) to achieve balance and harmony
Competing Israeli and Palestinian Perspectives
After the 1973 war, the Palestinians emerged as Israel's principal opponent. Egypt and Jordan eventually renounced their claims to the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, respectively, and recognized the Palestinians as the legitimate rulers of these territories. The Palestinians in turn saw themselves as the legitimate rulers of Palestine, which they defined as territory including the State of Israel. Palestinian and Israeli perspectives over the future have not been reconciled over the past half century.
calendar used by Buddhists
All Buddhists celebrate as major holidays Buddha's birth, Enlightenment, and death. However, not all Buddhists observe them on the same days. Japanese Buddhists celebrate Buddha's birth on April 8, his Enlightenment on December 8, and his death on February 15; Theravadist Buddhists observe all three events on the same day, usually in April.
4 Noble Truths
All living beings must endure suffering. Suffering, which is caused by a desire to live, leads to reincarnation (repeated rebirth in new bodies or forms of life). The goal of all existence is to escape suffering and the endless cycle of reincarnation into Nirvana (a state of complete redemption), which is achieved through mental and moral self-purification. Nirvana is attained through an Eightfold Path: rightness of belief, resolve, speech, action, livelihood, effort, thought, and meditation.
Where are the hearths of the 3 largest religions located?
All three hearths are in Asia (Christianity and Islam in Southwest Asia, Buddhism in South Asia). Followers transmitted the messages preached in the hearths to people elsewhere, diffusing them across Earth's surface along distinctive paths
Geographic differences between language and religion
Although most migrants learn the language of the new location, they typically retain their religion. Furthermore, people can learn a globally important language such as English and at the same time still speak the language of their local culture, but most (though not all) religions require exclusive adherence, so adopting a new religion could require turning away from the former one.
Solstice
An astronomical event that happens twice each year, when the tilt of Earth's axis is most inclined toward or away from the Sun, causing the Sun's apparent position in the sky to reach it most northernmost or southernmost extreme, and resulting in the shortest and longest days of the year. A major holiday in some pagan religions is the winter solstice, December 21 or 22 in the Northern Hemisphere. The winter solstice is the shortest day and longest night of the year, when the Sun appears lowest in the sky, and the apparent movement of the Sun's path north or south comes to a stop before reversing direction (solstice comes from the Latin to "stand still")
Differing in holy places between universalizing and ethnic religions
An ethnic religion typically has a less widespread distribution than a universalizing one in part because its holy places derive from the distinctive physical environment of its hearth, such as mountains, rivers, or rock formations. A universalizing religion endows with holiness cities and other places associated with the founder's life. Its holy places do not necessarily have to be near each other, and they do not need to be related to any particular physical environment.
Ethnic vs universalizing holiday's
An ethnic religion typically is more clustered than a universalizing religion, in part because its holidays are based on the distinctive physical geography of the homeland. In universalizing religions, major holidays relate to events in the life of the founder rather than to the changing seasons of one particular place.
African Folk traditional religions
Approximately 27 million Africans, 2 percent of the continent's people, are estimated by Pew to follow folk religions, sometimes called animism. According to animism, inanimate objects such as plants and stones, or natural events such as thunderstorms and earthquakes, are "animated," or have discrete spirits and conscious life.
Baha'i
Bahá'í is a universalizing religion, and roughly equal numbers of Bahá'ís are found in India, other Asian countries, Africa, and the Western Hemisphere. The Bahá'í religion was established in Shíráz, Iran, in 1844. It grew out of the Bábi faith, under the leadership of Siyyid 'Ali Muhammad, known as the Báb. Bahá'í provoked strong opposition from Shiite Muslims, and the Báb was executed in 1850, as were 20,000 of his followers. Bahá'ís believe that one of the Báb's disciples, Husayn 'Ali Nuri, known as Bahá'u'lláh (Arabic for "Glory of God"), was the prophet and messenger of God. Bahá'u'lláh's function was to overcome the disunity of religions and establish a universal faith through abolition of racial, class, and religious prejudices. Bahá'u'lláh was arrested and then exiled. In 1863, his claim that he was the messenger of God anticipated by the Báb was accepted by other followers. Before he died in 1892, Bahá'u'lláh appointed his eldest son, 'Abdu'l-Bahá (1844-1921), to be the leader of the Bahá'í community and the authorized interpreter of his teachings.
calendar used by the Bahá'ís
Bahá'ís use a calendar established by the Báb and confirmed by Bahá'u'lláh, in which the year is divided into 19 months of 19 days each, with the addition of 4 extra days (5 in leap years). The year begins on the first day of spring, March 21, one of several holy days in the Bahá'í calendar. Bahá'ís attend the Nineteen Day Feast, held on the first day of each month of the Bahá'í calendar, to pray, read scriptures, and discuss community activities.
