Actually the Jews that didn't like their Old Testament or Torah to be questioned cared less of Jesus. They were dissappointed with him and worked together or agreed with the Romans to kill him.

Now the Jews that agreed or followed Jesus's idealogy didn't want him to die. At least I would like to see it that way, unless it is true that they believed he had to die for the sins of mankind back then. Something I am not sure about, for perhaps the apostles who wrote the bible years later may have construed the whole story. It is something everyone can decide on their own in the end concerning this situation.

I find it ironic that Constantine I Emperor of Rome at the time wanted Jesus dead. I understand that the Emperor himself believed to be a God and didn't like all the attention given to Jesus, yet perhaps, as his mother converted or followed the Christian faith or idealogies of Jesus, he grew a soft heart and at the end of his life started the conversion of the entire Roman Empire into Christianity, which spreaded across the globe with their missionaries.


One can only wonder if Bar-Abba if he was a seperate identity or a criminal as the bible claims would have died sparing Jesus's life instead. Where would Christianity be then if Jesus lived a longer life?

Interesting it is that has many different answers from all kinds of religions to read on. In the end everyone has an opinion on it. I am sure of it.

Or what if they accidentally crucified Barabbas and not Jesus of Nazareth? Okay never mind. That would have been brilliant.

That is a possibility that has been also mentioned by a different author. So there are so many possiblities that different people and organizations believe in around the world.

In the end everyone can choose what is best for them.

Yeah, I dont think he was literally the son of Jesus. For one thing I think Barabbas was older but not certain on that. Anyway, sorry to hijack, I just thought that was a little bit interesting.

No need to be sorry. Write all you want. I encourage it.

I did a Mythology thread once and I was the only one writing in it. No replies, no hello, no nothing. After about 3 weeks, I said I could just type this stuff in my word document and get the same result.

I just like to share what I read alot and see different opinions on it. A good way to see different idealogies besides your own.

It broadens ideas also for my fantasy writings

and it even can be educational at times.

So I encourage people to come in and give their views.

UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST ASSOCIATION

The roots of the Unitarianism beliefs were formed in Transylvania by Ferenc David, a sixteenth century Calivinist bishop. To the dismay of the religious establishment, he began to teach that prayers could not be addressed to Jesus, since Jesus was only a human and not divine. For these revolutionary ideas, he was branded a heretic and he died in prison. However, the church he founded is the world's oldest surviving Unitarian body.

A similar Unitarian movement developed in England in the seventeenth century with a number off dissenter churches. The early history of the movement is full ofdissension. Some of the members wanted to change the name to "Free Christian;" which suggests the way those members approached their vision and version of religous thought. The movement prospered and eventually became the British Unitarian Association. During the late eighteenth century, a similar group known as the Universalits was formed in England and spread ot the United States.

The origins of the movement in the United States developed slowly in New England out of Congregational auotonomy, which stressed moderation, reason, and morals over spiritua revivalism. In 1825, following yet another schism between various sects of the movement, the American Unitarian Association was formed.

The church was still not a cohesive unit though, and in many ways was experimenting in its beliefs and the way they would be incorporated into the movement or movements. One might say there was religious diversity. By then the church had expanded its presence to Canada and to the Midwest and the South.

The movement stressed free use of reason in religion and believed that God existed in one person only; they did not believe in the Tirnity, and, as did Ferenc David, theyalso denied the divinity of Jesus Christ. They had no creed, and individual congregations varied widely in religious beliefs and practices. For instance a man named Thomas Starr King is credited with coming up with a definition that endeavored to show the difference between Unitarians and Universalists: "Universalists believe that God is too good to damn people, and the Unitarians believe that people are to good to be damned by God."

more to come...

Right from the early days, the movement embraced the marginalized elements of society, and that included the Universalists becoming, in 1863, the first denomination to ordain a woman to the ministry: Olympia Brown. They affirmed that God embraced everyone and that dignity and worth are innate to all people regardless of sex, color, race, or class.

It took until 1961 for a new organization to be formed, this time through a merger of the Universalist Church of America and the American Unitarian Association; there had been other mergers earlier between American and British groups. The new group was called the Unitarian Universalist Association. This association is a member of the International Association for Religious Freedom. The National Headquarters are in Boston with departments dealing with the ministry, religious education, adult education, world service, world churches, and publications. The General Assembly of delegates from churches and fellowships meets annually.

more to come...

Interesting note:

In the Unitarian Universalist Association today, the ethic of embracing all has been extended to include the rights of homosexuals, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender persons. Homosexuals and lesbians may be ordained as clergy. In 1996, same sex marriages were accepted.

This ends the basic introduction for this religion and is the last Christian denomination I will write about. If you know more denominations and wish to introduce it in this thread then please do so.

Next up "Islam".

ISLAM

Islam is a major world religion that originated in the Middle East after Judaism and Christianity. While the distribution of Islam throughout the world generally covers Africa, the Middle East, and sections of Asia and Europe, it is becoming a growing religious factor in the United States. More than six million Muslims are United States residents and that number increases every year.

