The Maya were one of the most sophisticated cultures in the Western Hemisphere before the arrival of the Spanish. They are a native Mesoamerican people. Their religion mainly worshiped nature gods, such as the sun god, the rain god, and the corn god. They were also well known for their importance in astronomy and astrology, as well as ritual human sacrifice. The Mayans were also very famous for building pyramids and temples. The Mayan religion was founded in c. 250 AD and located in Mesoamerica, namely southern Mexico, Guatemala and Belize (Maya 1). They also liked to be near or around tropical lowlands like Guatemala. The Maya did very well in agriculture, pottery, hieroglyphic writing, calendar making, and mathematics. Most of the cities where the Maya lived were made of stone and were abandoned around 900 AD (Maya 1). Today, most people living in the Western Hemisphere can trace their heritage to the Maya (Jarus 1). The earliest accounts of the Maya date back to 1800 BC. They were very agricultural and grew all different types of crops, such as corn, beans, and squash. This time period has been identified as the Preclassic period. The Preclassic Maya displayed great skills in building pyramids, building cities, and inscribing stone monuments (Maya 2-3). Sometime after 900 AD, their culture declined and their cities were abandoned. The cities were thought to have been depopulated and the remainder of the Maya were captured by the Spanish and converted to the Roman Catholic Church. Today's religious practice in the same area is still mostly Roman Catholic, but some people still maintain some Mayan rituals, such as cosmology, deities, and household rituals (Maya 2). The center...... middle of paper ......Mayan culture and Catholics have oral and written traditions. The Mayans have the Popol Vuh, which is similar to the Holy Bible in the Catholic tradition. Both religions had several types of similar ceremonies including fasting, burning of incense, and penance by bloodletting. Both religions also believe in some sort of afterlife. The Catholic Bible, in several accounts, reflects the Popol Vuh. There are also other parallel readings within both books. A big difference between the two religions is that the Mayan religion is polytheistic and the Catholic religion is monotheistic. The Mayans worshiped many different gods while the Catholics worship one God in 3 persons. The Mayans were also despised because they were not Christians (Ballou 1-4). Today there is no dialogue or opportunity for common ground because the Mayan civilization no longer exists.