The One Question All Religions Are Trying to Answer
A journey through Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Taoism
Have you ever wondered what’s out there or what other people believe?
I have.
I’ve been a Christian my entire life, but recently I’ve felt myself asking more profound questions—not out of rebellion, but out of curiosity. What do other religions actually say?
What do billions of people believe about God, suffering, purpose, and the afterlife?
So today, I want to look at some of the world’s major religions and compare them to the best of my ability. Not to argue, not to convert, not to tear anything down—but to understand.
Below is a list of major world religions and their approximate populations:
1. Christianity — ~2.3 billion
Largest religion; global presence.
2. Islam — ~1.9 billion
Second largest; rapidly growing.
3. Hinduism — ~1.2 billion
Dominant in India, Nepal, and Bali.
4. Buddhism — ~500 million
Includes Theravada, Mahayana, Zen, and Tibetan traditions.
5. Chinese Folk Religion — ~400 million
Ancestor veneration with Taoist and Confucian elements.
6. Indigenous / Tribal / Folk Religions — ~300 million
African Traditional Religions, Native American beliefs, Aboriginal spirituality, etc.
7. Sikhism — ~25–30 million
Centered in Punjab, with a vibrant global diaspora.
8. Spiritism — ~15–20 million
Popular in Brazil; blends spiritualism, reincarnation, and Christian ethics.
9. Judaism — ~15 million
Small in number, massive in historical and philosophical influence.
10. Baháʼí Faith — ~6–8 million
Emphasizes the unity of all religions; globally spread.
11. Jainism — ~4–5 million
Ancient Indian tradition teaches radical non-violence.
12. Shinto — ~3–4 million (formal), ~80 million cultural
Japan’s indigenous spirituality is often practiced alongside Buddhism.
13. Cao Dai — ~4–6 million
Vietnamese syncretic religion mixes Buddhism, Christianity, Taoism, and Islam.
14. Zoroastrianism — ~100,000–200,000
The ancient Persian faith that influenced Judaism and Christianity.
15. Tenrikyo — ~1–2 million
The Japanese new religion focused on joy and charitable living.
16. Neo-Paganism / Wicca — ~1–3 million
Modern revival of ancient pagan practices.
17. Unitarian Universalism — ~800,000
Liberal spiritual movement emphasizing inclusivity.
18. Rastafarianism — ~1 million
Jamaican-born religion emphasizing liberation, Scripture, and African identity.
19. Scientology — ~150,000–500,000
Modern, controversial new religious movement.
20. Unaffiliated / Secular / Atheist / Agnostic — ~1.9 billion
Not a religion, but a major worldview category.
Where I’m starting
I’m going to begin with Christianity—what it says, what it means, and how it shapes life and identity.
From there, I’ll gradually compare it with Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, and other worldviews.
My goal isn’t to decide who’s “right.”
My goal is to understand the landscape of belief that shapes humanity—and to reflect on what that means for my own faith.
Christianity: What It Says and What It Means
Christianity begins with a story, not a system. A God who creates, a world that fractures, and a love that refuses to walk away. At the heart of Christianity is the belief that God is personal, relational, and good.
Not an idea, not a distant force — but someone who sees, hears, and acts. Humanity, according to Christianity, is created in God’s image yet deeply broken.
This brokenness — what Christians call “sin” — isn’t just bad behavior. It’s a fundamental disconnection that twists the human heart.
Into that fractured story, Christianity claims that God steps in personally through Jesus.
Jesus isn’t just a moral teacher; He is the embodiment of God entering the human condition.
The message of Christianity is that salvation can’t be earned. Humans can’t climb their way back to God through effort or ritual. Instead, God comes down in mercy and lifts them out.
Grace is the radical center:
God does for humanity what humanity cannot do for itself.
The Christian life, then, is not performance. It’s a transformation — a relationship that reshapes the heart over time. And the ultimate Christian hope isn’t simply going to heaven.
It’s resurrection, renewal, and the restoration of all things: a healed world, a healed humanity, and a future redeemed by God.
In short:
Christianity is the story of a God who chases humanity with mercy, heals the internal fracture, and invites people into a life they could never build alone.
Christianity, Judaism, and Islam: A Clear Comparison
All three religions share a common spiritual ancestry — the Abrahamic tradition. But they diverge in how they understand God, revelation, humanity, and salvation.
Their View of God
Judaism emphasizes a single, transcendent, holy God bound to humanity through covenant.
Christianity believes in one God expressed as Father, Son, and Spirit — relational and incarnational.
Islam declares God (Allah) as one, absolute, without partners, merciful, and just.
They all insist on monotheism, all reject idols, and all see God as the moral source of the universe.
The primary difference: Christianity’s claim that Jesus is divine.
