Judaism

Judaism(Hebrew:יַהֲדוּת‎,romanized:Yahăḏūṯ) is anAbrahamicmonotheisticethnic religionthat comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of theJewish people.Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of observing theMosaic covenant, which was established betweenGodand theIsraelites, their ancestors.The religion is considered one of the earliest monotheistic religions in the world.
Jewish religious doctrine encompasses a wide body of texts, practices, theological positions, and forms of organization. Among Judaism's core texts is theTorah, the first five books of theHebrew Bible, and a collection of ancient Hebrew scriptures. The Tanakh, known in English as the Hebrew Bible, has the same contents as theOld TestamentinChristianity. In addition to the original written scripture, the supplementalOral Torahis represented by later texts, such as theMidrashand theTalmud. The Hebrew-language wordtorahcan mean "teaching", "law", or "instruction",although "Torah" can also be used as a general term that refers to any Jewish text that expands or elaborates on the originalFive Books of Moses. Representing the core of the Jewish spiritual and religious tradition, the Torah is a term and a set of teachings that are explicitly self-positioned as encompassing at least seventy, and potentially infinite, facets and interpretations.Judaism's texts, traditions, and values strongly influenced later Abrahamic religions, includingChristianityandIslam.Hebraism, likeHellenism, played a seminal role in the formation of Western civilization through its impact as a core background element ofEarly Christianity.
Within Judaism, there are a variety ofreligious movements, most of which emerged fromRabbinic Judaism,which holds that God revealed his laws and commandments toMosesonMount Sinaiin the form of both the Written and Oral Torah.Historically, all or part of this assertion was challenged by various groups such as theSadduceesandHellenistic Judaismduring theSecond Temple period;theKaraitesduring the early and later medieval period; and among segments of the modern non-Orthodox denominations.Some modern branches of Judaism such asHumanistic Judaismmay be consideredsecularornontheistic.Today, the largestJewish religious movementsareOrthodox Judaism(HarediandModern Orthodox),Conservative Judaism, andReform Judaism. Major sources of difference between these groups are their approaches tohalakha(Jewish law), the authority of therabbinic tradition, and the significance of theState of Israel.Orthodox Judaism maintains that the Torah andhalakhaare divine in origin, eternal and unalterable, and that they should be strictly followed.Conservative and Reform Judaism are more liberal, with Conservative Judaism generally promoting a more traditionalist interpretation of Judaism's requirements than Reform Judaism.A typical Reform position is thathalakhashould be viewed as a set of general guidelines rather than as a set of restrictions and obligations whose observance is required of all Jews.Historically,special courtsenforcedhalakha; today, these courts still exist but the practice of Judaism is mostly voluntary.Authority on theological and legal matters is not vested in any one person or organization, but in the sacred texts and therabbisand scholars who interpret them.
Jews are anethnoreligious groupincluding those born Jewish, in addition toconverts to Judaism. In 2021, the world Jewish population was estimated at 15.2 million, or roughly 0.195% of the total world population, although religious observance varies from strict to none.In 2021, about 45.6% of all Jews resided in Israel and another 42.1% resided in the United States and Canada, with most of the remainder living in Europe, and other groups spread throughout Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Australia.
The termJudaismderives fromIudaismus, a Latinized form of the Ancient GreekIoudaismos(Koinē Greek:Ἰουδαϊσμός, from the verbἰουδαΐζειν, "to side with or imitate the [Judeans]").Its ultimate source wasHebrew:יהודה,romanized:YehudahJudah",which is also the source of the Hebrew term for Judaism,יַהֲדוּתYahaḏuṯ. The termἸουδαϊσμόςfirst appears in theKoine Greekbook of2 Maccabeesin the 2nd century BCE (i.e. 2 Maccabees 2:21, 8:1 and 14:38) .In the context of the age and period it meant "seeking or forming part of a cultural entity".It resembled its antonymhellenismos, a word signifying people's submission toHellenisticcultural norms. The conflict betweeniudaismosandhellenismoslay behind theMaccabean Revoltand hence the invention of the termiudaismos.
Shaye J. D. Cohenwrites in his bookThe Beginnings of Jewishness:
Daniel R. Schwartz, however, argues that "Judaism", especially in the context of the Book of Maccabees, refers to the religion, as opposed to the culture and politics of the Judean state. He believes it reflected the ideological divide between thePhariseesandSadduceesand, implicitly, anti-Hasmonean and pro-Hasmonean factions in Judean society.
According to theOxford English Dictionarythe earliest citation in English where the term was used to mean "the profession or practice of the Jewish religion; the religious system or polity of the Jews" is Robert Fabyan'sThe newe cronycles of Englande and of Fraunce(1516)."Judaism" as a direct translation of the LatinIudaismusfirst occurred in a 1611 English translation of theBiblical apocrypha(theDeuterocanonical booksin theCatholic ChurchandEastern Orthodoxy), 2 Macc. ii. 21: "Those that behaved themselves manfully to their honour for Iudaisme."
A significant part of theHebrew BibleorTanakhis an account of theIsraelites' relationship with religion andGodfrom their earliest history until the building of theSecond Temple(c.535 BCE).Abrahamis hailed as the firstHebrewand the father of the Jewish people. InGenesis, three men, speculated to be God orArchangels, commanded Abraham tocircumcisehimself and his sons as a sign ofthe covenant, and was promised by the angels thatIsaac, his second son, would inherit theLand of Israel(then calledCanaan) and renamed his Wife from 'Sarai', which meant Mockery, to 'Sarah', which meant Princess, and that she would bear him a son in her old age and his descendants shall also be blessed and keep 'the covenant'.
InExodus, the second book of the bible, the descendants of Isaac's sonJacobwere enslaved inEgypt, and God commandedMosesto leadthe Exodusfrom Egypt in a vision.Rules and commandments were conveyed to Moses at Sinai; accounted in theTorah, or five books of Moses.These books, together with theNevi'imandKetuvim, are known asTorah Shebikhtav, as opposed to the Oral Torah, which refers to the Mishnah and theTalmud.The Nevi'im details historical narratives, and prophetic writings, focusing on the Isrelites settlements in Canaan. While the Ketuvim, a diverse collection of books including thePsalms,Proverbs, andEsther, covers poetic and prose philisophical writings which deviates from the more literalist style of the other books.
Rabbinic tradition holds that the details and interpretation of the Law, called theOral Torahor "Oral Law," were originally unwritten traditions based on the Law given to Moses at Sinai. However, as the persecutions of the Jews increased and the details were in danger of being forgotten, these oral laws were recorded byJudah ha-Nasiin theMishnah, redactedc.200 CE. The Talmud was a compilation of the Mishnah andGemara, rabbinic commentaries redacted over the next three centuries. The Gemara originated in two major centers of Jewish scholarship,PalestineandBabylonia(Lower Mesopotamia).Correspondingly, two bodies of analysis developed, and two works of Talmud were created. The older compilation is called theJerusalem Talmud. It was compiled sometime during the 4th century in Palestine.
According tocritical scholars, the Torah consists of inconsistent texts edited together in a way that calls attention to divergent accounts.Several of these scholars, such as Professor Martin Rose andJohn Bright, suggest that during the First Temple period the people of Israel believed that each nation had its own version of a god viewed as superior to all other gods.Some suggest that strict monotheism developed during the Babylonian Exile, perhaps in reaction toZoroastriandualism.In this view, it was only by theHellenistic periodthat most Jews came to believe that their god was the only god and that the notion of a bounded Jewish nation identical with the Jewish religion formed.John Dayargues that the origins of biblicalYahweh,El,Asherah, andBa'al, may be rooted in earlierCanaanite religion, which was centered on a pantheon of gods much like inGreek mythology.
