Judaism

Judaism is the oldest monotheistic religion in the world, having originated in the Middle East more than 3,000 years ago with patriarch Abraham.

As the first Abrahamic religion, Judaism has played a major role in shaping the history of the world, having greatly influenced the development of Christianity and Islam, despite having always had a relatively small amount of adherents by comparison.

The religion itself is built off of the "written Torah" of the Bible, known in Judaism as the Tanach, and the "oral Torah" of the Mishna, Talmud and other great works of leading rabbis throughout history.

Judaism itself has no single leading figure, and is divided into multiple streams, such as the ultra-Orthodox (haredi), Orthodox, Conservative and Reform. Further differences also exist along the lines of historic Diasporic communities, such as Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jewry.

Today, the largest concentration of adherents of Judaism can be found in Israel, with the US having the second-largest.

Jerusalem highlights: January 30-February 5

What's new to do in Israel's capital?

JANUARY 30, 2026|ByHAGAY HACOHEN

Ginat Rice in Jerusalem.

RED HEIFER

What honoring our parents teaches us about faith, logic, and Judaism

The mitzvah of honoring one's parents is not a narrow religious demand but a foundational moral duty.

JANUARY 30, 2026|ByMOSHE TARAGIN

Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar with Indian Ambassador J.P. Singh.

Grapevine, January 30, 2026: Closing a circle

Movers and shakers in Israeli society.

JANUARY 30, 2026|ByGREER FAY CASHMAN

Shabbat candles

Shabbat candle lighting times for Israel and US

See Shabbat times for your area.

JANUARY 30, 2026|ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF

This week in Jewish history: Nobel prize winners, biochemists, and the Baba Sali

A highly abridged weekly version of Dust & Stars – Today in Jewish History.

JANUARY 17, 2026BySTEVEN DRUCKER

Baba Baruch, heir of Baba Sali, speaks to prime minister Yitzhak Shamir during traditional ceremonies in Netivot, 1988.

The high price of not listening: What Pharaoh teaches us about power and humility

Pharaoh ignored every warning until his nation collapsed. His mistake isn’t ancient, it’s painfully familiar today.

JANUARY 17, 2026ByMOSHE TARAGIN

Statue of a mans head wearing headphones.

What a German-Jewish scholar can tell us about pro-Mamdani Jews today

DIASPORA AFFAIRS: The parallels between 1920s Munich and New York (and other places around the US and the world) are glaringly obvious and ominous.

JANUARY 16, 2026ByHANNAH BROWN

‘WHAT I do think is highly likely is that Jews who are “visibly Jewish” will be the ones to pay the price for the normalization of antisemitism and the demonization of Zionism in New York.’ Here, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani attends a news conference at NYPD headquarters earlier this month.

Shabbat candle lighting times for Israel and US

See Shabbat times for your area.

JANUARY 16, 2026ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF

Shabbat candles

Parashat Va’era: Why being good is the secret strength we forget

Why does Moses step aside for Aaron during the first plagues? The answer reveals a profound Torah teaching about humility and gratitude.

JANUARY 16, 2026ByRABBI SHMUEL RABINOWITZ

Parsha.

Editor's Notes: Future of Jewish Diaspora should follow spirit of 'October 8 Jewry'

For world Jewry, October 7, 2023, was that violent intrusion. The worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. What followed on October 8 was something nobody predicted: a mass awakening.

JANUARY 16, 2026ByZVIKA KLEIN

‘WHAT ARE the effects, in Israel, in the US, and the rest of the world, of the perceived opinions of American Jewry?’

'The struggle that Israel faces is increasingly the battle for hearts and minds of the world'

Opening the Jerusalem Post Miami Summit, Rabbi Zalman Lipskar honored his father’s vision while calling on world Jewry to embrace pride, responsibility, and partnership with Israel.

JANUARY 15, 2026ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF

Rabbi Zalman Lipsker, Rabbi and spirtual leader of the Shul

The war in Israel is in a lull, but Jewish soldiers are still fighting in Ukraine

Chernetsky says he continued fighting so that no one would say that Jews didn't fight.

JANUARY 15, 2026ByMICHAEL STARR

One of the Jewish soldiers fighting in Ukraine.

Conservative Judaism’s new line on intermarriage is a great start. What comes next is key - opinion

Belonging is not declared. It is rebuilt and demonstrated, slowly, through consistency, humility, and courage. If the movement is willing to do that work, genuine repair is possible.

JANUARY 15, 2026ByADAM POLLACK / JTA

Conservative Judaism has been trying to chart a middle path between Jewish tradition and acceptance of the reality of interfaith families.

Zionism built on shared responsibility, not ideological conformity - opinion

Zionism thrives when it aligns with the Jews who are willing to carry it forward and not on nostalgic ideals.

JANUARY 14, 2026ByJONATHAN GUTTENTAG

Zionist youth congress in Budapest.