Invitation to World Religions

Contents xv

ZOROASTRIANISM IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY 377 CONCLUSION 378

11 Judaism 383

THE TEACHINGS OF JUDAISM 385 God 385 Torah 387 Covenant and Election 388 Israel 390

The Messiah and the Messianic Age 391 The Afterlife 391 Jewish Mysticism 392

THE HISTORY OF JUDAISM 394

Dispersion, Assimilation, and Collective Identity 395 The Biblical Period 395 The Second Temple Period 397 The Formative Age 399 The Conflict Between Judaism and Christianity 401 The Age of Philosophy and Mysticism 402 The Modern Era 407 Reform Movements in Europe and the United States 408 The Shoah and the State of Israel 412 Religious Conflict and the Future of Zionism 415 Diaspora Judaism Reinvents Itself 416 The Renewal Movement 417 GLOBAL SNAPSHOT: Judaism in India 419 VOICES: An Interview with Ms. Avigayil Halpern 423 The Minor Festivals 426 The Sabbath 428 Life-Cycle Events 429 Other Sacred Practices 433 Prayer 434 JUDAISM IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY 436 CONCLUSION 438

JUDAISM AS A WAY OF LIFE 420 The Major Festivals 421 THE TEACHINGS OF CHRISTIANITY 447 The Life of Jesus 448 The Teachings of Jesus 450 PROPERTY OF OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 12 Christianity 445