halakah (halacha)
Derived from the Hebrew verb halakh, "to go," thus "the way to go". The collective body of Jewish religious law that observant Jews follow. It is derived from both, the 613 precepts (mitzvoth) set forth in the Torah (248 laws are positive commandments and 365 are prohibitions), many of which can only be observed in the land of Israel or while the Jerusalem Temple exists, and the Oral Torah, which includes all the laws decreed by the sages throughout the ages. See Orthodox Judaism, Oral Torah, Talmud.

hasidim, hasidism
Hebrew "pious one". The term may refer to Jews in various periods: (1) a group that resisted the policies of Antiochus Epiphanes in the 2nd century BCE at the start of the Maccabean revolt; (2) Jewish pietists in the 13th century; (3) followers of the movement of Hasidism founded in the first half of the 18th century by Israel Ba'al Shem Tov.

Jehovah
A mistaken attempt by early Christian Bible translators to vocalize the divine name based upon the medieval practice of writing the Hebrew consonants, YHWH, with vowel pointing for "adonai" (Lord). Hebrew readers would automatically say "Lord" upon seeing this word. Jehovah is an artificial word that has fallen out of use. See YHWH.

kashrut kosher
Kashrut are the Jewish dietary laws. (Hebrew kasher became adopted into English as kosher, ritually fit). These laws are largely derived from the book of Leviticus. Only certain animals, birds and fish are acceptable as food, others are not kosher. Ritually fit animals have to be slaughtered a certain way so that the blood is drained most completely and quickly, because the eating or drinking of blood is prohibited. After an inspection by the shochet further removal of any blood is achieved by soaking, salting and rinsing the meat. One of the kashrut laws is the prohibition of cooking or eating meat and milk together. Observant Jews wait up to six hours after having eaten meat or poultry before eating any dairy product. Kashrut transcends the concept of hygiene because it demands discipline and is intended to lead to spiritual cleanliness. Christians cannot expect an observant Jew to participate in their meal. In Christian-Jewish encounters a common kashrut meal can easily be ordered.

Ketuvim or Ketubim
Hebrew for writings, the third and last division of the classical Jewish (Hebrew) Bible (TaNaKh), including large poetic and epigrammatic works such as Psalms, Proverbs and Job, as well as a miscellany of other writings (Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Qohelet, Esther, Daniel, Ezra-Nehemiah, Chronicles). See Tanakh.

messiah
Literally "anointed one", Greek christos. Ancient priests and kings (and sometimes prophets) of Israel were anointed with oil. In early Judaism, the term came sometimes to mean a royal descendant of the dynasty of David, who would restore the united kingdom of Israel and Judah and usher in an age of peace and justice. The concept developed in many directions over the centuries. The messianic age was believed by some Jews to be a time of perfection of human institutions; others believed it to be a time of radical new beginnings, a new heaven and earth after divine judgment and destruction. Followers of Jesus applied the name to Jesus of Nazareth. They were soon called "Christians" in Greek and Latin usage. Jesus is also Messiah in Islam. See eschatology. midrash pl. midrashim
From Hebrew darash, to inquire. It means exposition (of scripture) and refers to the "commentary" or homiletical literature developed in classical Judaism that attempts to interpret Jewish scriptures in a thorough (scholarly) manner or expound it in sermons preached in the synagogue. Literary midrash may focus either on halakah, directing the Jew to specific patterns of religious practice, or on aggada, dealing with theological ideas, ethical teachings, popular philosophy, imaginative exposition, legend, allegory, animal fables, etc. — that is, whatever is not halakah. Mishnah
Hebrew teaching or oral recitation. An important digest of the recommended Jewish oral halakah as it existed at the end of the 2nd century CE and was collated, edited, and revised (orally) by Rabbi Judah the Prince. The code is divided into six major units ("orders") and sixty minor ones ("tractates"). The work is considered the most authoritative legal tradition of the early sages and is the basis of the legal discussions of the Talmud.

Mosaic covenant or Sinai covenant
The covenant God made with the people of Israel in the desert at Mount Sinai after they had been freed from slavery in Egypt and before they entered the land of Canaan. It is best described in Deut. 26:16-19. Israel has chosen God and God has chosen Israel. Israel’s obligations in the covenant were embodied in their acceptance of the Torah. The acceptance of God's and Israel's irrevocable covenant has to be the basis of any new relationship between Christians and Jews. See covenant.

Orthodox Judaism
Refers to the movement that arose in reaction to Reform and Liberal Judaism in the late 18th and 19th centuries. The name was initially given (by their opponents) to Jews who wanted to remain faithful to Torah against the modernizing trends of the time. Orthodoxy is very much based on the religious laws codified in the 16th century Shulchan Aruch. The Pentateuch in its present form is believed to have been revealed by God. Together with this written Torah the oral Torah was revealed, which was eventually compiled in rabbinic literature. While there is conformity in matters of faith and observance, there are different streams of opinion. In Israel orthodoxy is the only recognized religious authority. A number of famous orthodox personalities have warned against participation in the Jewish-Christian dialogue, while they encouraged cooperation in the social area.

