Terms : Hide Images
| 354591676 | Ark of the Covenant | A gold-covered box containing the Ten Commandments. Priests carried it in processions and then housed it in the tabernacle within the Holy of Holies. | |
| 354591677 | Ashkenazim | Yiddish-speaking Jews who settled in central and northern Europe. The term in Hebrew referred to Germany. | |
| 354591678 | bar (bat) mitzvah | The ceremony that recognizes a thirteen year-old Jewish boy (or girl within the Reform tradition) as a son (or daughter) of the commandment. He (or she) is considered an adult responsible for certain religious duties. | |
| 354591679 | Canaan | The ancient name for the area of modern day Israel; the land to which Abraham was called by God. | |
| 354591680 | Conservative Judaism | A branch of Judaism that attempts to blend the best of old and new Judaism. | |
| 354591681 | covenant | The binding agreement between God and his chosen people; it was repeatedly renewed and, unlike a contract, has no expiration date. | |
| 354591682 | Days of Awe | Ten days in the fall of the year when Jews observe Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish new year) and a period of prayer and self-examination ending with Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). Also known as the High Holy Days. | |
| 354591683 | diaspora | A Greek word referring to the dispersion of Jews beyond Israel, especially to Persia, Egypt, and the Mediterranean region. | |
| 354591684 | Essenes | A reclusive semimonastic Jewish group that flourished from c. 150 B.C.E. to 68 C.E. | |
| 354591685 | Hanukkah | The eight-day celebration in early winter near the end of the solar year. With the lighting of candles, this holiday commemorates the lights in the rededicated Temple (164 B.C.E.) after Antiochus IV of Syria desecrated it during the Maccabean revolt. | |
| 354591686 | Holocaust | An offering brought to a deity and completely burnt. The term now refers to the attempted extermination of Jews by the Nazis in Germany during World War II. Jews use the Hebrew "Shoah," meaning "extermination," to name this event. | |
| 354591687 | Kabbalah | Meaning "received" or "handed down," this term refers to the entire body of Jewish mystical literature. | |
| 354591688 | kashruth | Jewish dietary regulations. | |
| 354591689 | kosher | Meat that has been properly prepared for eating. One requirement is that most of the blood be removed from the meat. | |
| 354591690 | Messiah | The one, sent from God, whom the Jews expected to come and deliver Israel from oppression and establish a kingdom of righteousness. It can refer to a historical person or to a supernatural being. | |
| 354591691 | midrash | Rabbinic exposition or commentary explaining the meaning of the scriptures and of oral law. The root meaning of the term is "to search out." | |
| 354591692 | Mosaic law | The ancient law of Hebrews contained in the Pentateuch and given, according to tradition, to the Hebrews by God following their liberation from Egyptian slavery. | |
| 354591693 | Orthodox Judaism | The most traditional branch of modern Judaism. | |
| 354591694 | Passover (Pesach) | A Jewish holiday in the spring that joyfully celebrates God's deliverance of the Hebrew people from slavery in Egypt, and especially God's protection of them from the death of the firstborn, during the time of Moses. | |
| 354591695 | Pharisees | A group of Jews who represented the piety of the common people and emphasized the observance of biblical rules during the centuries immediately after the Maccabean war. | |
| 354591696 | prophet | A person inspired by God to speak in his name. Examples are Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Hosea, and Amos. | |
| 354591697 | rabbi | In Judaism, a teacher. After 70 C.E., they were ordained interpreters and leaders of Judaism. | |
| 354591698 | Reconstructionist Judaism | A modern liberal branch of Judaism that emphasizes the cultural aspects of Judaism. | |
| 354591699 | Reform Judaism | A movement beginning in the nineteenth century that questioned and modernized Judaism; a liberal branch of Judaism. | |
| 354591700 | Rosh Hashanah | "Beginning of the year"; The first of the Days of Awe, Tishri 1 and 2, that marks the Jewish new year. This holiday celebrates God's creation of the world and emphasizes prayer and self-examination. | |
| 354591701 | Sabbath | "Rest"; the seventh day of the week (from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday) during which one spends time praying and resting from work. | |
| 354591702 | Sadducees | An influential priestly faction during the Second Temple period, these Jewish leaders claimed allegiance to the priestly descendents of | |
| 354591703 | Zadok, | a priest in the days of King David. These wealthier Jews followed only the Torah. | |
| 354591704 | scribe | From the centuries after the Babylonian captivity of the Jews, these figures were trained scholars, particularly in Torah studies. | |
| 354591705 | Seder | "Order"; The meal of unleavened bread eaten after sundown at the beginning of Passover. The meal symbolically commemorates the exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt. | |
| 354591706 | Sephardim | Jews who lived in medieval Spain until expelled in 1492. Those who refused to become Christians moved to North Africa, Italy, and especially Turkey, where Sultan Bayzid II admitted them gladly. | |
| 354591707 | Shavuot | A holiday that marks the early harvest and commemorates God's giving of the Ten Commandments. | |
| 354591708 | Shema | Hear. The beginning word of Deuteronomy 6:4, "Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone." | |
| 354591709 | Tanakh | The complete Jewish bible, comprising three parts: Torah—"teachings"; Nevi'im—"prophets"; and Kethuvim—"writings." | |
| 354591710 | Talmud | An encyclopedic commentary on the Hebrew scriptures. | |
| 354591711 | tefillin | Phylacteries; two small boxes containing biblical passages that are worn by Orthodox males on their head and left arm at morning prayer during the week. | |
| 354591712 | Torah | "Teachings"; including an oral tradition handed down through rabbis and the first five books of the Hebrew (and Christian) bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. | |
| 354591713 | Western Wall | Found in Jerusalem, it is the platform or foundation stones of the last Temple in Jerusalem, which was destroyed by the Romans in 70 C.E. Today, it is a place of prayer. | |
| 354591714 | yarmulke | The skull cap worn by devout males. | |
| 354591715 | Yom Kippur | The tenth day of the Days of Awe, this holiday is a twenty-four hour period of fasting when Jews stand or kneel in prayer much of the time in the synagogue. | |
| 354591716 | Zionism | A movement led by Jews to provide a home country for themselves. Theodor Herzl was a leader at the end of the nineteenth century. Today refers to those who zealously support the nation of Israel. |
