Judaism Vocabulary

Monotheistic

Subscribing to the doctrine or belief that there is only one God.

Bimah

The elevated platform in a Jewish synagogue where the person reading aloud from the Torah stands during the service.

Talmud

Two long collections of Jewish religious literature that are commentaries on the Mishnah, the Hebrew code of laws that emerged about 200 CE.

Zionism

from the name Zion (the historic land of Israel), it is the movement with origins in the nineteenth century that sought to restore a Jewish homeland in Palestine in response to anti-Semitism.

Habiru

An ancient term for "Hebrews"

Hellenization

the adoption of Greek ways and speech as happened in the case of Jews living in the Diaspora.

Havdalah

A religious ceremony that symbolically ends the Shabbat, usually recited over kosher wine or kosher grape juice.

Ark

A repository traditionally in or against the wall of a synagogue for the scrolls of the Torah.

Covenant

A binding and solemn agreement between human beings or between God and his people, holding each to a particular course of action.

Menorah

A candelabra with seven or nine lights that is used in Jewish worship.

Mitzvot

A commandment of the Jewish law.

Hasidism

From the Hebrew meaning "pious", a movement within Judaism founded in eighteenth-century Poland where pious devotion to God is as important as study of Torah.

Halakhic

From the Hebrew meaning "way", Jewish law that covers all aspects of the life of an individual and of the community.

Kosher

From the Hebrew word kaser, meaning "proper". Commonly, it refers to food permitted by Jewish dietary laws. Jews observe kosher laws to remind themselves that they are to be a holy and separate people.

Idolatry

Giving worship to something or someone other than the one, true God.

Rabbi

Hebrew for "My Master" or "My Teacher". A rabbi became known as someone who was authorized to teach and judge in matters of Jewish law.

Shoah

Hebrew for "calamity", it refers to the mass murder of Jews by the Nazis during World War II.

Mezuzah

Meaning "doorpost", a small parchment containing Jewish scripture, usually the Sh'ma, that is placed in a case on or near the right doorframe at the home of an observant Jew.

Holy of Holies

The sanctuary inside the tabernacle in the Temple of Jerusalem where the Ark of the Covenant was kept.

Midrash

The type of biblical interpretation found in rabbinic literature, especially the Talmuds. Midrash assumes that the Scriptures provide answers for every situation and every question in life.

Dead Sea Scrolls

These important texts have revolutionized our understanding of the way the Bible was transmitted and have illuminated the general cultural and religious background of ancient Palestine, out of which both Rabbinic Judaism and Christianity arose.