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NON-CHRISTIAN RELIGIONS OF THE

WORLD
[Outline of the major religions practised around the world and in particular the
Caribbean]
Religions of the World Booklet, is designed to supplement the Bahamas Ministry of
Education’s Religious Knowledge curriculum. Lessons will be focussed on the [a]
history of the religion, [b] practises [worship and rituals], and historical leaders of the
faith group.

Students will be given the following exercises and/or activities:

1. Quizzes to test their knowledge;


2. Research Projects;
3. Composition on one or more of the religions or famous religious person

Materials Required:

Access to Library for Research


Access to Computer [with Internet]
Other [Books and articles on the religion or the historical leader[s]

Evaluation:

2 Quizzes = Worth 100%

3 Compositions = Content will given grades from A – E

1 Research Projects = Extra credit

Religions of the World Booklet was complied by Mrs. R. Cecilia Askew, Teacher at
Creative Vision Christian Academy. Data was collected from various sources including:
http://www.religioustolerance.org/var_rel.htm - Religious Tolerance;
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vjw/bahamas.html - Jewish History Tour;
http://www.bahai.org/ - The Bahai Faith;
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/paganism/ - Religion & Ethics;
http://www.teacherplanet.com/resource/religiousfreedom.php - Teacher Planet
http://www.religion-cults.com/Ancient/Oceania/oceania.htm - Oceania Primitive Religions
http://maaori.com/people/ - The Maori
http://www.religionfacts.com/a-z-religion-index/confucianism.htm - Religion Facts
http://www.unity.org/ - Unity Church
http://www.adherents.com/index.html#GroupNameIndex - Religious Surveys

Mrs. R. Cecilia Askew


copyright@2008

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To begin this study we look first at “what is religion”? The oxford school dictionary
defines religion in simple terms as: “what people believe about God or gods, and how
they worship. The word comes from the Latin religio = reverence. The Handy
Dictionary of the Bible describes religion in a more detailed way: “Man’s recognition to
God and the expression of that in relation in faith, worship and conduct.” Another
description says this: "Religion is any specific system of belief about deity, often
involving rituals, a code of ethics, and a philosophy of life." This description is
deliberately broad to cover as many religious beliefs as possible.

There are at least 40 organized religions and faith groups, but for the purpose of this
study we will deal those that are more widely known. Although most countries stand on
Christian principles they also are home to other religions such as: Judaism, Bahai Faith,
Buddhism, Muslim, Hinduism, Rastafarian and more recently Kabblah.

We will be looking at all the religions that have survived and/or challenge the Christian
Faith for membership:

Bahai Faith
The Bahá'í Faith is the youngest of the world's independent religions. Its founder was
Bahaullah [1817-1892], and he is regarded by Bahá'ís as the most recent in the line of
messengers of God, which goes back to and includes Abraham, Moses, Buddha,
Krishna, Zoroaster, Christ and Muhammad. Bahá'í teachings emphasize the spiritual
oneness of humanity and the underlying unity of the major world religions
There are an estimated 5 to 6 million Bahá'ís around the world in more than 200
countries and territories including the small community in The Bahamas.

Buddhism [Tibetan]
Buddhism arose out of atheistic strands of Hinduism current in India in the sixth century
B.C. Gautama, called the Buddha ["Enlightened One"], is said to have discovered that
both the life of luxury and the life of extreme pleasure were of no use in gaining spiritual
freedom; thus he propounded the "Middle Way." His teaching, however, have
undergone many transformations. There is no absolute God in Buddhism, although it
has been interpreted as a search for God. The Buddha did not deny the existence of
God outright, but said that the question of His existence "tends not to edification." It was
the Buddha’s belief that those seeking enlightenment need to concentrate on their own
spiritual paths themselves rather than relying on an outside support. Many Buddhists
believe the existence of suffering and evil in the world is evidence against belief in God.
In 2004, there was an estimate of 376 million Buddhists worldwide. The head of the this
faith group is the Dalai Lama.

Confucius
Confucianism is a way of life taught by Confucius in the 6th–5th century BC. Sometimes
viewed as a philosophy, sometimes as a religion, Confucianism is perhaps best
understood as an all-encompassing humanism that neither denies nor slights Heaven.
For more than two millennia the Chinese have followed the teaching of Confucius.
It has influenced both the spiritual and political life in China as well as it has extended its
Korea, Japan, and Vietnam. It should be noted that Confucius, the common name of
Confucianism's founder, is a translated from the Latin form of the Chinese K'ung-fu-tzu,
"Master K'ung." The faith group was founded during the 6th – 5th Centuries BC and
currently there are approximately 5-6 million followers.

