World Religions

The meaning of religious belief varies in different places, among different people. In general, religion refers to a set of tenets and practices regarding what is sacred or spiritual—tenets and practices held in common by a group. Religion usually encompasses beliefs about the origin and meaning of the world and of human life as well as guidelines for moral behavior.

Nearly 86 percent of people worldwide profess adherence to some religious belief, according to the World Christian Database.

This website provides estimates of believing and non-believing constituencies of the world's religions.

Written by the world's leading authorities on religion and spirituality, the Patheos Library offers the most accurate and balanced information available on the web. Fifty major religious traditions are listed. For each, Patheos offers thorough, peer-reviewed, encyclopedic information that helps readers understand its origins, history, beliefs, rituals, ethics, and community structures.
While good information is provided on this site, be aware that this is a commercial site.

There are twelve classical world religions—those religions most often included in history of world religion surveys and studied in world religions classes: Baha'i, Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Shinto, Sikhism, Taoism, and Zoroastrianism. Here are overviews of nine of these classical religions.

Religion can be explained as a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.

This website includes a map of the distribution of world religions and a demographic piechart of that distribution.

This site lists countries of the world and gives a percentage breakdown of each religion within that country.