Comparing isms

Faiths find parallels, common ground

By KIRSTEN TATE
UNIVERSITY JOURNAL

Despite the fact that wars over religious beliefs have been fought throughout history, most of the world’s major religions have the same basic goal and purpose — to love others and ultimately to help adherents obtain salvation.
Since most SUU students are LDS, knowledge of other world religions may not be as well understood.
There are basically two major divisions of Christian religions — Catholics and Protestants. The Nicene Creed, written in A.D. 325, connects all mainstream Christian religions, according to www.faith411.com.
“There are only two types of Creed-believing Christians,” the Web site reported. “They are either Catholic or Protestant.”
Protestant religions include the Lutheran, Methodist, and Baptist.
Catholicism is the only religion that started during Christ’s time. All other traditionally Christian churches came from it, according to Catholicism.about.com.
Catholicism has four primary qualities, according to the Web site.
First is one, meaning Jesus Christ designed the only one church with only one set of doctrines.
Second is holy, meaning Christ made the church holy.
Third, the word Catholic means universal. Jesus told his apostles to go throughout the world and make disciples of everyone.
Fourth is apostolic. In the Church, the chain of bishops has been unbroken since it started with Christ’s apostles in the first century.
The Nicene Creed is said during Catholic Mass, summarizing the basic beliefs. In it, the Creed describes the relationship of God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, more commonly referred to as the Holy Trinity.
Catholics also revere the Blessed Virgin Mary as the sinless “mother of God.”
According to the Web site, she is “the Mother of our Lord and ourselves. And she is “ waiting and preparing a home for us all.”
In death, Catholics believe God sits in judgment of their lives. If life was lived by loving others and God, they will live with Him eternally, as reported at www.stmargaretsparish.org.
Protestant religions, on the other hand, have been formed in protest against some Catholic doctrine. Some of these doctrines include “the prominence of the Virgin Mary and saints, the image of Jesus on the crucifix, handy standardization of prayers and confession,” according to www.faith411.com.
Some Christian religions that do not believe in the Creed, such as Jehovah’s Witnesses and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, prefer to be referred to separately, as also stated at www.faith411.com.
The LDS Church is one of the churches not considered “mainstream” Christian.
The Church isn’t considered Protestant because it didn’t split from the Catholic Church, and it doesn’t believe in the Nicene Creed.
One of its basic beliefs is that God is a Heavenly Father who loves everyone and wants them to return to Him.
Members believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God. “He is the Savior of mankind who redeems us from death by providing the Resurrection. He saves us from sin if we repent,” according to www.mormon.org. Also, “the Holy Ghost, also known as the Holy Spirit, helps us recognize truth.”
Members believe the “first principles and ordinances of the gospel are, faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost.”
Members also believe The LDS Church was restored to the Earth by a prophet, Joseph Smith. They also believe the priesthood authority of God exists on the Earth today like it did in Christ’s original church.
One of the prominent points of doctrine in The Church is the belief that families can be together forever, according to www.mormon.org.
After Christianity, Islam is the second most popular religion.
It was started in A.D. 622 by Muhammad, who considered himself to be a prophet. The word Islam means peace or submission, according to www.religioustolerance.org.A Muslim is a follower of Islam. The word refers to a person “who submits themselves to the will of God,” according to the Web site.
Islamic belief is that man’s primary goal and purpose, and the goal

The Hindu Temple and Cultural Center of Las Vegas provides a place for worship for several dieties. Hinduism is a religion centered on inner peace and personal perfection. The faith is primarily an Indian religion and began in the 4th century B.C. Reincarnation, or rebirth, is a central concept of Hinduism.
KEN HANSEN / UNIVERSITY JOURNAL

of Islam, is “to make a moral order in the world,” according to wri.leaderu.com.
Muslims believe in a single God, “Allah” in Arabic.
They also believe in the divine scriptures of the Qur’an and the Hadith. “The Qur’an are the words of God. Muslims believe that it was revealed to Muhammad by the archangel Jibreel (Gabriel),” the Web site said.
The Hadith is a collection of the sayings of Muhammad.
Muslims also believe Muhammad was the last in a long line of prophets, including Adam, Moses, Abraham and Jesus, the Web site reported.
On the Day of Judgment, people will be judged on the basis of their good and bad deeds. If their good deeds outweigh the bad, they will be received into Paradise. If the bad outweighs the good, they will be sent to Hell.
They also believe in Satan, who tempts people to sin. But if they repent and submit to God, they can become sinless once again, according to www.religioustolerance.org.
Muslims also believe in a divine spark in humanity that allows them to perceive truth and follow it, according to wri.leaderu.com.
They also believe “man is divine in nature,” and man’s basic purpose of life is to recognize the divine nature in him, according to www.hinduwebsite.com.
“Hinduism believes unquestionably that the world is an illusion,” the Web site reported. “When a person overcomes the illusion through detachment . . . of senses he will become qualified for self-realization,” according to the Web site. “Each soul is beginningless and has gone through a series of reincarnations,” as reported at wri.leaderu.com.
Individuals live many lives because of their ignorance of the “illusion” before they attain self-realization, according to www.hinduwebsite.com.
Karma is a term originating with Hinduism, which claims all suffering is deserved because it is an accumulation of deeds done in past lives. All present evil will be repaid in future lives, reports wri.leaderu.com.
“Sacrifice through surrendering to God is therefore the basis of salvation,” according to www.hinduwebsite.com.
An Asian religion with many of the same precepts as Hinduism is Buddhism.
Buddhism actually arose from Hinduism in the 6th century B.C.
Siddhartha Gautama left home in present-day Nepal to find the key to happiness. When he found the “middle path” he became enlightened. The name Buddha means “Enlightened One,” according to www.buddhanet.net.
He spent the rest of his life teaching others the principles he had learned. He did not claim to be a god or even divine, simply a teacher of enlightenment.
In Buddhism there is no absolute God. Buddha said asking about the existence of God is unnecessary for edification, according to the Web site.
As in Hinduism, Buddhists believe there is no real self. There are only “occurrences that appear to be individual persons and things,” according to wri.leaderu.com.
Also, Buddhism is a belief system tolerant of all other beliefs. It agrees with the moral teachings of other religions and provides a long term purpose for existence. Followers don’t preach and try to convert but give explanation when explanation is sought, according to www.buddhanet.net.
The only way to receive salvation, is by destroying the belief that the self and the world truly exist, the Web site reported.