Glossary Flashcards
1000 BCE
Date of David, Israel’s first real king. He ruled over the United Monarchy, conquered Jerusalem and made it his capital, fathered Solomon. King David’s descendants ruled over the United Monarchy, then Judah, until the Babylonians deported the last king to Babylon.
587 or 586 BCE
Date that the Neo-Babylonians overthrew Judah, burning much of Jerusalem, destroying the 1st Temple (Solomon’s Temple), and thereby ending a lot of the religious practices of the Judeans (who insisted that sacrifices to God take place in the Temple). Around this time the Babylonians also exiled priests, the royal family, and others to Babylon.
~4 BCE
Birth of Jesus
70 CE
Date the Romans destroyed the 2nd Temple. This occurred during a Jewish revolt against Roman rule in the Holy Land. (the Romans won.)
132-135 CE
Bar Kokhba Revolt, very heavily put down by the Romans
~200 CE
Final redaction (= editing) of Mishnah by Judah the Prince (Yehudah ha-Nasi)
~400 CE
Redaction of Palestinian Talmud (some scholars date differently)
~500-650 CE
Redaction of Babylonian Talmud (some scholars date a bit differently)
Aggadah
(lit. “telling”) Non-halakhic matter in Talmud and Midrash; includes folklore, legend, theology/theosophy, scriptural interpretations, biography, etc
Aliyah
Literally “going up, rising”. Two meanings, one related to the Torah service (being called up to the bima to bless the Torah before and after part of the parasha is read). The other meaning is “Jewish migration to Israel.”
Am Yisrael
Lit “The People of Israel.” Usually used to refer to the Jewish people (the descendents of Jacob, also called Israel)
Antisemitism
Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.
Ark
An acronym for aron hakodesh.
Aron Hakodesh
(Lit. “holy chest”) Holy Ark, usually found at the front of sanctuary, containing two or more Torah scrolls.
Ashkenazim
Those Jews who trace their heritage back to Medieval Germany (Ashke-naz)
Babylonian Talmud (Bavli)
Redacted around 500 CE, a sprawling work of rabbinic literature containing commentary on the Mishnah, law, stories, and dialectical argumentation.
Bar Kokhba
“Son of the star,” the name applied to the leader of a Jewish uprising in Palestine in 132 CE
Bar Mitzvah
Lit. “Son of the commandment” A boy who has reached the age of thirteen and who is consequently obligated to observe the commandments. Also, a ceremony marking the fact that a boy has achieved this age.
Bat Mitzvah
Lit. “Daughter of the commandment” A girl who has reached the age of twelve and who is consequently obligated to observe the commandments. Also, a ceremony marking the fact that a girl has achieved this age.
BCE
“Before the Common Era”; an alternative way of saying “BC” without invoking the name of Christ. (“BC” stands for “Before Christ.”) Numerically, a date BCE is identical the same date BC.
Bimah
Place at front of the synagogue from which the service is led i.e. the pulpit.
Blood Libel
The accusation often leveled against Jews that they kill Christian children to use their blood in various religious rituals (usually for baking matzah)
B’rakhah
(pl. b’rakhot) A blessing. A prayer beginning with the phrase “Barukh atah…” (“Blessed art Thou…”)
Cantillation
The practice of chanting or intoning the biblical text in public reading.
Cantor
In Judaism, a reciter and chanter/singer of liturgical materials in the synagogue.
CE
“The Common Era,” an alternative way of saying “AD” without invoking Christ. (“AD” stands for “Anno Domini,” Latin for “In the year of the Lord.”) Numerically, a date CE is identical to the same date AD.
Challah
Egg-rich yeast-leavened bread that is usually braided or twisted before baking and is traditionally eaten by Jews on the Sabbath and holidays
Conversos
Tens of thousands of Jews forcibly converted to Catholicism in Spain/Portugal following widespread pogroms (50,000 Jewish people killed) in 1391: called “conversos”
Covenant
A treaty between God and Israel. Some covenants have specific conditions or treaty stipulations, while others are covenants of grant. The biblical notion of covenant between God and Israel, especially as it appears in Deut. May reflect a theologized reworking of treaties between Assyrian Kings and their vassals.
Daven
Pray.
Days of Awe
10 days from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur a time for introspection and considering the sins of the previous year
Devekut
“Cleaving to God”, aspiring oneness with the Divine through meditative or ecstatic prayer; key concept in Hasidic prayer
Dhimmi
Historical term for non-Muslims (“people of the book”, i.e. Jews and Christians) living in an Islamic state which were afforded some legal protections
Diaspora
The dispersion of Jews throughout the world after the fall of the Second Temple (70 C.E.). Refers to all Jews living outside of Israel.
Dreidel
Spinning top used in a Hanuka game
Elul
The last month of the Jewish year and the final month prior to Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year. This is a month in which to spiritually prepare for the High Holiday season of reflection and repentance.
Ethnoreligion
A grouping of people who share a common religious and ethnic background
Etrog
In Hebrew “Citron.” It is a citrus fruit used in the holiday of Sukkot, one of the “four species.”
First Temple
The temple in Jerusalem from Solomon’s time (10th c.) until the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The First Temple period extends from the 10th to 6th centuries BCE.
Four Species
Fruit and branches used to fulfill the commandment to “rejoice before the Lord” during Sukkot.
Gaon
A Jewish head of one of the Babylonian academies, usually an eminent religious scholar and judicial authority
Geonic Period
(589-1038 C.E.) The Babylonian academies were the chief centers of Jewish learning in the world. Geonic is an adjective derived from gaon, the head of one of those academies.
Get
(pl. gittin) Decree of Divorce
Haftarah
(pl. haftarot) Specific section of the biblical prophets read in synagogue services immediately after corresponding Torah (Pentateuch) section called the parashah.
Halakhah
Jewish law
Hanukah
Literal definition is dedication. This is an eight day holiday celebrating the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem to more traditional modes of Jewish worship by Judah the Maccabee
Haskalah
Jewish rationalistic “enlightenment” in the eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Europe
Hasmonean
Descendents of Hashmon, a Jewish family that included the Maccabees and the high priests and kings who ruled Judea during the Hasmonean period
Hebrew Bible
Also called the Jewish Bible, the Tanakh, Jewish Scriptures, or (by Jews) simply “the Bible,” it contains the same books as the Protestant OT but in a different order. Originally composed in Hebrew (with a little bit of Aramaic.)
Hellenism
Complex linguistic, political, and cultural features that marked the Near East beginning with Alexander the Great
High Holy Days
The period of Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement), marking the end of the Jewish religious year.
Historical Overview
1000 BCE
King David
King Solomon builds Temple
Solomon’s son loses control of North kingdom
Assyria conquers Israel in North
Judah continues as separate kingdom
586 BCE
Babylonian conquest and exile
Cyrus conquers Bab, lets Jews return
Jews rebuild Temple (2nd Temple)
Alexander the Great conquers region
A’s generals divide his empire into 2 smaller empires
Maccabee rebellion, restoring Jewish rule
Rome conquers region
Herod renovates 2nd Temple
~4 BCE
Jesus born (year Herod dies)
70 CE
Romans destroy 2nd Temple after Jews rebel against Roman rule
About 60 years later, the Jews rebel again (Bar Kokhba revolt) and are brutally put down by the Romans