What is monotheism? The belief in just one God

1. One focus of Unit one is on the development and expansion of the world’s three major monotheistic religions. • What is monotheism? • The belief in just one God • So . . . What do you think polytheism is (remember your stem words!) • The belief in many gods—as in all of the ancient civilizations such as Egypt and Sumer Hale Bopp Comet over the Pyramids of Giza

2. Georgia Performance Standard SS7G8 • The student will describe the diverse cultures of the people who live in Southwest Asia. Jerusalem: a holy city to all three religions

3. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Judaism is the oldest monotheistic religion, and its foundation lies in the original covenant made between Abraham and God, circa 1900 BCE, when Abraham was called to leave his home in Ur and travel to Cannan (later known as Palestine and Israel). • Abraham is regarded as the father of the Jewish people. Abraham is the father of the Israelites. It is with Abraham that God makes his covenant and promise. This is a stained glass window at St. Anne’s Belfast Cathedral in Northern Ireland.

4. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Jews believe God made a covenant with Abraham that his descendants would be God’s chosen people. In return they would have to keep God’s laws. • God gave the Jewish people the 10 Commandants and other rules to live by (contained in the Torah, the first five books of the Bible), marking the beginning of Judaism as a structured religion. • What is the Torah known as? • The main religious text of the Jewish religion. The Torah scrolls that are read in a synagogue are unpointed text, with no vowels or musical notes, so the ability to read a passage from a scroll is a valuable skill, and usually requires a lot of practice

5. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Abraham’s descendants multiplied as the twelve tribes of Israel and entered Egypt, where they were eventually enslaved. • Moses led the Jews out from captivity in Egypt. • Jewish civilization after the exodus prospered in the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, originally headed by powerful kings like Saul, David and Solomon, who built the first great temple in Jerusalem. What it may have been like fishing with Moses. 

6. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • In 586 BCE, the Babylonians overran Jerusalem (the holy city of the Jews), taking many captives into exile and destroying the temple. • The Babylonians were from the region known as Mesopotamia which literally means the land between two rivers. Can you name the two rivers in modern day Iraq where Mesopotamia was located? • Do the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers sound familiar? • A second temple was built when the Jews returned about 538 BCE, to be destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE. • The single wall that remains of the temple, called the Western Wall, is to this day the most sacred place of the Jews. Jews gather at the Western Wall, all that remains of the great temple at Jerusalem

7. Telling Time . . . • By the way, what does BCE stand for and what did it replace? • Before Common Era, which is the now politically correct term taking the place of BC (before Christ) • What does CE stand for? • You guessed it—Common Era which takes the place of AD. • Did you know that AD is the acronym for the Latin term anno domini, which means in the year of our Lord in English?

8. Telling Time . . . • So, with that in mind, how many years passed between 500 BCE and 100 BCE? • 400! • Ok, how about from 100 CE to 500 CE? • 400! • Hmmm. . . Ok, how about from 100 BCE to 500 CE? • Did you guess 600? • You’re right! • If you have any problems, think of the timeline of history as a number line where BCE years are negatives, and CE years are the positive numbers.

9. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Some of the Jews exiled to Babylon migrated along trade routes further eastwards into central Asia, even reaching India and China. • Under the Romans, Jews spread across the Roman Empire, and settled in many parts of Europe. • Does anyone know what these exiles of the Jews from their holy land were called? • The Diaspora The Romans destroyed the Jewish Temple in 70 A.D., beginning the second diaspora.

10. Jewish beliefs cont. • The Torah consists of the five books revealed to Moses, also called the Pentateuch, and is the most important part of the Hebrew Bible. • It tells the story of creation, the covenant with Abraham and the Exodus from Egypt. It also contains the details of the laws given to Moses, the Ten Commandments • The name for a Jewish place of worship is a synagogue. • The Hebrew word for God is Yahweh. The magnificent Great Synagogue of Budapest, Hungary.