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Druids
The Druids were the priests or ministers of religion among the ancient
Celtic nations in Gaul, Britain, and Germany. Information with regard to them
is borrowed from assertions in the Greek and Roman writers, compared with the
remains of Welsh and Gaelic poetry still existing. The Druids did not use images to
represent the object of their worship, nor did they meet in temples or buildings of any
kind for the performance of their sacred rites. A circle of stones [each stone generally of
vast size] enclosing an area of from twenty feet to thirty yards in diameter, constituted
their sacred place. The most celebrated of these now remaining is Stonehenge in the
United Kingdom. Modern druids are especially active in the British area. On the base of
the old doctrine present druids have adapted to present times.

Hinduism
Among world religions, Hinduism is distinctive in that it has not been established who the
founder was or date of origin. The origins and authors of its sacred texts are largely
unknown. Historians believe that Hinduism's roots date back as far as 2000 BC, making
it one of the oldest surviving religions. The most ancient writings have yet to be
translated, so for the earliest periods scholars must rely on information gathered by way
of archaeology and the study of contemporary texts. Hinduism is the world's third-
largest religion, after Christianity and Islam. Presently there are approximately 650
million Hindus with the majority living in India where the religion began. In The Bahamas
most of the persons that follow this religious belief are expatriates from other parts of the
Caribbean, India or Pakistan.

Islam
The religion of Islam brought by Muhammad began in the Hejaz region of present-day
Saudi Arabia in about 610. There are a number of Islamic religious denominations,
each of which has significant theological and legal differences from each other. The
major branches are Sunni, Shi'a and Sufi Islam, although Sufism is often considered an
extension of either Sunni or Shi'a belief. According to adherents.com Islam now
comprises 1.3 billion believers, 23% of the world's population broken-down in the
following geographic locations: 18% of Muslims live in the Arab world; a fifth is found in
Sub-Saharan Africa, about 30% in the Indian Sub-Continental region of Pakistan, India
and Bangladesh, and the world's largest single Muslim community is in Indonesia.
Currently Islam is the second largest religion in the world with an estimated 1.2 billion
followers worldwide inclusive of those in the Caribbean and The Bahamas.

Judaism
Judaism is among the oldest religious traditions still being practiced today and the
history, principles and ethics of Judaism have influenced other religions, such as
Christianity, Islam and the Bahai Faith. In 2002, according to the Jewish Population
Survey, there were 13.3 million Jews around the world, this includes the small Jewish
communities around the Caribbean and in The Bahamas[ whose origins date back to the
17th century.] The official interpreter for Christopher Columbus, is thought to be have
been the first Jew and European in the person of Luis De Torres. He was a Marrano,
meaning a “secret Jew,” who publicly practiced Catholicism. Moses Franks, was
another Jew, who served as Attorney General and Chief Justice of the islands in the 18th
century.

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Kabbalah
Kabbalah has its roots in Jewish mysticism. Kabbalah Centre is a spiritual and
educational organization dedicated to bringing the wisdom of Kabbalah to the world. The
Centre itself has existed for more than 80 years, but its spiritual lineage extends even
further — to Rav Isaac Luria, in the 16th century, and through Rav Luria to Rav Shimon
Bar Yochai, who revealed the principal text of Kabbalah, the Zohar, more than 2000
years ago. The National Research Institute of Kabbalah was established by Philip Berg
[nee Feivel Gruberger] and Rav Yehuda Tzvi Brandwein in 1965 in the United States.
Kabbalistic teachings explain the complexities of the material and the nonmaterial
universe, as well as the physical and metaphysical nature of all humanity. Kabbalah
shows in detail, how to navigate that vast terrain in order to remove every form of chaos,
pain, and suffering. They teach that for thousands of years, the great Kabbalistic sages
have taught that every human being is born with the potential for greatness. Kabbalah is
the means for activating that potential. Historically many scholars of Kabbalah have
been Jewish, but there have also been many non-Jewish scholars of this wisdom, such
as Christian Knorr-von-Rosenroth, Pico Della and Sir Isaac Newton, just to name a few.

Obeah
Sometimes spelled "Obi" is a term used in the Caribbean to refer to
folk magic, sorcery, and religious rituals derived from Central African and
West African origins. Obeah is similar to other traditional practices like Palo, Voodoo,
Santeria, rootwork, and hoodoo. Obeah is practiced in many of the Caribbean islands
including The Bahamas. [However, it is widely held that the practise takes place mainly in
the southern and eastern islands of the Bahamian chain of islands. Bahamians often
refer to Cat Island as the land of obeah].

