Judaism (Hebrew: יַהֲדוּת Yahăḏūṯ) is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jewish people.[8][9][10] Judaism evolved from Yahwism, an ancient Semitic religion of the late Bronze Age to early Iron Age,[11] likely around the 6th/5th century BCE.[12][13] Along with Samaritanism, to which it is closely related, Judaism is one of the two oldest Abrahamic religions.
Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of observing the Mosaic covenant, which was established between God and the Israelites, their ancestors.[14] Jewish religious doctrine encompasses a wide body of texts, practices, theological positions, and forms of organization. Among Judaism’s core texts is the Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, a collection of ancient Hebrew scriptures. The Tanakh, known in English as the Hebrew Bible, is also referred to as the “Old Testament” in Christianity. In addition to the original written scripture, the supplemental Oral Torah is represented by later texts, such as the Midrash and the Talmud. The Hebrew-language word torah can mean “teaching”, “law”, or “instruction”,[15] although “Torah” can also be used as a general term that refers to any Jewish text that expands or elaborates on the original Five Books of Moses. Representing the core of the Jewish spiritual and religious tradition, the Torah is a term and a set of teachings that are explicitly self-positioned as encompassing at least seventy, and potentially infinite, facets and interpretations.[16] Judaism’s texts, traditions, and values strongly influenced later Abrahamic religions, including Christianity and Islam.[17][18] Hebraism, like Hellenism, played a seminal role in the formation of Western civilization through its impact as a core background element of Early Christianity.[19]
