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History of Judaism
The History of Judaism is the history of the Jewish people, their religion and culture, tracing back to the Biblical patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob of the 18th c. BCE. The earliest mention of Israel as a people was discovered in an inscription on the Merneptah Stele from the 1200s BCE.
1,396 Questions
Why do Armenians respect Jews?
due to past history events like their rough history in the Holocaust and because of their cool hats
How did Jewish traditions survive after the year 132 CE?
The same way that they had survived until that time: through the continued handing down of Jewish traditions (the Torah) among the sages and their disciples, and the Jewish communities in general. Specifically, the year 132 CE was about the time that Rabbi Akiva died. His greatest disciples (Rabbi Meir, Rabbi Yehuda, Rabbi Yossi, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and Rabbi Nehemiah) each headed a yeshiva (Torah-academy) of his own, and (as well as teaching) they strived to lead the Jewish communities through the hard times (132 CE was around the time of the Roman destruction of the city of Beitar).
History of Parsis in India coming from Iran and having Jewish religion?
This Question is based on a false assumption, because the Parsis are followers of Zoroastrianism, not Judaism. The apparent similarities, in the beliefs of the Parsis in and Judaism, may result from the Jews having learnt about Zoroastrianism during the Babylonian Exile. _____________ A Parsi (Gujarati: પારસી PÄrsÄ«, IPA: [ˈpɑ̈(ɾ).si]), sometimes spelled Parsee, is a member of a Zoroastrian community based primarily in the Indian subcontinent..
see link below: Parsi people Wikipedia
Did Sweden invent a handkerchief during World War 2 to help Danish Jews?
Sweden created a handkerchief that the Danish Jews used for wearing off the dogs sense of smell. You have to read the book "Number the stars". It tells you all about it. The handkerchief is for fishermen only because they need it to ward off the dogs so that they don;t know that they have people on board to sail to Sweden.
What are major festivals and events in judaism?
Many of these holidays are found in Leviticus ch.23. The holidays begin at sunset and last until after nightfall around 25 hours later.
- Shabbat - every Saturday (from Friday at sunset until Saturday after twilight)
- Rosh Hashanah - the Jewish New Year, 2 days
- Yom Kippur - a fast day, the Day of Atonement, 1 day
- Pesach - Passover - 7 or 8 days
- Shavuot - Feast of Weeks; Yom HaBikurim - 2 days
- Sukkot - Feast of Booths - 7 or 8 days
- Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah - 1 or 2 days
Minor holidays and occasions (in which work is not forbidden):
- Rosh Chodesh - the new moon, every 29 or 30 days
- Hanukkah - Festival of Lights - 8 days
- Tu Bishvat - New Year of the Trees - 1 day
- Purim - 1 day, followed by 1 day of Shushan Purim
- Sefirah - Counting of the Omer - 49 days
- Lag Ba'omer - 1 day
- The Three Weeks and the Nine Days (days of mourning preceding Tisha b'Av; see below)
- Tu B'Av - 1 day
- Tzom Gedalya; the day after Rosh Hashanah
- Asara B'Tevet - 10th of the month of Tevet
- Ta'anit Esther - the day before Purim
- Shiva Asar B'Tamuz - 17th of Tamuz
- Tisha B'Av - 9th of the month of Av
Each festival has its specific laws:
- On Rosh Hashanah, the shofar (ram's horn) is blown, to mark the beginning of the Jewish year. See the attached Related Link.
- Yom Kippur is a fast day on which Jews pray for forgiveness for all their sins. No eating, drinking, or bathing is allowed. Wearing leather shoes is also prohibited.
- On Pesach leavened bread, cakes, pasta etc. are forbidden and unleavened Matzah is substituted. Passover begins with the Seder-meal commemorating and retelling the story of the Exodus. Matzah and ceremonial foods are eaten at the Seder. See the attached Related Link.
- On Shavuot the custom is to stay up all night studying Torah to mark the date that God gave the Ten Commandments.
- On Sukkot Jews eat all their meals in outdoor arbor-canopied booths (Sukkah) in order to commemorate the Israelites' wanderings in the desert. Some will also sleep in the Sukkah. During the morning prayers on these days, we take the 4 minim consisting of a Lulav (young palm branch), an Etrog (Citrus Medica; citron), three Haddassim (Myrtle branches) and two Aravot (willow branches).
- On Hanukkah the 8-branched menora is lit in the home; on the first night one candle, on the 2nd night 2 candles, until all 8 candles are lit on the 8th night. See the attached Related Link.
- On Purim the story of Esther is read from a Megillat-Esther scroll and food baskets are given to friends and charity to the poor.