Odinism
The religion now called Odinism is the indigenous tradition of the Indo-European peoples
and is pre-Christian in origin. Odinism was largely found in Europe in the medieval
period. However with the ascent of Christianity, Odinism lost its foothold. In 1386 the
last stronghold of this religion officially converted to Christianity. Underground
movements, such as the Odin Brotherhood has its roots in Odinism.

Paganism
Paganism describes a group of contemporary religions based on a reverence for nature.
These faiths draw on the traditional religions of indigenous peoples throughout the world.
Paganism encompasses a diverse community with some groups concentrating on
specific traditions, practices or elements such as ecology, witchcraft, Celtic traditions or
certain gods. Wicca’s, Druids, Shamans, Odinists and those that follow the teachings of
Confucius are but a few make up parts of the Pagan community. A brief summary of
each practice follows:

Rastafarianism
Although not widely known the beginnings of this religious group began with the National
Hero of Jamaica, Marcus Garvey in the early 20th Century and the foundation of the
movement is the African Orthodox Church. Marcus Garvey intended that the church
would serve as an alternative to the established Euro-centric or "white" churches.
However, Garvey's Church was later to become a fully canonical Greek Orthodox
Church. In 1930 James Peregrine Howell a religious figure in Jamaica actually founded
what we know today as the Rastafarian Movement and he is know as the “First Rasta”.
Rastafarians believe that “Ras Tafari” is a living messiah who will lead peoples of

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African descent into a promised land of freedom and justice. Haile Selassie I is
regarded as the religious symbol of God Incarnate in this movement. Branches of this
faith group exist in the Caribbean, United Kingdom [recognised as an official religion],
Canada and the United States of America. Following a religious survey in 2000 there
were at least 1,000,000 members of this movement worldwide.

Santeria
The religion of the West African Yoruba people was forced underground by centuries of
slavery in the Americas. Several hybrid forms of worship, of which the best known is
Santeria, were created by deliberate conflation of Yoruba spiritual entities with Catholic
ones. The Yoruba people of West Africa recognized three levels of spiritual force: one
creator god called Olodumare; numerous nature or messenger spirits (similar to
Christian angels) called the orishas, and the revered spirits of the dead, called the
eggun. The practice is usually found among persons from the non-English speaking
Caribbean.

Shamans
Shamanism refers to a range of traditional beliefs and practices concerned with
communication with the spirit world. Practitioners of shamanism are known as
“shamans”. Although there are many variations of shamanism practised around the
world, there are some beliefs that are shared by all especially the belief that spirits can
play important roles in human lives. Mainly the aboriginal peoples found in Canada,
Australia and Antarctica practise it.

Scientology
The history of Scientology starts with L. Ron Hubbard who founded Scientology in 1954
based on his book Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health (1950). The book
claims to be able to help the reader discover what is destroying their belief in themselves
and what is holding them back from a happy life. It explains how to get rid of negative
emotions, unhappy relationships and unexplained pains so the reader can get rid of their
“reactive mind” (the part of the mind that works on a totally stimulus-response basis).
The description Dianetics claims, that “this is the book that began a revolution in man’s
understanding of the mind.” Surveys suggested that there are at least 8,000,000
followers of this teaching.

Unity
Unity is a non-profit organization that claims that they are based on the teachings of
Jesus and the healing power of prayer. Charles and Myrtle Fillmore of the United States
of America founded Unity Church in 1889. Charles Fillmore was considered an
American Mystic and he himself felt that he was physically immortal and the
reincarnation of Paul of Tarsus. They currently have churches on every continent
including churches in the Caribbean. According to Adherants.com there are 1,000,000
followers of this movement worldwide.

Voodoo
The continent of Africa is the home of one the known world’s oldest religions –
Voodoo. "Voodoo" comes from the West African word "vodun," which means spirit.
The example of Voodoo, that we know today, was born in Haiti during the European
colonization. This Afro-Caribbean religion is mixed with practices from many African
ethnics groups such as: Fon, the Nago, the Ibos, Dahomeans, Congos, Senegalese,
Haussars, Caplaous, Mondungues, Mandinge, Angolese, Libyans, Ethiopians, and the

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Malgaches. Voodoo is considered the national religion of Haiti coexisting with Roman
Catholicism.