According to theHebrew Bible, aUnited Monarchywas established underSauland continued underKing DavidandSolomonwith its capital inJerusalem. After Solomon's reign, the nation split into two kingdoms, theKingdom of Israel(in the north) and theKingdom of Judah(in the south). The Kingdom of Israel was destroyed around 720 BCE, when it was conquered by theNeo-Assyrian Empire;many people were taken captive from the capitalSamariatoMediaand theKhabur Rivervalley. TheKingdom of Judahcontinued as an independent state until it was conquered byNebuchadnezzar IIof theNeo-Babylonian Empirein 586 BCE. The Babyloniansdestroyed Jerusalemand theFirst Temple, which was at the center of ancient Jewish worship.The Judeans were exiled to Babylon, in what is regarded as the firstJewish diaspora. Later, many of them returned to their homeland after the subsequentconquest of Babylonby thePersian Achaemenid Empireseventy years later, an event known as theReturn to Zion. ASecond Templewas constructed and old religious practices were resumed.
During the early years of the Second Temple, the highest religious authority was a council known as the Great Assembly, led byEzra the Scribe. Among other accomplishments of the Great Assembly, the last books of the Bible were written at this time andthe canon sealed.Hellenistic Judaismspread toPtolemaic Egyptfrom the 3rd century BCE, and its creation sparked widespread controversy in Jewish communities, starting "conflicts within Jewish communities about accommodating the cultures of occupying powers."
During theGreat Jewish Revolt(66–73 CE), theRomanssacked Jerusalemand destroyed the Second Temple. Later, Roman emperorHadrianbuilt a pagan idol on the Temple Mount and prohibited circumcision; these acts of ethnocide provoked theBar Kokhba Revolt(132–136 CE), after which the Romans banned the study of theTorahand the celebration of Jewish holidays, and forcibly removed virtually all Jews from Judea. In 200 CE, however, Jews were granted Roman citizenship and Judaism was recognized as areligio licita("legitimate religion") until the rise ofGnosticismandEarly Christianityin the fourth century.
Following the destruction of Jerusalem and the expulsion of the Jews, Jewish worship stopped being centrally organized around the Temple, prayer took the place of sacrifice, and worship was rebuilt around the community (represented by a minimum of ten adult men) and the establishment of the authority ofrabbiswho acted as teachers and leaders of individual communities.
Judaism in pre-Islamic Arabiagoes back to the pre-Christian period, and was concentrated in the northwest and south. In the fourth century, the ruling class of theHimyarite Kingdomofpre-Islamic South Arabiaconverted to Judaism. This situation lasted until the early sixth century, when theAksumite invasion of Himyarinstigated by the massacre of Najran led to a change into Christian rulership.
Unlike other ancient Near Eastern gods, the Hebrew God is portrayed as unitary and solitary; consequently, the Hebrew God's principal relationships are not with other gods, but with the world, and more specifically, with the people he created.Judaism thus begins withethical monotheism: the belief that God is one and is concerned with the actions of mankind.According to the Hebrew Bible, God promisedAbrahamto make of his offspring a great nation.Many generations later, he commanded the nation ofIsraelto love and worship only one God; that is, the Jewish nation is to reciprocate God's concern for the world.He also commanded the Jewish people to love one another; that is, Jews are to imitate God's love for people.
Thus, although there is an esoteric tradition in Judaism inKabbalah, Rabbinic scholarMax Kadushinhas characterized normative Judaism as "normal mysticism", because it involves everyday personal experiences of God through ways or modes that are common to all Jews.This is played out through the observance of thehalakha, or Jewish law, and given verbal expression in theBirkat Ha-Mizvot, the short blessings that are spoken every time a positive commandment is to be fulfilled:
WhereasJewish philosophersoften debate whether God isimmanentortranscendent, and whether people have free will or their lives are determined,halakhais a system through which any Jew acts to bring God into the world.
Ethical monotheism is central in all sacred or normative texts of Judaism. However, monotheism has not always been followed in practice. The Hebrew Bible (orTanakh) records and repeatedly condemns the widespread worship of other gods inancient Israel.In the Greco-Roman era, many different interpretations of monotheism existed in Judaism, including the interpretations that gave rise to Christianity.
Moreover, some have argued that Judaism is a non-creedal religion that does not require one to believe in God.For some, observance ofhalakhais more important than belief in Godper se.The debate about whether one can speak of authentic or normative Judaism is not only a debate among religious Jews but also among historians.
Incontinental Europe, Judaism is heavily associated with and most often thought of asOrthodox Judaism.
In the strict sense, in Judaism, unlike Christianity and Islam, there are no fixed universally binding articles of faith, due to their incorporation into the liturgy.Scholars throughoutJewish historyhave proposed numerous formulations of Judaism's core tenets, all of which have met with criticism.The most popular formulation isMaimonides'thirteen principles of faith, developed in the 12th century.According to Maimonides, any Jew who rejects even one of these principles would be considered an apostate and a heretic.Jewish scholars have held points of view diverging in various ways from Maimonides' principles.Thus, withinReform Judaismonly the first five principles are endorsed.
In Maimonides' time, his list of tenets was criticized byHasdai CrescasandJoseph Albo. Albo andthe Raavadargued that Maimonides' principles contained too many items that, while true, were not fundamentals of the faith
Along these lines, the ancient historianJosephusemphasized practices and observances rather than religious beliefs, associatingapostasywith a failure to observehalakhaand maintaining that the requirements for conversion to Judaism includedcircumcisionand adherence to traditional customs. Maimonides' principles were largely ignored over the next few centuries.Later, two poetic restatements of these principles ("Ani Ma'amin" and "Yigdal") became integrated into many Jewish liturgies,leading to their eventual near-universal acceptance.
The oldest non-Rabbinic instance of articles of faith were formulated, under Islamic influence, by the 12th centuryKaraitefigureJudah ben Elijah Hadassi:
In modern times, Judaism lacks a centralized authority that would dictate an exact religious dogma. Because of this, many different variations on the basic beliefs are considered within the scope of Judaism.Even so, allJewish religious movementsare, to a greater or lesser extent, based on the principles of the Hebrew Bible or various commentaries such as the Talmud andMidrash. Judaism also universally recognizes the BiblicalCovenantbetween God and thePatriarchAbraham as well as the additional aspects of the Covenant revealed toMoses, who is considered Judaism's greatestprophet.In theMishnah, a core text ofRabbinic Judaism, acceptance of the Divine origins of this covenant is considered an essential aspect of Judaism and those who reject the Covenant forfeit their share in theWorld to Come.
Establishing the core tenets of Judaism in the modern era is even more difficult, given the number and diversity of the contemporaryJewish denominations. Even if to restrict the problem to the most influential intellectual trends of the nineteenth and twentieth century, the matter remains complicated. Thus, for instance,Joseph Soloveitchik's(associated with theModern Orthodox movement) answer to modernity is constituted upon the identification of Judaism with following thehalakhawhereas its ultimate goal is to bring the holiness down to the world.Mordecai Kaplan, the founder of theReconstructionist Judaism, abandons the idea of religion for the sake of identifying Judaism withcivilizationand by means of the latter term and secular translation of the core ideas, he tries to embrace as many Jewish denominations as possible. In turn,Solomon Schechter'sConservative Judaismwas identical with the tradition understood as the interpretation of Torah, in itself being the history of the constant updates and adjustment of the Law performed by means of the creative interpretation. Finally,David Philipsondraws the outlines of the Reform movement in Judaism by opposing it to the strict and traditional rabbinical approach and thus comes to the conclusions similar to that of the Conservative movement.
The following is a basic, structured list of the central works of Jewish practice and thought:
The basis ofhalakhaand tradition is theTorah(also known as thePentateuchor the Five Books of Moses). According to rabbinic tradition, there are613 commandmentsin the Torah. Some of these laws are directed only to men or to women, some only to the ancient priestly groups, theKohanimandLeviyim(members of the tribe ofLevi), some only to farmers within the Land of Israel. Many laws were only applicable when theTemple in Jerusalemexisted, and only 369 of these commandments are still applicable today.