Polytheism
Belief in many gods
Monotheism
Belief in one God
Animism
Belief that objects, such as plants and stones, or natural events, like thunderstorms and earthquakes, have a discrete spirit and conscious life.
Atheism
Belief that there is no god.
Primal Indigenous Religions
Believe in God dwells in all things and everything in nature is spiritual Found mostly in Southeast Asia and South Pacific, especially in Vietnam and Laos Included in this group are Shamanism and Paganism. According to Shamans, invisible forces or spirits affect the lives of the living. "Pagan" used to refer to the practices of ancient peoples, such as the Greeks and Romans, who had multiple gods with human forms
Which universalizing religions place the most emphasis on identifying shrines?
Buddhism and Islam are the universalizing religions that place the most emphasis on identifying shrines. Places are holy because they are the locations of important events in the life of Buddha or Muhammad. Making a pilgrimage to these holy places—a journey for religious purposes to a place considered sacred—is incorporated into the rituals of some religions. Hindus and Muslims are especially encouraged to make pilgrimages to visit holy places in accordance with recommended itineraries.
Distribution of Buddhism
Buddhism, the third of the world's major universalizing religions, is clustered primarily in East Asia and Southeast Asia.
What branch of Christianity is the majority in the United States and Canada?
Canada (except Québec) and the United States have Protestant majorities because their early colonists came primarily from Protestant England. Some regions and localities within the United States and Canada are predominantly Roman Catholic because of immigration from Roman Catholic countries. Similarly, geographers trace the distribution of other Christian denominations within the United States to the fact that migrants came from different parts of Europe, especially during the nineteenth century. Followers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, popularly known as Mormons, settled at Fayette, New York, near the hometown of their founder Joseph Smith. During Smith's life, the group moved several times in search of religious freedom. Eventually, under the leadership of Brigham Young, they migrated to the sparsely inhabited Salt Lake Valley in the present-day state of Utah.
What are the religions in East Asia like?
Chinese traditional religions are syncretic, which means they combine several traditions. Adherents.com considers Chinese traditional religions to be a combination of Buddhism (a universalizing religion) and Confucianism, Taoism, and other traditional Chinese practices. Most Chinese who consider themselves religious blend together the religious cultures of these multiple traditions.
Groups of folk religions
Chinese traditional, primal-indigenous, and African traditional.
Distribution of branches of Christianity in the Western Hemisphere
Christianity is by far the most widely practiced religion in the Western Hemisphere. Christians comprise 86 percent of the population of the Western Hemisphere. This includes 90 percent of Latin Americans and 77 percent of North Americans. People unaffiliated with any religion comprise 8 percent of Latin Americans and 17 percent of North Americans. At the regional scale within the Western Hemisphere, a sharp boundary exists between North America and Latin America in the predominant branches of Christianity. Roman Catholics comprise 81 percent of Christians in Latin America and 32 percent in North America, whereas Protestants comprise 18 percent of Christians in Latin America and 63 percent in North America.
Diffusion of Christianity
Christianity's diffusion has been rather clearly recorded since Jesus first set forth its tenets in the Roman province known at the time as Judea Christianity diffused through a combination of relocation (Missionaries preached the religion as they traveled) and expansion diffusion (colonization and roman empire)
Four Largest Religions
Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism. 2.2 billion people in the world view themselves as Christian, 1.6 billion as Muslim, 1 billion as Hindu, and 500 million as Buddhist.
calendar used by Christians
Christians commemorate the resurrection of Jesus on Easter, observed on the first Sunday after the first full Moon following the spring equinox in late March. But not all Christians observe Easter on the same day because Protestant and Roman Catholic branches calculate the date on the Gregorian calendar, whereas Orthodox churches use the Julian calendar. Christians associate their holidays with seasonal variations in the calendar, but climate and the agricultural cycle are not central to the liturgy and rituals. (example: pine trees and snow on Christmas)
places of worship
Church, basilica, mosque, temple, and synagogue are familiar names that identify places for collective religious expression in various religions.
Communism and religion
Communism does not allow room for religion because the government is supposed to be #1, not God. Therefore, most people in communists countries worship the government or are atheists. EX: China worships government EX: Russia was atheist because the elders worshiped in secret and the younger ages were not exposed to religion, but after the fall of communism there was a religious revival
Jews, Christians and Muslims in Southwest Asia
Conflict in the portion of Southwest Asia often referred to as the Middle East or the Eastern Mediterranean is among the world's longest standing and most intractable. Jews, Christians, and Muslims have fought for many centuries to control the same small strip of land, mainly in Israel. All three groups trace their origins to Abraham in the Hebrew Bible narrative, but the religions diverged in ways that have made it difficult for them to share the same territory: -Judaism makes a special claim to the territory it calls the Promised Land. The major events in the development of Judaism took place there, and the religion's customs and rituals acquired meaning from the agricultural life of the ancient Israelite tribes. -Christianity considers Palestine the Holy Land and Jerusalem the Holy City because the major events in Jesus's life, death, and resurrection were concentrated there. Most inhabitants of Palestine accepted Christianity after the religion was officially adopted by the Roman Empire and before the Muslim army conquest in the seventh century. -Islam became the most widely practiced religion in Palestine after the Muslim army conquered it in the seventh century a.d. Muslims regard Jerusalem as their third-holiest city, after Makkah and Madinah, because it is the place from which Muhammad is thought by Muslims to have ascended to heaven.