Where did the tefillin idea come from?
In the Bible (in a couple of places, including Deuteronomy chapters 6 and 11) G-d tells Moses that Jews should place tefillin on their arms and heads.
It is a traditional Jewish teaching that, like all other "how to's" from the Bible, G-d explained exactly what they were and how to make them to Moses on Mount Sinai when he was up there for 40 days (twice), just as He explained how to slaughter an animal properly (at one point, he says "slaughter the animal the way I taught you," while nowhere in the Bible does it say how), etc.
Why was it a big deal for a Jewish person to be baptized?
The fundamental issue was not the physical act of pouring water on the child, but all of the religious and social implications that the baptism would have. While there was some debate among Christians about whether a Non-Christian could be baptized against his will (or the will of his parents if he was underage), there was no debate that the baptized person was irrevocably a Christian and could not be "un-baptized".
The primary problem arises when you realize that it was illegal in all Christian countries for Jewish adults to raise a Christian child. This meant that the child would then be forcibly seized from his parents and given to a Christian family. The reason for this illegality is that it was believed that the Jewish parents would teach the child "untruths" that would condemn the soul of the Christian child to Hell. For this same reason, all contact between the Jewish parents and the child was forbidden. A number of Jewish children who were forcibly baptized were thus ripped from the arms of their parents in order to put them "in good Christian houses". This was a violation of the family's dignity and wholesomeness.
The secondary problem is that Jews believe that their religious views are correct and, therefore, by force of law, their children were taken to be taught incorrect beliefs about the world and not to be taught the correct nature of the world. Jews also value their traditions and it is very important to teach those traditions to the next generation. The loss of this child makes the transmission of these important traditions impossible.
What is the Jewish view of sin and salvation and how that relates to the moral nature of man?
Answer 1
The Jewish view of sin is very similar to other religions' views of sin, in that they believe that it's man's choice. This is because they believe God gave all people free will.
Answer 2
Judaism's view of sin is in marked contrast to Christianity's view of sin. There is no concept of original sin in Judaism and Adam's sin affects Adam alone. According to Judaism, all persons are born with the capacity for both good and evil. Each person through the commission of sinful acts acquires sin and each person through prayer, sacrifices (during the Temple period) and seeking forgiveness, can atone for sin and remove it from the count. Repentance and the promise of atonement are expectations during the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The ten Days of Repentance between these two observances are known as Aseret Yemei Teshuvah.
Since there is no original sin in Judaism, there is also no "moral stain" on humanity. Judaism holds that all people are born neutral (not good or evil) and that they have a natural proclivity (however slight) for self-interest, which usually manifests as sinful activity. However, since this motivation is slight and weak, a person has the ability to manipulate their proclivity by making the right choices and pursuing righteous conduct as opposed to sin. In so doing, man makes himself moral by following the dictates of God.
It is also important to clarify the difference between the Jewish understanding of the word "salvation" and the Christian concept of "salvation". As concerns salvation, in Christianity, salvation is about the purification of the heart/soul and atonement for sin. Christianity puts strong stock in this notion because, in Christianity, a person must be pure to go to the "good place", i.e. Heaven. The idea of having a person's soul cleansed and his sins atoned for in Judaism is typically called redemption (geula - ×’×ולה). Judaism does hold that God redeems the Jewish people who pray in repentance to him and will redeem the Jewish people as a whole in the Messianic Age.
As concerns actual salvation in Judaism (yeshua - ישועה), the act of salvation is the bringing of the Messianic Age and will only occur at a certain time and a certain place of God's choosing in the future. It is important to note that many Christians believe that the name Jesus from this same root which is how he came to be called the savior, in connection to this event of Messianic salvation. Of course, as Jews do not believe that salvation has come yet, Jesus is not considered a savior nor the bringer of salvation.
When did the Jews come into existence?
It is historically true that the first Jews were of the tribe of Judah. However, modern historians say that they, and the other Hebrew tribes who inhabited the Canaanite hinterland from about 1250 onwards, were really Canaanites who left the region of the rich coastal cities and settled in the hitherto sparsely populated hinterland. The evidence suggests that the tribe of Judah formed relatively late compared to the northern Israelite tribes, perhaps around 1100 BCE or even later.
After the Zionists declared independence of israel what were the countries that got invaded?
Israel was invaded.
However, it is worth noting that during the Arab-Israeli War of 1948-49, some Israeli divisions crossed into sovereign Egyptian territory (east Sinai) after taking back the Negev Desert in the south of Mandatory Palestine from Egyptian forces. When Israel retreated from the Sinai, Egypt was willing to sign an armistice.