Their View of Revelation
Judaism holds that God reveals Himself through the Torah and the prophets.
Christianity teaches that God ultimately reveals Himself through Jesus and Scripture.
Islam teaches that God’s final and perfect revelation is the Qur’an, given through Muhammad.
Each believes God communicates, but they disagree on what the final revelation is.
Their View of the Human Problem
Judaism sees the human struggle as a failure to keep the covenant and enact justice.
Christianity sees the root problem as an inner brokenness — sin — that ruptures the relationship with God.
Islam sees the problem as forgetfulness and straying from God’s guidance.
All agree humans are morally accountable, but they diagnose the core issue differently.
Their Path to Salvation or Peace with God
Judaism emphasizes covenant faithfulness, repentance, and ethical living.
Christianity centers on grace through Jesus — salvation is a gift, not something earned.
Islam emphasizes submission to God’s will through faith, prayer, and righteous actions.
All value righteousness, charity, humility, and obedience — but Christianity stands apart in its claim that salvation is received, not achieved.
Their View of Jesus
Judaism sees Jesus as a teacher, but not the Messiah or divine.
Christianity sees Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God, and God made flesh.
Islam sees Jesus (Isa) as a prophet and miracle worker — highly honored, but not divine.
This is the biggest theological dividing line among the three.
Their View of the Afterlife
Judaism offers varied perspectives and emphasizes life here and now.
Christianity teaches about heaven, Hell, and, ultimately, resurrection and restoration.
Islam teaches paradise, Hell, and a final Day of Judgment.
Buddhism: What It Says and What It Means
Buddhism doesn’t begin with God.
It begins with the human condition — suffering.
The Buddha’s starting point wasn’t sin, covenant, or divine revelation.
It was the observation that life carries suffering, disappointment, frustration, and impermanence.
From that insight grew the Four Noble Truths, the foundation of Buddhist teaching:
Suffering exists.
Suffering has causes — craving, attachment, and ignorance.
Suffering can end.
There is a path that leads to the end of suffering.
This path is the Noble Eightfold Path — a way to transform the mind, cultivate wisdom, practice ethical living, and develop deep mental discipline through meditation.
Where Christianity talks about salvation and Islam talks about submission, Buddhism talks about awakening.
Awakening (enlightenment) means seeing reality clearly — without illusion, ego, or clinging.
When the mind is free from the cravings and attachments that bind it, suffering dissolves.
Buddhism does not have a central God-figure who saves.
Instead, the human being saves themselves by awakening to the true nature of the mind.
At its core:
Buddhism is a path of inner transformation.
A psychological and spiritual method for ending suffering from the inside out.
It’s about understanding the mind so deeply that the chains fall away.
Comparing the Religions on Hell (or the Afterlife)
Now let’s explore how Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and Buddhism view the afterlife — especially concepts of Hell, punishment, or consequences beyond this life.
I’ll lay them out in flowing paragraphs so it reads like part of your essay.
Christianity
Christianity teaches that human beings face an ultimate reckoning — a final separation between those who embrace God’s mercy and those who reject it.
Hell is described as separation from God, the source of life and love. Some traditions emphasize eternal conscious torment; others see Hell as annihilation, the soul ceasing to exist.
Across all traditions, the core idea is this: life with God or life without God.
The emphasis is not on torture but on the consequences of a heart that refuses healing and grace.
Judaism
Judaism’s view of the afterlife is more varied. The Hebrew Scriptures say surprisingly little about Hell. Later Jewish tradition speaks of Gehenna, but not as a place of eternal torture.
Instead, it’s often seen as a purification process — a spiritual cleansing lasting up to twelve months, after which the soul enters peace.
For most of Jewish history, the focus has been on life before death, not life after it.
The moral weight falls on living righteously in the here and now.
Islam
Islam’s view of Hell (Jahannam) is structured and detailed. It’s described as a place of accountability, purification, and, at times, punishment.
For some, it may be temporary; for others — those who knowingly and stubbornly reject God — it may be permanent.
But Islam emphasizes God’s mercy as being greater than His wrath.
Even in the Qur’an, God repeatedly calls Himself “the Most Merciful.”
Islam’s core idea:
Your life echoes into eternity — your actions, faith, and sincerity determine your destination.
Buddhism
Buddhism does not have a “Hell” in the Christian or Islamic sense.
But it does speak of hell realms — states of intense suffering caused by negative karma. These are not eternal and not inflicted by a deity. They are natural consequences, part of the cycle of rebirth.
A being can remain in a hell realm for ages, but eventually they move on.
Hell in Buddhism is psychological and karmic, not a moral judgment from a divine judge.
The deeper teaching is this:
The mind creates Hell — hatred, ignorance, and delusion produce suffering.
The path out of Hell is awakening.
