William Price

World Religions.
Final Comparison Paper



















William Price
The world today is strewn with all different types of people and religious faiths. In most
countries there is more religious freedom than ever before. In many parts of the world certain
religions seem to be more prevalent than others, but even among those religions there are
different groups who worship in several different ways. But also those religions have spread to
many other parts of the world. Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Islam, Judaism, and
Christianity, every one of these can be found on every inhabited continent around the world. The
purpose of this paper is to compare three of these religions. The religions that will be examined
are Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The topic of discussion will be the similarities and
dissimilarities of the faiths, as well as the different groups among the specific religions, and
observations such as sacred space, rituals and beliefs, and emotional atmosphere will also be
discussed. One unique characteristic to all three of the religions is that they are all monotheistic,
belief in only one god, and they all believe in the same god. The god of Abraham. Abrahams
wife was Sarah. During the time of Abraham, Sarah was unable to bear children. Thus Abraham
was permitted by Sarah to procreate with her assistant Hagar. Hagar was an Egyptian woman
who bore Abraham his first son, Ishmael. Years later Abraham received a revelation from God.
God told him that Sarah would become pregnant, it would be a boy, and that he was to name that
boy Isaac. When Isaac was born, Sarahs jealousy of Hagar forced Abraham to make the
decision to send Hagar and Ishmael to the wilderness. Soon after Abraham sent Hagar and
Ishmael away, Abraham became frightened of the fate of the two. Abraham found the displaced
pair in what would become the modern day city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Abraham was so happy
that he and Ishmael built an alter to sacrifice a lamb. That alter would later become the Kabah,
the center of the Grand Mosque in the city of Mecca. It is the place that all Muslims must
complete the Hajj, a pilgrimage to the Kabah. This is where the difference in worship and belief
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starts. Christians and Jews trace their lineage to Abraham through Isaac. Muslims trace their
heritage to Abraham through Ishmael.
One can learn a lot about any particular religion by observing the space in which the
members practice. The Sacred spaces of Judaism, Christianity and Islam differ in many ways.
Jews practice in synagogues. Christians practice in temples, cathedrals or, church houses.
Muslims practice in mosques. All of these are holy places reserved for prayer. Christian
cathedrals and Jewish synagogues are more alike than the Muslim mosque. They both have
pews and holy texts available to visitors. They seem to extend a slight bit of comfort to visitors,
although; synagogues seem be particularly successful at this. A mosque on the other hand does
not have seating. Instead, because the rituals that Muslims practice, the mosque is a completely
open room with prayer matts sewn into the carpet. Each attendee takes a seat on the floor at the
base of one of the provided prayer mats. Also with Synagogues and Church houses, men and
women sit together, usually with their families. In the Muslim tradition the men and women sit
in different rooms apart from each other. All three have a center point of attention. Again being
more similar the Synagogue and cathedrals have a pulpit either off to the side or in the center.
The Mosque has a niche cut out of one of the walls. The niche is to show the congregation the
direction of prayer, toward the city of Mecca. In Catholic cathedrals there is a table in the center
that draws most of the attendees attention. The table is where the priest prepares the Holy
Communion. A Ritual that is of utmost importance in the Catholic tradition. The Torah is the
center of attention in a synagogue. The Rabbi will read from the Torah and pray at the podium,
but ultimately its the Torah that is the center of attention. These places reserved for prayer are
not the only sacred spaces of these religions. Many historical sites around the world are also
considered sacred. The Kabah in the City of Mecca, is very Sacred for Muslims, along with the
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dome of the rock In Israel. Although under Islamic control, this site is considered holy by all
three religions. Christian believe it to be the place where Abraham was tested by God. The dome
is believed to be built atop the rock alter where Abraham was to sacrifice his son Isaac. An angel
appeared to Abraham here, revealing that it was the ultimate test of Faith. Muslims believe that
it is the place where Mohamed ascended to heaven. The Jewish tradition believed it to be the
center point of Gods dwelling and creation of Earth. (www.Biblewalks.com).
Along with sacred historical sites and sanctified places of worship and prayer comes
rituals and beliefs. A common belief of all three religions, is that one must live a righteous life
to return to the presence of God. They also all believe in the existence of angels. All three
religions, although worship the same god, have several entirely different beliefs, rituals, and holy
texts. The Jewish Tradition has the Torah, which is the first five books in the old testament of
the Holy Bible. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Torah defined is
divine instruction and guidance (Matthews, pg. 246). Another Jewish holy text is the Tanakh,
which is the complete Jewish bible. It consists of three sections, the Torah, the Neviim, and the
Kethuvim. The Neviim refers to prophets and the Kethuvim refers to writings. The Muslim
holy text is the Quran. The Quran is considered by Muslims to be the word of God dictated to
the prophet Mohamed by the angel Gabriel (Mathews, pg. 336). It is the central fact of Islam.
The Christian holy text is the Holy Bible. It consists of two parts the Old Testament and the
New Testament. It has been changed many times by different factions of Christianity and has
been added too over many centuries. The most common version of the Holy Bible is the King
James Version. Christianity has many different sects of the religion. Catholics, Baptist,
angelical, Mormon, etc. Although it may seem that Christianity is the most diverse among the
three religions. Judaism and Islam also have different groups that do not agree on one specific
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belief or way of worship. The two most populous forms of Judaism are Orthodox and Reform.
The Orthodox tradition is exactly as it sounds, traditional. They follow strict laws and interpret
scriptures literally. They often literally bind scriptures to their head and palms using a leather
strap, they follow a strict dietary law, and believe all Jews must one day return to the holy land,
Jerusalem. Reform Jews tend to blend into society more than the Orthodox tradition. They dont
interpret scriptures as literally as the Orthodox, nor do they follow as strict of a dietary law. Also
women can become Rabbi and are also allowed to read from the Torah in the reform tradition.
In the Orthodox tradition of Judaism this is a rite reserved only for men. The Islamic religion is
also split by two different views and ways of worship. The Two groups are the Sunni and Shia.
Both believe in the prophet Mohamed and also the Quran, and also the five pillars of Islam. The
five pillars include Shahada (Faith), Sawm (fasting during the holiday Ramada), Salat
(mandatory prayer 5 times a day), Zakat (Charity), and Hajj (a mandatory pilgrimage to the city
of Mecca). One difference in belief among the Sunni and Shia is the way the next prophet is
chosen. Sunni Muslims believe an election should be held, whereas the Shia believe the
spiritual leader should be succeeded, or passed down by the prophet. They refer to this person as
the Caliph (Mathews, pg. 347). The Sharia also applies to both the Sunni and Shia. The
Sharia is the law that governs the life of the Muslim people. It includes the revealed law of the
Quran and the duties God has placed on the Muslim community (Mathews, pg. 349). A major
difference of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, is the day each of the religions worships on. The
Christians worship on a Sunday morning, Jews worship on Saturday morning, and Muslims on a
Friday afternoon. The Islamic religion only calls on men to come to community prayer, referred
to as Salat-ul- Jumma (www.alislam.org). The reason is to not place a further burden on the
women, taking away from their motherly duties. Another dissimilarity of these religions is how
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they all believe they will be punished for sins committed on Earth. Muslims and most Christians
believe in judgment day, and that they will be rewarded or reprimanded for their actions on earth
in the after-life. Jews however believe that they pay for the sins they have committed in this
lifetime. Jews also believe that their people as a whole will be punished for their sins. Muslims
and Christians believe that they will receive punishment for their sins individually.