What was the 80's sitcom with dreyfus the dog the father was a pediatrician?
The show was "Empty Nest."
Viper1
Ancient Hebrew society did not have an extensive empire.
What was Jewish life like in medieval England?
It varied considerably from place to place and over time.
Many rules were introduced governing the kinds of work that Jews could do, but these were not always applied very strictly; in theory, by the 12th century, Jews could only work as moneylenders and many of them did, but king John had a personal crossbowman who was a Jew and there are instances of Jews in many other occupations.
In Canterbury in 1200 the Jewish community lived in a small area in the very heart of the High Street, with its own synagogue, stone vault for keeping money and very large houses for the Jewish families. One, Samuel, worked as a dyer while most of the others were "moneyers". They were well respected and important members of the city's population, with close neighbours who were craftsmen, merchants and Christian priests. The lane next to the synagogue was called "Heathenman Lane", but this did not imply any bad feelings towards the Jews.
In some other towns and cities the Jews were persecuted, attacked, falsely charged with crimes and in some cases murdered.
The religious difference was not usually an underlying issue - it was the financial element that caused problems: Jews were mainly moneylenders, meaning that Anglo-Norman nobles (and even the king himself) got themselves deep in debt which they could never afford to repay. Persecuting the Jews therefore made very good sense - if the Jews were seen to be evil non-Christians, guilty of all kinds of invented crimes, they could eventually be expelled from England, these nobles would be out of debt immediately and would never have to repay the money they owed. A simple but deplorable solution.
All Jews were expelled from England in 1290 under an edict of king Edward I. Many English people would have seen that this was a vile injustice, knowing their Jewish friends to be innocent of any crime, but they could do nothing to assist.
England did not re-admit Jews until the 17th century.
How did the ancient Hebrews look like?
More than likely they looked like any other people in their part of the world. The only difference in appearance that I know of is that the men always seemed to have beards. Now, I'm not an expert on Jewish/Hebrew traditions, so the depicting of the ancient Hebrews with beards, may have been a religious mandate or simply a custom. But overall, they would dress the same as anyone else in their neighborhood.
Answer:
Just as today, Jews (Hebrews; Israelites) came in differing skin-tones, heights, and body-types. Our tradition is that the twelve sons of Jacob (the 12 Tribes) were not completely similar to each other in appearance, though none of them was really dark-skinned (Rashi commentary on Genesis 12:11).
What can a person apply from Jewish Diaspora to examine similar cases and problems?
There are several things that a person could take away. The Jewish Diaspora has many corollaries with other Diasporas, like the Circassian Diaspora, the Palestinian Diaspora, the Romani (Gypsy) Diaspora, the African Diaspora, the Armenian Diaspora, and the Lebanese Christian Diaspora.
Importance of Tradition
The vital importance of holding on to one's traditions. If not for the Talmud and Orthodox Jewry, the Jewish people would have forgotten what they were a long time ago (as happened, for example, to the Jews of Kaifeng).
Inability to Self-Defend
In almost every Diaspora-situation, when the population was under the control of the "homeland occupier" and when the population was "countries of refuge", they were often forbidden from having weapons, being members of the government in good-standing, or embracing ethnic or historic symbols. In the case of the Palestinian Diaspora, the Palestinians are brutally mistreated by neighboring Arab States including actual wars in both Jordan and Lebanon, being held in refugee camps continuously, and lacking permissions to work. Because they are strictly forbidden to have means to protect themselves in their "countries of refuge" they are subject to violence and repression, just as the Jews were. The Romani have never even consolidated to defend themselves.
Failure to Elicit General Sympathy
In many cases, including the Jewish and Armenian cases, the victim of the discrimination and violence has an uphill battle to "prove" that they are indeed the victims of violent actions as opposed to being insurrectionists or traitors to the national cause in some other way. There is a large Anti-Semitic population that faults the Jews for their discrimination, just as many Muslim-majority countries near Armenia fault the Armenians for the situation that led to their genocide. Of course, these arguments are ridiculous, but many would rather vindicate the larger, more powerful ethnicity than the small minority. During the African enslavement period, Africans in the Diaspora were also faulted for their enslavement under the belief that they were somehow dumber than Whites and unable to live except in servitude.
Insecurity of Political Changes
Any minority group always watches changes of power with apprehension since a new government can completely reverse the policies of tolerance or marginal acceptance of a previous government. The Jews fled from state to state whenever the situation became too intolerable. In the case of the Circassians, they were allowed to speak their unique language and perform their rituals in Ottoman Turkey and there is a current resurgence in this as well, but the Young Turks and Kemalist government in the 1920s actively banned these things, leading to the mass assimilation of Circassians. The Young Turks had a more disastrous effect on the Christian populations of Anatolia, removing the Greek Christians from Smyrna and ethnically cleansing the Armenians in the east.