While there have been Jewish groups whose beliefs were based on the written text of the Torah alone (e.g., theSadducees, and theKaraites), most Jews believe in theoral law. These oral traditions were transmitted by thePhariseeschool of thought of ancient Judaism and were later recorded in written form and expanded upon by the rabbis.
According to Rabbinical Jewish tradition, God gave both the Written Law (theTorah) and theOral Torahto Moses onMount Sinai. The Oral law is the oral tradition as relayed by God to Moses and from him, transmitted and taught to the sages (rabbinicleaders) of each subsequent generation.
For centuries, the Torah appeared only as a written text transmitted in parallel with the oral tradition. Fearing that the oral teachings might be forgotten, RabbiJudah haNasiundertook the mission of consolidating the various opinions into one body of law which became known as theMishnah.
The Mishnah consists of 63 tractates codifyinghalakha, which are the basis of the Talmud. According toAbraham ben David, theMishnahwas compiled by RabbiJudah haNasiafter the destruction of Jerusalem, inanno mundi3949, which corresponds to 189 CE.
Over the next four centuries, the Mishnah underwent discussion and debate in both of the world's major Jewish communities (in Israel andBabylonia). The commentaries from each of these communities were eventually compiled into the two Talmuds, the Jerusalem Talmud (Talmud Yerushalmi) and the Babylonian Talmud (Talmud Bavli). These have been further expounded by commentaries of various Torah scholars during the ages.
In the text of the Torah, many words are left undefined, and many procedures are mentioned without explanation or instructions. Such phenomena are sometimes offered to validate the viewpoint that the Written Law has always been transmitted with a parallel oral tradition, illustrating the assumption that the reader is already familiar with the details from other, i.e., oral, sources.
Halakha, the rabbinic Jewish way of life, then, is based on a combined reading of the Torah, and the oral tradition—the Mishnah, the halakhic Midrash, the Talmud and its commentaries. Thehalakhahas developed slowly, through a precedent-based system. The literature of questions to rabbis, and their considered answers, is referred to asresponsa(HebrewSheelot U-Teshuvot). Over time, as practices develop, codes ofhalakhaare written that are based on the responsa; the most important code, theShulchan Aruch, largely determines Orthodox religious practice today.
Jewish philosophy refers to the conjunction between serious study of philosophy and Jewish theology. Major Jewish philosophers includePhilo of Alexandria,Solomon ibn Gabirol,Saadia Gaon,Judah Halevi,Maimonides, andGersonides. Major changes occurred in response to theEnlightenment(late 18th to early 19th century) leading to the post-Enlightenment Jewish philosophers. Modern Jewish philosophy consists of both Orthodox and non-Orthodox oriented philosophy. Notable among Orthodox Jewish philosophers areEliyahu Eliezer Dessler,Joseph B. Soloveitchik, andYitzchok Hutner. Well-known non-Orthodox Jewish philosophers includeMartin Buber,Franz Rosenzweig,Mordecai Kaplan,Abraham Joshua Heschel,Will Herberg, andEmmanuel Lévinas.
Orthodoxand many otherJewsdo not believe that the revealedTorahconsists solely of its written contents, but of its interpretations as well. The study ofTorah(in its widest sense, to include both poetry, narrative, and law, and both the Hebrew Bible and the Talmud) is in Judaism itself a sacred act of central importance. For the sages of theMishnahand Talmud, and for their successors today, the study of Torah was therefore not merely a means to learn the contents of God's revelation, but an end in itself. According to the Talmud:
In Judaism, "the study ofTorahcan be a means of experiencing God".Reflecting on the contribution of theAmoraimandTanaimto contemporary Judaism, Professor Jacob Neusner observed:
To study the Written Torah and the Oral Torah in light of each other is thus also to studyhowto study the word of God.
In the study of Torah, the sages formulated and followed variouslogicalandhermeneuticalprinciples. According to David Stern, all Rabbinic hermeneutics rest on two basic axioms:
These two principles make possible a great variety of interpretations. According to the Talmud:
Observant Jews thus view the Torah as dynamic, because it contains within it a host of interpretations.
According to Rabbinic tradition, all valid interpretations of thewritten Torahwere revealed to Moses at Sinai in oral form, and handed down from teacher to pupil (The oral revelation is in effect coextensive with the Talmud itself). When different rabbis forwarded conflicting interpretations, they sometimes appealed to hermeneutic principles to legitimize their arguments; some rabbis claim that these principles were themselves revealed by God to Moses at Sinai.
Thus,Hillelcalled attention to seven commonly used hermeneutical principles in the interpretation of laws (baraitaat the beginning ofSifra);R. Ishmael, thirteen (baraita at the beginning of Sifra; this collection is largely an amplification of that of Hillel).Eliezer b. Jose ha-Gelililisted 32, largely used for the exegesis of narrative elements of Torah. All the hermeneutic rules scattered through theTalmudimandMidrashimhave been collected byMalbiminAyyelet ha-Shachar, the introduction to his commentary on theSifra. Nevertheless, R. Ishmael's 13 principles are perhaps the ones most widely known; they constitute an important, and one of Judaism's earliest, contributions tologic,hermeneutics, andjurisprudence.Judah Hadassiincorporated Ishmael's principles into Karaite Judaism in the 12th century.Today R. Ishmael's 13 principles are incorporated into the Jewish prayer book to be read by observant Jews on a daily basis.
According toDaniel Boyarin, the underlying distinction between religion and ethnicity is foreign to Judaism itself, and is one form of the dualism between spirit and flesh that has its origin inPlatonicphilosophy and that permeatedHellenistic Judaism.Consequently, in his view, Judaism does not fit easily into conventional Western categories, such as religion, ethnicity, or culture. Boyarin suggests that this in part reflects the fact that much of Judaism's more than 3,000-year history predates the rise of Western culture and occurred outside the West (that is, Europe, particularly medieval and modern Europe). During this time, Jews experienced slavery, anarchic and theocratic self-government, conquest, occupation, and exile. In the Jewish diaspora, they were in contact with, and influenced by, ancient Egyptian, Babylonian, Persian, and Hellenic cultures, as well as modern movements such as the Enlightenment (seeHaskalah) and the rise of nationalism, which would bear fruit in the form of a Jewish state in their ancient homeland, the Land of Israel. Thus, Boyarin has argued that "Jewishness disrupts the very categories of identity, because it is not national, not genealogical, not religious, but all of these, in dialectical tension."
In contrast to this point of view, practices such asHumanistic Judaismreject the religious aspects of Judaism, while retaining certain cultural traditions.
According toRabbinic Judaism, a Jew is anyone who was either born of a Jewish mother or whoconverted to Judaismin accordance withhalakha.Reconstructionist Judaismand the larger denominations of worldwideProgressive Judaism(also known as Liberal or Reform Judaism) accept the child as Jewish if one of the parents is Jewish, if the parents raise the child with a Jewish identity, but not the smaller regional branches.All mainstream forms of Judaism today are open to sincere converts, although conversion has traditionally been discouraged since the time of the Talmud. The conversion process is evaluated by an authority, and the convert is examined on his or her sincerity and knowledge.Converts are called "ben Abraham" or "bat Abraham", (son or daughter of Abraham). Conversions have on occasion been overturned. In 2008, Israel's highest religious court invalidated the conversion of 40,000 Jews, mostly from Russian immigrant families, even though they had been approved by an Orthodox rabbi.
Rabbinical Judaism maintains that a Jew, whether by birth or conversion, is a Jew forever. Thus a Jew who claims to be an atheist or converts to another religion is still considered by traditional Judaism to be Jewish. According to some sources, the Reform movement has maintained that a Jew who has converted to another religion is no longer a Jew,and the Israeli Government has also taken that stance after Supreme Court cases and statutes.However, the Reform movement has indicated that this is not so cut and dried, and different situations call for consideration and differing actions. For example, Jews who have converted under duress may be permitted to return to Judaism "without any action on their part but their desire to rejoin the Jewish community" and "A proselyte who has become an apostate remains, nevertheless, a Jew".
