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Do not fill this in! == Historical development == === Judaism === {{Main |Jewish history}} [[File:Skverer Rebbe With Torah.jpg |thumb |A Jewish [[Rebbe]] holds a [[Torah scroll]].]] Jewish tradition claims that the [[Twelve Tribes of Israel]] are descended from Abraham through his son [[Isaac]] and grandson [[Jacob]], whose sons formed the nation of the [[Israelites]] in [[Canaan]]; Islamic tradition claims that twelve Arab tribes known as the [[Ishmaelites]] are descended from Abraham through his son [[Ishmael]] in the Arabian Peninsula.<ref>{{harvp|Hatcher|Martin|1998|pp=130–31}}; {{harvp|Bremer|2015|p=19–20}}; {{harvp|Able|2011|p=219}}; {{harvp|Dever|2001|pp=97–102}}</ref> In its early stages, the Israelite religion was derived from the [[Canaanite religion]]s of the [[Bronze Age]]; by the [[Iron Age]], it had become distinct from other Canaanite religions as it shed polytheism for [[monolatry]]. [[Yahwism|Ancient Israelite monolatry]] fused at least two [[Canaanite religion|Canaanite deities]]; the supreme god of the pantheon [[El (deity)|El]] and the warrior-god [[Yahweh]].<ref name="Cohen, Charles L 2020. p. 9">Cohen, Charles L. The Abrahamic religions: a very short introduction. Oxford University Press, USA, 2020. p. 9</ref> They understood their relationship with that deity as a covenant and that the deity promised Abraham a permanent homeland.<ref name="Cohen, Charles L 2020. p. 9"/> Recognizing one supreme deity, however, did not transform it to a [[universal religion|universal one]].<ref name="Cohen, Charles L 2020. p. 9"/> While the [[Book of Genesis]] speaks of [[Elohim|multiple gods]] (''ʾĔlōhīm''), comparable to the [[Enūma Eliš]] speaking of various gods of the Canaanite pantheon to create the earth, at the time of the [[Babylonian captivity]], Jewish theologians attributed the six-day narrative all to Yahweh, reflecting an early conception of Yahweh as a universal deity.<ref>Burrell, David B., et al., eds. Creation and the God of Abraham. Cambridge University Press, 2010. p. 14-15</ref> The monolatrist nature of [[Yahwism]] was further developed in the period following the [[Babylonian captivity]], eventually emerging as a firm religious movement of monotheism.<ref>{{harvp|Edelman|1995|p=19}}; {{harvp|Gnuse|2016|p=5}}; {{harvp|Carraway|2013|p=66|ps=: "Second, it was probably not until the exile that monotheism proper was clearly formulated."}}; {{harvp|Finkelstein|Silberman|2002|p=234|ps=: "The idolatry of the people of Judah was not a departure from their earlier monotheism. It was, instead, the way the people of Judah had worshiped for hundreds of years."}}</ref><ref name="BBC Did God Have a Wife">{{cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00zw3fl |title=BBC Two – Bible's Buried Secrets, Did God Have a Wife? |publisher=[[BBC]] |date=21 December 2011 |access-date=4 July 2012 |archive-date=15 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120115173447/http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00zw3fl |url-status=live}} Quote from the BBC documentary (prof. Herbert Niehr): "Between the 10th century and the beginning of their exile in 586 there was polytheism as normal religion all throughout Israel; only afterwards things begin to change and very slowly they begin to change. I would say it [the sentence "Jews were monotheists" – n.n.] is only correct for the last centuries, maybe only from the period of the Maccabees, that means the second century BC, so in the time of Jesus of Nazareth it is true, but for the time before it, it is not true."</ref><ref name="Center for Online Judaic Studies 2008">{{cite web |first=Christine |last=Hayes |title=Moses and the Beginning of Yahwism: (Genesis 37- Exodus 4), Christine Hayes, Open Yale Courses (Transcription), 2006. |website=Center for Online Judaic Studies |date=3 July 2008 |url=http://cojs.org/moses_and_the_beginning_of_yahwism-_-genesis_37-_exodus_4-_christine_hayes-_open_yale_courses_-transcription-_2006/ |access-date=17 August 2022 |quote="Only later would a Yahweh-only party polemicize against and seek to suppress certain… what came to be seen as undesirable elements of Israelite-Judean religion, and these elements would be labeled Canaanite, as a part of a process of Israelite differentiation. But what appears in the Bible as a battle between Israelites, pure Yahwists, and Canaanites, pure polytheists, is indeed better understood as a civil war between Yahweh-only Israelites, and Israelites who are participating in the cult of their ancestors." |archive-date=17 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220817010524/http://cojs.org/moses_and_the_beginning_of_yahwism-_-genesis_37-_exodus_4-_christine_hayes-_open_yale_courses_-transcription-_2006/ |url-status=live}}</ref> With the [[Fall of Babylon]], under influence of the [[First Persian Empire|Persian]] religion [[Zoroastrianism]], Judaism adopted many later prominent concepts, such as messianism, belief in free will and judgement after death, conception of heaven and hell, angels and demons, among others, into their belief-system.