Judaism

Introduction to World Religions and Belief Systems

Presented by: Group 6

 What is Judaism?

• Judaism is the world’s first recorded monotheistic faith. While

most ancient peoples busied themselves with the worship of many
gods, the Jews claimed that
here
there isisonly
onlyone one true
true God whoGod who
created created everyth
everything.
ing
.• It is not a racial group. Individuals may also associate or
identify with Judaism primarily through ethnic or cultural
characteristics.
 Definition of Terms:
• Jews – a member of the people and
cultural community whose traditional
religion is Judaism and who trace their
origins through the ancient Hebrew
people of Israel to Abraham.

• Monotheistic – relating to or
characterized by the belief that there is
only one God.
 Origin of Judaism

Judaism originates nearly 4,000 years ago in the Middle East

with a couple named Abraham and Sarah, whom God
selected to start a new people, the chosen nation.

God commanded them to relocate to a new land (which would

eventually become the Land of Israel) that He would show
them. In exchange for their devotion, God promised Abraham
that they would be blessed with many children and that they
would be a source of blessing for others as well.
 Abraham (Founder of Judaism)
The origins of Jewish faith are explained
throughout the Torah. According to the
text, God first revealed himself to a
Hebrew man named Abraham, who
became known as the founder of
Judaism.

✶ Jews believe that God made a

special covenant with Abraham
and that he and his descendants
were chosen people who would
create a great nation.
 History of
Judaism
Abraham had a son named Isaac. Isaac and his grandson
Jacob, then also became central figures in ancient Jewish
history. Jacob took the name Israel, and his children and
future generations became known as Israelites.

More than 1,000 years after Abraham, the prophet Moses led
the Israelites out of Egypt after being enslaved for hundreds
of years. According to scriptures, God revealed his laws,
known as the Ten Commandments, to Moses at Mt. Sinai.
The Star of
David
A generally recognized
symbol of both Jewish
identity and Judaism. Its
shape is that of a
hexagram: the compound
of two equilateral
triangles.
 Sacred Scriptures of Judaism

The Jewish scriptures are called the Tanakh, after the first
letters of its three parts in the Jewish tradition.

T: Torah - the Teaching of Moses, the first five books

(Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy).

N: Nevi’im - the books of the prophets.

Kh: Ketuvim - for the Writings, which include the psalms

and wisdom literature.
 Beliefs of Judaism
• Judaism focuses on the relationships
between the Creator, mankind, and the
land of Israel.

• Judaism does not have a formal

mandatory beliefs.

• The most accepted summary of Jewish

beliefs is Rambam’s 13 principles of faith.
 Rambam’s 13 Principals of
Faith
1. God exists.

2. God is one and unique.

3. God is incorporeal.

4. God is eternal.

5. Prayer is to be directed to God alone and to no other.

6. The words of the prophets are true.

7. Moses’ prophecies are true, and Moses was the greatest of the prophets.
 13 Principals of Faith
8. The Written Torah (first 5 books of the Bible) and Oral Torah were given to
Moses.

9. There will be no other Torah.

10. God knows the thoughts and deeds of men.

11. God will reward the good and punish the wicked.

12. The Messiah will come.

13. The dead will be resurrected.