Abrahamic religion

{{religion}}
The '''Abrahamic religions''' are [[religion]]s originating from the traditions of ancient Iron Age paganism (Yahwism); the major ones are [[Judaism]], [[Christianity]], and [[Islam]], though there are others that are either offshoots of the main three (such as [[Bahá'í]], [[Rastafari]], and debatably [[Mormonism]]), early branches that are not directly related to the modern forms of any of the main three (such as {{wpl|Mandaeism}} or, arguably, the [[faith]] of the {{wpl|Samaritans}}), as well as more {{wpl|Syncretism|syncretic}} faiths (e.g. the religion of the [[Druze]]). Judaism and Islam are unambiguously [[Monotheism|monotheistic]], though Christianity is sometimes seen as [[Polytheism|polytheistic]] due to the [[Trinity]]. All Abrahamic religions worship a single [[God]], variously named '''El''' (ancient Semitic name), '''[[YHWH]]/[[Yahweh]]''' (Jewish tradition, sometimes used in Christianity), '''[[Jehovah]]''' (taboo deformation derived from early Christianity and rabbinical Judaism), '''[[Allah]]''' ([[Muslim]], from the Arabic form of El), and numerous others. The term "Abrahamic" derives from the status of the Biblical patriarch [[Abraham]] as the [[Mythology|mythical]] [[evolution|progenitor]] of all these related faiths. In modern times, Christianity and Islam are two of the largest and the two most widespread of the five major faiths of the world (the others being [[Hinduism]], [[Buddhism]], and "[[China|Chinese]] Traditional").<ref>http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html - "Nonreligious" comes in third, but is not an organized religion in any sense.</ref>

The most fundamental document in the Abrahamic faiths is the [[Torah]], the first five books of the [[Bible]]. Judaism adds the Tanakh ([[Old Testament]]); Christianity adds the [[New Testament]] (and, depending on the branch, some of the [[Apocrypha]]) to the Jewish canon; Islam replaces the entire thing with the [[Qur'an]], which has some connection to the Old and New Testament.

The fundamental [[prophet]]s of these three branches are, in chronological order, [[Moses]], [[Jesus]], and [[Mohammed]].

[[King David]] is considered to be one of the prophets by Muslims, which 
Psalms
 the Zabur is revealed to him from Allah<ref>{{wpa|Zabur}}</ref> and would fit somewhere between Moses and Jesus. However, he does not carry the status of "Prophet" in Judaism or Christianity.

Some Christians, while denying that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints ([[Mormonism]]) is Christian, will nevertheless refer to them as the fourth Abrahamic religion. Unitarian Universalism, which has only existed in its present form since 1961 and is now overtly syncretic despite the Christian heritage of the denominations that formed it, might be considered a fifth&nbsp;— given viewpoints (mostly among Christians) may consider them part of, or wholly divorced from, Christianity, and individual members may or may not self-identify as Christian.

Put more bluntly, [[Judaism]] is the original movie, [[Christianity]] is the sequel, [[Islam]] is the third movie of the trilogy that tries to go back to its roots, and [[Mormonism]] is the fan fiction rewrite [[retcon]] of the whole thing.

==[[Linnaean taxonomy|Taxonomy]] of the Abrahamic faiths==
[[File:"Family tree" of the Abrahamic religions.jpeg|thumb|right|500px|Timeline showing the lineage of major Abrahamic religions, with its founders]]
The following list is intended to be {{wpl|Clade|cladistic}} in nature, showing the relationship between religious [[denomination]]s in terms of which tradition spawned which. Significant breaks (i.e. the point where a modified [[belief]] is said to be a new religion) are marked with '''boldface''' entries. By necessity, this list is highly simplified; see [[Talk:Abrahamic religion]] for further details. 

*'''Proto-[[Hebrew]] religion''' (prehistorical to 1200s BCE) (may have been [[Polytheism|polytheistic]], with [[YHWH]] and [[Asherah]] as heads of the pantheon; identified from the [[kosher|disappearance of pig bones]] in some [[Canaan]]ite trash heaps)
*'''Ancient Israelite religion''' (1200s - 900s BCE)
*{{wpl|Solomon's Temple|First}} and {{wpl|Second Temple}} Judaism (950 BCE - the destruction of the Temple in 78 CE.)
**{{wpl|Samaritan|'''Samaritanism'''}}
**{{wpl|Essene|'''Essenism'''}} (Jewish monasticism)
**{{wpl|Rabbinic Judaism|'''Rabbinic Judaism'''}} (Destruction of the Temple and the [[Rabbi|priestly]] class in 78 CE to modern) (derived from the [[Pharisee]] tradition and developed through writing and study of the [[Talmud]])
***{{wpl|Orthodox Judaism}}
****{{wpl|Haredi Judaism}}
*****{{wpl|Hasidic Judaism}}
***{{wpl|Conservative Judaism}}
***{{wpl|Reform Judaism}}
**{{wpl|Early Christianity|'''Early Christianity'''}}
***{{wpl|Pauline Christianity|'''Pauline Christianity'''}}
****[[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodoxy]]
****{{wpl|Oriental Orthodoxy}}
*****{{wpl|Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria|Coptic Christianity}}
*****{{wpl|Syriac Christianity}}
****[[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]]
*****[[Church of England|Anglicanism]] (includes the [[Episcopal Church]] in [[United States|America]])
******[[Methodism]]
******[[Baptist]] churches (widely splintered, covering fairly [[liberal]] [[church]]es to extremely [[conservative]] churches, such as [[Westboro Baptist Church]])
*******{{wpl|Adventism}} (the largest being [[Seventh-day Adventism]])
*****[[Lutheranism]]
*****[[Calvinism]]
******[[Presbyterianism]]
*****'''[[Unitarianism]]'''
*****[[Mormonism]] (status as a Christian faith is disputed due to the "vast" [[Theology|theological]] differences)
*****[[Pentecostalism]]
*****'''[[Rastafari]]'''
***'''[[Gnosticism]]'''
****{{wpl|Mandaeism|'''Mandaeanism'''}}
****{{wpl|Sethianism|'''Sethianism'''}}
*****{{wpl|Basilideans|'''Basilideans'''}}
*****{{wpl|Valentinianism|'''Valentinianism'''}}
**'''[[Islam]]'''
***[[Sunni]] Islam
****[[Wahhabism]] (predominant variety of Sunni Islam in [[Saudi Arabia]])
***[[Shi'a Islam]]
****'''[[Babísm]]'''
*****'''[[Bahá'í]]'''
****'''[[Druze]]'''
***[[Sufism]]
***[[Kharijite]]
****[[Ibadi]] (The connection of modern Ibadi with the Kharijite branch is disputed)
***[[Ahmadiyya]] (messianic offshoot of Sunni Islam)
***[[Nation of Islam]]

==References==

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Abrahamic religions| ]]

Categories: Abrahamic religions