Rise of Judaism
Though the star of David is commonly seen
as the symbol of Judaism today, it did not
come into use until the Middle Ages.
The Menorah, a nine or seven pronged
candleholder, is a much more ancient symbol of
Judaism. It represents the holiday the Festival of
Lights (Hanukkah), which is a celebration of the
reclamation of their most sacred temple in
Jerusalem over the Syrians around 200 BC.
A. Early History
1. Jews = Israelites = Hebrews
2. Monotheistic
3. Torah is the sacred book
4. Founded by Abraham, out of
Mesopotamia:
▫ Led believers to modern-day
Palestine, but due to famine
(no food) later migrated to
Egypt, where they were
enslaved.
The Hebrews were freed from
slavery in Egypt by Moses, but did
not return to their holy land until
after his death.
A. Early History
5. 1000 B.C.E. – Kingdom of
Israel
a. Unified (brought
together) by King David
b. Strengthened by his
ambitious son Solomon
 Built the temple of
Jerusalem
 Established a massive tax
system
 High taxes led to revolts
A. Early History
6. Israel split in 2 by
revolts, leading to a
weakened kingdom
a. North: Israel
South: Judah
b. 722 B.C.E. - Israel
falls to the Assyrians
c. 586 B.C.E. - Judah
falls to the Babylonians
B. Teachings of Judaism
1. History and faith are
interconnected, they
exist together.
2. Believed in a
covenant (binding
agreement) with God
a. Jews were the
chosen people of
god
B. Teachings of Judaism
3. Law extremely important
a. Torah (some in Old
Testament) lays out
many laws for Jews to
follow
b. Ten Commandments –
given to Moses on Mt.
Sinai, directly from God.
Recorded on stone tablets.
There weren’t books until around
500 AD, so writings were kept on
scrolls like this one – a selection
from the Jewish Torah.
B. Teachings of Judaism
4. Prophets
a. Predicted future events
b. Strong code of ethics
 All are equal before God
 Rich & powerful should
help poor & weak
5. Leaders were seen as fully
human and NOT gods
a. Very different from most
world religions at this time
C. Judaism’s Influence Today
1. Many laws
• (10 commandments are sometimes
posted in court rooms)
2. Work/School Week
• Friday-Saturday evening is the
Sabbath, celebrating day of rest.
3. Equality under the law
4. Basis of Christianity & Islam