Hinduism: What It Says and What It Means
Hinduism is not a single religion in the way Christianity or Islam is.
It’s a vast, ancient spiritual ecosystem—one of the oldest living traditions on Earth.
At its core is a single insight:
All of reality is one. Everything is connected.
The divine is not separate from the world; it flows through all things.
God can be personal or impersonal, singular or expressed through many forms.
Hindus speak of Brahman, the ultimate reality — a boundless, eternal spiritual essence that underlies everything.
The various gods—Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Devi—are expressions, faces, or aspects of that divine whole.
According to Hinduism, human beings are not primarily sinners or lost or broken.
They are souls (atman) who have forgotten their true nature.
The central human issue is ignorance — mistaking ourselves for our temporary bodies, egos, and roles instead of recognizing the divine spark within.
Because of this, life becomes a cycle of rebirth — samsara — driven by karma, the natural consequences of actions.
The goal of Hindu spirituality is moksha — liberation from this cycle.
Liberation means waking up to the reality that the soul and Brahman are one.
Different paths exist for different kinds of people:
Knowledge (jnana yoga)
Devotion (bhakti yoga)
Action (karma yoga)
Meditation (Raja Yoga)
This is one of Hinduism’s great insights:
People have different temperaments, so God offers different paths.
At its heart, Hinduism teaches that divinity is everywhere, the self is sacred, and liberation is possible through devotion, discipline, or wisdom.
Taoism: What It Says and What It Means
Taoism is not about belief — it’s about alignment.
It begins with the Tao (”the Way”), the natural flow of reality.
The Tao cannot be defined or captured in language.
It is the quiet rhythm beneath everything.
Water is the central metaphor:
soft yet powerful
yielding yet unstoppable
humble yet essential
Taoism teaches that suffering comes from fighting the flow of life — resisting what is naturally unfolding.
The goal is harmony, not salvation.
The way is wu wei — “effortless action.”
This doesn’t mean laziness.
It means not forcing, not pushing, not grasping.
When a person is aligned with the Tao:
Their actions are smooth
Their mind is calm
Their life feels balanced
They move with the grain of reality rather than against it
Taoist ethics arise naturally from this alignment:
Compassion, moderation, humility.
There is no judgmental deity; no final heaven or Hell.
There is simply balance, flow, and the cycle of nature.
Taoism’s deepest teaching is simple yet profound:
The more we let go, the more we become ourselves.
Concluding Synthesis: What All These Worldviews Are Really Saying
The more I explore the great religions of the world, the more I’m struck by something unexpected and straightforward:
Human beings have been asking the same questions since the beginning of time.
Who are we?
Why do we suffer?
What does it mean to live well?
Is there something greater than us?
And what happens when we die?
Every religion — whether it begins with God, karma, the mind, the Tao, covenant, or Christ — responds to the same ache at the heart of the human experience.
Christianity says the fracture is sin.
Judaism says the fracture is disobedience and exile.
Islam says the fracture is forgetfulness of God.
Buddhism says the fracture is craving and ignorance.
Hinduism says the fracture is forgetting our divine nature.
Taoism says the fracture is resisting the natural flow of life.
The languages differ.
The metaphysics differ.
But the human condition?
It’s the same everywhere.
And every religion, in its own way, offers a path toward healing:
Christianity speaks of grace — a God who finds us.
Judaism speaks of covenant — walking with God through history.
Islam speaks of surrender — aligning with the will of the Most Merciful.
Buddhism speaks of awakening — freeing the mind from its illusions.
Hinduism speaks of liberation — the discovery of the divine within.
Taoism speaks of harmony — moving with life instead of against it.
Different doors.
Different languages.
Different cultures.
But all are trying to address the same human story.
What I see now is this:
People across time and continents have been trying to understand the brokenness in the world and the longing for something more — peace, truth, freedom, God, release, salvation, harmony, awakening, transformation.
Some see the answer in surrender.
Some in discipline.
Some are in love.
Some are aware.
Some are in alignment.
Some in devotion.
Some in grace.
No matter what the labels are, the heart is the same:
Every religion is trying to reconcile the tension between who we are and who we could be.
And maybe that’s the real point —
not deciding which door is “right,”
But recognizing that humanity has always been reaching for the same light.
This exploration hasn’t pulled me away from Christianity.
If anything, it’s deepened my appreciation for it.
Because when I look across all these worldviews, I see the same truth in different words:
We are broken.
We are searching.
And we are loved — by God, by the universe, or by the mystery that beats under everything.
Understanding other worldviews doesn’t weaken my faith.
It expands my sight.
It shows me that God has been whispering in human history long before I was born and far beyond the borders of any single tradition.
And the real miracle isn’t that humanity has so many religions.
The miracle is that, despite all our differences, we’ve all been trying to heal the same wound.