Ghetto
During the middle Ages, a neighborhood in a city set up by law to be inhabited only by Jews; now used to denote a section of a city in which members of any minority group live because of social, legal, or economic pressure.
What 4 regions have the most diverse religious compositions?
East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa. In East Asia, more than one-half of the people are unaffiliated with any religion. Most of the other one-half are divided about equally between Buddhism and folk religions. In South Asia, around two-thirds of the people are Hindus and one-third Muslims. However, adherents are sharply divided by country; India is 80 percent Hindu, whereas Bangladesh and Pakistan are more than 90 percent Muslim. In Southeast Asia, around 40 percent are Muslims, 24 percent Buddhists, and 21 percent Christians. Indonesia (the region's most populous country) is 87 percent Muslim, Cambodia and Thailand are more than 90 percent Buddhist, and the Philippines is more than 90 percent Christian. In sub-Saharan Africa, around two-thirds are Christian and one-third Muslim.
Differences in distribution universalizing vs ethnic religions
Ethnic religions typically have much more clustered distributions than do universalizing religions. Unlike universalizing religions, which typically diffuse from one culture to another, most of the adherents of the world's leading ethnic religions have remained embedded in the culture where they originated.
Smaller (other) religions
Juchte, Judaism, Sikhism, and Spiritism—have between 14 and 23 million adherents each. Six other religions have between 1 and 10 million adherents: Bahá'í, Cao Dai, Jainism, Shinto, Tenrikyo, and Zoroastrianism.
Palestinian perspective on Israel
Five groups of people consider themselves Palestinians: -People living in the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem territories captured by Israel in 1967. -Some citizens of Israel who are Arabs. -People who fled from Israel to other countries after the 1948-1949 war. -People who fled from the West Bank or Gaza to other countries after the 1967 Six-Day War. -Some citizens of other countries, especially Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia. The Palestinians have been divided by sharp differences, reflected in a struggle for power between the Fatah and Hamas parties. Some Palestinians, especially those aligned with the Fatah Party, are willing to recognize the State of Israel with its Jewish majority in exchange for return of all territory taken by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War. Other Palestinians, especially those aligned with the Hamas Party, do not recognize the right of Israel to exist and want to continue fighting for control
How many religions have 14-25 million adherents?
Four religions have an estimated 14 to 25 million adherents: Sikhism, Juche, Spiritism, and Judaism.
What do the current global and regional distributions of religions result from?
Geographic processes of origin and diffusion. The most widely followed universalizing religions—Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam—have well- defined places of origin and widespread and well- documented patterns of diffusion. An ethnic religion such as Hinduism has unknown origins and limited diffusion.
Diffusion of Buddhism
Hearth is in northern India approximately 500 B.C; Characterized by a slow diffusion from its hearth; Carried into China in the first century A.D by merchants along trade routes
Diffusion of Islam
Hearth: Asia, hierarchical diffusion: Muhammad's successors' conquests; relocation diffusion: missionaries into sub-Saharan Africa and SW Asia -hearth is in South West Asia in modern Saudi Arabia -diffused across Asia, Africa, and Europe during the 8th through the 12th centuries primarily by conquest and trade -hierarchical and relocation diffusion
Hinduism's struggles against social equality
Hinduism has been strongly challenged since the 1800s, when British colonial administrators introduced their social and moral concepts to India. The most vulnerable aspect of the Hindu religion was its rigid caste system, which indicated the class or distinct hereditary order into which a Hindu was born, according to religious law. The Aryans divided themselves into four castes that developed strong differences in social and economic position: -Brahmans, the priests and top administrators. -Kshatriyas, or warriors. -Vaisyas, or merchants. -Shudras, or agricultural workers and artisans. The Shudras occupied a distinctly lower status than the other three castes. Below the four castes were the Dalits—outcasts or untouchables—who did work considered too dirty for other castes. In theory, the untouchables were descended from the indigenous people who dwelled in India prior to the Aryan conquest.
Ethnic autonomous religions
Hinduism is highly autonomous because worship is usually done alone or with others in the household. Hindus share ideas primarily through undertaking pilgrimages and reading traditional writings. Hinduism has no centralized structure of religious control
Which ethnic religion has the largest number of followers?
