Facts and information
The Jewish faith is around 3500 years old. It is the religion that started Christianity.
The first five books of Moses is called the Torah. This is known to Christians as the ‘Old Testament’.
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Their understanding of god
Jews believe in one God who lives forever.
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How it began
Judaism began with Abraham and Moses in the Middle East. Jews believe that God made an agreement with Abraham. The agreement was that Jewish people would always worship God only, and they would be his chosen people.
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About worship
The synagogue is the main place for Jews to worship.
Jews pray 3 times a day; in the morning (Shaharit), afternoon (Minhah) and evening (Ma’ariv).
The Shabbat is a holy day, when Jews are not allowed to work. The Shabbat starts half an hour before sunset on Friday evening and ends on Saturday night
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How many people believe in this faith?
There are different kinds of Judaisim, they are called:
- Haredim
- Hasidic
- Orthodox
- Masorti
- Progressive
There are around 13 million Jews in the world, most live in Israel or America. There are around 267,000 Jews living in the UK, 1,831 of them live in Tower Hamlets.
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| Diet
Jewish rules about food are called kashrut. The rules say that some food is kosher (which means allowed) or treif (which means forbidden).
Kosher (allowed) foods include:
- meat from sheep, cows, deer
- fish (if it has scales and fins)
- meat from birds (except birds of prey)
- eggs (except eggs from birds of prey)
- fruit
- vegetables
Treif (forbidden) foods include:
- meat from pigs, like bacon or pork
- meat or eggs from birds of prey
- fish without scales or fins, like prawns
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