Early Hebrews and Judaism

1. Early Hebrews and Judaism

2. If You were THERE… You and your family are herders, looking after large flocks of sheep. Your grandfather, the leader of your tribe, is very rich, so your life is easy. One day, your grandfather says that your whole family will be moving to a new country. The trip will be very long, and people there may not welcome you. How do you feel about moving to a faraway land??

3. The Early Hebrews • The Big Idea • Originally desert nomads, the Hebrews established a great kingdom called Israel. • Main Ideas • Abraham and Moses led the Hebrews to Canaan and to a new religion. • Strong kings united the Israelites to fight off invaders. • Invaders conquered and ruled the Hebrews after their kingdom broke apart. • Some women in Hebrew society made great contributions to their history.

4. Abraham and Moses led the Hebrews • Accounts of the Hebrews describe the Hebrews’ early history and the laws of Judaism, the Hebrew religion. • The Hebrew Bible traces the Hebrews back to Abraham, who was told by God to settle in Canaan. • After a famine struck Canaan, the Hebrews ended up in Egypt and lived well, causing the pharaoh concern.

5. The Exodus • The pharaoh of Egypt made the Hebrews slaves to stop them from taking over Egypt. • A leader named Mosesdemanded that the pharaoh free his people. • He refused, and plagues occurred, frightening the pharaoh. • His people were released, so they began their Exodus out of Egypt. • God then gave Moses the Ten Commandments at Mt. Sinai by which to live. • They included worshipping only God and valuing human life. • The Hebrews reached Canaan and settled there in small communities, as the Israelites.

8. Strong Kings United the Israelites • The new threat to the Israelites came from the Philistines. • The Israelites united under Saul, who became the first king of Israel. • David became king after Saul. First king to gain full support form tribal leaders. He won many wars. • Solomon became king next, and expanded the kingdom and trade. • He made allies with nearby kingdoms, including Egypt and Phoenicia. Trade with them made Israel very rich. • With the riches that came from this, he built a temple to God in Jerusalem.

9. Invaders Conquered and Rule • After Solomon’s death, revolts broke out over who should be king. • This split Israel into two kingdoms, called Israel and Judah. The people of Judah became known as the Jews. • Both were conquered, and Judah fell to the Chaldeans.

10. Scattering and Conquest • The Jews went through a period of enslavement called the Babylonian Captivity. • The Persians took over and allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem. Some did not return, however, and settled in other parts of the Persian Empire. • Scholars call the scattering of the Jews outside Canaan the Diaspora. • The Jews were conquered by the Romans, but made many advances in teaching and building temples. • YohananbenZaccaiwas a teacher during this time who clarified some Jewish teachings to help people better understand the religion. He also built a school to teach about Judaism.

11. Women in Israelite Society. • Hebrew society was governed by men. Women had few rights. • They had to obey their fathers and husbands. They couldn’t choose their own husbands. • A woman could not inherit property unless she had no brothers. • Some women, such as Ruth and Naomi, were seen as examples of how women should behave. Ruth was devoted to her mother-in-law.

12. Jewish Beliefs and Texts • The Big Idea • The central ideas and laws of Judaism are contained in sacred texts such as the Torah. • Main Ideas • Beliefs in God, education, justice, and obedience anchor Jewish society. • Jewish beliefs are listed in the Torah, the Hebrew Bible, and the Commentaries. • The Dead Sea Scrolls reveal many past Jewish beliefs. • The ideas of Judaism have helped shape later cultures.

13. Jewish Beliefs and Texts • What is monotheism, and why did this belief set the Ancient Jews apart? • A belief in one God; most people in the ancient world worshipped many gods

14. Jewish Beliefs and Text • What is the Jewish view of Justice and Righteousness? • Jews are expected to be kind and fair in dealing with other people, in a display of justice. • They are also supposed to be righteous and do what is proper. • What are the basic beliefs of Judaism? • Monotheism, education, justice and righteousness, obedience and law

15. Jewish Beliefs and Texts • What do the various sacred Jewish texts contain? • Torah- laws, history of the Hebrews until death of Moses • Hebrew Bible- messages of prophets and poetry songs, stories, lessons, history, Proverbs, and Psalms • Talmud-commentaries, stories and folk lore • Dead Sea Scrolls- prayers, commentaries, letters, and passages from Hebrew Bible

16. Jewish Beliefs and Texts • What is three parts of the Hebrew Bible? • Torah • eight books of messages from the prophets • 11 books of poetry, songs, stories, lessons, and history • What is the Torah? • Most sacred text of Judaism: five books of laws as well as a history of the Jews until the death of Moses

17. Jewish Beliefs and Text • Why do Jews consider the Torah the most sacred text of Judaism? • Because the Torah contains the laws that Jews believe God set down for them to follow, and because it affirms their participation in the continuity of the Jewish people from ancient times to the present

18. Jewish Beliefs and Text • What is the Talmud? • A set of commentaries and lessons for everyday life • What are the Dead Sea Scrolls, and when were they discovered? • Writings by Jewish scholars who lived about 2000 years ago; in 1947 • Why do historians study the dead sea scrolls? • To learn about the lives of the Jews at the time the scrolls were written

19. Jewish Beliefs and Text • How have the Dead Sea Scrolls affected Judaism? • They have provided Jewish scholars with additional insights into the teachings of Judaism and into Jewish history • What 2 major religions have been influenced by Judaism? • Christianity and Islam • How has Jewish views of justice influenced our court system? • Everyone has a right to an attorney and to justice in a court of law