Hinduism, the world's 3rd largest religion with over 1 billion adherents
Burial of Hindus
Hindus generally practice cremation rather than burial. The body is washed with water from the Ganges River and then burned with a slow fire on a funeral pyre. Burial is reserved for children, ascetics, and people with certain diseases. Cremation is considered an act of purification, although it tends to strain India's wood supply.
Where did Christianity and Islam get their roots?
Judaism
Wars Between Israel and Neighbors
Independence War - Israel declared independence, and the neighboring Arab states declared war (1948-1949) Suez War- Egypt seized Suez Canal, Israel France and the UK attacked Egypt and got the waterways reopened (1956) Six Day War- Israels neighbors blocked their ships from using international waterways, Israel launched a surprise attack (1967) Yom Kippur War- surprise attack on Israel (1973) Peace Treaty- Egypt and Israel signed treaty (1979)
Which 2 religions have the most adherents?
Islam and Christianity, both were founded in Southwest Asia
Where is Islam most dominant?
Islam predominates in Central Asia and in Southwest Asia & North Africa. However, on a cartogram, most of the world's Muslims live further east, in South and Southeast Asia. The countries with the most Muslims are Indonesia, Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh. These four countries together are home to more than 40 percent of the world's Muslims
calendar used by Muslims
Islam uses a lunar calendar. In a 30-year cycle, the Islamic calendar has 19 years with 354 days and 11 years with 355 days. As a result, Muslim holidays arrive in different seasons from generation to generation. At the moment, the start of Ramadan is occurring in the Northern Hemisphere spring—for example, May 27, 2017, on the western Gregorian calendar. In a.d. 2010, Ramadan started on August 11, and in a.d. 2020 Ramadan will start on April 24.
What is the most widely practiced religion in nearly every country of Southwest Asia & North Africa, as well as in Central Asia?
Islam, although Asia also has countries where the most widely practiced religion is Buddhism or Hinduism. In several countries, including China, the largest number of people are unaffiliated with any religion. Judaism is the most widely practiced religion in the State of Israel. More than 90 percent of Latin Americans and more than 75 percent of Europeans and North Americans identify themselves as adhering to Christianity. Muslims comprise more than 90 percent of the population of Central Asia and of Southwest Asia & North Africa
Israeli perspectives of the Holy Land (vs. Palestinian)
Israel is a small country (smaller than New Hampshire), with a Jewish majority, surrounded by a region of hostile neighbors. In contrast, Muslim Arab countries in the region encompass more than 25 million square kilometers (10 million square miles). Nearly all Israelis live within 20 kilometers (12 miles) of an international border, making them vulnerable to attack. The land between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River is divided into three narrow, roughly parallel physical regions (refer to Figure 6-56): A coastal plain along the Mediterranean Sea. A series of hills reaching elevations above 1,000 meters (3,300 feet). The Jordan River valley, much of which is below sea level.
Migration Patterns of Jews
Israel is where 73% of Jewish international migrants go. The United States is the destination for 10 percent of Jewish international migrants and Canada for 4 percent. Only since the creation of the State of Israel in 1948 has a significant percentage of the world's Jews lived in that territory. Most Jews have not lived there since a.d. 70, when the Romans forced them to disperse throughout the world, an action known as the diaspora, from the Greek word for "dispersion." Most Jews migrated from the eastern Mediterranean to Europe. Having been exiled from the home of their religion, Jews lived among other nationalities, retaining separate religious practices but adopting other cultural characteristics of the host country, such as language.
Origin of Christianity
Israel, founded on Jesus' teachings, believe Jesus died for sins
Jainism
Jainism originated in South Asia around 2,500 years ago. Its importance declined with the rise in importance of Buddhism and Hinduism in the region, especially since the eighth century a.d. Jains believe that nonviolence and self-control are the means to achieve liberation. India is the home to 95 percent of the world's 4 million Jains, although Jain centers are located in 25 of the 50 U.S. states.
calendar used by Jews
Judaism's major holidays are based on events in the agricultural calendar of the religion's homeland in present- day Israel. These agricultural holidays later gained importance because they also commemorated events in the Exodus of the Jews from Egypt, as recounted in the Bible -Pesach (Passover) derives from traditional agricultural practices in which farmers offered God the first fruits of the new spring harvest. It also recalls the liberation of the Jews from slavery in Egypt and the miracle of their successful flight under the leadership of Moses. -Sukkot celebrates the final gathering of fruits for the year, and prayers, especially for rain, are offered to bring success in the upcoming agricultural year (Figure 6-51). It derives from the Hebrew word for the "booths," or "temporary shelters," occupied by Jews during their wandering in the wilderness for 40 years after fleeing Egypt. -Shavuot (Feast of Weeks) comes at the end of the grain harvest. It is also considered the date during the wandering when Moses received the Ten Commandments from God. -Rosh Hashanah (New Year) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement), the two most holy and solemn days in the Jewish calendar, come in the autumn, which is the season when grain crops are planted in the Mediterranean agricultural region and therefore a time of hope and worry over whether the upcoming winter's rainfall will be sufficient. Today they are days of repentance and prayer to be inscribed in the Book of Life. The solar calendar has 12 months, each containing 30 or 31 days, taking up the astronomical slack with 28 or 29 days in February. But Judaism and Islam use a lunar calendar rather than a solar calendar. The Jewish calendar inserts an extra month every few years to match the agricultural and solar calendars, whereas Islam retains a strict lunar calendar.
