232 Early World Civilizations: Supplemental Guide 13A | Three World Religions
Jewish people, Christians, and Muslims worship in many other
places around the world in addition to these three holy shrines in
Jerusalem.^10
Show image 13A-8: Three world religions
How did these religions begin, and why do all three consider
the city of Jerusalem to be a holy city? Well, about four thousand
years ago in a land called Ur, there lived a man by the name of
Abraham. The people of Ur worshiped many different gods—one
for the sun, one for the moon, one for the stars, and so on.^11 But
Abraham had a different belief; he believed that there was only one
God.
Stories tell us that this one all-powerful God spoke to Abraham,
promising to lead him out of Ur. Abraham and his wife, Sarah,
packed their things and traveled far, far away to a place called
Canaan in ancient times. Some people refer to Canaan as “the
promised land.”^12 Today, it is known as the country of Israel,
which is where the holy city of Jerusalem is located. It was here
that Abraham remained faithful to his one God, who is often called
the God of Abraham.^13
All three religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—are
monotheistic faiths, or faiths that believe in one God. Over the
next few days, you will learn important differences about each of
these world religions. It is important to remember that all three
religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—started long ago
in the Middle East, that all three religions have sets of beliefs
that help people make sense of their universe, and that all three
religions have infl uenced the laws and customs of people around
the world for many years.10 [Stop here to review the names of
the three religions.]
11 So these people were polytheistic,
like the Egyptians and
Mesopotamians. Do you remember
what polytheistic means?
12 Why do you think some people call
Canaan “the promised land”?
13 The word faithful means being
loyal to someone or something.