Christianity , Islam life of mohammed , New religious movement , religions in the 21st century (Book Review Sample)

Name
Subject
Instructor
Date
Christianity, Islam Life of Mohammed, New Religious Movement, Religions in the 21st Century
Christianity
Christianity refers to a religion based on a person and teachings given by Jesus, or its practices and beliefs. Christianity had its beginnings in Judea. This was a Jewish ruled kingdom that was a province of the Roman Empire. As a way of governing the distant small region, leaders in the Empire put pro- Roman Jewish leaders in charge of states that had large numbers of Jews. Christianity has three major branches, which consist of Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, as well as Protestantism. Until the recent part of the twentieth century, most Christianity followers were in the west. However, Christianity has spread to all continents in the world and has become the largest religion.
Catholicism is a term that makes the description of the specific tradition in the Christian churches in doctrine, theology, ethics, liturgy, as well as spirituality. However, there are people who consider the term as one that refers to churches and Christians. Moreover, the Catholic Church considers full communion with the bishop of Rome, as an essential element of Catholicism. Its constituent churches have separate and distinct jurisdictions, while still being in union with Rome.
On the other hand, Orthodoxy signifies purity of faith or right belief. Right belief is not just subjective, as resting on personal convictions and personal knowledge, but it is in accordance with the direction and teaching of an absolute extrinsic authority. This authority refers to the church founded by Jesus Christ, and guided by the Holy Ghost. Therefore, the Holy Ghost is the orthodox, whose faith coincides with the teachings given by the Catholic Church. In addition, divine revelation forms the deposit of faith, which is entrusted to the church for the salvation of man. Furthermore, it also forms the content and object of orthodoxy with the truths clearly deducted.
Islam
Islam refers to the religion of Muslims. It is a monotheistic faith that many consider as having been revealed through Muhammad, as the prophet of Allah. Muhammad’s birth took place in the town of Mecca in the year 570. The town is located on a mountain in the high desert plateau of Western Arabia. His name comes from an Arabic verb, Hamada, which means to praise and to glolify. Muhammad was the only son of Amina bint Wahb and Abd Allah bin Al- Muttalib. His father died before his birth, leaving his mother to raise him alone. His mother entrusted her son to a wet nurse at an early age, as a way of keeping with the Meccan tradition. In addition, his mother took him to Yathrib when he was six years old. She took him there so that he could visit his father’s grave and stay with relatives.
As a young boy, Muhammad worked as a shepherd so that he could assist in paying his upkeep. In his early twenties, Muhammad joined the service of a wealthy merchant in Mecca. He carried the goods of this merchant to the north and brought back the profit. The wealthy merchant was impressed with Muhammad’s work and proposed marriage. They got married when he was twenty five years old, and when she was forty years, at around 595. Muhammad continued to manage her business. They got six children during their marriage. In addition, Muhammad began making long visits to a cave in a mountain outside his town. During such retreats, he meditated and fasted. In 613, Muhammad’s wife and uncle died, and some leaders in Mecca made an attempt to assassinate Muhammad.
New Religious Movements
New religious movement is a name given to groups, gatherings or movements that claim to appear to have or have religious characters that fall outside the major historic religions of the world. New religious movements have similar traits. The religions are new and they offer responses of an innovative nature to the conditions of the modern world. This is despite the fact that a majority of these religions represent themselves as having links to traditions of an ancient nature. Furthermore, many people consider new religious movements as counter cultural. They perceive them as being an alternative to the mainstream religions in the western society, especially Christianity in its normative form.
Moreover, new religious movements are usually, pluralistic, highly electric, as well as syncretistic in nature. They combine practices from diverse sources and doctrines, in a free manner. These are usually sources within their belief system. New religious movements are mostly founded by charismatic and sometimes highly authoritarian leaders thought to hold extraordinary insights or powers. In addition, many new religious movements are usually organized in a tight manner. These groups make great demands on commitment and loyalty of their followers in light of their self-proclaimed outsider or alternative status. In some cases, these religious movements establish themselves as alternatives for the family, as well as other social groupings of a conventional nature.
New religious movements have come about to take care of specific needs that many people cannot handle through some of the traditional religious organizations, or through modern secularism....