Judaism

Jews are perhaps the most persecuted community in the world. Their persecution has happened at different places, at different times, and for different reasons.

Judaism, the religion followed by Jews, came into existence more than four thousand years ago. In a genocide called the Holocaust, sixty lakh Jews were systematically killed under the Nazi regime of Hitler during the Second World War. This was about one-third of the world Jewish population.

The Holocaust was the darkest chapter in Jewish history in the 20th century. Poison gas chambers were among the primary tools of mass murder used at the Nazi killing centers.

This event deeply shaped modern Jewish identity and global awareness of antisemitism.

After World War II, many Jews believed that for the Jewish people and culture to survive,

Jews needed to live in their own country, where all Jews from anywhere in the world would have the right to live and be citizens. In 1947, the United Nations proposed dividing Palestine into an Arab state and a Jewish state. In 1948, the State of Israel was established in the land that was once called Canaan, surrounded by countries with predominantly Muslim populations.

Since Palestinian Arabs also claimed rights to the land where the Jews were living, there was conflict, which continues to this day in the Middle East.

Today, nearly fourteen million Jewish people live all over the world. Approximately half of them live in the United States, one-quarter live in Israel, and one-quarter are still scattered around the world in countries in Europe, Russia, South America, Africa, Asia, and other North American and Middle Eastern countries.

Judaism began with a covenant between God and the Hebrew people through Abraham in the Middle East. Abraham is considered the father of the Jewish faith because he promoted the central idea of the Jewish faith that there is one God. At that time, many people in the Middle East worshipped many gods.

In Judaism, God is an indivisible, non-physical creator of the universe, often referred to as YHWH or HaShem. Judaism is a strictly monotheistic religion, focusing on a direct, personal relationship with a benevolent, all-knowing God, who is believed to be formless and supreme. God has no physical form or body, making it forbidden to make images of God.

God is considered the creator and source of all morality. Despite being divine, God allows individuals to develop a personal relationship through prayer and obeying commandments.

Hebrews are an ancient Semitic-speaking people and the ancestors of modern Jews, originating from Mesopotamia and settling in Canaan. They are identified as the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Israel), known as Israelites during the biblical period (c. 2nd millennium BCE) and Jews after the Babylonian exile.

It is said that Abraham and his wife Sarah, who were old and childless, were told by God that their children would be as plentiful as the stars in the sky and that they would live in a land of their own—the Promised Land. The descendants of Abraham came to be known as the Israelites.

According to the biblical narrative, Israelites were enslaved in Egypt after a new Pharaoh took over. He feared that their growing numbers could pose a threat to his kingdom. The Egyptian authorities forced Jews into harsh labor, like building cities using brick and mortar.

The Jewish God chose Moses to lead his people to freedom. Moses went to Egypt and delivered to the Pharaoh God’s message, “Let my people go.” Pharaoh refused and, as a punishment, God brought ten devastating plagues upon Egypt, including blood, locusts, darkness, and finally, the death of the firstborn.

Pharaoh finally relented and released them. They were pursued but escaped when Moses miraculously parted the Red Sea, allowing them to cross, while the pursuing Egyptian army was drowned. While the Exodus is largely considered ahistorical by scholars, the story reflects a narrative of severe oppression. Some evidence exists of Semitic slaves (known as Canaanites) in Egypt during the Middle Kingdom.

At Mt. Sinai, God gave Moses the Law, which guides the Israelites to this day. The Ten Commandments are an important part of the Torah and form a central part of Jewish law and ethics. The Ten Commandments are:

·       Worship no other God but Me.

·       Do not make images to worship.

·       Do not misuse the name of God.

·       Observe the Sabbath Day (Saturday). Keep it Holy.

·       Honour and respect your father and mother.

·       Do not murder.

·       Do not commit adultery.

·       Do not steal.

·       Do not accuse anyone falsely. Do not tell lies about others.

·       Do not envy others’ possessions.

It took many years for the Israelites to finally get to what they thought was the Promised Land—Canaan. After some fighting, the Jews established the Israelite kingdom. After many years, Canaan was conquered by the Assyrians, the Babylonians, and then eventually the Romans.

The Israelites once again found themselves in exile, this time under the Babylonians. The Israelites were then taken over by the Romans, who destroyed much of what had been built in Jerusalem by the Israelites. Most of the Jews were scattered all over the region and eventually moved from place to place to avoid persecution. The dispersion of the Jews is called the Diaspora.

There are many reasons for Jewish persecution at different times and in different places. In ancient times, Jews followed Judaism, one of the earliest monotheistic religions. When Christianity emerged, there were deep disagreements. Some Christians blamed Jews for the death of Jesus Christ (a claim modern historians reject and many churches have formally renounced). Jews did not accept Jesus as the Messiah, which created long-standing religious tension.

They often lived as small minorities in other societies. Minorities are sometimes unfairly blamed during crises (wars, plagues, economic problems). For example, during the Black Death, Jews were falsely accused of poisoning wells.

In medieval Europe, Jews were often restricted from owning land or joining many professions. Some became moneylenders because Christians were discouraged from lending money with interest.

This led to resentment about wealth and control.

When things went wrong—plagues, economic crashes, political instability—Jews were often used as scapegoats. Governments or rulers sometimes encouraged this to redirect public anger. This made Jewish communities easy targets for violence and expulsion.

In the 18th–20th centuries, as nationalism grew, people began to define identity based on ethnicity, language, and culture. Jews were often seen as “outsiders” who didn’t fully belong, even if they had lived there for generations. During this period, prejudice shifted from religion to race.

Jews were falsely labeled as an inferior or dangerous “race.”

Conspiracy theories spread about Jews controlling governments or economies.

It’s not that Jews couldn’t settle—it’s that they were often forced out. They were expelled from countries like England, Spain, and parts of Europe. Legal restrictions were placed as to where they could live. So Jewish communities became highly mobile out of necessity, not choice.

In simple terms, Jews were persecuted because of a mix of religious differences and being a visible minority.

Judaism is considered an ethnic religion, and Jews often describe themselves as a family or a nation (Am Yisrael) rather than a biological race. Jewish identity is complex, combining components of religion, culture, and ancestry.

Orthodox Jews believe that all of the practices in the Torah which it is practical to obey must be obeyed without question.

Conservative and Reform Jews believe that the ancient laws and practices have to be interpreted for modern life with inclusion of contemporary sources and with more concern with community practices than with ritual practices.

Reform Jews also allow everyone to sit together, men and women, and both Hebrew and the local language are spoken in services.

The Tenakh is the ancient collection of writings that are sacred to the Jews. They were written over almost a thousand years, from 1000 to 100 BCE. The word Tanakh comes from the first letters of the names of its three sections: the Torah, plus the Nevi'im (Prophets) and the Ketuvim (Writings, which include histories, prophecies, poems, hymns, and sayings).

The Torah is written on scrolls and kept in a special cabinet called the Aron HaKodesh, the Holy Ark, in synagogues. The Torah is read with a pointer called a yad (hand) to keep the scroll from being touched directly. Each week, one section is read until the entire Torah is completed, and the reading begins again.

The Talmud is also an important collection of Jewish writings, developed and compiled over several centuries. It is a recording of the rabbis' discussion of the way to follow the Torah at that time.

Later texts, the Mishneh Torah and the Shulhan Aruch, are important codifications of Jewish law from later periods.