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World Religions
Judaism
Judaism Video
Countries with Largest Jewish Populations
World Population
14 m
Countries with large Jewish Populations
Rank
Country
Jews
% of World Jewish
Population
1
Israel
5,313,800
40.6%
2
United States
5,275,000
40.3%
3
France
491,500
3.8%
4
Canada
373,500
2.9%
5
United Kingdom
297,000
2.3%
6
Russia
228,000
1.7%
7
Argentina
184,500
1.4%
8
Germany
118,000
0.9%
9
Australia
103,000
0.8%
10
Brazil
96,500
0.7%
11
Ukraine
80,000
0.6%
12
South Africa
72,000
0.6%
13
Hungary
49,700
0.4%
14
Mexico
39,800
0.3%
15
Belgium
31,200
0.2%
Origins
• around 3500 years old
• the oldest of the world's great monotheistic
religions (religions with only one god)
• developed in the Middle East in and around
the area that is currently Israel
• its fundamental teachings are the basis for
Christianity and Islam
•
Jews & Jesus
• Judaism predates Christianity – it is the
foundation of Christianity but is not a part
of it
• Jesus was Jewish, as were his followers and
the Apostles
• Jews do not believe that Jesus was anything
more than a good and wise man who lived and
died 2000 years ago – Jews still await their
messiah
• The Jewish messiah would not be divine. He
would be a political figure who restores the
Hebrew monarchy and causes peace to reign
on Earth
• Jews are not concerned about salvation and
the “world to come”
founder
• Abraham is generally recognized as the
founder of Judaism due to his covenant with
God.
• Moses is also considered a founder due to
his role in the liberation of the Hebrews from
Egypt, and his delivery of the Ten
Commandments from Mount Sinai sometime
around 2000 BC
2000 B.C.
Abraham:
Father of Jewish
people
1300 B.C.
1200 B.C.
1020-922 B.C.
Moses:
Led Hebrews
out of slavery
Deborah:
A prominent
judge
Saul, David, Solomon:
Kings under whom
Hebrews united
Origins of Judaism
Timeline
Abraham’s family tree
Early
History
• 2000 BC
– Abraham migrates from Mesopotamia to Canaan
where he founds the Israelite nation
– Famine forces Israelites to migrate to Egypt
where they are enslaved
– Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt
• 1000 BC
– Israelites enter Canaan, the promised land
– Solomon builds capital at Jerusalem, but his rule
inspires revolts
• 922 BC - Kingdom weakens after splitting into
Israel & Judah
• 722 BC - Assyrians conquer Israel
• 586 BC
-
Babylonians capture Judah – Babylonian
captivity
Persians conquer Babylon and free the Jews from
captivity
Sacred Texts
• Torah - (the first five books of the
Hebrew Bible) which was revealed by God
to Moses on Mount Sinai over 3,000 years
ago – written
• Talmud – commentary on the Torah –
oral tradition
• give the Jewish people ethical
rules for everyday life. Observing
these rules is central to the
Jewish religion.
Major Beliefs
• teaches that there is one God who is the
creator of all things
• Believe every Jew can have an individual and
personal relationship with God
• believe that God appointed the Jews to be
his chosen people in order to set an example
of holiness and ethical behavior to the world.
• believe that God continues to work in the
world, affecting everything that people do.
• After Hebrew exodus from Egypt (remember
Prince of Egypt?), many began to lose their
faith in God. Moses went atop Mount Sinai
and returned with laws that all Hebrews
needed to follow: 10 Commandments
Ten Commandments
1.
2.
3.
You shall have no other gods before Me.
You shall not make yourself any graven image
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in
vain
4. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.
5. Honor your father and mother
6. You shall not commit murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not witness falsely against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's house or
anything that is your neighbor's
Everyday Practices
• The heart of Judaism is in the home
and family, social responsibility and
doing Mitzvot (“good deeds” based on
God’s commandments)
• Observation of the weekly Sabbath
as a day of rest, starting at sundown
on Friday evening
• Strict discipline, according to the
Law, which governs all areas of life
• Regular attendance by Jewish males
at Synagogue
• Celebration of the annual festivals
Jewish Festivals
• Passover: recalls Jews' deliverance out of
slavery in Egypt circa 1300 BCE
• Rosh Hashanah - the Jewish New
Year, and anniversary of the completion of
creation, about 5760 years ago
• Yom Kippur - the Day of Atonement,
10 days after RH. A day to reflect on the
past year and ask God's forgiveness for any
sins. Most important and solemn of Jewish
holidays
• Hannakuh – festival of lights
Jewish Clothing
Kippah (skull cap) - to remind him that he is
always duty bound to follow the laws of God at
all times and in all places.
Tallit (prayer shawl) Before beginning to worship
or pray the devout Jew will often put on a tallit.
The fringes on the shawl remind him of the
many commandments of the Torah
Tefilin (small leather box with long leather straps)
The boxes are worn on the left forearm and on the
forehead. Inside the boxes are passages from the
scriptures. A tefilin on the left arm is a reminder to
keep God's laws with all your heart, because it is
near to the heart. A tefilin on the forehead remind
the Jew to concentrate on the teachings of the
Torah with all your full mind.
Tefilins are worn when praying at home or in the
synagogue.
Place & Language of worship
• Jews worship in temples called
synagogues
• The sacred language of Judaism is
Hebrew. Hebrew would be used the
most in an Orthodox service, while it
would be used the least in Reform one
Spiritual leader
• Rabbi
Religious Divisions
• Orthodox Judaism: Oldest and most
conservative. View their religion as close to
its original forms as possible. Looks upon
every word of their sacred texts as being
divinely inspired.
• Reform Judaism: A liberal group, the largest
of all the divisions (about 70%), Follow the
ethical laws of Judaism, but leave it up to the
individual the decision whether to follow or
ignore the dietary and other traditional laws.
• Conservative Judaism: a main-line movement
midway between Reform and Orthodox.