Landscape organization of Latter-Day Saints
Latter-day Saints (Mormons) exercise strong organization of the landscape. The territory occupied by Mormons, primarily Utah and portions of surrounding states, is organized into wards, with populations of approximately 750 each. Several wards are combined into a stake of approximately 5,000 people. The highest authority in the Church—the board and president—frequently redraws ward and stake boundaries in rapidly growing areas to reflect the ideal population standards.
3 main branches of Buddhism
Mahayana, Theravada, Vajrayana. Mahayanists account for about 56 percent of Buddhists, primarily in China, Japan, and Korea. Theravadists comprise about 38 percent of Buddhists, especially in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. Vajrayanists, also known as Lamaists and Tantrayanists, comprise about 6 percent and are found primarily in Tibet and Mongolia.
What is religion typically drawn from?
Many people care deeply about their religion and draw from religion their core values and beliefs, an essential element of the definition of culture.
Distribution of non-christian faiths in the United States
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) regard their church as separate from the three branches of Christianity. About 2 percent of Americans are members of the Latter-day Saints, and a large percentage is clustered in Utah and surrounding states. Other less numerous faiths have distinctive distributions within the United States. For example, Jews are more likely to be in the Northeast and Buddhists on the West Coast
Tenrikyo
Originally regarded as a branch of Shinto, Tenrikyo was organized as a separate religion in 1854 by a woman named Nakayama Miki (1798-1887). Followers of Tenrikyo believe that God expressed the divine will through Nakayama's role as the Shrine of God. Adherents.com reports 2 million adherents around the world, 95 percent of whom are in Japan.
Taliban and western values
More than 99 percent of Afghans are Muslims. Much of the country's unrest has stemmed from competing visions of the role of Islam. Several civil wars in recent years in Afghanistan have also involved multiple ethnicities Contributing to intense religious conflict in Afghanistan and elsewhere has been a resurgence of religious fundamentalism, which is a literal interpretation and a strict and intense adherence to what the fundamentalists define as the basic principles of a religion When the Taliban gained power in Afghanistan in 1996, many Afghans welcomed them as preferable to the corrupt and brutal warlords who had been running the country. U.S. and other Western officials also welcomed them as strong defenders against a possible new invasion by Russia. Once in control of Afghanistan's government in the 1990s, the Taliban imposed very strict laws inspired by Islamic values as the Taliban interpreted them: "Western, non-Islamic" leisure activities were banned, such as playing music, flying kites, watching television, and surfing the Internet. Soccer stadiums were converted to settings for executions and floggings. Men were beaten for shaving their beards and women stoned for committing adultery. Homosexuals were buried alive, and prostitutes were hanged in front of large audiences. Thieves had their hands cut off, and women wearing nail polish had their fingers cut off. Western values were not the only targets: Enormous Buddhist statues as old as the second century a.d. were destroyed in 2001 because they were worshipped as "graven images," in violation of Islam A U.S.-led coalition overthrew the Taliban in 2001 and replaced it with a democratically elected government. However, the Taliban was able to regroup and has regained control parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan
Juche
Most North Koreans are classified by Adherents.com as following Juche, which is Korean for "self-reliance." Juche was organized by Kim Il-sung, the leader of North Korea between 1948 and his death in 1994. Other sources regard Juche as a government ideology or philosophy rather than a religion. Pew classifies 71 percent of North Koreans as unaffiliated, 12 percent as folk religionists, and 13 percent as other.
Zoroastrianism
One of the first monotheistic religions, particularly one with a wide following. It was central to the political and religious culture of ancient Persia. system of religion founded in Persia in the 6th century BC by Zoroaster noun
Orthodox Church
Orthodoxy comprises the faith and practices of a collection of churches that arose in the eastern part of the Roman Empire. The split between the Roman and Eastern churches dates to the fifth century, and it was a result of rivalry between the Pope of Rome and the Patriarchy of Constantinople, which was especially intense after the collapse of the Roman Empire. The split between the two churches became final in 1054, when Pope Leo IX condemned the Patriarch of Constantinople. Orthodox Christians accept the seven sacraments but reject doctrines that the Roman Catholic Church has added since the eighth century.
