How was Judaism founded?

Answer 1

The Bible tells us that God spoke to Abraham and later to Moses, who led the Israelites out of Egypt. Tradition holds that these events were the beginning of Judaism. Some say that Abraham was the founder of Judaism, although the Bible never says that he only worshiped one God, while others say that Moses was the founder.

However, scholars note that Israel was at all times polytheistic until its destruction in 722 BCE, as was Judah at least until the seventh-century-BCE Deuteronomistic reforms of King Josiah.

There is no doubt among scholars that the modern Jewish God, Yahweh, was the most important god in the Hebrew pantheon, but there were other gods and goddesses. Many scholars also believe that in early times, there might have been a minority 'Yahweh-only' sect, but if so it probably bore little resemblance to Judaism today and was not supported by either the kings or the common people.

According to the Bible, King Josiah undertook major religious reforms after the Book of Law (believed to be Deuteronomy) was 'found' in the Temple during renovations. Jeremiah chapter 36 tells how just a few years later, the scribes hid another scroll in the Temple, to be found and read to the king, demonstrating that it is not far-fetched to assume that Deuteronomy was a quite recent compilation, hidden and recovered in much the same way. Josiah's reforms led to the introduction of monotheistic Judaism, although with incomplete success until the Babylonian Exile.

There is also a minority, but perhaps growing opinion among some scholars, that monotheistic Judaism actually commenced during the Babylonian Exile and that details of the Deuteronomistic reforms were written back into the biblical record.

It is clear that the Persians, who were also monotheistic, did all they could do to assist and encourage Judaism. They even paid for construction of the Second temple at Jerusalem and assisted in instructing the Jews in their own religion.

Answer:Jews have always worshiped the One God. Abraham worshiped "the Lord God of Heaven and Earth" (Genesis 14:22 and 24:3) and complained about the Philistines' lack of fear of God (Genesis 20:11). Jacob confiscated the idolatrous images taken from Shechem (Genesis 35:2) and got rid of them (Genesis 35:4); and refrained from invoking the gods of Nahor (Genesis 31:53). Rachel pilfered Laban's statue-images (Genesis 31:19) in order to prevent him from idolatry (Rashi commentary, ibid.). Joseph placed his hope in the God of the Forefathers (Genesis 50:24). Moses characterized the Golden Calf as "a great sin" (Exodus 32:21, 30) and punished the worshipers (Exodus ch.32). During the rest of his lifetime and that of Joshua (Judges 2:7), no incidents of Jewish idolatry were reported.

Shortly before he died, Moses warned the people that he suspected that they would eventually succumb to the lure of the idols (Deuteronomy 29:17). Joshua gave a similar warning (Joshua ch. 24).

These warnings came true. Many of the Israelites went astray after the foreign gods (Judges 2:11). However, the Jews never invented their own idol. It was always the baneful influence of other peoples. And there were times when the entire Jewish nation repented (Judges 2:1-4) and prayed to God (Judges 3:9, 3:15, 6:6, 10:10).

Idolatry was never universal among the Jews. The tradition of the One God was handed down in every generation, whether by the few or the many; and it is those who handed down the tradition whose beliefs we Jews continue today. Deborah ascribed victory to God (Judges 4:14), Gideon tore down the idolatrous altar (Judges 6:25-27);Samson prayed to God (Judges 16:28), as did Hannah (1 Samuel 1:11) and Samuel (ibid. 12:18); Eli blessed in the name of God (1 Samuel 2:20), Saul built an altar to God (1 Samuel 14:35); Jonathan ascribed victory to God (1 Samuel 14:12), as did David (1 Samuel 17:46); and Solomon built the Temple for God (1 Kings 8:20). A number of the kings "did what was right in God's eyes": Asa (1 Kings 15:11), Yehoshaphat (1 Kings 22:43), Yehoash (2 Kings 12:3), Amatziah (2 Kings 14:3), Azariah (2 Kings 15:3), Yotam (2 Kings 15:34), Hizkiah (2 Kings 18:3), and Josiah (2 Kings 22:2).

And, of course, the Prophets, who spoke in the name of God and warned against idolatry: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea and so on.

The sages of the Talmud, who ridiculed idolatry (Megillah 25b), were simply continuing in the tradition of the Prophets whose verses are quoted in that context (ibid.).

