1Religion is a vast subject which tries to help people make sense of everything about the world around them. Religion plays an important role in helping people to explain the creation of the universe and their purpose within the higher power. Religion creates cultural constructs, power dynamics, and historical narratives. They can also produce philosophical innovation, ethical reform, and the advancement of social justice.
84% of the world’s population identifies with a religious group. Members of this demographic are generally younger and produce more children than those who have no religious affiliation, so the world is getting more religious, not less – although there are significant geographical variations. As per various studies, Christianity is the most practised religion across the world with 2.3 billion adherents. The next most practised religion is Islam with 1.8 billion adherents. Hindus comprise of 1.1 billion population, while Buddhist adherents comprise of 500 million.
The oldest religion in the world is Hinduism, which dates to about 7,000 BCE. Judaism is the next oldest, dating from about 2,000 BCE, followed by Zoroastrianism, officially founded in Persia in the 6th century BCE but its roots are thought to date back to 1,500 BCE. Shinto, Buddhism, Jainism, Confucianism and Taoism bunch together around 500-700 BCE. Then along came Christianity, followed about 600 years later by Islam. As the world is changing, there are also new religions that are emerging. Some of these include Jehovah’s Witness, Ivanovism and Scientology.
While it is hard to pinpoint the time when many religions began, not least because their roots lie in prehistory and the sources that describe their origins may date from a much later time. The Chinese dynasties established their nation-states and empires. There emerged traditional folk religions and ancestor worship that were later incorporated into the more philosophical belief systems of Daoism and Confucianism.
While many religions have different names their core beliefs remain the same. In many religion the idea of good and evil is fundamental and religion serves the function of offering moral guidance to society. The major religions differ in their definitions of what constitutes a good life—and the line between moral philosophy and religion is far from clear in belief systems — but certain basic moral codes have emerged that are almost universal. Religious taboos, commandments and so on not only ensure that the will of the God or gods is obeyed but also form a framework for society and its laws to enable people to live peaceably together. The spiritual leadership that in many religions was given by prophets with divine guidance was passed on to the priesthood.