20. Judaism over the Centuries • Who were the Zealots? • A group of Jews who refused to obey Roman officials and led their fellow Jews in a revolt. • Why did the Jews revolt against the Romans? • The Jews were tired of foreign rule and wanted to recreate the Kingdom of Israel; Zealots also believed Jews should not answer to anyone but God

21. Judaism over the Centuries • Who won the Battle of Masada? • The Romans • How did the defeat by the Romans affect Jewish History? • The Jews slowly scattered throughout the world, and 2 Jewish cultural traditions developed in Europe

22. Judaism over the Centuries • Why did the Romans force Jews out of Jerusalem? • As punishment for Jewish revolts against Roman rule • Why was the destruction of the Second Temple so devastating to the Jews? • The Temple was the center of Jewish religious life and the holiest Jewish site

23. Judaism over the Centuries • How did the nature of Judaism change after the loss of the Second Temple? • Local synagogues become more important in Jewish, and leaders called rabbis began serving as religious leaders • Who is Yohanan ben Zaccai? • A Jewish rabbi who established a school at Yavneh to train rabbis

24. Judaism over the Centuries • Jews have returned to Jerusalem throughout history. Why do you think so? • Because Jerusalem is the most holy place in the world to the Jews and is the site of the Western Wall of the Jews biblical Temple. • What language did each Jewish cultural develop? • Ashkenazim-Yiddish; Sephardim-Ladino

25. Judaism over the Centuries • How did the Ashkenazim and Sephardim differ? • Ashkenazim- settled in France, Germany, and eastern Europe; lived apart from non-Jews and developed a unique culture; spoke Yiddish • Sephardim- settled in Spain and Portugal; mixed with and borrowed from surrounding cultures; spoke Ladino

26. Judaism over the Centuries • What is Hanukah? • A Jewish holy day remembering an event where enough oil for one day lasted for eight • What event does the Passover celebrate? • The Exodus • What is the most sacred Jewish holy day, and what event does it mean? • Yom Kippur-the day the Jews ask God to forgive their sins

27. Main Idea 1: Belief in God, education, justice, and obedience anchor Jewish society. • Belief in one god • Judaism is the world’s oldest and possibly the first monotheistic religion. Monotheism is the belief in only one god. • Belief in education • Teaching children, mostly boys, has always been important to Jewish society. • Belief in justice and righteousness • Jews are expected to be kind and fair in dealing with other people, in a display of justice. • They are also supposed to be righteous and do what is proper. • Belief in obedience and law • They obey moral and religious laws such as the Ten Commandments and Mosaic law.

28. Main Idea 2: Jewish beliefs are listed in the Torah, the Hebrew Bible, and the Commentaries. • The Torah • This is a collection of five books that make up the most sacred text in Judaism. • Nearly every synagogue has one. • The Hebrew Bible • This is made up of the Torah, the Proverbs, and the Book of Psalms. • It is also made up of eight books that describe the messages of the prophets. • The Commentaries • Because some laws are hard to understand, scholars wrote commentaries to explain them. • They can be found in the Talmud.

29. Main Idea 3: The Dead Sea Scrolls reveal many past Jewish beliefs. • The Dead Sea Scrolls were found in 1947. • It is suspected that they were written between 100 BC and AD 50. • The scrolls included prayers, commentaries, letters, and passages from the Hebrew Bible.

30. Main Idea 4: The ideas of Judaism have helped shape later cultures. • Judaism helped shape the largest religion of Western society today, Christianity, as well as Islam. • Many people still look to the Ten Commandments as a guide and do not work on the weekends, to honor the Sabbath. • People also give to charities, which is largely based on Jewish teachings.

31. Judaism over the Centuries • The Big Idea • Although they were forced out of Israel by the Romans, shared beliefs and customs helped Jews maintain their religion. • Main Ideas • Revolt, defeat, and migration led to great changes in Jewish culture. • Because Jews settled in different parts of the world, two cultural traditions formed. • Jewish traditions and holy days celebrate their history and religion.

32. Main Idea 1:Revolt, defeat, and migration led to great changes in Jewish culture. • The Zealots, a group of people who thought that Jews shouldn’t answer to anyone but God, refused to answer to the Romans and revolted. • During the battles, the Second Temple was destroyed. The Romans finally won in AD 73. • The Romans killed much of the Jewish population as punishment.

33. A Second Revolt • Jews in Jerusalem revolted against the Romans in the 130s. • After winning the second revolt, the Romans declared that any Jew caught in or near the city would be killed. This increased Jewish migration to the Mediterranean region. • Because the Jews no longer had a single temple in which to worship, local synagogues and rabbis became important in guiding their religious lives.

34. Main Idea 2:Because Jews settled in different parts of the world, two cultural traditions formed. • Jewish communities in various parts of the world developed different customs, including language and rituals. • One of the two traditions, Ashkenazim, is made up of Jews who moved to France, Germany, and eastern Europe. • They developed their own language called Yiddish. • Another group of descendants, called the Sephardim, lived in what is now Spain and Portugal. • They mixed with non-Jews, borrowing elements from their culture and producing a golden age of Jewish culture.

35. Main Idea 3: Jewish traditions and holy days celebrate their history and religion. • Hanukkah • This holiday honors the rededication of the Second Temple. • It is celebrated by lighting candles in a menorah. • The eight days represent the amount of time the oil burned during the rededication. • Passover • This is a time for Jews to remember the Exodus. • They eat only flat bread and have a ritual meal called the seder. • High Holy Days • The first two days, Rosh Hashanah, celebrate the beginning of the Jewish new year. • On Yom Kippur, the most holy day, they fast all day and ask God for forgiveness of their sins.