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50 Essential Facts About Religion

The 50 facts that you MUST know on your way to becoming a religion expert!

The goal of life in Hinduism is to attain salvation, or moksha	Hinduism
Hinduism believes in only one god, but he takes many forms
15% of the world's population are Hindus. That's 1.2 billion people
Hinduism is the world's oldest surviving faith. It began 4,000 years ago
The word “juggernaut” comes from the Hindu god Jagannath
Judaism Is based on the Torah. This is the first 5 books of the Bible	Judaism
The Jewish god is called YHWH, but his name is so holy it is rarely said
We rest one day a week because of the sabbath, or Shabbat
"Rabbi" is the Hebrew word for "great one," “master” or “teacher”
The word "kosher" describes all the things that Jews are allowed to eat
Buddhism began in India around 400 BCE with Siddhartha Gautama	Buddhism
Though it began in India, Buddhism is more popular in Cambodia
Many people class Buddhism as a philosophy rather than a religion
The aim of Buddhism is enlightenment which leads to Nirvana
Buddhism is the world's fourth largest religion, with 535 million followers
The word “Catholic” was first used by Ignatius of Antioch around 110 CE	Roman Catholicism
Christianity is the largest faith with 2.4 billion followers. Half are Catholics
The Roman Catholic Church executed William Tyndale in 1536
There are more than 10,000 saints recognised by Catholics
Early Christians used a fish, rather than a cross, to identify themselves
Just over a third of all Christians are protestants	Protestantism
“Protestant” comes from a protest against the Holy Roman Emperor
Anglicanism began with Henry VIII's break from the authority of Rome
Protestantism's arrival caused wars between catholics and protestants
Some estimates say there are 47,000 protestant denominations
90% of Muslims follow the Sunni sect	Sunnism
Sunnis chose Abu Bakr as their leader after Muhammad's death
As well as the Hadith, Sunnis accept four more schools of Islamic law
Indonesia has the largest Sunni population: approximately 225 million
Sunnis believe that the Mahdi (guided one) will restore true religion
For Shiites, the first leader of Muslims was Ali Ibn Abu Talib	Shi'ism
Shiites remember Hussein, who was martyred in 680 CE
Shiites keep their arms by their side in prayer
Shiites believe that the Mahdi has come already in the 9th Century CE
Most Shiites live in Iran, Pakistan, India and Iraq
The Khanda is the symbol of the Sikh faith	Sikhism
There are Three Pillars of Sikhism
Sikhism was founded by Guru Nanak in the 16th Century CE
The word 'Sikh' means 'disciple' in the Punjabi language
Sikhs worship at home and in Gurdwaras
Bahá’í is the youngest of the world’s major religions	Bahai
Bahais believe that each religion is a forerunner to the next revelation
The Bahai faith was founded by Bahá’u’lláh in modern Iran
A Bahai place of worship is called a Mashriqu’l-Adhkár
Bahais should repeat the phrase "Allah’u’Abhas" 95 times a day
Humanism is a philosophy rather than a religion	Humanism
Humanist ideas were first discussed in Ancient Greece
Humanists hold non-religious ceremonies and celebrations
There are thought to be around 5 million humanists in the world
Humanist ideas are set out in the Humanist Manifesto