Karaite Judaismbelieves that Jewish identity can only be transmitted by patrilineal descent. Although a minority of modern Karaites believe that Jewish identity requires that both parents be Jewish, and not only the father. They argue that only patrilineal descent can transmit Jewish identity on the grounds that all descent in the Torah went according to the male line.
The question of what determines Jewish identity in the State of Israel was given new impetus when, in the 1950s,David Ben-Gurionrequested opinions onmihu Yehudi("Who is a Jew") from Jewish religious authorities and intellectuals worldwide in order to settle citizenship questions. This is still not settled, and occasionally resurfaces inIsraeli politics.
Historical definitions ofJewish identityhave traditionally been based onhalakhicdefinitions of matrilineal descent, andhalakhicconversions. Historical definitions of who is a Jew date back to the codification of the Oral Torah into the Babylonian Talmud, around 200CE. Interpretations of sections of the Tanakh, such asDeuteronomy7:1–5, by Jewish sages, are used as a warning againstintermarriagebetween Jews andCanaanitesbecause "[the non-Jewish husband] will cause your child to turn away from Me and they will worship the gods (i.e., idols) of others."Leviticus 24 says that the son in a marriage between a Hebrew woman and anEgyptianman is "of the community of Israel."This is complemented by Ezra 10, where Israelites returning from Babylon vow to put aside theirgentilewives and their children.A popular theory is that the rape of Jewish women in captivity brought about the law of Jewish identity being inherited through the maternal line, although scholars challenge this theory citing the Talmudic establishment of the law from the pre-exile period.Since the anti-religiousHaskalahmovement of the late 18th and 19th centuries,halakhicinterpretations of Jewish identity have been challenged.
The total number of Jews worldwide is difficult to assess because the definition of "who is a Jew" is problematic; not all Jews identify themselves as Jewish, and some who identify as Jewish are not considered so by other Jews. According to theJewish Year Book(1901), the global Jewish population in 1900 was around 11 million. The latest available data is from the World Jewish Population Survey of 2002 and the Jewish Year Calendar (2005). In 2002, according to the Jewish Population Survey, there were 13.3 million Jews around the world. The Jewish Year Calendar cites 14.6 million. It is 0.25% of world population.
Jewish population growth is currently near zero percent, with 0.3% growth from 2000 to 2001. The overall growth rate ofJews in Israelis 1.7% annually, and is consistently growing throughnatural population growthand extensive immigration.Thediaspora countries, by contrast, have low Jewish birth rates, an increasingly elderly age composition, high rates ofinterreligious marriageand a negative balance of people leaving Judaism versus those joining.
In 2022, the world Jewish population was estimated at 15.2 million, with the majority living in one of two countries: Israel and the United States.About 46.6% of all Jews resided inIsrael(6.9 million) and another 6 million Jews resided in the United States, with most of the remainder living in Europe, and other groups spread throughout Canada, Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Australia.
Jewish demographics represent diverse historical and cultural trajectories.Ashkenazi Jews,Sephardic Jews, Ethiopian Jews (Beta Israel),Mizrahi Jews, andRomaniote Jews, may possess unique customs and practices.
In Israel, the classification of Jewish observance into categories likeHaredi,Dati,Masorti, andHiloniwas developed by sociologists and researchers studying the religious and cultural landscape of Israeli society. These distinctions emerged from surveys and studies conducted by the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics and scholars such as Shmuel Sandler, who explored how religious practices varied among different segments of the Jewish population. The categories were created to better understand the range of religious adherence, from the ultra-Orthodox Haredim to the secular Hilonim, with Dati and Masorti representing intermediary groups.
Rabbinic Judaism (or in some older sources, Rabbinism;Hebrew: "Yahadut Rabanit" – יהדות רבנית) has been the mainstream form of Judaism since the 6th century CE, after the codification of the Talmud. It is characterised by the belief that theWritten Torah(Written Law) cannot be correctly interpreted without reference to the Oral Torah and the voluminous literature specifying what behavior is sanctioned by the Law.
TheJewish Enlightenmentof the late 18th century resulted in the division of Western Jewry (primarily, theAshkenazi, but also western part ofSephardimandItalian rite Jews, a.k.a.Italkim, and GreekRomaniote Jews—both last groups are considered distinct from Ashkenazim and Sephardim) into religious movements or denominations, especially in North America and Anglophone countries. The main denominations today outside Israel (where the situation is rather different)are Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform. The notion "traditional Judaism" includes the Orthodox with Conservativeor solely the Orthodox Jews:
Whiletraditions and customsvary between discrete communities, it can be said thatSephardi(Iberian, for example, mostJews from Franceandthe Netherlands) andMizrahi(Oriental) Jewish communities do not generally adhere to the "movement" framework popular in and amongAshkenaziJewry.Historically, Sephardi and Mizrahi communities have eschewed denominations in favour of a "big tent" approach.This is particularly the case in contemporary Israel, which is home to the largest communities of Sephardi and Mizrahi Jews in the world. (However, individual Sephardi and Mizrahi Jews or some their communities may be members of or attend synagogues that do adhere to one Ashkenazi-inflected movement or another.)Among the pioneers of Reform Judaism in the 1820s there was the Sephardic congregationBeth ElohiminCharleston, South Carolina.A part of the European Sephardim were also linked with the Judaic modernization.
Sephardi and Mizrahi observance of Judaism tends toward the traditional (Orthodox) andprayer ritesare reflective of this, with the text of each rite being largely unchanged since their respective inception. Observant Sephardim may follow the teachings of a particular rabbi or school of thought; for example, the SephardicChief Rabbi of Israel.
In Israel, as in the West, Judaism is also divided into major Orthodox, Conservative and Reform traditions.At the same time, for statistical and practical purposes, a different division of society is used there on the basis of a person's attitude to religion.
Most Jewish Israelis classify themselves as "secular" (hiloni), "traditional" (masorti), "religious" (dati) or "ultra-religious" (haredi).The term "secular" is more popular as a self-description among Israeli families of western (European) origin, whose Jewish identity may be a very powerful force in their lives, but who see it as largely independent of traditional religious belief and practice. This portion of the population largely ignores organized religious life, be it of the official Israeli rabbinate (Orthodox) or of the liberal movements common to diaspora Judaism (Reform, Conservative).
The term "traditional" (masorti) is most common as a self-description among Israeli families of "eastern" origin (i.e., the Middle East, Central Asia, and North Africa). This term, as commonly used, has nothing to do with Conservative Judaism, which also names itself "Masorti" outside North America. Only a few authors, like Elliot Nelson Dorff, consider the American Conservative (masorti) movement and Israeli masorti sector to be one and the same.There is a great deal of ambiguity in the ways "secular" and "traditional" are used in Israel: they often overlap, and they cover an extremely wide range in terms of worldview and practical religious observance. The term "Orthodox" is not popular in Israeli discourse, although the percentage of Jews who come under that category is far greater than in the Jewish diaspora. What would be called "Orthodox" in the diaspora includes what is commonly calleddati(religious, includingreligious zionist) orharedi(ultra-Orthodox) in Israel.The former term includes what is called "religious Zionism" or the "National Orthodox" community, as well as what has become known over the past decade or so asharedi-leumi(nationalistharedi), or "Hardal", which combines a largelyharedilifestyle with nationalist ideology. (Some people, inYiddish, also refer to observant Orthodox Jews asfrum, as opposed tofrei(more liberal Jews)).