Distribution of branches of Christianity in Europe
Overall in Europe, 47 percent of Christians are Roman Catholics, 18 percent are Protestants, and 35 percent are Orthodox. Roman Catholicism is the most widely practiced branch of Christianity in the southwest and east of Europe, Protestantism in the northwest, and Orthodoxy in the east and southeast
Protestant denominations
Protestant Christian denominations vary in geographic structure from extremely autonomous to somewhat hierarchical. The Episcopalian, Lutheran, and most Methodist churches have hierarchical structures, somewhat comparable to the Roman Catholic Church but led by bishops, not by a single leader such as the pope. Extremely autonomous denominations such as Baptists and United Church of Christ are organized into self-governing congregations. Each congregation establishes the precise form of worship and selects the leadership.
Protestant Church
Protestantism originated with the principles of the Reformation in the sixteenth century. The Reformation movement is regarded as beginning when Martin Luther (1483-1546) posted 95 theses on the door of the church at Wittenberg on October 31, 1517. According to Luther, individuals have primary responsibility for achieving personal salvation through direct communication with God. Grace is achieved through faith rather than through sacraments performed by the Church.
religious place names
Roman Catholic immigrants have frequently given religious place names, or toponyms, to their settlements in the New World, particularly in Québec and the U.S. Southwest. Québec's boundaries with Ontario and the United States clearly illustrate the difference between toponyms selected by Roman Catholic and Protestant settlers. Religious place names are common in Québec but rare in its two neighbors
3 major branches of christianity
Roman Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox. Roman Catholics comprise approximately 50 percent of the world's Christians and Orthodox around 12 percent. The other 38 percent of the world's Christians are divided between Protestants and others.
Diversity of Christianity in the United States
Roman Catholics comprise 29 percent of the U.S. population, Evangelical Protestants 26 percent, Mainline Protestants 18 percent, historically black churches 7 percent, other Christians 3 percent, and other faiths 5 percent. Southern Baptist Convention is the most numerous Evangelical Protestant church, and Methodist is the most numerous Mainline Protestant church. Roman Catholics are more numerous in the Northeast and Southwest, whereas Evangelical Protestants are most numerous in the Southeast
5 Pillars of Islam
Shahadah, which means that Muslims frequently recite their belief that there is no deity worthy of worship except the one God, the source of all creation, as well as their belief that Muhammad is the messenger of God. Salat, which means that five times daily, a Muslim prays, facing the city of Makkah (Mecca), as a direct link to God. Zakat, which means that a Muslim gives generously to charity as an act of purification and growth. Sawm of Ramadan, which means that a Muslim fasts during the month of Ramadan as an act of self-purification. Hajj, which means that if physically and financially able, a Muslim makes a pilgrimage to Makkah.
Shiite Branch of Islam
Shiites are the largest branch in Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen. Nearly 40 percent of all Shiites live in Iran, 15 percent in Pakistan, 12 percent in India, and 10 percent in Iraq. Shiite Islam is divided into three principal schools of thought, based in part on disputes over leadership after the Prophet Muhammad. The largest, known as Ithna Ashari, is the most widely followed tradition in Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon. Other traditions include the Ismaili and Zaidi. Ismailis are clustered in Pakistan and Zaidiyyahs in Yemen. A third branch of Islam, Ibadi, is the predominant form of Islam adhered to in Oman.
Shinto
Shinto, Japan's ethnic religion, is strongly rooted in the cultural history of the country. Japanese government statistics report around 100 million Shintos, or 78 percent of the country's population. However, in opinion polls only 4 million Japanese, or 3 percent of the population, identify themselves as Shinto. The large discrepancy stems in part from the fact that a seventeenth-century law in Japan assigns Shinto organizations with the task of maintaining records on Japanese citizens. The discrepancy also stems from the perception by some Japanese people that Shinto is a cultural feature rather than a religion.
How many religions have 1-10 million adherents?
Six religions have an estimated 1 to 10 million adherents: Bahá'í, Tenrikyo, Jainism, Shinto, Cao Dai, and Zoroastrianism.
Spiritism
Spiritism is the belief that the human personality continues to exist after death and can communicate with the living through the agency of a medium or psychic. Most Spiritists reside in Brazil.
Islam meaning
Submission to the will of Allah (God)
Principal branches of Islam
Sunni and Shiite. The word Sunni comes from the Arabic for "people following the tradition of Muhammad." The word Shiite (sometimes spelled Shia) comes from the Arabic word for "party" or "support group."
Sunni Branch of Islam
Sunnis comprise 88 percent of Muslims and are the most numerous branch in most Muslim countries in Southwest Asia & North Africa, as well as in Southeast Asia. Sunnis follow various schools of thought and religious law, which have distinctive regional distributions. The Hanafi, Hanbali, Maliki, and Shafi'i schools of thought and religious law are named for their founders.
