Judaism

Judaism is an Asian ethnic religion, but has influenced several major world religions so significantly that it will be described in a separate webpage. Judaism lies near the bottom of any list of belief systems based on the number of adherents. The number of professed Jews is surprisingly small compared to world population. Despite this, learning about Judaism is important for anyone who hopes to obtain a complete understanding of Christianity and Islam. The core text of Judaism is the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), an account of the Israelites' relationship with God from their earliest history until the building of the Second Temple in 535 BCE. Abraham is regarded as the first Hebrew and the father of the Jewish people. As a reward for his memorable act of faith in the one true God (the intended, but providentially interrupted sacrifice of his beloved son Isaac, firstborn of first wife Sarah), God promised that Isaac, the firstborn son of Abraham and Sarah, would inherit the land of Israel (then called Canaan). Later, the twelve sons of Isaac's son Jacob emigrated to Egypt. After the death of Jacob's son Joseph, the Hebrews were reduced to the condition of slavery. Four centuries later, God commanded Moses to lead the Hebrew captives from Egypt to Canaan, the land God promised to Abraham and his descendants. On the journey to Canaan, at Mount Sinai, the Hebrews received the Torah from God through Moses. The Torah comprises the first five books of the Old Testament (Pentateuch). Several decades later, God led a less rebellious generation of Israelites into the land of Israel. The tabernacle, a fabric sanctuary, was pitched in the city of Shiloh. For the next 300 years, the tabernacle served to encourage the Hebrews in the face of continual assaults by their enemies. In time, the spirituality of the Israelites declined to the point where God permitted the Philistines, a maritime province of Canaan, to capture the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant contained within it. Afterward, the embarrassed and humiliated people of Israel told Samuel the prophet that they wanted to be governed by a king, just like the nations that surrounded them, rather than the God-ordained prophets and judges that had previously led them. Samuel reluctantly anointed Saul to be their first king, but warned the people that they would come to regret it. King Saul, because of the many bad decisions he made, was succeeded by King David (who was also anointed by Samuel.. In the reigns of David and his son and successor Solomon, the land of Israel prospered. With few exceptions, the subsequent histories of the kingdoms of Judah and Israel represent a decline from the golden age of Davidic rule.