<ref name="TJE1906">{{Cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/15283-zoroastrianism|title=Zoroastrianism ("Resemblances Between Zoroastrianism and Judaism" and "Causes of Analogies Uncertain")|date=1906|author1=[[Kaufmann Kohler]]|author2=[[A. V. Williams Jackson]]|encyclopedia=The Jewish Encyclopaedia|access-date=3 February 2022}}</ref><ref name="SecondPersian">{{cite book |last=Grabbe |first=Lester L. |author-link=Lester L. Grabbe |date=2006 |title=A History of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period (vol. 1): The Persian Period (539-331BCE) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1cPeBAAAQBAJ |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |pages=361–364 |isbn=9780567216175}}"there is general agreement that Persian religion and tradition had its influence on [[Second Temple Judaism|Judaism]] over the centuries" and the "question is where this influence was and which of the developments in Judaism can be ascribed to the Iranian side as opposed to the effect of the Greek or other cultures".</ref><ref name="BlackRowley_1982_607b">{{harvnb|Black|Rowley|1982|p=607b}}.</ref> === Christianity === {{Main |History of Christianity}} [[File:Gutenberg Bible, Lenox Copy, New York Public Library, 2009. Pic 01.jpg |thumb |Christianity is based on the teachings of the [[Bible]]]] [[File:Bible.malmesbury.arp.jpg |thumb |250px |A Bible handwritten in [[Latin]], on display in [[Malmesbury Abbey]], Wiltshire, England. This Bible was transcribed in Belgium in 1407 for reading aloud in a monastery.]] [[Christianity]] traces back their origin to the 1st century as a sect within Judaism initially led by [[Jesus]]. His followers viewed him as the [[Messiah]], as in the [[Confession of Peter]]; after his [[Crucifixion of Jesus|crucifixion]] and death they came to view him as [[Incarnation|God incarnate]],<ref>Pavlac, Brian A (2010). ''A Concise Survey of Western Civilization: Supremacies and Diversities''. Chapter 6.</ref> who was [[Resurrection of Jesus|resurrected]] and will [[Second Coming|return]] at the end of time to [[Last Judgment|judge the living and the dead]] and create an eternal [[Kingdom of God]]. In the 1st century AD, under the [[Apostles]] of [[Jesus|Jesus of Nazareth]];{{sfn |Bremer |2015 |p=19-20}}[[Christianity]] spread widely after it was adopted by the [[Roman Empire]] as a state religion in the 4th century AD. [[Paul the Apostle]] interpreted the role of Abraham differently than the Jews of his time.<ref>Howard, James M. "Paul, Monotheism and the People of God: The Significance of Abraham Traditions for Early Judaism and Christianity." Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 49.1 (2006): 516.</ref> While for the Jews, Abraham was considered a loyal monotheist in a polytheistic environment, Paul celebrates Abraham as a man who found faith in God before adhering to [[Religious law|religious]] law. In contrast to Judaism, adherence to religious law becomes associated with idolatry.<ref>Howard, James M. "Paul, Monotheism and the People of God: The Significance of Abraham Traditions for Early Judaism and Christianity." Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 49.1 (2006): 517.</ref> While Christians fashioned their religion around [[Jesus|Jesus of Nazareth]], the [[Siege of Jerusalem (70 CE)|siege of Jerusalem]] (70 CE), forced Jews to reconcile their belief-system with the destruction of the [[Second Temple]] and associated rituals.<ref>Cohen, Charles L. The Abrahamic religions: a very short introduction. Oxford University Press, USA, 2020. p. 41</ref> At this time, both Judaism and Christianity had to systematize their scriptures and beliefs, resulting in competing theologies both claiming Abrahamic heritage.<ref>Cohen, Charles L. The Abrahamic religions: a very short introduction. Oxford University Press, USA, 2020. p. 41-57</ref> Christians could hardly dismiss the Hebrew scriptures as Jesus himself refers to them according to Christian reports, and parallels between Jesus and the Biblical stories of ''creation'' and ''redemption'' starting with Abraham in the ''Book of Genesis''.<ref>Burrell, David B., et al., eds. Creation and the God of Abraham. Cambridge University Press, 2010. p. 41</ref> The distant God asserted by Jesus according to the Christians, created a form of dualism between Creator and creation and the doctrine of ''[[Creatio ex nihilo]]'', which later heavily influenced Jewish and Islamic theology.<ref>Burrell, David B., et al., eds. Creation and the God of Abraham. Cambridge University Press, 2010. p. 25-39</ref> By that, Christians established their own identity, distinct from both Greeks and Jews, as those who venerate the deity of Jesus.