Judaism

Judaism is the religion of the Jewish people. According to their sacred literature, especially the Tanakh and Talmud, the religion of ancient Israel and their descendants, the Jews, is based on a covenant between God and Abraham (ca. 2000 BCE) and the renewal of the covenant with Moses (ca. 1200 BCE). It is one of the first recorded monotheistic faiths, and it is one of the oldest religious traditions still practiced today. The values and history of the Jewish people are a major part of the foundation of other Abrahamic religions such as Christianity, Islam, as well as Samaritanism and the Bahá'í Faith.
Judaism has seldom, if ever, been monolithic in practice (although it has always been monotheistic in theology), and differs from many religions in that its central authority is not vested in any person or group but rather in its writings and traditions. Despite this, Judaism in all its variations has remained tightly bound to a number of religious principles, the most important of which is the belief that there is a single, omniscient, omnipotent, omnibenevolent, transcendent God, who created the universe and continues to be involved in its governance. According to traditional Jewish belief, the God who created the world established a covenant with the Jewish people, and revealed his laws and commandments to them in the form of the Torah. The practice of Judaism is devoted to the study and observance of these laws and commandments, as written in the Torah, as well as those found in the Talmud. As of 2006, adherents of Judaism numbered around 14 million followers,[1] making it the world's eleventh-largest organized religion.