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Considered the first important Patriarch of Judaism.
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Story of Moses, Liberates the Jewish population from Egypt, takes them to Mount Sinia/Horeb and receives the famous ten commandments. Dies as they reach the promised land of Canaan.
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The history of Judaism is inseparable from the history of Jews themselves. The early part of the story is told in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament).
It describes how God chose the Jews to be an example to the world, and how God and his chosen people worked out their relationship.
It was a stormy relationship much of the time, and one of the fascinating things about Jewish history is to watch God changing and developing alongside his people. -
History begins during the Bronze age in the Middle East. Birth of the Jewish People and the start of Judiasm - First 5 Books of the Bible God chose Abraham to be the father of a people who would be special to God, and who would be an example of good behaviour and holiness to the rest of the world. God guided the Jewish people through many troubles, and at the time of Moses he gave them a set of rules by which they should live, including the Ten Commandments.
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This was the beginning of Judaism as a structured religion The Jews, under God’s guidance became a powerful people with kings such as Saul, David, and Solomon, who built the first great temple. From then on Jewish worship was focused on the Temple, as it contained the Ark of the Covenant, and was the only place where certain rites could be carried out.
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the kingdom fell apart, and the Jewish people split into groups.
This was the time of the prophets. -
Israel Kingdom lost the Kingdom of Judah
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The temple was destroyed, and the Jewish leadership was killed. Many Jews were sent into exile in Babylon. Although the Jews were soon allowed to return home, many stayed in exile, beginning the Jewish tradition of the Diaspora - living away from Israel.
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The Jews begin to regrow despite their lands being ruled by foreign powers. At the same time they became more able to practice their faith freely, led by scribes and teachers who explained and interpreted the Bible.
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Babylonian Exile
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Babylon is conquered by Cyrus the great, who is a Persian. He resettles them back in Jerusalem, creating the second temple in Jerusalem
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wanted to implement laws aiming to wipe out Judaism, replace with Zeus Worship.
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temple was restored.
The revolt is celebrated in the Jewish festival of Hannukah. -
Allowed the Romans to establish control. Previously were at peace with the Roman Empire and Governed themselves.
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In the years that followed, the Jewish people were taxed and oppressed by a series of "puppet" rulers who neglected the practice of Judaism. The priests or Sadducees were allied to the rulers and lost favour with the people, who turned increasingly to the Pharisees or Scribes. These were also known as Rabbis, meaning teachers.
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His followers came to believe he was the promised Messiah and later split away from Judaism to found Christianity, a faith whose roots are firmly in Judaism.
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The Rabbis encouraged the Jewish people to observe ethical laws in all aspects of life, and observe a cycle of prayer and festivals in the home and at synagogues. This involved a major rethink of Jewish life. Although the Temple still stood, its unique place as the focus of Jewish prayer and practice was diminished. Many synagogues had been founded in Palestine and right around the Jewish Diaspora.
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led to the destruction of the Temple. This brought to an end the temple worship and is still perceived by traditional Jews as the biggest trauma in Jewish history. It is marked by the fast day of Tisha B'av (meaning the ninth day of the month of Av).
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This was a period of great change - political, religious, cultural and social turmoil abounded in Palestine. The Jewish academies flourished but many Jews could not bear being ruled over by the Romans.
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Resulted in the death of hundreds of thousands of Jews, the enslaving of thousands of others, and the banning of Jews from Jerusalem
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Around 200 CE, scholars compiled the Mishna, the collection of teachings, sayings and interpretations of the early Rabbis.
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The first was finalised around the 3rd century CE in Palestine,
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Judaism developed rapidly Following the twin religious and political traumas, the academies moved to new centres both in Palestine and in the Diaspora. A sense of urgency had taken hold and it was considered vital to write down the teachings of the Rabbis so that Judaism could continue.
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Second and superior version was completed during the 5th century CE in Babylon.
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the Romans banned synagogue building, and barred Jews from official jobs.
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Period of Muslim rule in much of the Iberian Peninsula during which, intermittently, Jews were generally accepted in society and Jewish religious, cultural, and economic life flourished. At around this time the first Jews are recorded in Britain
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An attempt was made to force Jews to accept Islam, however the golden age still continued in Spain.
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Resulted in the Balfour Declaration
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The British Government agreed that a national home for Jewish people should be established in Palestine. Following the First World War, the British governed the region in preparation for a permanent political arrangement. Over the next few years Jewish immigration increased and important institutions were founded such as the Israeli Chief Rabbinate, and the Hebrew University.
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implementation on an industrial scale of a plan to wipe the whole Jewish people from the face of Europe. The plan was carried out by the Nazi government of Germany and their allies. During the Holocaust 6 million Jewish people were murdered, 1 million of them children. The events of the Holocaust have shaped Jewish thinking, and the thinking of other people about Jewish issues ever since. War crimes trials of those involved in the Holocaust continue to this day.
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fought between 5 and 10 June 1967 by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt (known at the time as the United Arab Republic), Jordan, and Syria.