MUHAMMED

The founder and prophet of Islam, Muhammad was born in Arabia in 570 C.E. He belonged to the Quraysh tribe, whose members served as custodians of the sacred places in Mecca.

As an adult he became a respected and successful trader. On a trading journey to Syria he was put in charge of the merchanidse of a rich middle aged woman. She was so taken with him that she offered herself in marriage. She eventually bore him six children, two sons and four daughters. The best known of these children was Fatima who became the wife of Muhammad's cousin Ali, who was regarded as Muhammad's divinely ordained successor.

Muhammed was known for his charm, courage, impartiality, and resoluteness. He was considered a man of virtuous character who eptimozed what would later become the Islamic ideal. His personal revelation came when he was meditating in a cave outside the city of Mecca (Makkah) when he was forty years old. He had a vision of the angel Gabriel who said to him, "Recite. "Muhammad refused three times until the angel said, "Recite in the name of thy Lord who created."

The words that were given to Muhammad declared the oneness and power of God, to whom worship should be made.

Following his revelation, Muhammad began preaching. It was a turbulent time of military conquest and political expansion throughout the area, and Muhammad met with the opposition. He and his followers fled the persecution and migrated to Medina, which is where his teachings began to be accepted and the first Islamic community was founded.

more to come...

The major achievements of Muhammad were the founding of a state and a religion. He was politically successful, created a federation of Arab tirbes, and made the religion of Islam the basis of Arab unity. He died in 632 C.E. in Medina.

What followed was an amazing expansion of the Muslim faith throughout a large part of the world from Spain to Central Asia to India, Turkey, Africa, Indonesia, Malaysia, and China - the areas where Muslims were active traders. In one of history's most astonishing military campaigns, during the seventh ****ry, Arab Muslims conquered Palestine, Syria, North Africa, Persia, and Spain.

But the spread of Islam also came via the suprpresion of alternate religion faiths. In some newly Muslim areas, Jews and Christians were given a special status; they had to pay a tax to maintain their religous autonomy. Other religions were given a different choice: Accept Islam or die.

In the early days of the faith, Islam became a part of both the spiritual and temporal aspects of Muslim life. Not only was there an Islamic relgious institution but also Islamic law, state, and other government institutions. It wasn't until the twentieth century that the religious and secular were formally separated in many predominantly Muslim countries. Even so, Islam actually draws no absolute distinction between the religious and temporal parts of life, the Muslim state is by definition religious.

more to come...

Interesting note:

Arabia in the seventh century C.E. was host to many religions, including Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism. Geographically, it covered an area that bordered on the Byzantine Christian Empire, Yemen, and the borders of the Zoroastrian Persian Empire. Muhammad traveled widely and studied with followers of other tribes and religions, among them Syrian Christians and Jews.

Central Beliefs of Islam

Islam is a monotheistic religion - having one god, Allah, the creator, sustainer, and restorer of the world. The overall purpose of humanity is to serve Allah, to worship him alone, and to construct a moral lifestyle.

The funamental practices of the faith are known as the Five Pillars of Islam; the anchors and guideposts ofr life as a Muslim. They are:

1. Profession of Faith. There is no God but Allah; Muhammed is the prophet of Allah. Sometimes a variation is used" There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his messenger.

2. Prayer. A Muslim must pray five times a day facing Mecca: before sunrise, just after noon, later in the afternoon, immediately before sunset, and after dark.

3. Zakat. Each Muslim maut pay an obligatory annual tax, or zakat, to the state government.

4. Fasting. A Muslim must fast for the month of Ramadan (the ninth Muslim month). Fasting begins at daybreak and ends at sunset. During the fast day, eating, drinking, smoking, and sexual intercourse are forbidden.

5. Hajj. Muslims must make a pilgrimage, or hajj, to Mecca at least once in their lifetime provided they are physically and financially able to do so.

Interesting Note:

A person who practices Islam is called a Muslim. The Arabic term Islam means "surrrender," which provides a strong indication of the fundamental underpinning of the faith. A believer, a Muslim, surrenders to the will of Allah.

Personally I think if you started with the begining of history by the time you got to christianity, you would be less likely to accept any of it. That sure did it for me, though I don't remember half of what I have learned to this point, it's just enough for me that I got away from it.

Yes that would be interesting. Maybe another thread? Christianity has so many denominations it becomes overwhelming and they begin to just run together. At least for me that happens. The earlier pagan religions are a little more distinct.

Well all three of the world religions follow this tradition of submission to their Lord/god.

That is correct. Islam, Christianity, and Judiasm are of practically the same God.

There shall be no other god before me is written in all three books.

I have mentioned that the Universalist will be the last denomination I will be writing about. This is now behind us. I still have Judiasm and Islam to cover.

From there I can imagine it will get interesting for those who don't follow Christianity, Muslim, or Judiasm faith.

Remember I wanted to include every religion for this is a site for everyone including those who are of Christian faith or its denominations.

This is a site where we learn the basics of each religion and how and why they started.

Islam will be completed by Monday as I spend my weekends with my family on a indian reservation full of good friends learning about their culture, spiritual beliefs, and lifestyles.

Have a great weekend everyone

You could just post the link also...If its easier.