Pre-History Of Judaism

Question 1

What is their religious text?

Answer 1

The Torah

Question 2

Is the Torah important?

Answer 2

Yes, the Torah is extremely important

Question 3

What can the Torah also mean?

Answer 3

Can mean either, Jewish Law, Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament

Question 4

What are Judaism’s origins?

Answer 4

They come from Near Eastern Origins

Question 5

What kind of religion is it?

Answer 5

It is an ancient monotheistic religion

Question 6

What can be used as a way of remembering history?

Answer 6

Stories can be used as a way of remembering history

Question 7

What are the features of modern Judaism?

Answer 7

There are numerous variations, these include:
Orthodox Judaism
Reformed Judaism
Conservative Judaism

Question 8

What are the common features of Judaism?

Answer 8

There are common origins, beliefs and practices

Question 9

What is modern Judaism?

Answer 9

A reconstruction

Question 10

Is Judaism one of the oldest religions?

Answer 10

Yes, it is one of the oldest religions

Question 11

Where do Jews worship?

Answer 11

In Synagogues

Question 12

Who at their spiritual leaders?

Answer 12

Rabbis

Question 13

Where did Judaism stem from?

Answer 13

It stemmed from on of the three religions found with the covenant with god

Question 14

Is it a symbolic religion?

Answer 14

Yes, it is a symbolic religion that stems from their history

Question 15

What can Judaism be considered as?

Answer 15

It can be considered as a cultural or ethnic group with a variety of customs and beliefs

Question 16

How many books are there in the Torah/what does it feature?

Answer 16

The first 5 Books of Moses

Question 17

Is Judaism a political community?

Answer 17

No, it is not a political community

Question 18

What is an important event in deciding when Judaism began?

Answer 18

Exile is extremely important when deciding when Judaism began

Question 19

What changes after or with the exile? (5)

Answer 19

1. No political entity after exile - no political state for the longest part
2. Forces people to reconsider who they are and how they define themselves
3. Their notion of god changes with exile
4. Lost their homeland
5. Lost the temple - rebuilt later

Question 20

Is the exile the start of everything?

Answer 20

It is not the start of everything as there are text before that

Question 21

What is an important factor when discussing when Judaism began?

Answer 21

The bringing together of texts is important in deciding when Judaism began

Question 22

When did the bringing together of texts happen?

Answer 22

This happened after exile

Question 23

When did the beginning of exile begin?

Answer 23

Beginning of Judaism began after exile

Question 24

Would Jews venerate other gods?

Answer 24

Yes, they would venerate other gods as well as Yahweh and so we cannot call it a monotheistic religion

Question 25

Is this a religion that can be developed?

Answer 25

Yes, it is constantly developing

Question 26

Was Judaism a monotheistic religion before exile?

Answer 26

No, it was not a monotheistic religion before exile

Question 27

Is it a developing religion?

Answer 27

Yes, it is a developing religion for there is not a complete new start but something that happens over time and cultivates

Question 28

What is the definition of canonisation?

Answer 28

Canonisation means something that is no longer changed (or it is extremely difficult to change) thus the text is usually accepted

Question 29

When was the Torah believed to have been canonised?

Answer 29

Believed to have been canonised around 400 BC

Question 30

What period is 400 BC?

Answer 30

It is the second temple period

Question 31

When were the history books and prophets canonised?

Answer 31

Around the 1sr century CE

Question 32

When do we start to reach firm ground?

Answer 32

We do not reach firm ground before 9th CE canonisation

Question 33

What did biblical texts say more about?

Answer 33

The presence of authors

Question 34

Where are the Abrahamic stories mostly centred?

Answer 34

In the south

Question 35

How do we talk about events?

Answer 35

We talk about events through writing them down in your history

Question 36

Is exodus wholly historical?

Answer 36

Exodus is not wholly historical for we simply do not know whether it actually happened

Question 37

Where are the Jacob stories centred?

Answer 37

In the north

Question 38

Can you combine stories?

Answer 38

Yes, you can combine stories into one big story

Question 39

Is there evidence that exodus happened?

Answer 39

There is not evidence that exodus happened

Question 40

Can we claim that exodus is a historical event?

Answer 40

We cannot claim that exodus is a historical event that led to the formation of Judaism because there is no evidence

Question 41

Are there places that mentioned within texts that simply could not have existed at the time?

Answer 41

Yes, there are places which could not have existed at the time therefore there is a problem with historicity

Question 42

How were stories made?

Answer 42

Through different topics by different people