CHAPTER TWO: ABRAHAMIC RELIGIONS 4.

Kings (Melakhim)
12 Minor Prophets
LESSON 4: JUDAISM 1. Hosea 5. Jonah 9. Zephaniah
2. Joel 6. Micah 10. Haggai
JEWS 3. Amos 7. Nahum 11. Zechariah
The followers of Judaism are called Jews, “Yehudi”. “Judaism” and “Jew” 4. Obadiah 8. Habakkuk 12. Malachi
were derived from the word Judah, name of the fourth of the 12 sons of Jacob
3. Ketuvim (The Writings)
(Israel). Jews are also called Hebrews and Israelites. Abraham was called Hebrew.
Contains works on poetry, temple ritual, private prayer, philosophical explorations, and
Jacob was called Israel. Jews consider themselves as the people chosen by God other canonical works.
to serve as an exemplar of devotion and purity to humankind. Majority of the Jews 1. Psalms (Tehilim) 7. Ecclesiastes (Koheles)
reside in Israel and the United States. Jews does not necessarily refer to followers 2. Proverbs (Mishlei) 8. Esther (Ester)
or converts of Judaism a Jew either by ancestry or by religious affiliation or 3. Job (Iyov) 9. Daniel (Doniel)
conversion. 4. Song of Songs (Shir Hashirim) 10. Ezra-Nehemiah (Ezra-Nehemyah)
5. Ruth (Rus) 11. Chronicles (Divrei Hayamim)
1. SACRED SCRIPTURES 6. Lamentations (Eicha)
• Primary Source
The
• Hebrew Scriptures 2. BELIEFS AND DOCTRINES
3 GROUPS OF THE HEBREW BIBLE Tanakh • “Written Torah”
1. Torah (The Teachings) • Supplementary source THE JEWISH THIRTEEN PRINCIPLES OF FAITH
Talmud 1. God exists.
Written • “Oral Torah” which means “study”
• Consists of 613 rules (mitzvot in Hebrew), which include the ten commandments written 2. God is one and unique.
on two stone tablets. 3. God is incorporeal.
4. God is eternal.
Oral 5. Prayer is to be directed to God alone and to no other.
• Moses transmitted to Aaron, his brother, who in turn transmitted to his sons and others
6. The words of the prophets are true.
• Supplements the Written Torah,
7. Moses’ prophecies are true, and Moses was the greatest of the prophets.
• Was originally intended to remain as an “oral tradition” and to be passed on from parent
8. The Written Torah and the Oral Torah were given to Moses.
to child throughout the generations.
9. There will be no other Torah.
• It was only later (fourth century BCE, after the destruction of the second temple of
10. God knows the thoughts and deeds of men.
Jerusalem) that the Oral Torah was written to ensure its preservation during the times
11. God will reward the good and punish the wicked.
of war.
12. The Messiah will come.
“Five Books of Moises” or Pentateuch 13. The dead will be resurrected.
1. Genesis (Bereshit) THE TEN COMMANDMENTS (EXODUS 20: 2-17)
2. Exodus (Shemot) 1. I am the Lord your God. There is only one God, The Lord.
3. Leviticus (Vayikra) 2. You will have no other gods, neither in belief nor through an act of
4. Numbers (Bemidbar) worship.
5. Deutoronomy (Devarim) 3. You shall not pronounce the Holy Name of G-d needlessly.
2. Nevi’im (The Prophets) 4. Remember the Sabbath day to sanctify it, by ceasing productive labor and
Each book is named after its respective prophet. dedicating it to spiritual rest.
5. Honor your father and mother.
Former Prophets Latter Prophets 6. Do not murder.
1. Joshua (Yehoshua) 1. Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 7. Do not commit any act of adultery.
2. Judges (Shofetim) 2. Jeremiah (Yirmiyahu) 8. Do not steal.
3. Samuel (Shemuel) 3. Ezekiel (Yehezkel) 9. Do not testify as a false witness against your neighbor.
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10. Do not covet your neighbor’s possessions. community and family celebrations. Jewish holidays are special days observed to
MOSES MAIMONIDES commemorate key events in Jewish history and other events that depict the special
- itemized the 613 Mitzvot as consisting of 248 positive rules and 365 connections with the world, such as creation, revelation, and redemption.
negative rules. THE SABBATH DAY (SHABBAT)
(1) God, (19) injuries and damages, • The most important day in the Jewish calendar
(2) Torah, (20) property and property rights, • The Sabbath occurs every sunset on Friday until sunset on Saturday.
(3) signs and symbols, (21) criminal laws, • Strictly no work is to be done on Sabbath for it is the most sacred day of the week for
(4) prayer and blessings, (22) punishment and restitution, the Jews, dedicated solely to prayer and rest from the usual everyday activities.
