As of 2022, the largest religious group in the world is Islam(Sunni). Christian Roman Catholics are directly under that. By the shedding of a lot of blood, Christian Roman Catholics were the first on the list for many years. They 'spread the gospel' through conquest across other nations(colonialism). Hindus were second considering the population of India. Islam rose in the ranks slowly since the early 1900s until the sub-section of the religion, Sunni, became the most observed in the late 1900s.
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The spread of Islam over 1,400 years has been estimated from 270 million to 1.2 billion in mass murders.
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The spread of Christianity has death toll estimates of over 177 billion. 50 million from the crusades alone and 6 million of those include the most known genocide, the Holocaust.
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Though there is no estimate of persons, there are multiple instances in the Old Testament(Judaism) where mass murder occurred. Outside of Supernatural instances(the flood), Genesis 18-19 with Sodom and Gomorrah, Exodus 32 kills thousands, Joshua 6 with Jericho and he continues to kill many more, 1 Samuel 15 kills thousands, 2 Kings 19, and many more detail the instruction of murder.
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Most of the mass murder in the Hindu religion involves the fight against Colonialism, Christianity, and Islam.
These can be comparable to multiple singular acts, Genghis Khan killing 40 million, The Japanese democide of 10 million in its conquest in the early 1900s, the millions of Native Americans killed on their own soil, the millions of African Americans killed in the transatlantic slave trade, and many more. Though things have changed there is still a blatant battle of religions going on in Palestine(as of May 2024, 37k). Considering it is 2024, things should have changed but in some ways, things remain the same. There is constant war in the Middle East for that reason. All of these religions have great pretexts and ideas behind them.
Abrahamic religions; Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
These are all monotheistic religions that derive from the same God and general forefathers. Judaism focuses on a bloodline and being righteous while serving God, Christianity focuses on following the testament of Jesus Christ(the son of God), and Islam focuses on following the prophet Muhammad who received a word from God after Jesus. All of these religions proclaim belief in God(though with different names due to language differences), have a general process for worship and prayer, and live in modesty and humility.
Hindu: This religion believes in a personal deity. It is a faith and a way of life and though there are polytheistic elements, they are not exclusive to other religions. The ethical principals that are involved in the religion are explained in the Four Vedas and other lengthy scriptures. They also believe in reincarnation, rather than heaven/hell.
Buddhism: Buddhism also derives from India and Siddhartha Gautama, the founder, began the religion by changing his way of life as a prince, to a beggar to achieve Enlightenment. His teaching began to spread across Asia rapidly. Mahayana Buddhism is popular in Japan, Korea, and China.
Taoism derives from the philosopher Lao Tzu. It focuses on how to exist with the universe and is generally, non-violent. It is commonly practiced in Taiwan and China.
Shinto is a Japanese religion that focuses on 'The Way of the Gods'. It has integrated elements of Buddhism, Taoism, and Chinese Divination practices. The primary part of these Religions is that there are good and bad people in all of them. While my personal choice is Christianity, the way of life and the ethical base are often similar across all of them. To not kill, to be humble/modest, and to be kind to others has taken many people far enough to live righteous in the eyes of others. The battle will likely continue, unfortunately. The best thing to do is to live a righteous life for yourself and your family and do what you can to protect others who may be affected by the unrighteous.
Sources:
[1] Source:https://statisticsanddata.org/data/most-popular-religions-in-the-world-1950-2022/ [2] https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2013/1/3/the-myth-of-the-murderous-muslim [3] https://waitbutwhy.com/2013/08/the-death-toll-comparison-breakdown.html [4] https://rissc.jo/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Body_Count-EN.pdf [5] https://www.scaruffi.com/politics/judaism.html [6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_violence_in_India [7]https://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/SOD.CHAP3.HTM#:~:text=From%20the%20invasion%20of%20China,including%20Western%20prisoners%20of%20war. [8] https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/wjdt_665385/2649_665393/202203/t20220302_10647120.html#:~:text=On%20December%2029%2C%201890%2C%20near,Indian%20resistance%20was%20largely%20suppressed.