Karaite Judaismdefines itself as the remnants of the non-Rabbinic Jewish sects of theSecond Templeperiod, such as theSadducees. The Karaites ("Scripturalists") accept only the Hebrew Bible and what they view as thePeshat("simple" meaning); they do not accept non-biblical writings as authoritative. Some European Karaites do not see themselves as part of the Jewish community at all, although most do.
TheSamaritans, a very small community located entirely aroundMount Gerizimin theNablus/Shechemregion of theWest Bankand inHolon, nearTel Avivin Israel, regard themselves as the descendants of the Israelites of the Iron Agekingdom of Israel. Their religious practices are based on the literal text of the writtenTorah(Five Books of Moses), which they view as the only authoritative scripture (with a special regard also for theSamaritan Book of Joshua).
Haymanot (meaning "religion" in Ge'ez and Amharic) refers the Judaism practiced by Ethiopian Jews. This version of Judaism differs substantially from Rabbinic, Karaite, and Samaritan Judaisms, Ethiopian Jews having diverged from their coreligionists earlier. Sacred scriptures (the Orit) are written in Ge'ez, not Hebrew, and dietary laws are based strictly on the text of the Orit, without explication from ancillary commentaries. Holidays also differ, with some Rabbinic holidays not observed in Ethiopian Jewish communities, and some additional holidays, likeSigd.
Noahidismis aJewishreligious movementbased on theSeven Laws of Noahand their traditional interpretations withinRabbinic Judaism. According to thehalakha, non-Jews (gentiles) are not obligated toconvert to Judaism, but they are required to observe the Seven Laws of Noah to be assured of a place in theWorld to Come (Olam Ha-Ba), the final reward of the righteous. The divinely ordained penalty for violating any of the Laws of Noah is discussed in the Talmud, but in practical terms it is subject to the working legal system which is established by the society at large. Those who subscribe to the observance of the Noahic Covenant are referred to asB'nei Noach(Hebrew:בני נח, 'Children of Noah') orNoahides(/ˈnoʊ.ə.haɪdɪs/). Supporting organizations have been established around the world over the past decades by both Noahides and Orthodox Jews.
Historically, the Hebrew termB'nei Noachhas applied to all non-Jews as descendants of Noah. However, nowadays it's primarily used to refer specifically to those non-Jews who observe the Seven Laws of Noah.
Jewish ethics may be guided byhalakhictraditions, bycustoms of etiquette, by other moral principles, or by central Jewish virtues. Jewish ethical practice is typically understood to be marked by values such as justice, truth, peace, loving-kindness (chesed), compassion, humility, and self-respect. Specific Jewish ethical practices include practices of charity (tzedakah) and refraining from negative speech (lashon hara). Proper ethical practices regarding sexuality and many other issues are subjects of dispute among Jews.
Traditionally, Jews recite prayers three times daily,Shacharit,Mincha, andMa'arivwith a fourth prayer,Mussafadded onShabbatandholidays. At the heart of each service is theAmidahorShemoneh Esrei. Another key prayer in many services is the declaration of faith, theShema Yisrael(orShema). TheShemais the recitation of a verse from the Torah (Deuteronomy6:4):Shema Yisrael Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Echad—"Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God! The Lord is One!"
Most of the prayers in a traditional Jewish service can be recited in solitary prayer, although communal prayer is preferred. Communal prayer requires aquorumof ten adult Jews, called aminyan. In nearly all Orthodox and a few Conservative circles, only male Jews are counted toward aminyan; most Conservative Jews and members of other Jewish denominations count female Jews as well.
In addition to prayer services, observant traditional Jews reciteprayers and benedictionsthroughout the day whenperforming various acts. Prayers are recited uponwaking up in the morning, before eating or drinking different foods,after eating a meal, and so on.
The approach to prayer varies among the Jewish denominations. Differences can include the texts of prayers, the frequency of prayer, the number of prayers recited at various religious events, the use of musical instruments and choral music, and whether prayers are recited in the traditional liturgical languages or the vernacular. In general, Orthodox and Conservative congregations adhere most closely to tradition, and Reform and Reconstructionist synagogues are more likely to incorporate translations and contemporary writings in their services. Also, in most Conservative synagogues, and all Reform and Reconstructionist congregations, women participate in prayer services on anequal basiswith men, including roles traditionally filled only by men, such asreading from the Torah. In addition, many Reform temples use musical accompaniment such as organs and mixed choirs.
Akippah(Hebrew: כִּפָּה, pluralkippot; Yiddish: יאַרמלקע,yarmulke) is a slightly rounded brimless skullcap worn by many Jews while praying, eating, reciting blessings, or studying Jewish religious texts, and at all times by some Jewish men. In Orthodox communities, only men wear kippot; in non-Orthodox communities, some women also wear kippot.Kippotrange in size from a small round beanie that covers only the back of the head to a large, snug cap that covers the whole crown.
Tzitzit(Hebrew: צִיציִת) (Ashkenazi pronunciation:tzitzis) are special knotted "fringes" or "tassels" found on the four corners of thetallit(Hebrew: טַלִּית) (Ashkenazi pronunciation:tallis), or prayershawl. Thetallitis worn by Jewish men and some Jewish women during the prayer service. Customs vary regarding when a Jew begins wearing a tallit. In the Sephardi community, boys wear a tallit from bar mitzvah age. In some Ashkenazi communities, it is customary to wear one only after marriage. Atallit katan(small tallit) is a fringed garment worn under the clothing throughout the day. In some Orthodox circles, the fringes are allowed to hang freely outside the clothing.
Tefillin(Hebrew: תְפִלִּין), known in English as phylacteries (from the Greek word φυλακτήριον, meaningsafeguardoramulet), are two square leather boxes containing biblical verses, attached to the forehead and wound around the left arm by leather straps. They are worn during weekday morning prayer by observant Jewish men and some Jewish women.
Akittel(Yiddish: קיטל), a white knee-length overgarment, is worn by prayer leaders and some observant traditional Jews on theHigh Holidays. It is traditional for the head of the household to wear a kittel at the Passover seder in some communities, and some grooms wear one under the wedding canopy. Jewish males are buried in atallitand sometimes also akittelwhich are part of thetachrichim(burial garments).
Jewish holidays are special days in the Jewish calendar, which celebrate moments in Jewish history, as well as central themes in the relationship between God and the world, such ascreation,revelation, andredemption.
Shabbat, the weekly day of rest lasting from shortly before sundown on Friday night to nightfall on Saturday night, commemorates God's day of rest after six days of creation. It plays a pivotal role in Jewish practice and is governed by a large corpus of religious law. At sundown on Friday, the woman of the house welcomes the Shabbat by lighting two or more candles and reciting a blessing. The evening meal begins with the Kiddush, a blessing recited aloud over a cup of wine, and the Mohtzi, a blessing recited over the bread. It is customary to havechallah, two braided loaves of bread, on the table. During Shabbat, Jews are forbidden to engage in any activity that falls under39 categories ofmelakhah, translated literally as "work". In fact, the activities banned on the Sabbath are not "work" in the usual sense: They include such actions as lighting a fire, writing, using money and carrying in the public domain. The prohibition of lighting a fire has been extended in the modern era to driving a car, which involves burning fuel and using electricity.
Jewish holy days (chaggim), celebrate landmark events in Jewish history, such as theExodus from Egyptand the giving of the Torah, and sometimes mark the change of seasons and transitions in the agricultural cycle. The three major festivals, Sukkot, Passover and Shavuot, are called "regalim" (derived from the Hebrew word "regel", or foot). On the three regalim, it was customary for the Israelites to make pilgrimages to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices in the Temple:
The High Holidays (Yamim Noraimor "Days of Awe") revolve around judgment and forgiveness:
Purim(Hebrew:פוריםPûrîm"lots") is a joyous Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance of thePersian Jewsfrom the plot of the evilHaman, who sought toexterminatethem, as recorded in the biblicalBook of Esther. It is characterized by public recitation of the Book of Esther, mutual gifts of food and drink,charityto the poor, and a celebratory meal (Esther 9:22). Other customs include drinking wine, eating special pastries calledhamantashen, dressing up in masks and costumes, and organizing carnivals and parties.
