Which known religion is considered to have been the "first"?

Answer 1

Interesting question!

Generally speaking, we sort of agree in Archaeology that the oldest form of "organized" religion surviving to the present day is Hindu-Aryanism, which began about 8 to 10,000 years prior to the present day. That's the short answer.

The long answer is a bit more complicated, as we really don't know where religion definitively began. There is a lot of excitement, especially among New Agers (and there are plenty of New Age scientists, so I don't mean that negatively) about the "Cult of Gaia", and the discovery of fertility figurines depicting an earth mother in parts of Germany, Africa, and Asia that bare remarkable resemblance to each other. However, there is also significant evidence that these idols may have had a male counterpart, and there is a current theory being advanced that the earliest religions may actually have venerated a "Father" who may have created or at least pre-dated the Mother. Honestly, we just don't know.

Generally speaking, the history of religion in the Ancient World seems to have followed three distinct stages.

First, we have the earliest evidence of religion among pre-historic cultures, when we first begin to notice ceremonial burials among, for example, the Neanderthals. We know very little about these faiths or their practicum, but it's a good bet that they were at least "Animistic" (that is to say, the faith involved the worship and veneration of various nature spirits, possibly the servants of a larger universal intelligence of intedeterminate sex).

Second, religion seems to have evolved along an agrarian pattern, with a matriachal emphasis. This corresponds pretty well to the time of the Neolithic Era, in which we begin to see the beginnings of the first organized agriculture - the so called 'Agricultural Revolution'. Typically, farming cultures venerate female deities as symbols of fertility, motherhood, etc. Formerly male or neutral deities were usurped by female deities in popular cosmology, with female deities becoming the dominant forces in any polytheistic organizational schema.

Around about the same time, or shortly thereafter, pastoral societies also began to evolve their own primitive forms of organized religion. Pastoral societies (herdsmen, shepherds, and hunter-gatherers) tend to worship male deities - the image of the provider and protector being most important to such societies, as opposed to the image of an earth mother. These societies evolved either as a result of the surviving influence of the oldest forms of religion, or as a distinct part of the same process which creatred the matriarchal faiths.

In Europe, Pastoral socities began to infiltrate and absorb Agrarian societies by the beginning of the Bronze Age - we have particularly good evidence of this in Mycenean Greece. It is at this time that female deities once again take a subservient role in many Western cultures, with male deities dominating.

Of course, nothing is universal, especially with human belief. So, in a harsh and barren environment like the Middle East, you're going to find fewer female deities than in, say, a relatively lush and fertile area such as Central Europe.

Anyway, hope I've given you some food for thought. But to summarize once again - we just don't know, but it's a fair bet that Hindu-Aryanism is the oldest "organized" religious tradition currently surviving.

Answer 2

Hinduism.

At least as far as a religion where multiple Gods are concerned. This period in history is classified by Theologians as "Preaxis" or "Preaxle" - something like that.

They split the the religions into two major categories - religions with multiple Gods or one-God. The Religions with multiple Gods were before the one-God religions. The largest was Hinduism. These ideas originated from the first tribes of the world. A time when people did not understand certain things or why they ocurred and therefore created their own theories as to why things would happen, eventually believing there was a higher power(s) that was dictating certain events...

Eventually, what is known as the Post Axle/Axis stage, came the religions with one God (monotheistic). The first monotheistic religion is Judaism, followed by Christianity, and finally Islam - you know, the order by which they were formed.

Answer 3

I don't if it would considered a religion but animism - the belief that everything has a spirit I think would be considered the first religion. Nature would be worshiped to appease the sun, moon, seasons, etc.

I don't know what the first organized religion would be! Interesting questions though!

Answer 4

The general term is animism for the beliefs of acient tribal peoples. Though not an official organized religion each tribe had it's own beliefs so they were many and varied with the names lost in the dust of "pre-history."

Answer 5

There were many pagan religions, beliefs and practices long before Judaism became the first religion to be monotheistic. In Christianity, the Universal Church (Catholicism) was first.

Answer 6

Sumerian religion, where the tales of Gilgamesh first came from . . . they have the gods Inanna, Enki, Ninhursag, Utu . . . the Sumerians are the oldest confirmed civilization on earth so logically their religion would have been the first.

Answer 7

No one knows for sure which religion was the first, but, for the oldest it could have been either buddism or muslim and the oldest Christian religion is the Roman Catholic Church, it started in which jesus called Peter his "rock" and upon this "rock' he would build his church.

Answer 8

Islam is the first and the last religion. How? Do some search to know the answer.

Answer 9

Indigenous beliefs. That was before organised religion and indigenous beliefs still exist in all religions and beliefs.

Answer 10

Islam,Adam and Eve were muslims (people subdued to God will)
and all prophet were also until Muhammed came and ended the mission of propethood.There are no other new prophets after him,if there is name the bigest new religion after 632 a.c.?