The Birth of
Judaism and
Islam
Monotheism
Historical Overview
 Ancient
Israel is the birthplace of the 3
great monotheistic religions of the world:
Judaism, Christianity and Islam
 Ancient Israel dates back approximately
4000 years to the books of the Old
Testament
 Ancient Israelites originated from
Mesopotamia
Abraham
 He
was one of God’s most loyal servants
in the Old Testament. One day, God asks
Abraham to gather his family and leave
their city. Abraham agreed to a contract
with God: do what I say, and I’ll give you
a land of your own-and many children.
Tracing Roots of Israel’s History
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Abraham and his
people were nomads
Abraham settled in
Canaan which
consisted of parts of
Lebanon, Israel, and
Palestine
All three major
monotheistic religions
view the same area to
be their “holy lands”
Father Abraham

Abraham and Sara
ended up not
being able to have
children for many
years. When they
were both in their
90s, Sarah told
Abraham to have
an affair with their
Egyptian maid
named Hagar.
Ishmael



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Hagar gets pregnant and
has a son named Ishmael.
God gets mad and
banishes them, but says
don’t worry, I’ll take care of
Ishmael.
Ishmael and Hagar wander
a desert and are near
death until God shows
them a well for survival.
Ishmael goes on to prosper
and procreate and the
profit Muhamad is a part of
his lineage and starts Islam.
Isaac


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Sarah gets pregnant with
Isaac and he becomes
God’s chosen one.
Isaac is raised by both
parents, and they live
happily ever after (sort
of).
After nearly being
sacrificed by his father,
Isaac goes on to prosper
and procreate and
eventually give birth to
the sons who lead the 12
Tribes of Israel.
Jacob, Egyptians, Moses
 Isaac’s
son Jacob had 12 sons which
eventually started the 12 Tribes of Israel
 Due to famine, some of these tribes
ended up serving as slaves to the
Egyptians
 This led to the historical figure Moses