3. Religion in Ancient
Mesopotamia
• Polytheism (worship of more than one god)
was the only type of religion in
Mesopotamia until about the 1st century AD
• They worshipped over 2100 gods and
deities, and were also henotheistic, meaning
they believed some gods were greater than
others
• They believed the afterlife took place
under the Earth’s surface, which everyone
went to regardless of what they had done
in their life
• Afterlife was called Arallû, or “Great Below”
4. Religion in Ancient Mesopotamia
By about the 1st century AD, the native
polytheistic/henotheistic religions of
Mesopotamia were dying out. Ancient
Christianity was taking over the area, and by
the 4th century AD, the native religions were
basically gone. Studies by scientists have
shown that the ancient Mesopotamian
religions probably had some effect on the
modern religions of Judaism and Christianity.
6. Religion in Ancient Egypt
• The ancient Egyptians had a very
complex religious system
• Virtually every Egyptian practiced it, it
was like a national religion
• The Egyptians put many resources into
rituals and celebrations for the
gods, just to please them and maintain
a ‘happy’ life
7.
8. Religion in Ancient Egypt
• The Egyptian gods would have their identities
changed depending on how life in Egypt was at the
time; if the nile hadn’t flooded very much yet, hapi
(god of the Nile) would be given more celebrations
and festivals to make him happy, so he would make
it flood more.
• There was a lot of focus on interaction between
humans and gods.
• In the beginning, only Pharaohs could go to the
afterlife
• osiris made it so that anyone with a ‘light heart’
could go on ra’s boat
• You had a light heart if you spend your life doing
good things
• People also needed to have their name written
down somewhere, have a preserved body, and pass a
test
10. Religion in modern-day Canada
• There is no official or national religion in
Canada
• In a 2001 national census, 77% of people
claimed they were Christian, 16% had no
religious affiliation, 2% were Muslim, and
1.1% were Jewish
• Christianity is still the largest religion in
Canada, but due to all of the immigrants its
numbers aren’t rising
• Canada is exceptionally religiously diverse
11. Religion in modern-day
Canada
• In modern-day Canada, Christian celebrations have
become national holidays
• Christmas and Easter are two formerly Christian
holidays that are celebrated by almost everyone
• There are many different beliefs about the
afterlife, including heaven and things similar to the
Mesopotamians ‘Great Below’
• 16% of Canadians are either Atheist (a strong disbelief
in religion) or non-religious and believe that when you
die, that’s it.
• In Canada, hockey is sometimes considered a religion
13. Religion in Ancient
Greece
• The ancient Greeks religion is
probably one of the most known
religions, probably because of the
many myths about it
• The Greeks had the first Olympic
Games in celebration of the god Zeus
• The gods of Greek religion each had
their own thing to control
14. Religion in Ancient
Greece
• The Greeks had fourteen main gods;
Poseidon, Hades, Apollo, Artemis, Aphrodite, Are
s, Dionysus, Hephaestus, Athena, Hermes, Demet
er, Heracles, Hestia, and the head god Zeus.
• Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon were the highest gods
• Zeus was the grand leader of the gods and ruler of
Olympus
16. Religion in Ancient Rome
• The ancient Romans had a very similar religion
to the Greeks
• The gods were essentially the same, but lesser
known and with different names
• Every home had a household shrine where the
inhabitants would pray
• Even slaves participated in the religious
activities and had to pray
17. Religion in Ancient Rome
• High members of society were given the jobs (or
titles) of priests and holy men
• Animal sacrifices were often made to please the gods
• Human sacrifice was outlawed in Rome in 81
B.C, and was punished the same way as murder was
• The Roman religion was taught in school as a
regular subject for all children
• You had to support the general religion in Rome, or
you were subject to punishment
18. Bibliography
• “Religion in Ancient Greece." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 04 Aug. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.
• "Religion in Ancient Rome." Religion in Ancient Rome. N.p., 13 May 1990. Web. 09 Apr. 2013.
• "Ancient Egyptian Religion." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 04 Nov. 2013. Web. 11 Apr. 2013.
• "Gods and Goddesses." Gods and Goddesses. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2013.
• "Ancient Mesopotamia." : Religion and Gods. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.
• Poseidon. N.d. Photograph. Wikipedia. Wikipedia. Wikimedia. Web. 17 Apr. 2013.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Poseidon_sculpture_Copenhagen_2005.jpg>.
• "Ancient Greece for Teachers - Gods and Goddesses Lesson Plans." Ancient Greece for Teachers -
Gods and Goddesses Lesson Plans. Mr. Donn, n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2013.
<http://greece.mrdonn.org/lessonplans/gods.html>.
• "Ancient Egypt for Teachers - Religion, Gods, Funerals, Weighing of the Heart, Afterlife."Ancient
Egypt for Teachers - Religion, Gods, Funerals, Weighing of the Heart, Afterlife. N.p., n.d. Web. 18
Apr. 2013. <http://egypt.mrdonn.org/lessonplans/religion.html>.
• N.d. Photograph. Bible History. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. <http://www.bible-
history.com/sketches/ancient/jupiter-roman-god.html>.
• Mesopotamian Religion. N.d. Philip Pharland. WordPress. Web. 17 Apr. 2013.
<http://www.philipharland.com/Blog/category/mesopotamian-religions/>.
Editor's Notes
Ancient religion in Canada (modern), Greece, Rome, Egypt, and Mesopotamia
