Faith: Five Religions and What They Share

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Overview

This kid-friendly exploration of faith provides a superb overview of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism. Young readers will learn about different aspects of each religion, including historical origins and beliefs, holy texts, religious clothing and places of worship. They will also find out about the values, customs and symbols all five religions share, such as the golden rule, charity, prayer and candles. Straightforward, simple text makes the content interesting and accessible, as do the vivid ...
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Overview

This kid-friendly exploration of faith provides a superb overview of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism. Young readers will learn about different aspects of each religion, including historical origins and beliefs, holy texts, religious clothing and places of worship. They will also find out about the values, customs and symbols all five religions share, such as the golden rule, charity, prayer and candles. Straightforward, simple text makes the content interesting and accessible, as do the vivid photos of children around the world. Parents and teachers will find Faith an invaluable tool for teaching youngsters tolerance and respect for people of different beliefs.
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Editorial Reviews

Children's Literature - Joyce Rice
Faith is the heart of every religion in that it addresses the belief that there is something beyond what we can see, touch or hear that gives meaning to our lives. As this book's introduction states "Faith helps provide answers." Although there are twenty-two major religions in the worlds, each of these religions have things in common. The five religions discussed here share many elements of faith, even though there are many differences. Conflict between religions often comes when the differences are exposed but the similarities are unknown. Christianity and Judaism share a similar history, because they are both believers of the Old Testament books of the Bible. Buddhism, believed to have begun in India about 2,500 years ago, started as a way to endure the suffering and difficulty of the people in that time. Buddhists have a strong belief in service to others. Hinduism traditions, started 3,500 years ago also in India, accept the existence of a spirit, or power, called Brahman that is equivalent to what many people would call God. They also worship minor gods and goddesses, whose stories are told in their religious texts. Muslims who follow Muhammad, study the Qur'an, and follow its practices practice the religion Islam. These practices include fasting and praying five times a day. Three religions, Christianity, Judaism and Islam, recognize Abraham, the Old Testament patriarch as their beginning. The five religions in this book all have a belief of service toward others and of the Golden Rule, which states you should behave toward others the way you would wish others to behave toward you. Each has their own form of spiritual leaders, their own sacred texts and their own places of worship. Although the specifics may differ, many of the symbols, types of clothing and attitudes towards religious leaders, children, and charity are the same. Steckel and Steckel have given help to teachers and parents using this volume to promote tolerance and understanding. A bold print glossary, an index, and suggested activities are included to make this an excellent resource for the religion section of an elementary and a middle grades collection. Reviewer: Joyce Rice
School Library Journal
Gr 3–6—This brief overview of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism emphasizes what these religions have in common, with the goal of promoting tolerance and respect. The book begins promisingly with a clear definition of faith. However, the text—organized by themes such as clothing, symbols, and places of worship—is extremely limited and incomplete. Many statements are overly broad, and several sections are repetitious. There are only a few references to holidays and almost nothing on rites of passage (birth, coming of age, marriage, death). Faith initially appears to be beautifully illustrated with color photographs from a number of countries. Unfortunately, there are no captions and many of the photos are unclear or irrelevant, resulting in confusion. The book includes a minimal glossary but lacks a bibliography. Far superior, and more comprehensive, are Mary Pope Osborne's skillfully written One World, Many Religions (Knopf, 1996); David Self's thorough The Lion Encyclopedia of World Religions (Lion, 2009); and Laura Buller's colorful A Faith Like Mine (DK, 2005).—Ann W. Moore, Schenectady County Public Library, NY
Kirkus Reviews
To encourage tolerance, the photographer/authors want to help children understand similarities among Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, Islam and Judaism. The authors assume readers will be people of faith, not atheists or agnostics. After short descriptions of each religion, common themes, such as the Golden Rule, spiritual leaders, sacred texts, clothing, symbols, places of worship, worship acts (use of incense, candles, water, and prayer), charity and cherishing children are explored. The text can be very specific, mentioning branches of Judaism (Orthodox, Conservative, Reform and Reconstructionist) without explaining the differences. (Sunni and Shiite Muslims are not delineated.) Activities will help children, teachers and parents think about religion in a comparative manner, although no sources or further reading are provided, which is a glaring omission. The attractive photos are often cropped into circular or curvilinear shapes and presented on brightly colored pages, giving the book the look of a magazine. Identified by religion but not by country, the photos were taken in the United States and eight other nations, including Mexico, Turkey and Vietnam. Interestingly, Israel and India, seemingly obvious choices, are not included. Captions would have been helpful for some photos such as a picture of a Muslim boy in a distinctive white cape and jeweled hat, which remains unexplained in the text. A useful if occasionally preachy introduction, this book would benefit from the inclusion of more specific details, including holidays and eating customs. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 8-11)
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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9781554537501
  • Publisher: Kids Can Press, Limited
  • Publication date: 3/1/2012
  • Series: CitizenKid Series , #11
  • Pages: 36
  • Sales rank: 980,648
  • Age range: 8 - 12 Years
  • Product dimensions: 8.70 (w) x 11.10 (h) x 0.50 (d)

Meet the Author

Dr. Richard Steckel, cofounder and executive producer of the Milestones Project?, is internationally recognized as a consultant and speaker on nonprofit social enterprise and for-profit social marketing. He and his wife, Michele (Shelli) Steckel, conceived the Milestones Project in 1998 and have since traveled the world capturing the images and stories of more than 60,000 children in 28 countries.

Michele (Shelli) Steckel is the producer and cofounder of the Milestones Project?. She is a sensitive photo editor, master ?picture finder? and talented photographer specializing in context photographs. While traveling the globe for the past several decades, she has developed countless friendships with individuals, families, doctors and non-governmental organizations all committed to creating a better world free of hatred and intolerance.

Dr. Richard Steckel, cofounder and executive producer of the Milestones Project?, is internationally recognized as a consultant and speaker on nonprofit social enterprise and for-profit social marketing. He and his wife, Michele (Shelli) Steckel, conceived the Milestones Project in 1998 and have since traveled the world capturing the images and stories of more than 60,000 children in 28 countries.

Michele (Shelli) Steckel is the producer and cofounder of the Milestones Project?. She is a sensitive photo editor, master ?picture finder? and talented photographer specializing in context photographs. While traveling the globe for the past several decades, she has developed countless friendships with individuals, families, doctors and non-governmental organizations all committed to creating a better world free of hatred and intolerance.

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