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JUDAISM BASICS
Historical Overview: Somewhat less than 3,000 years old, Judaism is among the world’s oldest surviving religions, and it was one of the first religions to subscribe to monotheism. It is comprised of a complex system of ethical codes and laws that are transcribed in two major texts, the Torah and Talmud. Judaism provides its followers with a way of life that is centered around the synagogue and the home where God, family and community are the focus. Judaism is a religion of many cultural practices, rituals and traditions that have survived despite the persecution of its followers and the absence of a homeland until the 20th century.
Time Line:
??? First humans created
??? God makes a covenant with Abraham
??? Israelites begin to become a nation within Egypt and are enslaved
??? Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt to the promised land
??? Samuel anoints the first King of Israel
960 B.C.E.—Solomon, son of David and Bathsheba, third king of Israel, builds the sacred Temple in Jerusalem
C760 B.C.E.—the Assyrians conquer northern Israel
586 B.C.E.—the Babylonians conquer southern Judea
C520 B.C.E.—the Jews return from exile to Jerusalem & build the second sacred Temple
165 B.C.E.—the Maccabees rule a free Judea independent of Assyrian control
63 B.C.E.—The Romans capture Judea
70 C.E.—During the Jewish revolt, Roman troops destroy the second sacred Temple in Jerusalem. The Romans then deport the Jews from Judea to the far reaches of the Roman Empire.
C200-250 C.E.—The Mishna, the first Rabbinic literature, is written. It is based on the oral traditions of Judaism and explains how to apply the sacred scriptures and the oral traditions to everyday Jewish life.
550-600 C.E.—The Talmud is compiled. It consists of discussions of cases, precedents and interpretations of the Mishna’s understanding of Biblical law and how it is applied to new situations.
18th Century C.E.—Hasidism is founded by the Ba’al or Shem Tov
19th Century C.E.—The Reform branch of Judaism begins
1941-1945 C.E.—The worst years of the Holocaust for European Jews, who are persecuted and systematically murdered by Hitler and his Nazi followers.
1948 C.E.—Israel is established as a modern nation state in Palestine.
Vocabulary:
Abraham: The father of the Jewish people. He is the first to embrace the concept of one god, and it is with Abraham that God makes the first covenant.
Monotheism: the belief in one god, in opposition to polytheism or the belief in more than one god.
Canaan: The original name of the land promised by God to the followers of Moses when they left Egypt in search of a new land upon which to settle.
Mount Sinai: The mountain on which Moses received the completed code of ethics and laws, known as the Ten Commandments.
Torah: The first five books of the Hebrew Bible which presents the Mosaic law and moral codes. Torah comes from the Hebrew for "instruction."
Israelites: The children of Israel and the name God gave to Jacob, the third patriarchal ancestor of the Jews. (Abraham>Isaac>Jacob)
Messiah: The Expected One who will free and elevate the Jewish people to new levels of devotion in practicing God’s law.
Diaspora: The Jews who live outside of Israel in other countries around the world; a phenomenon originating when Jews were sent out of Palestine into exile under Babylonian rule.
Talmud: One of the major texts of Judaism, it contains three million words that instruct on codes of behavior for both religious and secular life.
Rabbi: The respected teacher and leader of worship usually associated with a particular congregation at a specific synagogue
Sabbath: The weekly holiday (sundown Friday to sundown Saturday) reserved for worship and attention to family and community.
Bar Mitzvah & Bat Mitzvah: Respectively mean "son" and "daughter" of the Commandment and are religious rites of passage for thirteen-year-old boys and twelve-year-old girls.
Kosher: Very specific dietary laws regarding food restrictions as well as proper animal slaughter
Zionism: The political and religious movement that gained momentum after the Holocaust as a campaign for Jews to return to Zion, a Jewish homeland, and in 1948 resulted in the state of Israel.