Judaism, Islam, and Christianity all have very different emotional atmospheres inside
their particular places of worship. The Christian and Judaism houses of worship seem to be
geared more toward comfort than the Muslim Mosque. It may seem that way but its only
because the style of worship. Muslims bow on their knees in the direction of the city of Mecca,
therefore; having pews to sit on doesnt make sense. The space would not be functional for the
needs of the members practicing Islam. In the cathedral, one is there for the salvation of the
soul, not so much the community. Its a rather unwelcoming and intimidating atmosphere. Its
almost as if the Catholic Church wants its members to fear god rather than embrace him.
Extremely high ceilings, gargoyles, and paintings of the crucifixion are common among Catholic
cathedrals. It seems like a cathedral is the Catholic churches way of demonstrating its wealth
and power. Jewish Synagogues on the other hand are much more welcoming. They seem like it
is more of a warmer atmosphere. An atmosphere of love and kindness. It suggests that this is
the way that the Jewish people, and religion views the world. The Atmosphere inside of a
mosque is a learning atmosphere. The Friday Call to prayer meeting is a meeting that Muslim
men go to too learn of the problems in their community. Another purpose of the meeting, besides
communal prayer, is to find solutions to the problems, and better understand the correct Islamic
law according to the Quran. Mosques have quite an open and welcoming atmosphere. They did
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not seem to try to tap into the emotions of the members as much as the Catholic cathedral or the
Jewish synagogue. A testament to the people of the Islamic religion, is that they gather to try
and solve the problems in the community. All three religions are open to, and invite non-
members to attend.