Purim has celebrated annually on the 14th of the Hebrew month ofAdar, which occurs in February or March of the Gregorian calendar.
Hanukkah(Hebrew:חֲנֻכָּה, "dedication") also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish holiday that starts on the 25th day ofKislev(Hebrew calendar). The festival is observed in Jewish homes by the kindling of lights on each of the festival's eight nights, one on the first night, two on the second night and so on.
The holiday was called Hanukkah (meaning "dedication") because it marks the re-dedication of the Temple after its desecration byAntiochus IV Epiphanes. Spiritually, Hanukkah commemorates the "Miracle of the Oil". According to the Talmud, at the re-dedication of theTemple in Jerusalemfollowing the victory of theMaccabeesover theSeleucid Empire, there was only enough consecrated oil to fuel the eternal flame in the Temple for one day. Miraculously, the oil burned for eight days—which was the length of time it took to press, prepare and consecrate new oil.
Hanukkah is not mentioned in the Bible and was never considered a major holiday in Judaism, but it has become much more visible and widely celebrated in modern times, mainly because it falls around the same time as Christmas and has national Jewish overtones that have been emphasized since the establishment of the State of Israel.
Tisha B'Av(Hebrew:תשעה באבorט׳ באב, "the Ninth ofAv") is a day of mourning and fasting commemorating the destruction of theFirstandSecond Temples, and in later times, theexpulsion of the Jews from Spain.
There are three more minor Jewish fast days that commemorate various stages of the destruction of the Temples. They are the17th Tamuz, the10th of TevetandTzom Gedaliah(the 3rd of Tishrei).
The modern holidays ofYom Ha-shoah(Holocaust Remembrance Day),Yom Hazikaron(Israeli Memorial Day) andYom Ha'atzmaut(Israeli Independence Day) commemorate the horrors of theHolocaust, the fallen soldiers of Israel and victims of terrorism, and Israeli independence, respectively.
There are some who prefer to commemorate those who were killed in the Holocaust on the10th of Tevet.
The core of festival andShabbatprayer services is the public reading of theTorah, along with connected readings from the other books of the Tanakh, calledHaftarah. Over the course of a year, the whole Torah is read, with the cycle starting over in the autumn, onSimchat Torah.
Synagogues are Jewish houses of prayer and study. They usually contain separate rooms for prayer (the main sanctuary), smaller rooms for study, and often an area for community or educational use. There is no set blueprint for synagogues and the architectural shapes and interior designs of synagogues vary greatly. The Reform movement mostly refer to their synagogues as temples. Some traditional features of a synagogue are:
In addition to synagogues, other buildings of significance in Judaism includeyeshivas, or institutions of Jewish learning, andmikvahs, which are ritual baths.
The Jewish dietary laws are known askashrut. Food prepared in accordance with them is termedkosher, and food that is not kosher is also known astreifahortreif. People who observe these laws are colloquially said to be "keeping kosher".
Many of the laws apply to animal-based foods. For example, in order to be considered kosher, mammals must have splithoovesandchew their cud. Thepigis arguably the most well-known example of a non-kosher animal.Although it has split hooves, it does not chew its cud. Forseafoodto be kosher, the animal must havefinsandscales. Certain types of seafood, such asshellfish,crustaceans, andeels, are therefore considered non-kosher. Concerning birds, a list of non-kosher species is given in theTorah. The exacttranslationsof many of the species have not survived, and some non-kosher birds' identities are no longer certain. However,traditionsexist about thekashrutstatus of a few birds. For example, bothchickensandturkeysare permitted in most communities. Other types of animals, such asamphibians,reptiles, and mostinsects, are prohibited altogether.
In addition to the requirement that the species be considered kosher, meat and poultry (but not fish) must come from a healthy animal slaughtered in a process known asshechitah. Without the properslaughteringpractices even an otherwise kosher animal will be renderedtreif. The slaughtering process is intended to be quick and relatively painless to the animal. Forbidden parts of animals include theblood, somefats, and the area in and around thesciatic nerve.
Halakhaalso forbids the consumption of meat and dairy products together. The waiting period between eating meat and eating dairy varies by the order in which they are consumed and by community and can extend for up to six hours. Based on the Biblical injunction against cooking a kid in its mother's milk, this rule is mostly derived from the Oral Torah, the Talmud and Rabbinic law. Chicken and other kosher birds are considered the same as meat under the laws ofkashrut, but the prohibition is rabbinic, not biblical.
The use ofdishes, serving utensils, andovensmay make foodtreifthat would otherwise be kosher. Utensils that have been used to prepare non-kosher food, or dishes that have held meat and are now used for dairy products, render the foodtreifunder certain conditions.
Furthermore, all Orthodox and some Conservative authorities forbid the consumption of processedgrapeproducts made by non-Jews, due to ancientpaganpractices of using wine in rituals. Some Conservative authorities permit wine and grape juice made without rabbinic supervision.
The Torah does not give specific reasons for most of the laws ofkashrut. However, a number of explanations have been offered, including maintaining ritual purity, teaching impulse control, encouraging obedience to God, improving health, reducingcruelty to animalsand preserving the distinctness of the Jewish community.The various categories of dietary laws may have developed for different reasons, and some may exist for multiple reasons. For example, people are forbidden from consuming the blood of birds and mammals because, according to the Torah, this is where animal souls are contained. In contrast, the Torah forbids Israelites from eating non-kosher species because "they are unclean".TheKabbalahdescribes sparks of holiness that are released by the act of eating kosher foods but are too tightly bound in non-kosher foods to be released by eating.
Survival concerns supersede all the laws ofkashrut, as they do for mosthalakhot.
The Tanakh describes circumstances in which a person who istahoror ritually pure may becometameior ritually impure. Some of these circumstances are contact with humancorpsesorgraves, seminal flux, vaginal flux,menstruation, and contact with people who have become impure from any of these.In Rabbinic Judaism,Kohanim, members of the hereditarycastethat served aspriestsin the time of the Temple, are mostly restricted from entering grave sites and touching dead bodies.During the Temple period, such priests (Kohanim) were required to eat their bread offering (Terumah) in a state of ritual purity, which laws eventually led to more rigid laws being enacted, such ashand-washingwhich became a requisite of all Jews before consuming ordinary bread.
An important subcategory of the ritual purity laws relates to the segregation of menstruatingwomen. These laws are also known asniddah, literally "separation", or family purity. Vital aspects ofhalakhafor traditionally observant Jews, they are not usually followed by Jews in liberal denominations.
Especially inOrthodox Judaism, the Biblical laws are augmented by Rabbinical injunctions. For example, theTorahmandates that a woman in her normal menstrual period must abstain fromsexual intercoursefor seven days. A woman whose menstruation is prolonged must continue to abstain for seven more days after bleeding has stopped.The Rabbis conflated ordinaryniddahwith this extended menstrual period, known in the Torah aszavah, and mandated that a woman may not have sexual intercourse with her husband from the time she begins hermenstrualflow until seven days after it ends. In addition,Rabbinical lawforbids thehusbandfrom touching or sharing a bed with his wife during this period. Afterwards, purification can occur in a ritual bath called amikveh
TraditionalEthiopian Jewskeep menstruating women in separate huts and, similar to Karaite practice, do not allow menstruating women into theirtemplesbecause of a temple's special sanctity. Emigration to Israel and the influence of other Jewish denominations have led to Ethiopian Jews adopting more normative Jewish practices.
