Religions thrive on myths and rituals.

They are the basis for their followers beliefs and

actions. While all religions scriptures differ, they all share common myths and rituals. Judaism,
the first monotheistic religion, contains elements in Christianity and Islam. These three
monotheistic religions have myths and rituals that are intertwined.
Myths are traditional, sacred stories that explain the history of a group of people or a
natural phenomenon, belief, or practice. A ritual is the re-enactment of the myth performed in a
prescribed order. Two types of rituals in religion exist: a weak and strong sense. Any set of
social human behavior or scripted acts that serve to accomplish a goal are considered a weak
sense of ritual. Basketball games, high-fives, baby-namings, flag raisings, graduation
ceremonies, and oaths are all examples of weak rituals (Kripal 4.12). Strong rituals require a
sacred component that transcends the social world and is somehow set apart or special (Kripal
4.14).An important idiosyncrasy between myths and rituals must be made. They are reflexive in
nature. There cannot be ritual without myth and myth without ritual. They both explain and
reinforce the other.
No religion can survive without myths and rituals. For example, in Judaism one major
myth is the Israelites exodus from Egypt. The Jewish people would not be alive if not for this
liberation. The story begins with the Jews enslavement by the Egyptians for 200 years. The ten
plagues: blood, frogs, lice, wild animals, livestock death, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and death
of the first born, is a myth. So too is the explanation of why Moses did not perform the first three
plagues, but his brother, Aaron did. He wanted to appreciate that what helped him in his past.
The first plague, blood, was initiated by striking the Nile River with a staff. However, these
waters saved Moses when he floated in a basket down the Nile River and Pharaohs daughter,

Bithiah, saved him. The second and third plagues, both initiated by striking the ground were both
holy to Moses. He therefore delegated these plagues to Aaron.
Another myth in Judaism is the splitting of the Red Sea after fleeing Egypt. According to
the Torah, Moses casted out his hand and the sea split. The Midrash, a collection of
commentaries on the Torah, says that all the waters of the world split, signifying G-ds greatness.
These myths resulted in several rituals, which together, form the Jewish celebration of Passover.
The foundation of Passover is a Seder meal, in which Jews remember their tumultuous
beginnings and extraordinary exodus from Egypt, as if they themselves were there. Rituals
during the Seder include drinking four cups of wine, eating matzah, and reciting verses of Torah
describing the exodus from Egypt. These acts are symbolic of the Jewish peoples rise from
slaves to free people. Even if a Jew does not believe in this miraculous story, these rituals form
a special community and a sense of solidarity over the generations (Kripal 4.15). At the very
least, the myths and rituals in Judaism promote a pride in ones history.
This Passover ritual ties into early Christianity. In the New Testament, it describes a
narrative of Jesus traveling to Jerusalem for Passover. Enraged by the practice of charging
people for a Passover sacrifice, Jesus flips the money changers tables, starting a ruckus
throughout Jerusalem. Not only does this episode cause the Roman government, especially
Pontius Pilate to lose tax money, but it also endangers his power. This may have been the reason
for Jesus death. Jesus death occurs after his last supper, his Seder meal. This account
transformed into the basis of Christianity, the death and resurrection of Jesus. Myth and ritual
mirror and reinforce each other, ultimately creating a new religion and tradition (Kripal 4.15).

In Islam, the exodus from Egypt is recounted virtually the same as does Judaism.
Although it is described in less detail than the in Torah, it is still recognized by Muslims as true.
However, the main difference is that Islam focuses more on the Jewish people breaking their
covenant with G-d. In the Quran it says, Those who took the calf (for worship) will indeed be
overwhelmed with wrath from their Lord and with shame in this life: thus do We recompense
those who invent (falsehoods) (Quran 7:152). Muslims focus more on the Israelites sin of the
golden calf than they do of the exodus. The exodus story is not really a central story in Islam.
The breaking of the covenant of the Jewish people is much more so because it permits for
another covenant, one between G-d, Muhammad, and Muslims.
All three monotheistic religions share a common myth: creation. That is, how the world
and humans came to be. Each of these religions believes that G-d created the world in six days
and on the seventh, He rested. They also believe that the word day is an arbitrary term used to
describe a period of time. Each of these days may have lasted millions of years. Lastly, they
believe that Adam and Eve were the first humans on earth. These basic beliefs are some of the
few common myths that all three monotheistic religions share.
Although many myths and rituals in Judaism result from the Torah, many others result
from the oral tradition. These traditions have been described by many ancient commentators,
including Rashi, Rambam, Ramban, Rashbam, and Ibn Ezra in the Talmud, Midrash, and other
Jewish texts. By interpreting the Torah, these commentators gave Judaism a structural, consistent
basis for its believers.
Religion needs myths and rituals and myths and rituals need religion. They each cannot
stand alone. Judaism, its beliefs, practices, and all, in my opinion, is the foundation for other

religions. Each monotheistic religions stems from at least one element of Judaism. At the very
least, the rejection of Judaism allowed for the creation of other religions. Because of this, all
three of these religions share similar beliefs.