Religions: Cultural backgrounds

Religion
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RELIGION
Introduction
Religion is a precise system concerning a deity and it often involves a code of ethics, rituals as well as a philosophy of life. It can also be known as faith in a supernatural power, which bears control of human destiny. Different people from all over the world believe in distinguished deities. The groups, systems and practices that people term as religious are very diverse, to a point that combining them to one definition is a challenge. In South Florida, various religion performances or rituals people practice. There is a large population of the immigrants from different parts of the world that have influenced cultural and religious practices (Carroll, 2002). The Roman Catholic religion and Judaism are some of the religious practices that exist in South Florida. Florida State`s largest denomination is the Roman Catholicism, although there is a quite a number of Jewish community in South Florida. These religions are also comparable as well as related in some ways.
The Cultural Background of the Roman Catholic Religion
Roman Catholic religion is a tradition that contains around 1.1 billion members. Catholicism is the most popular religion that exists in the world; particularly dominates some states like South Florida. On tracing the history of Catholicism, it started at the times of Jesus of Nazareth who is considered as an itinerant preacher, who reached around the city of Jerusalem during the Roman occupation period in the Common eras of the early thirties. The members of its congregation meet in a spiritual union of churches that are led by bishops. The origin of the role of bishops is traced from the disciples of Jesus. Several decades had passed after the life of Jesus, his death, as well as his resurrection and the bishops took up the role of spreading out to form a universal church. In addition, the Rome bishop according to apostle peter`s trace is said to be the most supreme (Carroll, 2002).
Currently, the Vatican City and especially the Saint Peter`s Basilica is said to stand upon the grave of Peter, while the pope is regarded as the successor of Peter. Originally, Christian religion was persecuted religious community, which was considered illegal in the whole Empire of Rome in the first days of its establishment. Fortunately, it was made legal after three hundred years after, through the dialogue of Emperor Constantine and was eventually given recognition of an official religion of the same Empire. With the fall and decline of Rome in the fifth century, the Church of Rome assumed both spiritual and temporal power in the West. Therefore, it bears enormous control on the expansion of the culture and art of the world in the West, via the middle Ages. Currently its growth is considered fastest in Asia, Africa as well as the South America. In fact, the Roman Catholic religion or rather Christianity is the largest in population all over the world. Yet, the Judaism religion was the original one and is only common in some parts of the world. In addition, there was criticism by some Christian like Paul to the Jews, questioning the fact that they do not believe Jesus as the messiah. Paul also claimed that Judaism was critically based on law and not faith.
The Cultural Background of Judaism religion
The Judaism religion draws its history from the creation of humanity. However, the openly historical origins of the Jews start with the Hebrews and Abraham. Basing on the Torah, the home of Abraham was the town of northern Mesopotamian in Harran. Abraham was then commanded by God to migrate to Canaan, which is generally equivalent to the contemporary Lebanon and Israel. For quite some time, the Hebrews lived in Egypt as slaves but later returned to Canaan. The olden Hebrew people practiced semi nomadic farmers and herdsman, living in Mesopotamia and organized into tribes. The nearby cultures` contributions include Old Babylonian, the divine messengers concept derived from West Semitic, primitive history and Mesopotamian cosmology, methodological literature and Canaanite language, as well as wisdom literature and Egyptian hymns.
All these cultures were features of belief in the creator as well as the preserver gods, enhanced religious rituals, and a structure of ethics. The leader of the pantheon of Canaan was El, a influential god who was both compassionate and judgmental. Some historians designated the era of Jewish history as Biblical Judaism. Tanakh narratives from the primitive history and creation of human beings to the final prophet cover these centuries in the fourth century BCE. The Tanakh is informative about the Hebrew history from a religious perspective. It begins with the story of creation of humanity and winds up with words of the final of the prophets in the fourth century BCE. The scholars often refer this period as Biblical Judaism. The Tanakh keeps track of the nation of the Hebrew as it encounters cycles of discipline and favor offered by God. There is also a case of God`s establishment of successive favor with humanity. This happened through the servants of God like Noah, Abraham as well as Adam. Similarly, an issuance of set of laws that was extensive via Moses, which shows that the Hebrews was to be consecrated as the people of God. When they went astray, God would send a prophet as well as the invading forces to return them to himself.
The differentiating factor in the Jewish thought is the particular claim of having an experience with the presence of God in the human events as well as its subsequent progression. The Rabbinical Judaism progressed out of the movement called Pharasiac. Similarly, it grew in response to the Second temple`s destruction in seventy CE. The rabbis wanted to reinterpret the concepts of the Jews and performances in the temple`s absence as well as for a people that are cast out. Apart from some minute side groups like Karaites, Rabbinical Judaism was the form that dominated the Jewish religion for around eighteen centuries. The religion produced the Midrash, Talmud, and the huge figures mediaeval philosophy of the Jews.
Similarities of Roman Catholic and Judaism religion
The religions of Christians and Judaism share many similarities if an individual prepares to view it beyond the creed of religion. In South Florida, both religions are seen sharing the same religious practices and events. These practices include; the Pentecost, Shavuot, and Whitsun that is derived from Passover, Easter, and Counting of Omer. The theistic cosmology of the Catholic is a development that tends to the Greek Tartarus notions. Similarly, the cosmology of the Jewish religion originates from Sheol notion, which is in line with the Greek Hades. Moreover, the notion of Catholic religion proceeds to the middle age.
In addition, the birth of Jesus as a Jew offers him a foundation in the culture of the Jews, whereas the Catholic culture proceeds from the Jewish culture. It is said that the Christian religion is an incorporation of version that is redacted from Hebrew Bible, the Old Testament being the prime indication of this foundation. Due to this action, some people scholars consider that the Essene of the cult of Jesus was ascetic, which was powered by the philosophy of Greek in modern reinterpretation of Judaism.
A smart reader of the Bible cannot fail to notice the strong parallels that suggest Jesus` story in the Bible carries a great similarity with the story of Moses in the Old Testament. Moses was a tod...