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Judaism: The world’s oldest organized religion and the world’s first monotheistic faith, Judaism developed in Israel about 3,000 years ago. Jews consider themselves to be Covenantally bound to keep the laws of the Torah, or the Five Books of Moses, which, combined with its Rabbinic elucidation in the Talmud, details a code for living in a constant relationship with God. The twenty-four books of the Jewish Bible is an epic of the challenges of living with a singular moral God in a pagan world. The major divisions of Judaism today are Orthodox, who see the Torah as coming directly from God, Conservative, who believe it is Divinely inspired, and Reform, who believe it is a record of humans seeking to be in relationship with God.

Christianity: While it began as a small substratum of Judaism 2,000 years ago, Christianity is today the biggest religion in the world, with 2.2 billion followers. Christianity’s main text is the New Testament a part of the Holy Bible, which contains the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, whom Christians believe was the Jewish Messiah (or “Christ” in Greek) and, through his agonizing death and subsequent resurrection, brought redemption to all humanity who believe in him. Christianity today is split into three main divisions: Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, and Protestants.

Islam: The third major monotheistic faith, and world’s second-largest religion, Islam is based on the teachings of the seventh-century Arabian prophet Mohammad. His writings are found in the Koran, and his oral teachings are called the Hadith. Islam believes God’s previous revelations through Moses and Jesus were corrupted and that the Koran represents the pure, true word of God. Islam is based on five pillars: Testimony, or declaring that God is one and Muhammad is His prophet, Prayer, fulfilling the requirement to pray five times daily, Giving Charity, Fasting during the holy month of Ramadan, and Hajj, or the requirement for every Muslim to visit Mecca at least once in his or her lifetime.

Hinduism: The world’s fourth-largest religion, Hinduism is more a description of a family of religious traditions originating in the Indian Subcontinent than a religion based on a belief or creed. Under this umbrella, Hinduism has two major types of texts: “Sruti,” or revealed texts, and “Smriti,” or remembered texts, each discussing theology, philosophy, ritual, and other related topics. Major Scriptural works include the Vedas, Upanishades, and the Bhagavad Gita, among many others. Although it contains a pantheon of gods, the most powerful are Brahma, the creator, Vishnu, the preserver, and Shiva, the destroyer or transformer.

Whatever your faith, the Universal Life Church encourages you to get ordained and never stop learning and growing.