INTRODUCTION TO JUDAISM

Judaism is one of the major Semitic religions. Its followers are known as Jews and they believe in the prophetic mission of Prophet Moses (pbuh). Judaism is a monotheistic religion ie, they believe in one God. Judaism traces its heritage to the covenant God made with Abraham and his lineage — that God would make them a sacred people and give them a holy land. The primary figures of Israelite culture include the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the prophet Moses(PBUT). According to information published by The Jewish People Policy Planning Institute, there were around 13.1 million Jewish people in the world in 2007, most residing in the USA and Israel. According to the 2013 census the population of Jews are 13,854,800 (around 0.2% of the world population). ^{[1] [2]}

Religious books

Sacred texts of Jews are Torah, Tanakh (Hebrew scriptures), Talmud. Tanakh is an acronym of Torah, Nevi'im, and Ketuvim. Torah is the name given to the first five books — Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy — also called the Pentateuch. The Nevi'im and Ketuvim are the books of history, prophecy, poetry, and other sacred writings. The Talmud is also called the Oral Torah, and is comprised of rabbinical commentary and interpretation on the Torah.

The Talmud is the comprehensive written version of the Jewish oral law and the subsequent commentaries on it. It originates from the 2nd century CE. The word Talmud is derived from the Hebrew verb 'to teach', which can also be expressed as the verb 'to learn'. It is made up of the Mishnah and the Gemara. The Mishnah is the original written version of the oral law and the Gemara is the record of the rabbinic discussions following this writing down. It includes their differences of view. ^{[3] [4]}

Quick facts

• Judaism originated in the Middle East over 3500 years ago

• Jews believe that there is only one God with whom they have a covenant.

• Judaism has a rich history of religious text, but the central and most important religious document is the Torah, revealed on Moses.

• Jewish traditional or oral law, the interpretation of the laws of the Torah, is called halakhah.

• Spiritual leaders are called Rabbis.

• Jews worship in Synagogues.  ^[5]

Festivals

• Hanukkah

• The Sabbath

• Yom Kippur - The Day of Atonement

• Passover

• The Days of Repentance or Days of Awe

Calendar

1.      Nissan (March-April)
 

2.      Iyar (April-May)

3.      Sivan (May-June)

4.      Tammuz (June-July)

5.      Av (July-August)

6.      Elul (August-September)

7.      Tishri (September-October)

8.      Cheshvan (October-November)

9.      Kislev (November-December)

10.  Tevet (December-January)

11.  Shevat (January-February)

12.  Adar I, leap years only (February-March)

13.  Adar, called Adar Beit in leap years (February-March)  ^[6]

See also

Muhammad ﷺ; Prophets in Islam; What Eminent Non Muslims say about Prophet Muhammad ﷺ; Concept of God in JUDAISM; Festivals of JUDAISM; Prophecy of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ in Jewish scriptures

References

[1] [4] http://www.patheos.com/Library/Judaism.html

[2] http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism/ataglance/glance.shtml

[3] http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism/texts/talmud.shtml

[5] http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism/ataglance/glance.shtml

[6] http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/0/19150793