Islam in Europe and North America
The Muslim populations of North America and Europe have increased rapidly in recent years. In Europe, Muslims account for 5 percent of the population. France has the largest Muslim population, about 4 million, a legacy of immigration from predominantly Muslim former colonies in North Africa. Germany has about 3 million Muslims, also a legacy of immigration, in Germany's case primarily from Turkey. In Southeast Europe, Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, and Serbia each have about 2 million Muslims. Estimates of the number of Muslims in North America vary widely, from 1 million to 5 million, but in any event, the number has increased dramatically from only a few hundred thousand in 1990. Muslims in the United States come from a variety of backgrounds. According to the U.S. State Department, approximately one-third of U.S. Muslims trace their ancestry to Pakistan and other South Asian countries and one-fourth to Arab countries of Southwest Asia & North Africa. Many of these Muslims immigrated to the United States during the 1990s. Another one-fourth are African Americans.
Roman Catholic Hierarchy
The Roman Catholic Church has organized much of Earth's inhabited land into an administrative structure ultimately accountable to the Pope in Rome Pope-Cardinals-Archbishops-Bishops-Priests The Pope supervised the archbishops who supervised the bishops who supervised the priests. the cardinals assisted the popes and elected the pope
Growth of the Roman Catholic population
The Roman Catholic population is growing rapidly in the U.S. Southwest and in suburbs of some large North American and European cities. Some of these areas have a low density of parishes and dioceses compared to the population, so the Church must adjust its territorial organization. New local administrative units can be created, although funds to provide the desired number of churches, schools, and other religious structures might be scarce. Conversely, the Roman Catholic population is declining in inner cities and rural areas. Maintaining services in these areas is expensive
Migration patterns of Christians
The destinations of international migrants who are Christian do not match the distribution of Christians. North America is home to 12 percent of the world's Christians but is the destination for 34 percent of migrating Christians, including 30 percent entering the United States and 4 percent entering Canada. Europe is home to 26 percent of the world's Christians but is the destination for 38 percent of migrating Christians. On the other hand, Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa attract relatively few Christian migrants compared to the share of the world's Christians living in those two regions. The largest migration flows of Christians are in and out of Russia and the United States. Most immigrants to the United States are Christians
calendar used by Sikhs
The major holidays in Sikhism are the births and deaths of the religion's 10 gurus. The tenth guru, Gobind Singh, declared that after his death, instead of an eleventh guru, Sikh-ism's highest spiritual authority would be the holy scriptures the Guru Granth Sahib. A major holiday in Sikhism is the day when the Holy Granth was installed as the religion's spiritual guide.
Origin of Buddhism
The founder of Buddhism, Siddhartha Gautama, was born about 563 b.c. in Lumbinī in present-day Nepal, near the border with India. According to Buddhist tradition, Gautama's life changed after a series of four trips. He encountered a decrepit old man on the first trip, a disease-ridden man on the second trip, and a corpse on the third trip. After witnessing these scenes of pain and suffering, Gautama began to feel he could no longer enjoy his life of comfort. On a fourth trip, Gautama saw a monk, who taught him about withdrawal from the world.
Holy Places in Islam
The holiest locations in Islam are in cities associated with the life of Muhammad. Mecca- Muhammad was born. Now a city of 1.3 million inhabitants, Makkah contains the holiest object in the Islamic landscape, namely al-Ka'ba, a cubelike structure encased in silk, which stands at the center of the Great Mosque, Masjid al-Haram, Islam's largest mosque Medina- Muhammad received his first support from the people of Madinah and became the city's chief administrator. Muhammad's tomb is at Madinah, inside Islam's second-largest mosque -Every healthy Muslim who has adequate financial resources is expected to undertake a pilgrimage, called a hajj, to Makkah (Mecca).
Migration patterns of people with different religions
The religious composition of international migrants does not match the overall share of adherents of various religions. Christians comprise only one-third of the world's population but account for one-half of the world's international migrants. Muslims and Jews also comprise higher percentages of the world's migrants than their shares of the world's population. Buddhists, Hindus, folk religionists, and unaffiliated people are less likely to migrate. Among the more numerous religious groups, around 5 percent of all Christians and 4 percent of all Muslims have migrated, compared to only 1 or 2 percent of other religious groups
Difference in origin between ethnic and universalizing religions
The universalizing religions have diffused from specific hearths, or places of origin, to other regions of the world. In contrast, most ethnic religions have typically remained clustered.
Jewish Synagogue
The word synagogue derives from the Greek word for "assembly." The building is often referred to by the Yiddish word shul, similar to the German word for "school." As these words suggest, a synagogue is a place for study and public assembly, as well as for prayer. The origin of the synagogue is unknown; it possibly came to be during the sixth century b.c., when Jews were living in exile in Babylonia, after the destruction of the First Temple in 586 b.c. Synagogues took on more importance as the place for communal prayer after the destruction of the Second Temple in a.d. 70
Burial of Christians, Muslims, and Jews
These 3 religions usually bury their dead in cemeteries.
