1. Though the star of David is commonly seen as the symbol of Judaism today, it did not come into use until the Middle Ages. The Menorah, a nine or seven pronged candleholder, is a much more ancient symbol of Judaism. It represents the holiday the Festival of Lights (Hanukkah), which is a celebration of the reclamation of their most sacred temple in Jerusalem over the Syrians around 200 BC.

2. A. Early History 1.Jews = Israelites = Hebrews 2.Monotheistic 3. Torah is the sacred book 4.Founded by Abraham, out of Mesopotamia: ▫Led believers to modern-day Palestine, but due to famine (no food) later migrated to Egypt, where they were enslaved. The Hebrews were freed from slavery in Egypt by Moses, but did not return to their holy land until after his death.

3. A. Early History 5.1000 B.C.E. – Kingdom of Israel a.Unified (brought together) by King David b. Strengthened by his ambitious son Solomon  Built the temple of Jerusalem  Established a massive tax system  High taxes led to revolts

4. A. Early History 6.Israel split in 2 by revolts, leading to a weakened kingdom a.North: Israel South: Judah b.722 B.C.E. - Israel falls to the Assyrians c. 586 B.C.E. - Judah falls to the Babylonians

5. B. Teachings of Judaism 1.History and faith are interconnected, they exist together. 2. Believed in a covenant (binding agreement) with God a. Jews were the chosen people of god

6. B. Teachings of Judaism 3. Law extremely important a.Torah (some in Old Testament) lays out many laws for Jews to follow b. Ten Commandments – given to Moses on Mt. Sinai, directly from God. Recorded on stone tablets. There weren’t books until around 500 AD, so writings were kept on scrolls like this one – a selection from the Jewish Torah.

7. B. Teachings of Judaism 4. Prophets a. Predicted future events b. Strong code of ethics  All are equal before God  Rich & powerful should help poor & weak 5. Leaders were seen as fully human and NOT gods a. Very different from most world religions at this time

8. C. Judaism’s Influence Today 1. Many laws (10 commandments are sometimes posted in court rooms) 2. Work/School Week Friday-Saturday evening is the Sabbath, celebrating day of rest. 3. Equality under the law 4. Basis of Christianity & Islam