Wicca’s
Historians have not found any exhaustive or authoritative source that traces Wicca back
through ancient times. It is mainly a 20th century manifestation of ancient nature
worship that existed in Northern Europe thousands of years ago. It has been given
prominence by a retired British civil servant by the name of Gerald Gardner in 1954.
He at the time called it Witchcraft and its supporters “the Wica". He said that the
religion was a modern survival of an old witchcraft religion, which had existed in secret
for hundreds of years. The secrecy was especially necessary during the European
dominance of the Roman Catholic Church. A survey concluded that persons practicing
this form of religion number around 800,000.

Primitive Religion
Primitive religion is practised largely by societies that live close to nature and who
are not yet penetrated by modern society and the culture of highly organized industrial
societies. They include the Australian aborigines, the pygmies of Africa, the jungle tribes
of India and Southeast Asia, natives of New Guinea and of islands of the South Seas,
the Indians of the Upper Amazon and of Central America, and certain Eskimo tribes.
Following are a few of the religions practiced:

1. Ancestor-Spirits
It is believed that the Ancestor-Spirits give access to supernatural powers to get good or
ill. Gods, demons, land-spirits also intervene in human affairs; they practice sorcery,
divination, healing, with the spirits making their presence known through sacred masks,
dances, dreams, prophecies. The people of New Guinea, and Melanesia, between Asia
and Australia practice this religion.

2. Ancestor Worship
In nearly all primitive tribal religions of Africa ancestor worship is common practice. The
ancestors of the tribe are honoured as spirits who preserve the moral standards of tribal
life. They are also regarded as the intermediaries between the living and the divine
powers. And the ancestor spirits play an important role in the initiation rites. Among
some west-African peoples the belief is current that the ancestors reincarnate in their
descendants. In Japan, ancestors were worshipped until 1945. At that time, the
Japanese Emperor disclaimed any form of divine ancestry and the practiced was no
longer permitted.

3. Maori
"Maori" is the vital force present in each one, and also in talismans to protect vitality,
fertility, the forests and mountains. This spiritual power comes from a god, and it is also
related to the rank and authority... all men at death return to the Mother Earth
[Papatuanuku]. This religion is practiced in the original peoples of New Zealand.

4. San Religion
This is the religion of the Bushmen of southern Africa and consists of a spirit world and
our material world. To enter the spirit world, trancing has to be initiated by a Shaman
through the hunting of power animals.

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5. Totemism
"Totemism" involves a relationship between a person or group and a natural object
specially united with the gods. For example, a "mountain" is where the gods dwell, and
that "mountain" is the totem of a group; a "monkey" is united with a god, and a person or
group honours that monkey to honour an influence that god.

Some Prominent Religious Leaders [based on date of birth]


The Buddha [Siddharta Gautam] – 563-483 B.C.
Confucius [King-Fu-TZU] – 551-479 B.C.
Muhammad – 570-632 A. D.
Baha’Allah – 1817-1892 A.D.
Charles Fillmore - 1854
L Ron Hubbard - 1911
Tenzin Gyatso, The 14th Dalai Lama 1935 -

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Quiz 1

1a. How many religions are there in The Bahamas?

1.b. Name the religions found in The Bahamas

2. Choose the correct answer: Voodoo is the national religion of:

[ ] Cuba; [ ] Jamaica; [ ] Suriname [ ] Haiti

3. Choose the correct answer: Who was the founder of the Rastafarian Movement:

[ ] Marcus Garvey; [ ] Bob Marley [ ] James Peregrine Howell

4. Where is Stonehenge?

[ ] North America; [ ] Asia [ ] United Kingdom [ ] Africa

5. Name some primitive religions still being practised.

6. Where will you find persons practicing “ancestor worship”?

7. Name at least two religions that come under “paganism”.

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Quiz 2

1. As of 2002, what was the approximate amount of the Jewish population worldwide?

[ ] 1.4 Million; [ ] 15 Million; [ ] 13 Million; [ ] 13.3 Million

2. How far back in time Before Christ [BC] does Hinduism go?

[ ] 1,500 years; [ ] 6,000 years; [ ] 2,000 years; [ ] 1,000 years

3. Where did Islam begin?

[ ] Congo; [ ] Turkey; [ ] Iran; [ ] Saudi Arabia

4. Who do historians say was the first Jew and European to come to the New World?

5. Who founded the Bahai Faith?

6. Did Confucianism start before or after the birth of Jesus Christ?

7. Explain what is meant by “primitive religion”.

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