Religions of Africa
Today Africa is 51 percent Christian—split about evenly among Roman Catholic, Protestant, and other—and 43 percent Muslim, and 2% folk religion, such as Animism. The growth in the two universalizing religions at the expense of ethnic religions reflects fundamental geographic differences between the two types of religions. Remaining folk religionists in Africa are clustered primarily in a belt that separates predominantly Muslim North Africa from what has become predominantly Christian sub-Saharan Africa
Vajrayana Buddhism
Vajrayanas emphasize the practice of rituals, known as Tantras, which have been recorded in texts. Vajrayanas believe that Buddha began to practice Tantras during his lifetime, although other Buddhists regard Vajrayana as an approach to Buddhism that evolved from Mahayana Buddhism several centuries later.
Utopian settlement
an ideal community built around a religious way of life. An early utopian settlement in the United States was Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, founded in 1741 by Moravians, Christians who had emigrated from the present-day Czechia. By 1858, some 130 different utopian settlements had been established in the United States, in conformance with a group's distinctive religious beliefs. The culmination of the utopian movement in the United States was the founding of Salt Lake City by the Latter-day Saints (Mormons), beginning in 1848. The layout of Salt Lake City is based on a plan of the city of Zion given to the church elders in 1833 by the Mormon prophet Joseph Smith. The city has a regular grid pattern, unusually broad boulevards, and church-related buildings situated at strategic points
ethnic religion
appeal primarily to one group of people living in one place, Hinduism and Judaism
Buddhist shrines
eight places are holy 4 most important are in NE India and S Nepal 1. Lumbini (Buddha born) 2. Bodh Gaya (where Buddha reached perfect wisdom) 3. Deer Park (Buddha gave first sermon) 4. Kusinagara (Where Buddha died) Buddhas miracles: 1. Sravasti- visited heaven and created multiple versions of himself 2. Samkasya- ascended to heaven, preached to his mother, and returned to Earth. 3. Rajagrha- tamed a wild elephant there, and shortly after Buddha's death, it became the site of the first Buddhist Council. 4. Vaisala- the site of Buddha's announcement of his impending death and the second Buddhist Council. All four miracle sites are in ruins today, although excavation activity is under way.
Mayahana Buddhism
greater vehicle-> called Theravada Buddhism "Hinayana," or lesser vehicle-> emphasis on bringing liberation to others. Helps more people. Theravadists emphasize Buddha's life of self-help and years of solitary introspection, and Mahayanists emphasize Buddha's later years of teaching and helping others. Theravadists cite Buddha's wisdom and Mahayanists his compassion.
unaffiliated religious people
most people in this category affirm neither belief nor lack of belief in God or some other Higher Power. In the United States, many classified as unaffiliated believe in God and attend a religious service at least on occasion, but they do not have a formal association with a religious institution.
Muslim meaning
one who submits to God
Taoism
religion believed to have been founded by Lao-Tsu and based upon his book entitled "Tao-te-ching," or "Book of the Way." Lao-Tsu focused on the proper form of political rule and on the oneness of humanity and nature.
Roman Catholic Church
the Christian Church based in the Vatican and presided over by a pope and an episcopal hierarchy. According to Roman Catholic belief, God conveys His grace directly to humanity through seven sacraments: Baptism, the Eucharist (the partaking of bread and wine that repeats the actions of Jesus at the Last Supper), Penance, Confirmation, Matrimony, Holy Orders, and Anointing the Sick.
Prophet Muhammad
the founder of Islam, believed to be the last true prophet sent by God, wrote the Koran which were his revelations. Muhammad was born in Makkah about 570. At age 40, while engaged in a meditative retreat, Muhammad is believed by Muslims to have received his first revelation from God through the Angel Gabriel. The Quran, the holiest book in Islam, is accepted by Muslims to be a record of God's words, as revealed to the Prophet Muhammad through Gabriel. Islam teaches that as he began to preach the truth that God had revealed to him, Muhammad and his followers suffered persecution, and in 622 he was commanded by God to emigrate. His migration from Makkah to the city of Yathrib—an event known as the Hijra (from the Arabic word for "migration," sometimes spelled hegira)—marks the beginning of the Muslim calendar
What does the distribution of religious elements on the landscape reflect?
the importance of religion in people's values. The impact of religion on the landscape is particularly profound, for many religious people believe that their life on Earth ought to be spent in service to God. The impact of religion is clearly seen in the arrangement of human activities on the landscape at several scales, from relatively small parcels of land to entire communities. How each religion distributes its elements on the landscape depends on its beliefs.