In-conclusion, Christianity, Islam, and Judaism are scattered across the world in many
different countries. All of them have different sections, or different groups of which have
different opinions on how to worship. The emotional atmospheres also differ among each. But,
Christianity, Islam, and Judaism themselves, as religions, have many things in common and
many similar beliefs. They all believe in the god of Abraham, and they are all monotheistic.
They all believe that in order to live in the presence of god one must live a righteous life on
earth, and they all believe in being charitable. They are dissimilar in the rituals involved in each
unique way of worship, as well as times of worship. The Christian holy day is Sunday morning,
whereas the Jewish is Saturday morning, and Islamic is Friday afternoon. The Jews and
Christians trace their lineage through Abrahams son Isaac. The Muslims trace their heritage
through Ishmael. The problem for humans, sin, is initially the same for each of the religions
discussed. The pathway to return to the presence of god is what is different. The tasks of each
religion that one must complete in order to reside in everlasting paradise differ between
Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. In the Christian belief one must simply live a good and
righteous life. In Jewish belief, one must follow strict doctrinal laws as well as live a righteous
life. And, In Islamic belief one must follow strict rules and live righteously as well. The final
goal for humans is ultimately the same. According to all three of these religions, the goal is to
return to god and live eternally in his presence.
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Works Cited
Matthews, Warren. World Religions 7th Edition, Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, 2013
(pp. 245 -371)
http://www.christianbiblereference.org/story_Abraham.htm

http://www.biblewalks.com/Sites/DomeRock.html

https://www.alislam.org/books/salat/10.html














William Price
Class Reflective Statement

Over the course of the last few months I have had the opportunity to study several of the
worlds religions in the World Religions course instructed by Suzanne Jacobs at Salt Lake
Community College. At the beginning of the semester I was very much in the dark about quite a
few of the religions. But taking the course has led me to the light. Im not talking about
converting to a religion. I now look at these religions without all the major biases in the world. I
have achieved my own personal goal that I set out to achieve. I wanted to meet people and learn
about them and their culture and their religion. I loved meeting the people we all met on the
field trip. It was nice being completely open to difference with a group of people who wanted
the same exact thing, to learn. I wanted to look at the things that I didnt understand about the
world with a completely fresh perspective. Thats why I chose this class to complete my
Humanities credit. Its a topic I was interested in, I didnt just chose a class to get it over with.
The instructor was amazing. She was funny and kept the class interesting. She also lectured
with a completely academic view. There was no opinion. It was purely academic. It was a great
class and I would definitely recommend it to another student. The Instructor knocked it out of
the park. However; to a full time worker and full time student it was a challenge to fit four field
trips into my schedule. I could only attend the specific field trips that I attended. The other ones
where impossible for me to attend. I almost dropped the class for this reason. But, I am so glad
that I didnt. Overall, it was a super inspiring experience. If I didnt have a tight schedule to
keep to with my academic plan, I would take another course taught by Suzanne.


William Price