Judaism was founded in approximately 2000-1500 B.C. in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq). Many say that Abraham was the father of the religion, but scholars still debate it today. Some say that Judaism has not one, single founder, but is a religion where beliefs and customs were added over time.

Answer:The tradition of the Jewish people, and the Torah Sages and Talmud, is that Abraham founded Judaism. He lived 3800 years ago. This tradition is implicit in many passages in the prophets (e.g. Isaiah 41:8) and the Talmud (e.g. Yoma 28b) and is borne out by a reading of Genesis.

God calls himself "the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob" eighteen times in the Torah, and that is how we address Him every day in the Shemoneh Esrei prayer.

However, Abraham and his descendants observed their traditions voluntarily, until the Giving of the Torah to Moses 3325 years ago, when God made it obligatory.

Abraham (18th century BCE) came from ancestry that had been God-fearing a couple of centuries earlier but had afterwards slipped into idolatry (Joshua 24:2). Nimrod, the idolatrous tyrant, had brought Abraham's father (Terah) from the Semitic ancestral seat near the conjunction of the Balikh and the Euphrates, and instated him in a position of power in his army in the royal Babylonian city of Ur, where Abraham was born. Nimrod persecuted any who would question his idolatrous cult.

The Kuzari (Rabbi Judah HaLevi, 1075-1141) states that Abraham was gifted with high intelligence; and, as Maimonides (1135-1204) describes, Abraham didn't blindly accept the ubiquitous idolatry. The whole populace had been duped, but the young Abraham contemplated the matter relentlessly, finally arriving at the conclusion that there is One God and that this should be taught to others as well. This is what is meant by his "calling out in the name of the Lord" (Genesis ch.12). As a young man, he remonstrated with passersby in public, demonstrating to them the falsehood of their idols; and our tradition tells how he was threatened and endangered by Nimrod.

Subsequently, Terah relocated to Harran; and it is here that Abraham began to develop a circle of disciples (Rashi commentary, on Genesis 12:5).

Later, God told Abraham in prophecy to move to the Holy Land, which is where Abraham raised his family.

He continued his contemplations, eventually arriving at the attitudes and forms of behavior which God later incorporated into the Torah given to Moses. Abraham taught disciples (Talmud, Yoma 28b), gave tithes (Genesis ch.14), strove to raise a family (Genesis ch.15, 17, and 24) which would serve God (Genesis 18:19), made a covenant with God (Genesis ch.15 and 17), welcomed guests into his home (Genesis ch.18) unlike the inhospitable Sodomites (Genesis ch.19), prayed for people (Genesis ch.18), rebuked others when necessary (Genesis ch.20), eulogized and buried the deceased (Genesis ch.23), and fulfilled God's will unquestioningly (Genesis ch.22). He became renowned as a prince of God (Genesis 23:6).

All of these forms of behavior were based upon the ways of God, which Abraham comprehended through his contemplations. These, and similar personality traits, were the teachings of Abraham and his descendants.

It is therefore clear why God expresses His love for Abraham (Isaiah 41:8) and calls Himself the God of Abraham (Genesis 26:24), and says that Abraham obeyed Him fully (Genesis 26:5). And this is why, according to our tradition, Abraham is credited with having begun the religion which became known as Judaism.

Answer 2

Judaism is best thought of as the monotheistic religion of the Jewish people, rather than the polytheistic beliefs that preceded. Andrew D. H. Mayes (The World of Ancient Israel, Sociology and the Old Testament) says that it is becoming clear that the presentation of Yahweh as the only God of Israel in the pre-monarchic period is a late construction which runs up against great historical difficulties. He says that the worship of God (Yahweh) alone was the programme of an active pressure group within Israel which came into dominance particularly in times of crisis, and the breakthrough to monotheism was achieved only in the setting of that final catastrophe when the prophetic demand for Yahweh's exclusive worship, with its threat of punishment for disobedience, was vindicated.

Others see monotheistic Judaism as a reaction by King Josiah to the political problems raised by the influx of refugees from Israel after the northern kingdom's destruction in 722 BCE.

A centrist position is that the religious reforms of King Josiah were only partly successful, but that monotheistic Judaism became more fully established during and after the Babylonian Exile, possibly under the influence of the Persians. Certainly much of what we now recognise as Jewish belief seems to have been absorbed during the Exile.

