You work alongside many faiths
And want to understand colleagues without awkward guesses.
Courses
Start with three things you can do today
Major world religions explained
Understand what the major religions teach and how people live them.
A respectful introduction to major religious traditions, including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism and Sikhism. It covers core beliefs, practices, texts and festivals, the variety within each tradition, and how to ask about faith without stereotyping.
Type this when Cadence asks what you want to learn
I want to understand the world's major religions, what people actually believe and practise, and how they differ. I live and work alongside people of many faiths and I do not want to rely on stereotypes or say something ignorant.
Change any word so it fits your situation. The course is built from what you type and a few setup questions.
Start today
Four things you can do before the course exists.
Useful on their own. The course is for when you want the whole skill, not just the first move.
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Learn the rough sizes
Pew Research Center estimates that in 2020 about 28.8% of the world's population was Christian, 25.6% Muslim, 24.2% religiously unaffiliated, 14.9% Hindu and 4.1% Buddhist, with Jews about 0.2%. Size says nothing about importance, but it corrects common guesses.
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Compare traditions with the same five questions
For any tradition, ask: what do followers believe about the divine or ultimate reality, what do they practise, which texts matter, how is community organised, and what are the main branches? Filling the same grid for two faiths shows real differences and overlaps.
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Separate texts from lived practice
What a scripture says and what a particular community does can differ, and practice varies by country and family. When you read 'Hindus believe' or 'Christians do', ask which branch, where, and according to whom.
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Ask about a person's practice, not their whole religion
Instead of 'What does Islam say about this?', try 'Is there anything about how you observe Ramadan that would help me when planning team lunches?' It asks about their own practice and lets them share only what they want.
Sources: Pew Research Center: the global religious landscape, 2010 to 2020. Practical examples are starting points, not promised results.
- Best for
- History & culture
- Prerequisites
- None. Bring the situation you have.
- Course length
- 7 to 30 lessons, sized to your goal
- Lesson pace
- About 10 minutes a day
- Format
- Read it, or play the audio
- Access
- Available on the App Store, with early features and Android testing access
Before the course is built
Setup asks about your situation first.
Lesson 1 opens on the moment you describe, and the examples use your role. For this request, expect questions like these.
- Which traditions are you most curious about, and why?
- Do you have a faith background of your own, or none?
- Is this for work, friendships, travel, or general understanding?
Right for now
If any of this sounds familiar, start here.
You were never taught this
Religious education at school was thin or one-sided.
The news uses religion as shorthand
You want to know what the labels actually mean.
Course arc
Where the course goes, in order.
Cadence writes the lessons for you, so the exact path follows your answers. This is the ground a course built from this sentence covers.
01 / 06How to compare religions
Beliefs, practices, texts, community and experience as lenses.
Abrahamic traditions
Judaism, Christianity and Islam, their shared roots and their differences.
Traditions from South Asia
Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism, and how they relate.
Traditions from East Asia
Confucian, Daoist and Shinto traditions and how they often blend in practice.
Variety within each faith
Branches, local customs and individual belief.
Faith in daily life
Festivals, food, prayer and how to be a considerate colleague or neighbour.
What changes
What you will be able to do, and what you will stop believing.
You will be able to
Describe each tradition fairly
Summarise core beliefs and practices in terms followers would recognise.
See the variety within
Know that each faith has branches and people who practise it differently.
Ask respectfully
Talk about faith with curiosity rather than assumption.
Ideas this course corrects
Every follower of a religion believes the same things
Each major religion has many branches and a wide range of individual belief and practice. Ask rather than assume.
Most people in the world are not religious
Pew Research Center estimates that about three quarters of the world's people identified with a religion in 2020, though the unaffiliated share is large in some countries.
Course questions
What to know before you start.
Major world religions explained: what can I do today?
Learn the rough sizes. Pew Research Center estimates that in 2020 about 28.8% of the world's population was Christian, 25.6% Muslim, 24.2% religiously unaffiliated, 14.9% Hindu and 4.1% Buddhist, with Jews about 0.2%. Size says nothing about importance, but it corrects common guesses. Compare traditions with the same five questions. For any tradition, ask: what do followers believe about the divine or ultimate reality, what do they practise, which texts matter, how is community organised, and what are the main branches? Filling the same grid for two faiths shows real differences and overlaps. Separate texts from lived practice. What a scripture says and what a particular community does can differ, and practice varies by country and family. When you read 'Hindus believe' or 'Christians do', ask which branch, where, and according to whom. Ask about a person's practice, not their whole religion. Instead of 'What does Islam say about this?', try 'Is there anything about how you observe Ramadan that would help me when planning team lunches?' It asks about their own practice and lets them share only what they want.
Is this a fixed course?
No. Cadence builds the course when you type the sentence and answer a few setup questions, so the lessons follow your situation. This page describes what a course built from this request covers. You see the whole path before Lesson 1.
Who is this course for?
A respectful introduction to major religious traditions, including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism and Sikhism. It covers core beliefs, practices, texts and festivals, the variety within each tradition, and how to ask about faith without stereotyping. It sits under History & culture in the Ideas & discovery part of the library.
Do I need any prior experience?
No. Setup asks what you already know and where you want to use it, and the course starts from there. Bring a real situation if you have one; the examples are built around it.
How long does it take?
Courses run 7 to 30 lessons of about 10 minutes, sized to what you asked for. One lesson a day is the intended pace, and you can go faster. Lessons can be read or played as audio.
Does this course award a certificate or degree?
No. Cadence is for practical self-learning and does not award accredited degrees or professional certification.
Start today
Type it, answer a few questions, open Lesson 1.
The sentence to type
I want to understand the world's major religions, what people actually believe and practise, and how they differ. I live and work alongside people of many faiths and I do not want to rely on stereotypes or say something ignorant.