Life-cycle events, orrites of passage, occur throughout a Jew's life that serves to strengthen Jewish identity and bind him/her to the entire community:
The role of the priesthood in Judaism has significantly diminished since the destruction of theSecond Templein 70 CE when priests attended to the Temple and sacrifices. The priesthood is an inherited position, and although priests no longer have any but ceremonial duties, they are still honoured in many Jewish communities. Many Orthodox Jewish communities believe that they will be needed again for a futureThird Templeand need to remain in readiness for future duty:
From the time of theMishnahand Talmud to the present, Judaism has required specialists or authorities for the practice of very few rituals or ceremonies. A Jew can fulfill most requirements for prayer by himself. Some activities—reading theTorahandhaftarah(a supplementary portion from the Prophets or Writings), the prayer for mourners, the blessings for bridegroom and bride, the complete grace after meals—require aminyan, the presence of ten Jews.
The most common professional clergy in asynagogueare:
Jewish prayer services do involve two specified roles, which are sometimes, but not always, filled by a rabbi or hazzan in many congregations. In other congregations these roles are filled on an ad-hoc basis by members of the congregation who lead portions of services on a rotating basis:
Many congregations, especially larger ones, also rely on a:
The three preceding positions are usually voluntary and considered an honour. Since theEnlightenmentlarge synagogues have often adopted the practice of hiring rabbis and hazzans to act asshatzandbaal kriyah, and this is still typically the case in many Conservative and Reform congregations. However, in most Orthodox synagogues these positions are filled by laypeople on a rotating or ad-hoc basis. Although most congregations hire one or more Rabbis, the use of a professional hazzan is generally declining in American congregations, and the use of professionals for other offices is rarer still.
Around the 1st century CE, there were several small Jewish sects: thePharisees,Sadducees,Zealots,Essenes, andChristians. After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, these sects vanished.Christianity survived, but by breaking with Judaism andbecoming a separate religion; thePhariseessurvived but in the form ofRabbinic Judaism(today, known simply as "Judaism").TheSadduceesrejected thedivine inspirationof theProphetsand theWritings, relying only on theTorahas divinely inspired. Consequently, a number of other core tenets of the Pharisees' belief system (which became the basis for modern Judaism), were also dismissed by the Sadducees. (TheSamaritanspracticed a similar religion, which is traditionally considered separate from Judaism.)
Like the Sadducees who relied only on the Torah, some Jews in the 8th and 9th centuries rejected the authority and divine inspiration of the oral law as recorded in theMishnah(and developed by later rabbis in the two Talmuds), relying instead only upon the Tanakh. These included theIsunians, theYudganites, theMalikites,and others. They soon developed oral traditions of their own, which differed from the rabbinic traditions, and eventually formed theKaraitesect. Karaites exist in small numbers today, mostly living in Israel. Rabbinical and Karaite Jews each hold that the others are Jews, but that the other faith is erroneous.
Over a long time, Jews formed distinct ethnic groups in several different geographic areas—amongst others, the Ashkenazi Jews (ofcentraland Eastern Europe), theSephardi Jews(of Spain, Portugal, and North Africa), theBeta Israelof Ethiopia, theYemenite Jewsfrom the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula and theMalabari and Cochin Jewsfrom Kerala . Many of these groups have developed differences in their prayers, traditions and accepted canons; however, these distinctions are mainly the result of their being formed at some cultural distance from normative (rabbinic) Judaism, rather than based on any doctrinal dispute.
Antisemitismarose during theMiddle Ages, in the form of persecutions,pogroms,forced conversions, expulsions, social restrictions andghettoization.
This was different in quality from the repressions of Jews which had occurred in ancient times. Ancient repressions were politically motivated and Jews were treated the same as members of other ethnic groups. With the rise of the Churches, the main motive for attacks on Jews changed from politics to religion and the religious motive for such attacks was specifically derived from Christian views about Jews and Judaism.During theMiddle Ages, Jewish people who lived under Muslim rule generally experienced tolerance and integration,but there were occasional outbreaks of violence likeAlmohad's persecutions.
Hasidic Judaism was founded byYisroel ben Eliezer(1700–1760), also known as theBa'al Shem Tov(orBesht). It originated in a time of persecution of the Jewish people when European Jews had turned inward to Talmud study; many felt that most expressions of Jewish life had become too "academic", and that they no longer had any emphasis on spirituality or joy. Its adherents favoured small and informal gatherings calledShtiebel, which, in contrast to a traditional synagogue, could be used both as a place of worship and for celebrations involving dancing, eating, and socializing.Ba'al Shem Tov's disciples attracted many followers; they themselves established numerous Hasidic sects across Europe. Unlike other religions, which typically expanded through word of mouth or by use of print, Hasidism spread largely owing toTzadiks, who used their influence to encourage others to follow the movement. Hasidism appealed to many Europeans because it was easy to learn, did not require full immediate commitment, and presented a compelling spectacle.Hasidic Judaism eventually became the way of life for many Jews in Eastern Europe. Waves of Jewish immigration in the 1880s carried it to the United States. The movement itself claims to be nothing new, but arefreshmentof original Judaism. As some have put it:"they merely re-emphasized that which the generations had lost". Nevertheless, early on there was a serious schism between Hasidic and non-Hasidic Jews. European Jews who rejected the Hasidic movement were dubbed by the Hasidim asMisnagdim, (lit. "opponents"). Some of the reasons for the rejection of Hasidic Judaism were the exuberance of Hasidic worship, its deviation from tradition in ascribing infallibility and miracles to their leaders, and the concern that it might become a messianic sect. Over time differences between the Hasidim and their opponents have slowly diminished and both groups are now considered part of Haredi Judaism.
In the late 18th century CE, Europe was swept by a group of intellectual, social and political movements known as theEnlightenment. The Enlightenment led to reductions in the European laws that prohibited Jews to interact with the wider secular world, thus allowing Jews access to secular education and experience. A parallel Jewish movement,Haskalahor the "Jewish Enlightenment", began, especially in Central Europe and Western Europe, in response to both the Enlightenment and these new freedoms. It placed an emphasis on integration with secular society and a pursuit of non-religious knowledge through reason. With the promise of political emancipation, many Jews saw no reason to continue to observehalakhaand increasing numbers of Jews assimilated into Christian Europe. Modern religious movements of Judaism all formed in reaction to this trend.
In Central Europe, followed by Great Britain and the United States,Reform (or Liberal) Judaismdeveloped, relaxing legal obligations (especially those that limited Jewish relations with non-Jews), emulatingProtestantdecorum in prayer, and emphasizing the ethical values of Judaism's Prophetic tradition.Modern Orthodox Judaismdeveloped in reaction to Reform Judaism, by leaders who argued that Jews could participate in public life as citizens equal to Christians while maintaining the observance ofhalakha. Meanwhile, in the United States, wealthy Reform Jews helped European scholars, who were Orthodox in practice but critical (and skeptical) in their study of the Bible and Talmud, to establish a seminary to train rabbis for immigrants from Eastern Europe. These left-wing Orthodox rabbis were joined by right-wing Reform rabbis who felt thathalakhashould not be entirely abandoned, to form theConservative movement. Orthodox Jews who opposed the Haskalah formedHaredi Orthodox Judaism. After massive movements of Jews followingThe Holocaustand the creation of the state of Israel, these movements have competed for followers from among traditional Jews in or from other countries.
Jewish religious practice varies widely through all levels of observance. According to the 2001 edition of theNational Jewish Population Survey, in the United States' Jewish community—the world's second largest—4.3 million Jews out of 5.1 million had some sort of connection to the religion.Of that population of connected Jews, 80% participated in some sort of Jewish religious observance, but only 48% belonged to a congregation, and fewer than 16% attend regularly.
