Quiz Study Guide 1/17/2012 7:30:00 AM
Judaism:
Apocalypse
From the Greek word for ‘unveiling’
The final battle between darkness and light expected at the end of
time.
Apocalyptic literature flourished in the Hellenistic era.
o It also tends to be very eschatological in nature.
Berith
Hebrew term for covenant (contract)
The special relationship between God and the Jewish people.
Diaspora
The Jewish world outside of Israel.
It began with the Babylonian exile, from which not all Jews
returned.
One philosopher wrote about Diaspora saying that the Torah
remained very important but Diaspora thinkers tried to show that it
agreed with Greek philosophy.
Documentary Hypothesis
The 1894 theory that the Pentateuch was not written only by Moses
but compiled over a long period of time from multiple sources.
Although most people disagree with this hypothesis, it tends to
serve as a basis for current research.
Eschatology
Doctrine concerning the end of the age.
The term comes from the Greeks, and it means ‘study of the end’
Ancient Hebrews were not overly focused on what happens after
death. This idea came much later.
Exile
The deportation of Jewish leaders from Jerusalem to Mesopotamia
by the Babylonians in 586 BCE.
Disrupting local Israelite political, ritual, and agricultural
institutions. It marked the transition from Israelite religion to
Judaism.
Exodus The migration of Hebrews from Egypt (where they were slaves)
under the leadership of Moses.
o God asks Moses to ask for the Hebrews to be released from
Egyptian control, when they refuse God sends a plague that
only affects the Egyptians, so they are able to escape. They
lived as nomads for 40 years.
o This is the time when the 10 Commandments were created.
o Since the Temple was destroyed the Hebrews worshipped in a
tent called the Tabernacle, which held the Arc of the
Covenant.
Understood to be the start of the Israelite nation.
Menorah
The 7 branched candle stick.
Jewish symbol since ancient times, even before the Star of David.
Modern version is called the Hanukiah, it has 9 branches and is
used at Hanukkah.
midrash
Commentary or interpretation of the Torah
Most are line-by-line interpretations following along with the Biblical
text. Some follow the schedule of weekly biblical readings for the
synagogue.
When a new interpretation is written, it is added to existing ones.
Rather than just replacing them.
Mishnah
The Hebrew summary of the oral law. Inherited from Pharisais and
ascribed to Moses. It is arranged by topic.
o Agriculture, Festivals, Women, Damages, Rituals, and
Purifications.
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