Major Religious Movements
Lorann Pate
Professor Trudgen
Intro Humanities/HUM2020
29 November 2011
Major Religious Movements There are numerous religions throughout the world that differ in several ways. Some of these religions we ourselves have never even thought of or heard of, for that matter. Most of the religions we hear about today are major religions rather than minor religions. Although, some of these major religions may seem minor to us because of their origin, or simply because they are not regularly practiced here in the United States. Baha’i, Islam, and Mormonism are among the various major religious movements. To begin with, the author of AP Human Geography 2009, Kelly Swanson speaks about several different major religious movements. Swanson states that the Baha’i faith is practiced in various parts of Africa and Asia (325). This religion was founded in Iran. In Jeremy Butler’s article, “A Brief History of the Baha’i Faith”, he explains how the Baha’i faith came about. Baha’i started in the 19th century, with a Persian merchant who was apparently a young man named Siyyid Ali-Muhammad. He eventually took the name “Bab”, which means gate or door. In 1844, on May 23, Ali-Muhammad proclaimed he was the carrier of a divine revelation. This divine revelation would change humanities spiritual life. Bab’s primary teaching consisted of there being a second messenger from God that was greater than himself. Butler explains that this second messenger’s mission was to bring about peace and justice, which is, he says “The same mission that major religions of the world are trying to accomplish.” He also mentions that Bab is similar to John the Baptist in the bible. This is because he told about a coming one that would be greater than he himself. In Christianity, the greater one is Jesus, but in Baha’i the greater one is Baha’u’llah, which is the promised second messenger of God according to Butler. In Butler’s same article he elaborates on Baha’u’llah. In the nineteenth century
Professor Trudgen
Intro Humanities/HUM2020
29 November 2011
Major Religious Movements There are numerous religions throughout the world that differ in several ways. Some of these religions we ourselves have never even thought of or heard of, for that matter. Most of the religions we hear about today are major religions rather than minor religions. Although, some of these major religions may seem minor to us because of their origin, or simply because they are not regularly practiced here in the United States. Baha’i, Islam, and Mormonism are among the various major religious movements. To begin with, the author of AP Human Geography 2009, Kelly Swanson speaks about several different major religious movements. Swanson states that the Baha’i faith is practiced in various parts of Africa and Asia (325). This religion was founded in Iran. In Jeremy Butler’s article, “A Brief History of the Baha’i Faith”, he explains how the Baha’i faith came about. Baha’i started in the 19th century, with a Persian merchant who was apparently a young man named Siyyid Ali-Muhammad. He eventually took the name “Bab”, which means gate or door. In 1844, on May 23, Ali-Muhammad proclaimed he was the carrier of a divine revelation. This divine revelation would change humanities spiritual life. Bab’s primary teaching consisted of there being a second messenger from God that was greater than himself. Butler explains that this second messenger’s mission was to bring about peace and justice, which is, he says “The same mission that major religions of the world are trying to accomplish.” He also mentions that Bab is similar to John the Baptist in the bible. This is because he told about a coming one that would be greater than he himself. In Christianity, the greater one is Jesus, but in Baha’i the greater one is Baha’u’llah, which is the promised second messenger of God according to Butler. In Butler’s same article he elaborates on Baha’u’llah. In the nineteenth century
Cited: Butler, Jeremy. “A Brief History of the Baha’i Faith.” Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry. 1995. 15 November 2011. http://carm.org/a-brief-history-of-the-bahai-faith. Butler, Jeremy. “Basic Teachings of the Baha’i Faith.” Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry. 1995. 15 November 2011. http://carm.org/basic-teachings-of-the-bahai-faith. Swanson, Kelly. AP Human Geography. 2009. New York, NY: Kaplan Publishing, 2009.