Answer 3

Many regard the founder of Judaism to be Abraham, whom they consider to have lived before 2000 BCE. Others may regard the true founder of Judaism to be Moses, who is traditionally considered to have lived around 1400 BCE.

However, many scholars regard the stories of Abraham and Moses as creations of the first millenium BCE. They point out that the Bible also tells us that the people of Israel (the northern kingdom) were, throughout its history, polytheistic in their religious beliefs. Even in the south, in Judah, the people worshipped many gods until at least the time of King Hezekia (729-686 BCE), who made the first real attempt, in historic times, to impose a monotheistic religion. However, Hezekiah's son allowed Judah to revert to polytheism. On this evidence, Judaism, as we know it, did not yet exist in Judah.

We now know that much of what we know as the Hebrew Bible was written by the 'Deuteronomist' source during the reign of King Josiah ( about 640-609 BCE), although of course the books written by the Deuteronomist contain a great deal of material that had been written down by authors several centuries earlier. Today, we see that earlier material, recorded by the 'Yahwist' and 'Elohist' sources, as essential to the very concept of Judaism, but much of it is also compatible with Hebrew polytheistic worship and was no doubt used in that context.

From the time of Josiah, a monotheistic religion seems to have become dominant among the Jews. The role of Josiah in finally enforcing a monotheistic religion with its own canon of literature, make his reign arguably the real starting point of Judaism as we know it.

Answer 4

Tradition states that Abraham (18th century BCE) founded Judaism, and Moses later received the Torah from God.

• Link: Was Abraham real
  

At the time of Abraham the Hebrew, the world was full of pagan cults; they were polytheistic, worshiping multiple deities and lacking moral character; with their rites accompanied by things such as human sacrifice, "sacred" prostitution, and animal worship.

• Link: How polytheism began

Abraham, after engaging in relentless contemplation, arrived at the conclusion that there is One God and that this should be taught to others as well. He became the first to advance the idea of ethical monotheism: the worship of God, and the appropriate ethical code of conduct. This is what is meant by his "calling out in the name of the Lord" (Genesis ch.12). As a young man, he remonstrated with passersby in public, demonstrating to them the falsehood of their idols; and our tradition tells how he was threatened and endangered by Nimrod.

Subsequently, his father Terah relocated to Harran; and it is here that Abraham began to develop a circle of disciples (Rashi commentary, on Genesis 12:5). Later, God told Abraham in prophecy to move to the Holy Land, which is where he raised his family. He continued his contemplations, eventually arriving at the attitudes and forms of behavior which God later incorporated into the Torah given to Moses.

Abraham became the greatest thinker of all time. His originality, perseverance, strength of conviction, and influence, cannot be overestimated.
He founded the Jewish people and lived to see his work live on in the persons of Isaac and Jacob; and he taught many other disciples (Talmud, Yoma 28b).
Abraham entered into a covenant with God (Genesis ch.15 and 17), welcomed guests into his home (Genesis ch.18) unlike the inhospitable Sodomites (Genesis ch.19), prayed for people (Genesis ch.18), eulogized and buried the deceased (Genesis ch.23), and fulfilled God's will unquestioningly (Genesis ch.22). He became renowned as a prince of God (Genesis 23:6).
The practices of Abraham were based upon the ways of God. These were the teachings of Abraham and his descendants (unlike idolatry, which had no moral character; with worship of the gods accompanied by things such as human sacrifice, "sacred" prostitution, and animal worship).

• Link: Pagan practices

It is therefore clear why God expresses His love for Abraham (Isaiah 41:8) and calls Himself the God of Abraham (Genesis 26:24), and says that Abraham obeyed Him fully (Genesis 26:5).
The gravesite of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their wives (Genesis 49:29-32) is located in Hebron and has been known and attested to for many centuries.

• Link: Archaeology

Moses was a great-great grandson of Jacob. He was born 245 years after the death of Abraham.

He eventually achieved the highest level of prophecy (Deuteronomy ch.34) and was called upon by God (Exodus ch.3). He brought the Israelites out of Egyptian slavery (Exodus ch.12). He received the Torah from God (Exodus 24:12) and later recorded it in writing (Deuteronomy 31:24). He went up on Mount Sinai for 40 days and nights (Deuteronomy ch.9-10) and brought down the Two Stone Tablets with the Ten Commandments (Exodus 31:18).

• Link: Was Moses real