When and How Judaism Began?

Judaism began in Israel about 4000 years ago.

Judaism began when a man named Abraham realized that there is only one God, who created everything and controls everything.

Abraham had a son named Isaac, and Isaac had a son named Jacob. These are the three fathers in our religion.

CelebrationsRosh Hashanah (Jewish new year festival

which takes place in September or October.)

Yom Kippur (Ten days after Rosh Hashanah. It is the day of atonement on which we fast, pray and atone for our sins, asking god for forgiveness.

Hanukah (Festival of lights. It is held in late November or December.)

Key LeadersDavid: We have David’s star to

represent David’s shield.

• Moses: He was chosen by God to lead us out of Egypt. He is also the most important.

• God: The creator of all things and he is our only God.

• Abraham: He is the father of Jews.

Abraham

• Abraham is the father of all Jews. We think of Abraham as a symbol of trusting and obeying God. Abraham is also important to Christians. The story of Abraham is told in the book of Genesis.

Moses

Moses is the person who freed our ancestors from slavery in Egypt. He also protected our ancestors from the wrath of God, and negotiated with God on their behalf.

Sacred Places

• Synagogues: Men and women do not sit next to each other in a synagogue.

• Hebrew: In most cases, worship takes place in Hebrew.

The Torah

The Torah is the most holy Jewish book. Others include Judaism’s oral tradition, the written form of which is known as the Talmud. The Torah contains the five books revealed to Moses by God on Mount Sinai.

Symbolism

• David’s Star is our symbol.

• As of 2011, there are about 14 million Jews in the world and 375,000 in Canada.

Population

Interesting FactsJudaism is one of the oldest religions in the world.

Judaism is the only religion to have lost their land and then regained it.

The people that follow Judaism are called Jews.

By: Jasmina, Emilie, Alison, Daniel and Francis