Judaism

In this essay, the author

• Explains that judaism is the oldest of the three major religions that believe in a single god.
• Explains that jews became more than shepherds. they were bearers of an ethical monotheism that became the basis for a new kind of religion, judais
• Explains that abraham's relationship with god and people started almost four thousand years ago with his birth in mesopotamia, in what is now central iraq.
• Explains that abraham questioned the belief of worshipping these gods. he decided that only one god made the universe, and that one should be honored with prayer.
• Analyzes how god tells abram to leave his father's house and travel to a place that god will show him. there was no covenant for abraham to fulfill.
• Explains that after abraham's death his son isaac and grandson jacob led the hebrews. the name israel honors jacob, who renamed himself israel.
• Narrates how joseph became a favored servant to wealthy egyptian families after rejecting the advances of his master's wife, who accused him of attacking her, and put him in prison. his interpretation of pharaoh’s dream led to great authority in egypt.
• Explains how jacob would send his sons to egypt where they would see their brother joseph in charge. even though they thrived in egypt, the hebrews remained separate people.
• Explains how the israelites fell out of favor with pharaoh and became a threat to the power structure in egypt.
• Explains that amram and yochebed, not willing to accept the decree as fait for moses, placed him in a basket at where pharaoh’s daughter, bityah, found the basket which became her brother.
• Describes moses' good life until he would kill an egyptian overseer who was striking a hebrew slave. moses fled to midian because of fear of his life.
• Narrates how god instructed moses to go to egypt to tell pharaoh to free the hebrews.
• Narrates how moses conveyed god's demand to pharaoh, so he made things worse on the hebrews.
• Explains that moses instructed each hebrew family to slaughter an unblemished lamb before sundown, smear the blood on doorposts and thresholds, and then prepare the lamb for dinner.
• Explains that after pharaoh released the hebrews, he regretted his decision and sent his army to pursue them. the army would end up getting killed because the red sea fell on them after it was parted for them
• Explains that the exodus took the jews through the desert, back toward canaan, and it lasted for forty years because powerful rulers blocked the direct route. god gave moses stone tablets bearing holy instructions called the ten commandments.
• Describes how the jew eventually made it to israel, where they prospered for hundreds of years. after solomon's death the jewish nation fell on hard times.
• Explains that even though the jews were all over the world now, they never forgot their beliefs in one god.
• Explains the three books that contain the basic laws and beliefs of judaism, which were written in hebrew.
• Explains the concept of ethical monotheism, which is a concept that there is one god who guides humanity.
• Explains that the teaching of the torah taught people how to worship god and treat people with compassion and respect.
• Explains that western civilization has adopted many celebrations that celebrate jews faith or persecution, such as the adoption of the sabbath day as day of rest for the work week, and a custom for how bodies must be buried.
• Explains that they chose judaism because it was the foundation of the main religions in america. they also learned how the jews were force to scatter because they did not have a home.
• Opines that people have been using religion for power, financial gain, land or just control over people by taking verses in a text and not interpreting properly.