11. Has anyone heard of these Jewish Holidays? • Rosh Hashanah: The beginning of the Jewish New Year • Yom Kippur: The Day of Atonement, the last 10 days of penitence which marks the opening of the New Year. • Hanukkah: An eight day festival which commemorates the re-dedication of the temple in Jerusalem after expelling the occupying Syrians in 164 BCE • Passover (Pesach): Week long memorial retelling the Israelites’ release from Egypt • Bar Mitzvah: Coming of age for boys aged 13. In liberal traditions, an equivalent ceremony (Bat Mitzvah) is carried out for girls • Shabbat (Sabbath): Day of rest, worship and fasting, from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday At the age of 13, a Jewish boy reads the Torah for the first time and promises to keep God's commandments

12. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Christianity takes its name from the Greek word ‘Christ’, meaning Anointed One, whom Christians believe was Jesus, the son of God. • Jesus was born in Bethlehem, near Jerusalem (both considered holy cities by Christians) and grew up as a Jewish boy. • At about the age of 30 he began three years of traveling and teaching. He taught a new way of drawing upon the Jewish tradition.

13. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Jesus was a Jewish teacher and prophet who lived in Palestine in the first century CE. • He revealed himself to be the Son of God in fulfillment of Hebrew scripture, and taught that the Kingdom of God was imminent, bringing with it forgiveness and new life for all who believed. • His claim to be the Messiah roused opposition from religious and Roman authorities and he was imprisoned and crucified (executed on a cross). His followers believe that after his death, Jesus was resurrected before being taken up to heaven. The yellow areas show the spread of Christianity from 200 CE to 400 CE.

14. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • After his crucifixion Jesus appeared to his disciples and told them to go out into the world and spread the word of God. • By around 60 AD Christianity had spread west and north to many parts of the Roman Empire. • When the pagan Roman empire conquered Jerusalem in 70 CE, Christianity attracted many Roman converts. • Although being a Christian under Roman rule was illegal, churches were slowly established throughout the Roman empire, including Europe and Africa. Artist rendition of Jesus appearing to the 12 disciples.

15. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Christians were a persecuted minority in the Roman empire and many were executed for their faith. • A pivotal event in the early church was the conversion of the Roman Emperor Constantine in 312 CE, who gave State approval to Christianity and gave it significant political and financial support. • In 300 AD Armenia became the first officially Christian country. At the same time Christianity also spread east through the Persian Empire as far as China. Statue of Roman Emperor Constantine from York in the United Kingdom

16. Have you heard of these Christian holidays and festivals? • Advent: The beginning of the Christian Year. Four Sundays before Christmas, Christians set aside time for reflection and preparation for recalling the coming of Christ. • Christmas (December 25): The celebration of Jesus’ birth • Lent: The 40 days of preparation and penance which begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes at sundown on Holy (Easter) Saturday. • Easter: The holiest period of the Christian calendar. It begins with Good Friday, which solemnly commemorates Jesus’ crucifixion, and continues until Easter Sunday which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. • The holy book of Christianity is the Bible and the place of worship for Christians is a church.

17. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Islam means submission to Allah (God). Islam was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (the founder of Islam) who lived from 570 CE to 632 CE in Mecca (a holy city for Islam along with Jerusalem) in modern-day Saudi Arabia. • Muhammad was called to prophethood when God dictated the Qur'an to him through the archangel Gabriel. • Although he gained a small following in his tribe, Muhammad was initially persecuted for his beliefs. Location of the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia

18. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • In 622 CE he fled to what is now known as Medina, where the first Muslim political community was formed. The Muslim calendar dates from this journey, known as the Hijrah. • Enlisting the help of nomadic Arab clans, Muhammad returned to Mecca, stripping the city of all signs of pagan belief. • He was generous to those he defeated, however, and many converted to Islam. Two years later, in front of the Ka'ba in Mecca, he declared Islam the religion of the people. The Ka’aba at the Grand Mosque in Saudi Arabia

19. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Muhammad continued receiving messages from God throughout the later part of his life. He memorized these messages and passed them on to his followers. After his death they were collected and written down in the Qur’an (Koran). • The sayings and deeds of Muhammad were recorded in the Hadith. These two books are the source of guidance for all Muslims. The Qur’an, holy text of Islam. Notice the geometric design on the cover. That is a trademark of Islamic art.

20. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Muhammad took political and spiritual control. • He led his followers into battle 80 times in 10 years and eventually took control of Mecca two years before his death. • Mecca was established as the center of worship of Allah.

21. SS7G8d: Explain the reason for the division between Sunni and Shia Muslims. • Caliph: Means “successor,” the title given to those who took over leadership of the Umma (the Muslim community) after the death of Muhammad. The practice of the caliphs is called the Caliphate. • Sunni Islam: The followers of Sunni Islam make up the vast majority of Muslims, some 80 to 85 percent. Sunnis believe that Mohammed did not appoint a successor, and therefore one had to be appointed by the Muslims themselves. This led to the establishment of the Caliphate, a series of men who took over Mohammad's worldly power, but who made no claim to be Mohammad's spiritual successor. • Shia Islam: The Shiites believed that Mohammed had designated Ali as his successor and spiritual heir. There are two important aspects here. First, the idea that Mohammad's heir should be from Mohammad's family. Second, that unlike the Sunnis, the successor should be a religious and political leader.

22. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • Muslim troops conquered all of Arabia; north into Palestine, Syria, Iraq, and Iran; and westward into Egypt and North Africa. • By 643, Muslims had conquered Egypt and the Persian Empire.

23. Empire in Damascus (Syria): The Umayyad Caliphate, 661-750 • After Ali’s death, the Umayyad dynasty established itself in Damascus. • They were a political and military power who expanded the Islamic empire. • After the Umayyad dynasty fell in Damascus in 750, a different line of the Umayyad dynasty continued in Spain until 1492.

24. Umayyad Empire in Cordoba, Spain; 755-1492 • In 755 when the Umayyad Dynasty was ousted by the Abbasid dynasty (who made Baghdad the capital), the last Umayyad prince fled to Spain to take control there. • He wanted to show the world the greatness of his caliphate. • He recruited scholars by offering overwhelming gifts. Scholars, poets, philosophers, historians, and musicians soon made the trek to Cordoba. • An infrastructure of libraries, hospitals, research institutions, and centers of Islamic study became commonplace. The Islamic intellectual tradition and educational system made Spain a world leader in this regard for the next 400 years. Inside the Great Mosque in Cordoba, Spain

25. The Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad, 750-1258 • In 750AD, Abo al Abbas was established in Baghdad as the first caliph of the Abbasid dynasty, which became an important commercial, cultural, and famous center of learning in the Middle Ages. • It was regarded in the tenth century, the intellectual center of the world. • As capital of the caliphate, Baghdad was also to become the cultural capital of the Islamic world. Baghdad became a center of power in the world, where Arab and Persian cultures mingled to produce a blaze of philosophical, scientific, and literary glory. Abbasid Palace in Baghdad

26. The Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad, 750-1258 • During this time, Islamic art flourished, and the Sharia (Islamic law was developed). • Also, Arab control over Islam was broken. All Muslims were seen as equal—Arabs and non-Arabs.

27. The Crusades • From the 11th century on, armies of Christian soldiers (spurred on by the Pope) led Crusades to liberate the holy land from the Muslims. • Indiscriminate massive killings and death resulted, mostly by the Christians, with nothing really changing. As of 1250, Muslims still controlled Palestine. • The impression left on the Muslims was that of ruthless barbarism, a view that still influences Muslim understanding of the West today. Painting: Last Stand of the Knights Templar

28. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. • In Spain, Islamic civilization lasted until 1492 when the Christian monarchs regained power. • After the collapse of the Empire, Islam remained the dominant religion in most Middle Eastern countries and significant pockets throughout North Africa and Asia.

29. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. The practice of religious faith is also built on the five pillars of Islam: Shahadah (declaration of faith): "I bear witness that there is no god, but God; I bear witness that Muhammad is the prophet of God." By reciting this, one enters Islamic faith. Salaah (prayer): Muslims are required to pray five times a day and facing in the direction of Mecca while praying. Zakat (charity): Muslims are required to give away a percentage of their earnings to those less fortunate, regardless of their religion. Saum (fasting): Muslims fast for one lunar month each year, a period called Ramadan. During this time, Muslims reflect on their behavior and strive to purify their thoughts. Hajj (pilgrimage): If it is financially possible, Muslims are required to travel to Mecca once in their lifetime.

30. SS7G8c: Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. In this political cartoon, why is this man’s question silly? Hey, Jack!Which way's Mecca?

31. Have you heard of any of these Islamic holidays or festivals? • Ramadan: Celebrates the gift of the Qur'an. During the month of Ramadan, Muslims must fast between sunrise and sunset. • Dhu Al-Hijja: The month of pilgrimage during which all Muslims, at least once in their life, should try to make the pilgrimage to Mecca. • The first day of Muharram: The Islamic New Year begins on the day Muhammad left Mecca to travel to Medina.

32. What century was that? • Judaism was started circa 1900 BCE. Christianity gets its start with the birth of Jesus somewhere between 4 BCE and 8 BCE thanks to some poor accounting by the monk Dionysius in 525 CE. Islam starts up circa 610 CE when the angel Gabriel appears before Muhammad. • In what century did Judaism begin? Remember, how many years in a century? • About the 20th century BCE. • Then what century did Christianity begin? • Technically, during the first century BCE, but it is commonly accepted as the first century CE. • How about Islam? • That’s right! 7th century CE.

33. Information and pictures courtesy of the following sources: • http://www.abc.net.au/religion/stories/s796551.htm • http://www.arcworld.org/faiths.asp?pageID=8 • http://www.arcworld.org/faiths.asp?pageID=4 • http://www.abc.net.au/religion/stories/s817468.htm • http://www.abc.net.au/religion/stories/s790151.htm • http://www.arcworld.org/faiths.asp?pageID=6 • http://www.guardians.net/egypt/ • http://www.sacredsites.com/middle_east/israel/jerusalem.html • http://www.belfastcathedral.org/visitors/virtual-tour/item/41/nave-windows-abraham/ • http://www.wellesley.mec.edu/wms/hamilton/Virtual_Synagogue/pages/the-Torah.htm • http://www.xerraireart.com/blog/2005/08/ • http://www.thinkworks.com/history/history8.html • http://www.ite.sc.edu/dickey/Lowery/SallyLoweryWebPage.htm • https://secure.uscj.org/bookservice/images/books/diaspora1.jpg • http://lazerbrody.typepad.com/lazer_beams/prayer_and_meditation/index.html • http://www.heart-cry.com/love/Jesus_ws.jpg • http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/services/presents.opk/after.jesus/images/hi_res/ascension_of_jesus.jpg • http://www.aarweb.org/syllabus/syllabi/a/altany/rst305/rst305-0201.html • http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/6fb6c/49d7d/?frdir=yes • http://www.gocurrency.com/international-travel/2006/12/06/christmas-in-europe-winter-wonderland/ • http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/meast/9804/03/hajj.pilgrims/saudi.arabia.mecca.jpg • http://www.sicm.org.uk/pictures/mecca.gif • http://www.muftisays.com/nti.php?article=50 • http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1717078/posts • http://www.deskpicture.com/DPs/Places/mecca_2.html • http://www.trin.cam.ac.uk/tcics/TCICSProjectshalalcampaign.htm • http://www.myarabicstory.org/IRAQ/iraqi_history.htm • http://www.37thtexas.org/html/FIG.html • http://www.designofsignage.com/application/symbol/building/largesymbols/no-snacks.html