Christianitywas originally a sect ofSecond Temple Judaism, but the two religionsdiverged in the first century. The differences between Christianity and Judaism originally centered on whether Jesus was the Jewish Messiah but eventually became irreconcilable. Major differences between the two faiths include the nature of the Messiah, ofatonementandsin, the status of God's commandments to Israel, and perhaps most significantly of thenature of Godhimself. Due to these differences, Judaism traditionally regards Christianity asShitufor worship of the God of Israel which is not monotheistic. Christianity has traditionally regarded Judaism as obsolete with the invention of Christianity and Jews as a people replaced by the Church, though a Christian belief indual-covenant theologyemerged as a phenomenon following Christian reflection on how their theology influenced the NaziHolocaust.
Since the time of theMiddle Ages, theCatholic Churchupheld theConstitutio pro Judæis(Formal Statement on the Jews), which stated:
Untiltheir emancipationin the late 18th and the 19th century, Jews in Christian lands were subject to humiliating legal restrictions and limitations. They included provisions requiring Jews to wear specific and identifying clothing such as theJewish hatand theyellow badge, restricting Jews to certain cities and towns or in certain parts of towns (ghettos), and forbidding Jews to enter certain trades (for example selling new clothes in medievalSweden). Disabilities also included special taxes levied on Jews, exclusion from public life, restraints on the performance of religious ceremonies, and linguistic censorship. Some countries went even further and completely expelled Jews, for example,Englandin 1290 (Jews were readmitted in 1655) andSpainin 1492 (readmitted in 1868). The first Jewish settlers in North America arrived in the Dutch colony ofNew Amsterdamin 1654; they were forbidden to hold public office, open a retail shop, or establish a synagogue. When the colony was seized by the British in 1664 Jewish rights remained unchanged, but by 1671Asser Levywas the first Jew to serve on a jury in North America.In 1791,Revolutionary Francewas the first country to abolish disabilities altogether, followed byPrussiain 1848.Emancipation of the Jews in the United Kingdomwas achieved in 1858 after an almost 30-year struggle championed byIsaac Lyon Goldsmidwith the ability of Jews to sit in parliament with the passing of theJews Relief Act 1858. The newly createdGerman Empirein 1871 abolished Jewish disabilities in Germany, which were reinstated in theNuremberg Lawsin 1935.
Jewish life in Christian lands was marked by frequentblood libels, expulsions,forced conversionsandmassacres. Religious prejudice was an underlying source against Jews in Europe. Christian rhetoric and antipathy towards Jews developed in theearly years of Christianityand was reinforced by ever increasing anti-Jewish measures over the ensuing centuries. The action taken by Christians against Jews included acts of violence, and murder culminating in theHolocaust.These attitudes were reinforced by Christian preaching, in art and popular teaching for two millennia which expressed contempt for Jews,as well as statutes which were designed to humiliate and stigmatise Jews. TheNazi Partywas known for itspersecution of Christian Churches; many of them, such as the ProtestantConfessing Churchand the Catholic Church,as well asQuakersandJehovah's Witnesses, aided and rescued Jews who were being targeted by the antireligious régime.
The attitude of Christians and Christian Churches toward the Jewish people and Judaism have changed in a mostly positive direction sinceWorld War II. PopeJohn Paul IIand the Catholic Church have "upheld the Church's acceptance of the continuing and permanent election of the Jewish people" as well as areaffirmation of the covenantbetweenGodand the Jews.In December 2015, theVaticanreleased a 10,000-word document that, among other things, stated that Catholics should work with Jews to fight antisemitism.
Both Judaism andIslamtrack their origins from the patriarch Abraham, and they are therefore consideredAbrahamic religions. In both Jewish andMuslimtradition, the Jewish andArab peoplesare descended from the two sons of Abraham—IsaacandIshmael, respectively. While both religions aremonotheisticand share many commonalities, they differ based on the fact that Jews do not considerJesusorMuhammadto be prophets. The religions' adherents have interacted with each other since the 7th century whenIslamoriginated and spread in theArabian peninsula. Indeed, the years 712 to 1066 CE under theUmmayadand theAbbasidrulers have been called theGolden age of Jewish culture in Spain. Non-Muslim monotheists living in these countries, including Jews, were known asdhimmis. Dhimmis were allowed to practice their own religions and administer their own internal affairs, but they were subject to certain restrictions that were not imposed on Muslims.For example, they had to pay thejizya, a per capita tax imposed on free adult non-Muslim males,and they were also forbidden to bear arms or testify in court cases involving Muslims.Many of the laws regarding dhimmis were highly symbolic. For example, dhimmis in some countries were required to weardistinctive clothing, a practice not found in either theQur'anor thehadithsbut invented inearly medievalBaghdadand inconsistently enforced.Jews in Muslim countries were not entirely free from persecution—for example, many were killed, exiled or forcibly converted in the 12th century, inPersia, and by the rulers of theAlmohaddynasty in North Africa andAl-Andalus,as well as by the Zaydi imams of Yemen in the 17th century (see:Mawza Exile). At times, Jews were also restricted in their choice of residence—inMorocco, for example, Jews were confined to walled quarters (mellahs) beginning in the 15th century and increasingly since the early 19th century.
In the mid-20th century,Jews were expelledfrom nearly all of the Arab countries.Most have chosen to live in Israel. Today, antisemitic themes includingHolocaust denialhave become commonplace in the propaganda of Islamic movements such asHizbullahandHamas, in the pronouncements of various agencies of theIslamic Republic of Iran, and even in the newspapers and other publications ofRefah Partisi.
There are some movements in other religions that include elements of Judaism. Among Christianity these are a number of denominations of ancient and contemporaryJudaizers. The most well-known of these isMessianic Judaism, a religious movement, which arose in the 1960s,In this, elements of the messianic traditions in Judaism,are incorporated in, and melded with thetenets of Christianity.The movement generally states thatJesusis the Jewish Messiah, that he is one of theThree Divine Persons,and thatsalvationis only achieved through acceptance of Jesus as one's savior.Some members of Messianic Judaism argue that it is a sect of Judaism.Jewish organizations of every denomination reject this, stating that Messianic Judaism is a Christian sect, because it teaches creeds which are identical to those ofPauline Christianity, and because the conditions for Messiah to have come accordingly within traditional Jewish thought have not yet been met.Another religious movement is theBlack Hebrew Israelitegroup, which not to be confused with less syncreticBlack Judaism(a constellation of movements which, depending on their adherence to normative Jewish tradition, receive varying degrees of recognition by the broader Jewish community).
Other examples ofsyncretismincludeSemitic neopaganism, loosely organized sects which incorporatepagan,Goddess movementorWiccanbeliefs with some Jewish religious practices;Jewish Buddhists, another loosely organized group that incorporates elements ofBuddhismand other Asian spirituality in their faith.
SomeRenewal Jewsborrow freely and openly from Buddhism,Sufism,Native American religions, and other faiths.
TheKabbalah Centre, which employs teachers from multiple religions, is a one of "New AgeJudaism" movementsthat claims to popularize thekabbalah, part of theJewish esoteric tradition.
Criticism of Judaism may include those that requirerevisionismto classical Orthodox Judaism, such as that of the modernized denomination ofReconstructionist Judaismas established by American rabbiMordecai Kaplan, who believed that classical Orthodox Judaism is outdated as a religious belief on its own, and should represent theJewish culture as a progressive civilization.
On the other hand, proponents of classical Orthodox Judaism such asNeturei Kartaand similar groups strongly oppose the growing accommodation topolitical ZionismbyHaredi Jewishgroups such asAgudat Yisrael; a previously anti-Zionist proponent of Orthodox Haredi Judaism whom the Neturei Karta see as betrayal by the Agudat Yisrael against the Orthodoxy, in the belief that Judaism should never be conflated with the politics of Zionism.
Orthodox Jewishpublic intellectualandpolymathYeshayahu Leibowitzbelieved in the separation of church and state,and regardedReform Judaismas a "historical distortion of the Jewish religion".
See alsoTorah databasefor links to more Judaism e-texts.
Text study projects atWikisource. In many instances, the Hebrew versions of these projects are more fully developed than the English.