(5) love and brotherhood, (23) prophecy, • The observation of Sabbath honors the day when God, after seeing that all that He
created was good, rested on the seventh day, and most importantly, God’s
(6) the poor and unfortunate, (24) idolatry, idolaters, and idolatrous practices,
commandment to keep the Sabbath day
(7) treatment of Gentiles, (25) agriculture and animal husbandry,
(8) marriage, divorce, and family, (26) clothing, DAYS OF AWE / 10 DAYS OF REPENTANCE
(9) forbidden sexual relations, (27) The Firstborn, Tishri - is the seventh month in the ecclesiastical year of the Jewish calendar.
(10) times and seasons, (28) Kohanim and Levites,  “Days of Awe” (Yamim Noraim) - The first ten days of Tishri
(11) dietary laws, (29) T’rumah, Tithes, and taxes,  New Year (Rosh Hashanah) - the first two days
(12) business practices, (30) the temple, the sanctuary, and sacred objects,
 The Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) - the tenth day
(13) employees, (31) sacrifices and oferings,
(14) servants and slaves, (32) ritual purity and impurity, Ten Days of Repentance
(15) vows, (33) lepers and leprosy, The ten days in between the Rosh Hashanah and the Yom Kippur
(16) oaths and swearing, (34) the king,
(17) the Sabbatical and Jubilee years, (35) Nazarites, and
Rosh Hashanah - marks the start of the ten-day period of penitence leading to the Yom
Kippur and is distinguished from other days by blowing a ram’s horn trumpet (shofar) in
(18) the court and judicial procedure, (36) wars.
the synagogue and eating apples dipped in honey which is symbolic for a sweet new year.
BELIEFS Using the shofar, a total of one hundred notes are sounded each day. All Jews must
Monotheism The Afterlife The Messianic Age undergo self-reflection and make amends for all the sins they have committed. Rosh
Hashanah is also a day of judgement wherein God assesses one’s deeds and decides what
• The Jews refer • Olam Ha-Ba (The World to Come) or • the coming of the Messiah
lies ahead of him or her in the following year. These deeds are recorded in the “Book of
to God as messianic age and the resurrection of
Life” and sealed on Yom Kippur. Work is not permitted during the Rosh Hashanahand Yom
Yahweh or • Jews have no precise doctrines the righteous dead
Kippur.
YHVH. indicating the specific nature of the • Mashiach = “the anointed
• “Ehyeh asher afterlife. one,” Will deliver the Jews Yom Kippur - is the most sacred and solemn day in the Jewish calendar that brings the
Ehyer” (I am • There is a specified time for the all over the world from period of repentance to its conclusion. The eve of the day is called Kol Nidrei (“all vows”)
who I am.) punishment after which the soul is oppression, establish which are the opening words of a prayer. The words and music of the Kol Nidrei are said to
either completely destroyed or goes to peace on earth, create a be the most powerful single item in the Jewish liturgy. A day of fasting and praying for
a state of remorse world government based absolution of one’s sins, it provides every Jew an opportunity for both personal and
• Jewish emphasis and focus on how to in Israel, and rebuild the communal repentance. One must also refrain from eating and drinking, even water.
live life in the here and now according Temple of Jerusalem, Additional restrictions include washing and bathing, using perfumes, wearing leather
to the laws of God, and not on how to among others. shoes, and engaging in sexual relations. Symbolizing purity, it is customary for the Jews to
get into heaven. wear white during the holiday. An entire day must be spent in the synagogue while reciting
prayers. Another blowing of the ram’s horn ends the final prayer service.
3. WORSHIPS AND OBSERVANCES
The Jewish community utilizes a lunar calendar with twelve months, each 3 PILGRIM FESTIVALS
beginning at the new moon of 29 or 30 days. Every festival and Sabbath commences 1. Pesah (Passover)
and terminates at dusk (or sunset) rather than midnight in adherence to the biblical - is an eight-day festival that originally marked the beginning of the barley harvest. Its
pattern. The Jewish calendar is followed in observance of festivities, holidays, and principal purpose is to commemorate and recreate the Exodus of the Jews from Egypt. A

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festive meal (seder) is celebrated wherein the story of Exodus is narrated by the heads of
the family to the children.
2. Shavu’ot (Pentecost)
- is a two-day festival that was originally a celebration of the wheat harvest. Presently,
it is now being held to commemorate the revelation of the Torah to Moses at Mount Sinai.
3. Sukkot (Booths)
- is a nine-day festival commemorating the autumn harvest and the forty years of the
Israelites’ stay in the desert wilderness subsisting solely on the bounty of God. Temporary
booths or structures (sukkah) are built in homes with a roof through which one can see
the stars in the sky. This is an attempt to recreate Israelite life in the desert.
