Similarities Among World Religions

Something I appreciated from this class was learning how most of the great religions of today have so many similarities in spite of their differences. Judaism, Buddhism, Christianity and Islam each, in their own unique way, share traits that indicate their adherents all attempt to overcome the failings and weaknesses of human thinking. Additionally, all of them, except for Buddhism, look to a higher source (God or Allah) for the necessary wisdom to live a happy and useful life. In reality, most people in the world, in spite of differences in culture and traditions, are all striving for the same things, and typically find happiness and contentment in similar things.

Of course, the ideas of today’s religions are very different from what the ancient Greeks believed. Ironically, despite the fact that they believed in a multitude of gods, they were unable to develop a system with strong ethical foundations, unlike Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism and Islam. Greek philosophy—constructed by the leading Greek thinkers, like Plato, Aristotle, and Socrates—developed a new system based on human ideas.¹ Therefore, first the Greeks and later (initially) the Romans based their world view and explained everything that was known based on rational observation. It was somewhat surprising to learn that the Greeks, with all of their gods, gave very little thought to living what could be termed a religious life. Indeed, they seemed content to practice on moral independence (as exemplified by the Stoics) and rarely took the gods into consideration in matters of morality (as explained by Socrates). In fact, the only area of life where they may have reflected similar thinking as members of modern religions is the desire for moderation (a credo of Aristotle).¹ Because they developed philosophies not related to any religious philosophy, the Greeks emphasized the value of human thought.

It is also fascinating to realize that each of the four main religions today was started by a simple and humble man. Judaism was started by Moses, Buddhism by a young prince who became the Buddha, Christianity was initiated by Jesus, and Islam by Muhammad. None of these men were famous or powerful in a secular sense. While the Buddha was originally a prince, he disavowed that life before beginning his religious quest for enlightenment. As mentioned earlier, Buddhism is the only major religion of the four which does not adhere to a god, or for that matter a belief in an afterlife. However, it does share a very important similar theme with them all inasmuch as its adherents reject relying on human reasoning and attempt to avoid acting upon basic human desires, which are typically considered harmful.

Similarly, Muslims seek to serve Allah (God) based on following the teachings of Mohammad. Interestingly, Muslims believe (and use) much of the Bible and revere prophets from both the Old and New Testament. Since that is the case, they also believe in many of the same concepts that were recorded by those writers, which also promote a need for fighting against the base human instincts of behavior and, instead, following a path of self-sacrifice and moral virtues. The members of Islam, like the Greeks before them, also contributed a great deal to the architecture of the world¹ and both styles represent—in many ways—their culture’s efforts to represent their gods and their cultures.

Of course, the same could be said for the architecture of the Roman world, since it seems that every great civilization attempts to define itself in some way through its structures. The later impressive churches and cathedrals commissioned by the Catholic Church were also an indication of this practice. Indeed, this class revealed that people of all religions share many of the same desires and aspirations for happiness, and the right way to live, in spite of living continents or even generations apart.

Reference

1. Fiero K. The Humanistic Tradition, 6th ed. Boston: McGraw Hill; 2011.