<ref>Cohen, Charles L. The Abrahamic religions: a very short introduction. Oxford University Press, USA, 2020. p. 40</ref> After several periods of alternating [[Persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire|persecution]] and relative peace ''vis-à-vis'' the Roman authorities under different administrations, Christianity became the [[state church of the Roman Empire]] in 380, but has been [[Early centers of Christianity|split into various churches from its beginning]]. An attempt was made by the [[Byzantine Empire]] to unify [[Christendom]], but this formally failed with the [[East–West Schism]] of 1054. In the 16th century, the birth and growth of [[Protestantism]] during the [[Reformation]] further split Christianity into many [[List of Christian denominations|denominations]]. === Islam === {{Main |History of Islam}} [[File:Abraham tomb.JPG |thumb |upright |A [[cenotaph]] above the [[Cave of the Patriarchs]] traditionally considered to be the burial place of Abraham.]] [[Islam]] is based on the teachings of the [[Quran]]. Although it considers [[Muhammad]] to be the [[Seal of the prophets]], Islam teaches that every [[Prophets in Islam|prophet]] preached Islam, as the word ''Islam'' literally means submission, the main concept preached by all prophets. Although the [[Quran]] is the central [[religious text]] of Islam, which [[Muslim]]s believe to be a [[revelation]] from God,<ref name="Britannica">{{cite encyclopedia |last=Nasr |first=Seyyed Hossein |author-link=Seyyed Hossein Nasr |title=Qurʼān |year=2007 |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica Online |access-date=4 November 2007 |url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-68890/Quran |archive-date=16 October 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016200056/http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-68890/Quran |url-status=live}}</ref> other Islamic books considered to be revealed by God before the Quran, mentioned by name in the Quran are the [[Tawrat]] ([[Torah]]) revealed to the [[Prophets and messengers in Islam|prophets and messengers]] amongst the [[Children of Israel]] (Bani Israil), the [[Zabur]] ([[Psalms]]) revealed to [[David in Islam|Dawud]] ([[David]]) and the [[Injil]] (the [[Gospel]]) revealed to [[Jesus in Islam|Isa]] ([[Jesus]]). The Quran also mentions God having revealed the [[Scrolls of Abraham]] and the [[Scrolls of Moses]]. The relationship between Islamic and Hebrew scriptures and New Testament differs significantly from the relationship between the New Testament and the Tanakh.<ref name="Cohen, Charles L 2020. p. 62">Cohen, Charles L. The Abrahamic religions: a very short introduction. Oxford University Press, USA, 2020. p. 62</ref> Whereas the New Testament draws heavily on the Tanakh and interprets its text in light of the foundations of the new religion, the Quran only alludes to various stories of the Tanakh and Biblical writings, but remains independent of both, focusing on establishing a monotheistic message by utilizing the stories of the prophets in a religious decentralized environment.<ref name="Cohen, Charles L 2020. p. 62"/> In the 7th century AD, Islam was founded by [[Muhammad]] in the Arabian Peninsula; it spread widely through the [[early Muslim conquests]], shortly after his death.{{sfn |Bremer |2015 |p=19-20}} Islam understands its form of "Abrahamic monotheism" as preceding both Judaism and Christianity, and in contrast with Arabian [[Henotheism]].<ref>Athamina, Khalil. "Abraham in Islamic perspective reflections on the development of monotheism in pre-Islamic Arabia." (2004): 184-205.</ref> The teachings of the Quran are believed by Muslims to be the direct and final revelation and words of [[God]]. Islam, like Christianity, is a [[Religion#Morphological classification|universal religion]] (i.e. membership is open to anyone). Like Judaism, it has a strictly unitary conception of God, called ''[[tawhid]]'' or "strict monotheism".<ref name="BBC Islam">[http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/ataglance/glance.shtml Religions » Islam » Islam at a glance] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090521230250/http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/ataglance/glance.shtml |date=21 May 2009}}, BBC, 5 August 2009.</ref> The story of the creation of the world in the Quran is elaborated less extensively than in the Hebrew scripture, emphasizing the transcendence and universality of God, instead. According to the Quran, God says ''[[Be, and it is|kun fa-yakūnu]]''.<ref name="Burrell, David B. 2010. p. 41">Burrell, David B., et al., eds. Creation and the God of Abraham. Cambridge University Press, 2010. p. 41.</ref> The Quran describes God as the creator of "heavens and earth", to emphasize that it is a universal God and not a local Arabian deity here.<ref name="Burrell, David B. 2010. p. 41"/> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page