HALAKHA
Because Judaism is also a comprehensive way of life, Jewish people follow a set of
rules and practices that govern their everyday living. Collectively called halakha which
translates as “the path that one walks,” these are Jewish religious laws derived from the
“Written Torah” and “Oral Torah” including the 613 mitzvot. Jewish laws contain directions
on how to revere God and treat other people and animals. Halakha instructs Jews what to
do as they wake up in the morning, what foods to eat, what clothes to wear, who to marry,
and how to observe Sabbath and holy days. When properly observed, halakha increases
one’s spirituality as even mundane acts become essential to his or her existence.
SYNAGOGUES
Synagogues are Jewish temples of worship, instruction, and community fellowship that
contain separate rooms designed for specific activities, such as praying and studying. In
Orthodox Judaism, men and women sit separately at the synagogues; in Reform Judaism,
they sit altogether in temples.
Similar to a Christian church, synagogues have seats facing an elevated platform with
one or two lecterns or chair. The central feature at the platform (bimah or tebah) and the
holiest spot inside a synagogue is the ark where the Torah scrolls are kept. Reminiscent of
the original Ark of the Covenant, an ark inside a temple is normally placed in a manner
that when people face the ark, they are facing in the direction of Jerusalem. An ornate
curtain (parochet) veils the ark while a lamp or lantern (ner tamid) burns before it
symbolizing the constantly lit six-branched lampstand (menorah) in the Temple of
Jerusalem.
While a Jewish layman may lead a prayer service during Sabbath if there are 10 adult
males present (minyan), the religious leader is oftentimes a trained rabbi. He delivers
sermon and interprets the Torah. The rabbi serves as a pastor, administrator, and
counselor.
OTHER IMPORTANT DAYS
Jewish Months and Festivals
Nisan (March or April)
14 – Passover Eve Kislev (November or December)
15-21 Passover 25 – Hanukkah begins up to the second of
Iyyar (April or May) Tebet (December or January)
5 – Israel’s Independence Day
Sivan (May or June) Adar (February or March)
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6, 7 – Shavuot 14 – Purim
Tishri (September or October)
1 – Rosh Hashanah
10 – Yom Kippur
15 – Sukkot
21 – Hashanah Rabbah
22 – Shemini Atzeret
23 – Simchat Torah
4. SUBDIVISIONS
Within Judaism are three present-day movements that emerged in response to the
modern and secular culture of Europe and America. These are Reform, Orthodox, and
Conservative Judaism. Two other smaller sects, namely Hasidism and Kabbalah, are
mystical approaches to the Jewish religion that emphasize spiritual experiences over
rational knowledge.
Orthodox Judaism
- is the most traditional of modern Judaism that adheres to the authority of the entire
Torah as given to Moses by God at Mount Sinai. The Torah is the sole authority that must
be strictly followed until the present time. As it considers itself the sole and genuine heir to
the Jewish tradition, it rejects all other Jewish movements as undesirable deviations from
the original Jewish religion.
Reform Judaism
- (Liberal or Progressive Judaism) is considered the most liberal expression of Judaism
that subjects religious laws and customs to human judgment. To a certain extent, it
developed due to internal changes in Judaism as well as other factors operating within
society. Members of this denomination sought to adhere to the original teachings of
Judaism while allowing some changes in their traditions. For example, services were
permitted to be conducted in mixed Hebrew and English, no longer conducted solely in the
Hebrew language. Moreover, women were also accorded equality in terms of sitting together
with men in synagogues and allowing them to become rabbis unlike in other
denominations.
Conservative Judaism
- seeks to conserve the traditional elements of Judaism while at the same time allowing
for modernization that is less radical than Reform Judaism. The application of new
historical methods of study in the light of contemporary knowledge but within the limits of
Jewish law may be applied to safeguard Jewish traditions. Gradual change in law and
practice is allowed only if such occurrence is in harmony with Jewish traditions. Because
Conservative Judaism falls halfway between the two other major Jewish denominations, it
is sometimes described as traditional Judaism without fundamentalism.
Hasidism or Hasidic Judaism
- emerged in Germany during the twelfth century. It was largely a spiritual movement
that gives prime importance to asceticism and experience as a result of love and humility
before God. During the eighteenth century, a modern Hasidic movement was started in
Poland by Baal Shem Toy (“Master of the Good Name”) as a reaction to the excessive
legalistic nature of Judaism during that time.
Kabbalah
- is another mystical form of Judaism that attempts to penetrate deeper into God’s
essence itself. While Kabbalists believe that God moves in mysterious ways, they also hold
that genuine knowledge and understanding of that inner process is achievable. In the end,
the most fulfilling relationship with God can be accomplished.

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