According to Jewish tradition were the Jews always monotheistic?
Yes.
Dictionaries define "Judaism" as The monotheistic religion of the Jews, since the founding principle of Judaism was and is the belief in One God, creator of the universe. This was the teaching which was spread by Abraham, and has continued since then. From Judaism, belief in One God has spread through the Western world.
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).
At the time of the Exodus, God wrecked the Egyptian idols (Exodus 12:12) and warned against idolatry (Exodus 22:19). Later, 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 Israelite 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, they never invented their own idol. It was always the baneful influence of other peoples. And there were times when the entire Israelite nation repented (Judges 2:1-4) and prayed to God (Judges 3:9, 3:15, 6:6, 10:10).
Those who did sin did not represent or influence normative Judaism, just as the later Sadducees and Essenes did not. They were deviating from the Torah's standard; they were publicly, repeatedly, and scathingly excoriated by the prophets, and they caused God's retribution to come upon the entire people (2 Kings ch.17).
Because of the idol-worship that did happen, ancient images of idols have been found in Israel too. Images of God aren't found because it is forbidden to represent Him through imagery (Deuteronomy 4:15-16).It should be noted that idolatry was never universalamong the Israelites. The belief in One God was continued in every generation, whether by the few or the many; and it is those who handed down that 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": David (1 Kings 15:5), Solomon (see 1 Kings 3:3), Asa (1 Kings 15:11), Yehoshaphat (1 Kings 22:43), Yehu (2 Kings 10:30), 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). Part of this righteousness was their destroying whatever idolatrous incursions had occurred among the populace (1 Samuel 7:3-4, 2 Chronicles 15:8, 2 Chronicles 17:6, 2 Kings 18:4). Even at the height of the unfortunate spread of idolatry among the less-loyal Ten Tribes, there were thousands who remained loyal to God (1 Kings 19:18).
And, of course, the Prophets, who spoke in the name of God and warned against idolatry: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea and so on.
The later 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.).
More information:While no excuse should be made for those Israelites who strayed, the following may at least clarify the topic a little.
1) The ancients were tested by a powerful lure towards idolatry. We don't understand it because conditions have changed (Talmud, Yoma 69b).
2) Most Israelites (if not all) who committed idolatry didn't completely forget about their One God. They introduced idols into the picture.
3) It was thought that each nation has its own god. They thought that they needed to propitiate the gods of the nations around them so that those gods "wouldn't give military victory" to those nations over the land of Israel.
4) They figured that they would acknowledge other gods "just in case," and that it would be no worse than someone today who carries a "lucky" penny or rabbit's foot.
How did Abraham save the Ancient Hebrews?
Abraham never "saved" the ancient Hebrews. He established them.
What is the name of Judaism's founder?
Tradition states that Abraham (18th century BCE) founded Judaism, and Moses later received the Torah from God.
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 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 as well (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).
All of the above practices of Abraham were based upon the ways of God. These, and similar traits, 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). 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.
What scientific evidence demonstrates that European Jews are descended from the Ancient Israelites?
There is a veritable deluge of DNA evidence that supports the assertion that modern Jews are descended from the Ancient Israelites as referenced in the answer concerning the anti-semtic proposition in opposition to this, stating that modern Jews are descended from the Khazars, by Dan Galilee.
Aside from this there are few points other than this on which historians agree so strongly, from that early in the development of society as we know it. There are records attesting to this fact or providing supporting evidence for it from not only Israel, but also the Persians and Medes, the Babylonians, the Romans, the Greeks, and a host of other nations that were witness to the travails and travels of the Jewish people through the world and through time.
In short all the way from the biochemists, through to the linguists and historians, there is a consensus that things happened exactly as the Jewish people have maintained in the traditions passed down over the generations. The modern Jewish people are the descendants of the Ancient Israelite people.
According to Jewish tradition did Judaism or the Torah change in the time of Josiah?
No. There are secular scholars who theorized that the book which was found in Josiah's time (2 Kings ch.22) was Deuteronomy and that it became part of Judaism and the Torah at that time. This and similar theories (such as Joshua, Judges etc being composed in that late era), are not backed up by any physical evidence.
Note:
There are secular scholars who theorized that the book which was found in Josiah's time (2 Kings ch.22) was Deuteronomy and that it became part of Judaism and the Torah at that time. This and similar theories (such as Joshua, Judges etc being composed in that late era), are not backed up by any physical evidence.
