Outline (Judaism)
I.
Foundation
 The founder of Judaism was Abraham
 Started in 2000 B.C.E.
 The religion originated near the eastern region
of Canaan which is now Israel and Palestinian
territories
 Judaism didn't emerge until the 1st century
when the religion was getting bigger and
started to become more important to people
II.
Major Leaders & God
 Major people were Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and
the prophet Moses, who received God's law at
Mt. Sinai. Judaism
 Believe in one god which is YHWH/ Yehovah but
also goes by many other names
 They see him as the creator of everything;
believe he works in the world that affects
everything that people do
III. Basic Beliefs
o Live by the Mitzvot which includes 613
commandments
 They also believe that the Messiah will return
 Their Holy book is the Torah that contains 1st five books
of the bible
 Work isn’t permitted on Rosh Hashanah & Yom Kippur
 A holiday is Rosh Hashanah where they celebrate the
New Year where they eat apples dipped in honey, light
Chanukkah Candles, then cast off their sins into a river
 Another holiday is Yom Kippur that’s Day of Atonement
where they fast, pray, and repent
 A well know symbol is David’s Star, there’s not an exact
meaning to it but some think that it represents the god’s
and people relationship where the star that points up
symbolizes God and the star that points down represents
the people on earth.
IV. Divisions/Sects/Branches
o Has 3 branches called Reform, Conservative, and
Orthodox
 Reform is the largest movement of Judaism
 The Conservative division is in America but not as large
as Reform
V. Men/Women Roles
 For men, is wasn't so much differently besides their
environment changing through time, same for women The
position of a women in their Jewish law dates back to the
biblical period is in many ways better than the position of
a women under the American Civil law
 Jewish tradition was part of their ethnic culture; women
are seen separate but equal to men.
 A women's obligations where different from men but no
less important
 Women has held positions of respect since biblical times
VI. Afterlife
A. To Jews death isn’t a tragedy because its all part of
their god’s plan
B. They have a firm belief in afterlife that those who lived
worth will be rewarded and will be united with other love
ones
C. When someone dies they’re laid on the floored covered
and with lit candles around them
D. They would not eat, drink, or perform a commandment in
the presence of the dead because it would be considered
mocking the dead, since they can’t do those things
anymore
E. They don’t really do autopsies unless it is necessary by
law, they then wrap them a linen shroud and placed in a
coffin
F. They can’t cremate the person they have to be buried in
the earth, The body is never displayed at funerals; open
casket ceremonies are forbidden by Jewish law.
G. According to Jewish law, exposing a body is considered
disrespectful, because it allows people to view the dead,
mocking their helpless state.
VII. TIMELINE
o 2000BCE-Abrahams encounter with God which
started Judaism
 1000 BCE-King David united North & South into one
kingdom into Israel
 950 BCE- King Solomon builds First Temple in Jerusalem
where Jews would come to the temple and do practices
 586 BCE Babylonians overthrow Southern Kingdom,
destroy first Temple meaning they lost their temple
where they were able to pray
 428 BCE-Second Temple was made and dedicated to Ezra
and Nehemiah
 70 BCE-Second Temple destroyed by Romans again losing
their temple
 1492-Jews expelled from Spain where they either joined
Christianity or were expelled
 Kristallnacht that started the Holocaust which resulted
in a mass murder of Jews
 1972-First American woman rabbi ordained (rabbi is
someone who teaches Jewish laws was very important
because there wouldn’t be women wanting to become
Rabbi and also in America where Judaism has spread to
the Americas
IX. Where Judaism Has Spread
 Judaism began in Israel
 It soon spread across Asia and Europe within the
next couple of centuries
 Judaism is also popular in America in today’s world
 42.9% of Israel is Jewish
 39.5% of America is Jewish
 2.1% of the U.K. is Jewish
IIX. Current Issues: Holocaust
 Hitler gain popularity and soon were promoting
hatred against Jews
 Start to boycott German goods and services like
Shops, Jewish physicians, lawyers and merchants
 German government prohibits the practice of ritual
Jewish culture
 Jews were taken to concentration camps
 Anti-Jewish riots occur everywhere
 On the Jews and Their Lies, in which Luther
advocates a program to arrest Jews, expropriate
them, force them into the kind of labor the
government determines, and, finally, to exile or
murder them
 Jews were also murdered in Arab
 German authorities had imprisoned about 1,000
people in the camp. start their testing on Jews
 Buchenwald concentration camp opens near Weimar.
The first 300 prisoners arrive on July 16. By the end
of the month, there were 1,000 inmates. Two years
later, the number reached 8,634. That number
climbed to over 37,000 in late 1943, 63,000 in late
1944, and 80,000 in March 1945.
 About six million Jews died in the Holocaust
XI. Interesting Facts
• There are about 5 million Jews in the world
• 8 days after a baby is born, a ceremony is held, call the Brit Milah
where the baby's placed in Elija's chair. Elija is the protector of
all children
• Many Jews learn to read ancient Hebrew the language of the
Torah
• The bible teaches Jews that there is an afterlife and when a
person dies his/her soul goes to sheol, a place of darkness and
shadows
• Natalie Portman’s husband has converted to Judaism
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