spirituality

Judaism is monotheistic religion. Jews believe in one, omnipresent God, who created and continues to govern the universe. It is the foundation religion of both Islam and Christianity, and its primary sacred text is the Tanakh ("Old Testament" or "Hebrew Bible"). However, unlike Christianity and Islam, Jews believe that the messiah is yet to come. Modern Judaism is divided into several sects, with no central governing authority. These sects vary greatly in their practices and observances, and the most common are Orthodox (very traditional), Reform (very liberal), and Conservative (somewhere in between).

Judaism is an ancient religion, dating to apoximately 2000 BCE, according to tradition, when God (YHVH) made a covenant with Abraham, which identified his tribe as the chosen people. Abraham is viewed as one of the three patriarchs of Judaism, along with Jacob and Moses. Each patriarch confirmed the covenant with YHVH; however, Moses is considered to be the most important, who sealed his covenant with the revelation of the 10 commandments at Mt. Sinai, and is credited with writing the first five books of the Tanakh (Torah, lit. law of Moses): Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deutoronomy. The Torah describes the early history of the Israelite tribe, and defines YHVH's laws for the chosen people.

Judaism has no central governing body, no catechism, and the Shema is the only universally accepted daily prayer. Perhaps the only universal belief in Judaism is the belief in one, omniscient, indivisible God.The division of God, such as in the Trinity of Christianity, and polytheism are both considered heretical. Another widely accepted belief includes the divinity of both the Written Torah (Tanakh), and the Oral Torah, which are oral traditions outlined in the texts of the Talmud and the Mishrahim.

The practices of Judaism vary widely among the differenct sects of Judaism. However, there are a few historically standard practices. The concept of adherence to "Mitzvah" or divine commandments, is seen as an integreal part of daily life. According to tradition, there are 613 Mitzvah, 10 which are univeral for all people as outlined in the 10 commandments, and 603 especially for Jews. These commandments can be found in various places such as the priestly codes in the Torah, and the Talmud and Mishra. Some of the most important mitzvah include the Shema, Circumcision, Shabbat (observance of the Sabbath), Kashrut (Kosher Guidelines), and emmersion in a Mikvah (Ritual Baths and conversion).

Judaism is a life-centered religion, and its sacred texts say almost nothing about the afterlife. There are no definate illustrations of a "heaven" or a "hell" as most people think of them, and there are very few illusions to the world to come. Various Jewish thinkers have proposed re-incarnation, the proverbial better place, and ressurection of the dead in the messianic age. Most modern Jews (with the exclusion of Reform Jews) believe in ressurection and a Judgement Day.

Bahá'í teachings emphasize the spiritual oneness of humanity and the underlying unity of the major world religions. Religious history is seen to have unfolded through the influence of a series of divinely-sent messengers, each of whom established a religion that was suited to the needs of the time. These messengers have included Abraham, Moses, Zoroaster, the Buddha, Krishna, Jesus, Muhammad and, most recently, the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh. In Bahá'í belief, each messenger is stated to have taught that other messengers would follow and that Bahá'u'lláh's claims and teachings fulfil the eschatological promises of previous scriptures. Humanity is understood to be involved in a process of collective evolution, and the need of the present time is for the gradual establishment of peace, justice and unity on a global scale.

--http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bahai

The Baha'i Faith developed out of Islam in the nineteenth century in Persia.  The word Baha'i refers to those who belong to the faith, rather than the religion itself.

Despite the faith's rather liberal approach to other religions and to the pursuit of justice and human rights, they are often criticized for their treatment of homosexuality as a condition that one must strive to overcome, much like the consumption of alcohol. 

The basic teachings of Buddhism are attributed to Gautama Buddha (Sanskrit form: see Buddha for variant anglicizations) , where the title 'Buddha' is an honorific which translates literally as 'Awakened', or more colloquially as 'Enlightened'. Gautama Buddha lived and taught in or around the 5th century BC, in parts of what is now northeast India and present-day Nepal. After that his teachings spread throughout the bulk of asia, and in modern times have reached the rest of the world. Experts place the present-day number of followers of Buddhism in all its forms at between 230 to 500 million, with most suggesting approximately 350 million. According to Buddhist philosophy, existence is largely dictated by karma (literally 'action' or 'deed'). Karma connects causality and responsibility, such that our actions - which often include speech and thoughts as well as acts - influence our future experiences. Most Buddhists believe in rebirth (or strictly speaking, re-conception), and that the rebirths one experiences are usually determined by karma. However, the majority of Buddhists also hold that those who are sufficiently advanced spiritually are not bound by karma in this way; they can influence their own rebirth, and a very few can influence the rebirth of others. While Buddhists do believe that meditation is necessary at some stage, most do not believe they have reached that stage, and instead practice devotion to one or more Buddhas or other beings (except in the western world, where Buddhism has largely been adopted in a philosophical/meditational form).

 --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism

There is much debate and discussion amongst scholars as to whether or not Buddhism is, striclty speaking, a formal religion like Christianity or Islam.  Regardless of whether you think it to be a philosophy or something else, it fits quite comfortably under the heading of 'spirituality.'   

People with this Idea

	Title	Author	%	Category	Thoughts
	Buddhism	Raziel		Belief	Idea Group:  Buddhism Idea Category:  Belief Buddhism teaches how to control and tame the wild mind. It teaches how to end suffering. It's a valueable skill for anyone seeking to empower themselves.