Palestine
From Greek for the Philistines, the seacoast population encountered by early geographers. An ancient designation for the area between Syria (to the north) and Egypt (to the south), between the Mediterranean Sea and the River Jordan; roughly, modern Israel. Apparently the name was adopted by the Romans as a way of denying the Jews’ connection to their homeland.

Reform Judaism
Modern movement originating in 18th century Europe which attempts to see Judaism as a rational religion adaptable to modern needs and sensitivities. The ancient traditions and laws are seen as historical relics that need have no binding power over modern Jews. The central academic institution of American Reform Judaism is the Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, and it is represented also by the Central Conference of American Rabbis. Compare Conservative and Orthodox Judaism.

seder
The seder is a special Jewish meal conducted in Jewish households on the night of Passover. Seder means "order" and the text for the conduct of the meal is contained in the "Aggadah" ("telling" of the Exodus) which has numerous editions from those with commentaries of the sages to those filled with pictures for children. However, the basic text and the 15-part order are the same. See Passover.

Talmud
Hebrew for study or learning. Rabbinic Judaism produced two Talmuds: the one known as Babylonian Talmud is the most famous in the western world, and was completed sometime after the 5th century CE; the other, known as the Palestinian or Jerusalem Talmud, was edited perhaps in the 4th century CE. Both consist of commenteries and debates about the interpretation and application of the Mishnah collection of the Tana’im (the early sages)and the Amora’im (the later sages). The Talmud is also known by its Babylonian Aramaic equivalent "Gemara.". See Mishnah, Oral Torah. Tanakh
A relatively modern acronym for the Jewish Bible, made up of the names of the three parts: Torah (Pentateuch or Law), Nevi'im (Prophets), and Ketuvim (Writings) - thus TNK pronounced TaNaKh.

Temple
In traditional Judaism, the only legitimate Temple was the one in Jerusalem. The first Temple was built by king Solomon around 950 BCE, destroyed by the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar around 587/6 BCE, and rebuilt about 70 years later under Zerubabel and dedicated 515 BCE. It was enlarged and improved considerably by king Herod the Great. This second Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE. The site of the ancient Jewish Temple is now occupied, in part, by the golden domed "Dome of the Rock" Mosque. In recent times, "temple" has come to be used synonymously with synagogue in some Liberal or Reform Jewish usage.

Torah
Hebrew teaching, instruction. In general, torah refers to study of the whole gamut of Jewish tradition or to some aspect thereof. In its special sense, "the Torah" refers to the five books of Moses in the Hebrew scriptures (see Pentateuch). (In the Qur'an, Torah is the main term by which Jewish scripture is identified).

YHWH
The sacred name of God which was revealed to Moses together with its meaning, which contains a "program" (Exodus 3:14). It is also known as the tetragrammaton. Since Hebrew was written without vowels in ancient times, the four consonants YHWH contain no clue to their original pronunciation. In ancient Israel the name was only spoken in the Temple, and only on certain occasions (e.g. on Yom Kippur). Today most Jews do not speak the name, instead, other names for God are substituted, e.g. Lord (Hebrew Adonai). In most English versions of the Bible the tetragrammaton is properly represented by LORD. This is most acceptable to Jews. However, in contemporary scholarship and even in some Christian translations of the Bible (Jerusalem Bible) the tetragrammaton is often rendered "Yahweh". In some new translations even the tetragrammaton itself is used. Both these renderings are offensive to many Jews. They hear Christians (often even in their presence in the dialogue) pronounce this special divine name, which they themselves would never dare to speak. It signifies for them the "program" of Israel's special calling and relationship with God, which Christians should learn to respect. See also Jehovah.

Yom Kippur
Hebrew the day of atonement, also called the Sabbath of Sabbaths, the most sacred day in the Jewish calendar devoted to fasting, prayer and confession. It is the culmination of the High Holidays which begin with Rosh HaShanah, the Jewish New Year. They are also called the Days of Awe.

Zionism
From Mount Zion, a hill in the city of Jerusalem. In biblical times already (Isaiah 1:27) and later in rabbinic Judaism it is used to describe the whole of Jerusalem as symbol of a reconstructed Jewish homeland which gathers its exiles around a rebuilt Temple. The "Return to Zion" was expected as God's work. The Zionism of the 19th century used some of the earlier rabbinic motifs, but its definition of peoplehood (Jews are a people like the French or the English etc.) was taken from a contemporary European context rather than from the traditional understanding of the covenantal relationship between God and the people Israel. Many of the early Zionist leaders were atheists or agnostics. Growing antisemitism and, finally, the mass-murders of the Nazis led to more acceptance among religious Jews of human action (rather than waiting for God) to create a Jewish homeland. Zionism has had and still has a variety of meanings, but apart from some Reform and Orthodox fringes, Jews of all persuasions support the State of Israel founded in 1948. A "Christian Zionism" has arisen in evangelical and fundamentalist churches which sees the founding of the State of Israel and the gathering of the Jewish exiles as the first stage of fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies, expected to be followed by the second stage, the return of Christ and the conversion of all Israel to him.