Communication Between Cultures

(approximately 14 million—less than 0.22 percent worldwide^45 ), Jews can be found

in nearly every country in the world. Because of thousands of years of persecution

and a long history of migrating, only one-third of all Jews live in Israel. Propelled by

missionary zeal, Christianity and Islam are also scattered throughout the world. In

fact, while many Africans still follow traditional religions, many of them, because of

colonization and missionaries, are either Christians or Muslims.

Finally, the six traditional religions are worthy of serious study because they are as

influential and relevant today as they were thousands of years ago. We find guidance

in the words of the Buddha and advice for daily living found in Confucianism being

utilized by people throughout the world. As Carmody and Carmody note,“When we

speak of the great religions we mean the traditions that have lasted for centuries,

shaped hundreds of millions of people, and gained respect for their depth and

breadth.”^46 Because of this respect and longevity, these“are the faiths that every citi-

zen should be acquainted with, simply because hundreds of millions of people live by

them.”^47 The remainder of this chapter seeks to introduce you to them so that you

can understand how members of these religious traditions might perceive and partici-

pate in this world.

Common Elements of Religion

It should not be surprising that similar features characterize all of the world’sreli-

gions, as they all have the same major goal—to make living life more meaningful

and death more comprehensible. We will now look at some of these common fea-

tures before turning to a discussion of some differences that tend to distinguish one

tradition from another.

Religion offers security

to a collection of

people since it helps

clarify the baffling

questions that

everyone must face

during their lifetime.

Courtesy of Robert Fonseca

Religion in the Twenty-First Century 113

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