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Judaism
Judaism: An Introduction
• One of the oldest
religions
• Christianity and Islam
developed from
Judaism
• First religion to teach
the belief in one God
• Started in Israel
History of Judaism
• Began in the Middle East
3,500 years ago
• Founded by Abraham
and Moses
• Eastern European Jews
immigrated between 1881
and 1924 to the USA
• 6 million Jews were
murdered in the
Holocaust
Timeline
• 1900 BCE – Abraham, the founder of Judaism, rejects polytheism and
begins the tradition of monotheism.
• 1410-1050 BCE- The Jews settle in the land of Israel.
• 1933- The Nazi party takes power in Germany. The Jews are blamed for
the country's misfortunes and are placed in concentration camps.
• 1939-1945 - The Second World War rages. Hitler implemented "The Final
Solution," the extermination of all Jews. In the Nazi concentration camps,
more than six million Jews were tortured, gassed, starved or otherwise
killed. The Nazis conquered most of Europe, destroying 1/3 of the Jewish
population in the world.
• 1948 - The State of Israel is established.
Judaism: What Followers Believe
• One God
• Jewish people are
specially chosen by God
• Worship in Synagogues
• Spiritual leaders are
called Rabbis
• Jewish Holy Book is the
TORAH
Jewish Observances
• Prayers
 3 main daily prayer
services
 Prayers of
thanksgiving, praise,
and prayers to ask for
things
 Tallit (Jewish prayer
shawl is worn)
 Yarmulke is worn on
the heads of Jewish
men
Important Holy Days
• Sabbath: The Holy Day
 Weekly day of rest
 Sundown on Friday night to
sundown on Saturday night
• High Holy Days:
 Rosh Hashanah: Jewish New
Year Festival
 Days of Awe: 10 days
between Rosh Hashanah and
Yom Kippur
 Yom Kippur: most sacred and
solemn day
 Passover
 Other Festivals:
 Hanukkah: Festival of Lights
Special Occasions
• Bar Mitzvah/Bat Mitzvah
Boys age 13, girls age
12
Read from the Torah &
observe
commandments
• Confirmation
High school
Signifies acceptance
of faith
Jewish Dietary Law
• The Bible commands that
Jewish people follow certain
dietary rules
• Food is called Kosher
• Purpose of this food is for
purity, holiness and health
• Do not eat pork or shellfish
• Do not mix meat and milk
Jewish Calendar
• Festivals move from
year to year
• Start each day in the
evening because
God started each day
in the evening when
He created the world
Subdivisions of Judaism
• Humanistic Judaism
• Liberal Judaism
• Orthodox Judaism
• Reform Judaism
• Reconstructionist
Judaism
Judaism Today
• 15 million followers
worldwide, mostly in the
USA and Israel
• 6.5 million followers in the
USA
• Majority of Jewish people
in the USA reside in the
Northeast
• New Jersey has the
second largest Jewish
population after New York
• 6% of New Jersey
residents are Jewish
(504,861 people)