2 a) There were hundreds - probably thousands - of Torah scrolls possessed by the Jewish people, just like today.
b) The wicked King Amon (Josiah's father) had burned copies of the Torah (Talmud, Sanhedrin 103b), so it was understandable that King Yoshiah was thrilled when he found a scroll (see 2 Kings ch.22: the whole Torah, not just Deuteronomy) right there in the Temple grounds, which had escaped Amon's recent depredation.
c) Yoshiah was agitated because the scroll was found rolled to the prophecy concerning the eventual exile (see Talmud, Yoma 52b); and because it was the very scroll which had been written by Moses himself (2 Chronicles 34:14).
d) Deuteronomy, along with the rest of the Torah, existed long before the time of Yoshiah. Two centuries earlier, when King Amatziah killed the assassins of his father Joash, he allowed their children to live, "as is written that fathers shall not die because of their children and children shall not die because of their fathers" (2 Kings 14:6), which is a quote from Deuteronomy (24:16).
Also, Joshua 22:5 quotes Deut.11:22, Joshua 23:16 quotes Deut.11:17, Judges 1:20 fulfills Deut.1:36, Judges 7:3 fulfills the command of Deut.20:8, 1 Kings 8:51 quotes Deut.4:20, and 1 Kings 9:8-9 quotes Deut.29:23-24.
3) The fact that Josiah "made reforms" is misinterpreted by some, as meaning that he started something new in Judaism. That is not the case. Rather, he simply swept away the incursions that idolatrous misbehavior had made (2 Chronicles 34:3-7) into part of the populace, exactly as Samuel had done (1 Samuel 7:3-4), as well as Asa (2 Chronicles 15:8), Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 17:6), and Hezekiah (2 Kings 18:4).
Tradition states that Abraham (18th century BCE) founded Judaism. Most Jews are today descended from his great-grandson Judah, who carried on Abraham's traditions.
Abraham (18th century BCE), tenth-generation descendant of Noah, of Hebrew lineage, was the son of Terah, uncle of Lot, father of Isaac, grandfather of Jacob, and forefather of the Israelites. His story is in Genesis ch.11 (end), through ch.25. Jewish tradition states that he was the first to actively spread belief in One God; and it is in his merit that Jews continue to exist (Genesis 18:19, and ch.17).
Abraham became the first to advance the idea of ethical monotheism: the worship of One God, and the appropriate ethical code of conduct.
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 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.
Abraham, with God's help, trounced the supremacy of the evil Nimrod.
He received God's promise of inheriting the Holy Land (Genesis ch.13).
He strove to raise a family (Genesis ch.15, 17, and 24) which would serve God (Genesis 18:19); and God eventually blessed his efforts, granting him numerous descendants (ibid., ch.16, 21 and 25), in keeping with His promise (Genesis ch.17).
Abraham 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 as well (Talmud, Yoma 28b).
He saved the population of the south of Canaan from invading foreign kings (Genesis 14); and he was feared by neighboring kings (ibid., ch.12 and 20).
Abraham gave tithes (Genesis ch.14), 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), 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).
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.
All of the above practices of Abraham were based upon the ways of God, which Abraham understood through his contemplations. These, and similar personality traits, 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).
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 Abraham is credited with having begun the religion which became known as Judaism. (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.)
How was Jewish food stored and served?
Jewish deserts generally do not have any dairy products in them, because of the constraints of kashrut. Under the kosher laws, dairy products cannot be eaten at the same meal as meat, thus Jewish deserts are usually pareve (neither meat nor dairy), so they can be served after a meat or dairy meal. An example of this kind of cooking is the Jewish apple cake, which I see in many grocery stores. I do not know if this kind of cake is actually a traditional Jewish dish; I cannot find any recipes for it in any of my Jewish cookbooks. However, the style of it is very much in accord with Jewish cooking styles. Jewish apple cake is a light, almost spongy cake with chunks of apples in it. It has no dairy products; the liquid portion that would usually be milk is replace with apple juice, making a very sweet cake.
Links to Other RecipesElsewhere in this site, I have provided recipes for:- Latkes, potato pancakes traditionally served during Chanukkah.
- Hamentaschen, filled cookies traditionally served during Purim.
- Charoset, a mixture of fruit, nuts and wine traditionally served during Passover.
- Matzah Brie, Passover treat. Think of it as Passover French toast.
- Beef Brisket, a simplistic recipe that makes a surprisingly good brisket.
- Matzah Lasagna, my guilty pleasure for Passover.
