Judaism-+Group+1

=Period 4= =http://www.sacred-destinations.com/israel/jerusalem-jewish-sites.htm= http://www.zionism-israel.com/his/Jerusalem_history.htm

= **RESEARCH GUIDE: JUDAISM** = **1. What are the religion's followers called? Jewish or Jews **

a. The Tenakh- It is made up of the Christian Old Testimentin a slightly different order. there are 39 books in all: 5 books of the Torah, 23 books of the prophets, and 13 books of writings. Other names for the Tenakh are the Jewish Bible or the Hebrew Scriptures.
 * 2. Religious Text:** (What is it made up of? Give a short explanation.)

b. The Torah- The first 5 books of the Tenakh. Also known as the 5 books of Moses or the Pentateuch. The books are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy ("second law"). The Hebrew names for the books do not reflect the subject, but are the first major word in each book. The are Bereisheer ("In the beginning"), Sh'mot (" Names"), Vayikra ("And he called"), BaMidbar ("in the wilderness"), and D'varim ("Words"). The Torah is the most important part of the Tenakh because it details the 10 commandments. The Torah contains: Creation of the world, God's special call to Abraham, the giving of the 10 commandments Moses, God's rescue of Israel from slavery in Egypt, wandering in the wilderness, the conquering of Canaan, the promised land. The Torah Scroll is the most important object in the Synagogue. The text is hand written in Hebrew on parchment made of animal skin, and the scroll is is kept in an ark (aron kodesh "holy cabinet").

c. The Nevi'im- translates to "Prophets". 21 books of narrative and prophecy.

The Ketuvi’im- translates to "Writings". 13 books include wisdom, literature, prophecy, and story.

a. Yom Kippur- 10 days after Rosh Hashanah and means "Day of Atonement." It is one of the most holy days and is the day when Jews confess their sins and reconcile with God. They fast for 25 hours and it is important to go to the synagogue.
 * 3. Special Days:** (What are they celebrating? Are there any special activities?)

b. Rosh Hashanah- "Head of the Year" It is the Jew's New Year's day. It is the anniversary of when God created the world.

c. Passover- a festival lasting eight days, remembering when the Israelites decided to end slavery. It is the celebration of new harvests. The day before Passover, the first born son of Jewish families fasts for the day. Also, Jews do not work on the first two days or last two days of the holiday.

d. Hannukah- "Feast of Dedication" sometimes spelled "Chanukah." It is the remeberance of when the Macabees fought for freedom of religion against the rulers of Syria. Hannukah lasts eight days to represent oil that was supposed to last only one day, but lasted the eight days of Passover during this battle. This holiday is not in the Torah and was made by the Jews. Hannukah is the most celebrated Jewish holiday.

Abraham- Abraham means "father of great people." He was the first man who taught about one god. He trusted and was obedient to God and is looked up to by the Jewish people.
 * 4. Person:** (What was this person's role?)

Jerusalem- "the Promised Land." Jerusalem was home to two Temples long before Christianity and Islam. They were both totally destroyed by the Romans by 70 AD. Today, Jerusalem offers synagogues and historical sites associated with Hebrew prophets and scriptures.
 * 5. Sacred Sites:** (Where is this site and why is this site special?)

a. Reform- established in Germany 1819. Some people didn't like the new changes being made so many left. It is written in Hebrew and English. Reform takes a liberal approach to Jewish beliefs and practices. Women aren't segregated from men so they can sit together in synagogues and women may also become a rabbis.
 * 6. Major Branches:** (what are the differences in beliefs and actions between these sects?)

b. Conservative- Also known as Traditional Judaism and it takes a moderate approach of Judaism in the modern world. Allows gradual change in their laws and practices. It is mostly known in Israel and the UK. Conservative came to the U.S. in 1912 by Solomon Schetcher, but became known during the 1950's and 1960's. 33% of Jews in America follow Conservative Judaisim.

c. Orthodox- They kept almost all of their origional traditions and practices. Orthodox Jews first became to settle in England in 1066 with William the Conqueror. They believed in core beliefs and when Orthodox was first starting no Jews were involved. It is recoreded that for the first twenty generations of humanity this branch never had any Jews and Abraham was the first Jew. Orthodox Jews observe mostly traditional and ceremonial laws of Judaism.

0.2% (14 million) of all people are Jews. The top 10 countries of where Judaism- The US, Israel, Russia, France, Canada, The United Kingdom, Argentina, Brazil, Australia, and South Africa.
 * 7. Primarily Located in the following countries:** (give numbers/percentages if available)

a. Afterlife- little is said about it, most is focused on the actions to get you into the afterlife (or put you in good standings). What is said is vague. b. God- (Yahweh) is very important. He is the all highest power. Everyone can (and strive to) have a good, individual realitionship with Him. God is everywhere and see's everything at all times. God does not have a body so He is neither male or female. God have always existed and will always exist. c. Humanity- created in God's image. All humans have free will to choose good or evil. The soul is very important and we have the ability to reason and make decisions on what's right and what's wrong in the world. **Jesus was believed to be prophet and that the messiah has not come yet.
 * 8. Core Beliefs:** (What are the central ideas to the religion?