The Talmud is a collection of rabbinical law, based on the Scriptures and tradition, and also includes stories, medicinal knowledge, debates about moral choices, etc. The law is stated in writings called Mishna (or Mishnah; pl. Mishnayot), completed around 200 CE. The rest of the Talmud, called Gemara, consists of comments on the Mishna, written by hundreds of rabbis between 200 and 500 CE. With the Talmud, Judaism assumed its "final" form, in the sense that no later text has been regarded as authoritative or divinely inspired by the majority of Jews. Rabbinical Judaism is the name for this form
of worship and life discipline, first developed after the fall of the Temple of Jerusalem (70 CE), and persisting to modern times.
Rabbinical Judaism arose out of necessity. The Temple and physical presence in the Holy Land were essential in the old form of Judaism, but both were lost to the Jews after the Romans quashed the rebellions. To keep their religion alive and continuous with the past, rabbis emphasized purity laws and study of the Scriptures, with the promised reward of eventual restoration of the kingdom and resurrection of the righteous, who could thus participate in the national rebirth.
Judaism is a religion that considers actions and behavior the most important, and beliefs less so. It puts little emphasis on formulating a system of beliefs, but it has extensive laws and rules governing not just worship, but practically every aspect of life, from business and interpersonal relationships, to family life, to nutrition and hygiene. It can be described as a program of human action centered around communal celebration of meetings between God and the "chosen people".
There are, however, certain beliefs held by almost all religious Jews: There is one and only God, who created everything and continues to actively intervene in nature and in human affairs. God has chosen the Jewish people for a special relationship (covenant) and given them the Law (Torah); this implies special responsibility: the chosen people will receive great favors from God, but will also suffer great punishment if they fail to abide by the covenant. The ultimate reward is envisioned as the reestablishment of the kingdom in the Holy Land, with the anointed (messiah) king, who will rule in submission to God, and will bring social stability, economic prosperity, and peace.
Modern Jews vary by the extent to which they adhere to traditional beliefs and follow the religious rules of the Torah and Talmud. The three major branches of Judaism, with distinct positions along these dimensions, are the Orthodox, Conservative, and Reformed. Orthodox Jews consider all of the Scriptures divinely inspired (but not as literal, factual truth in the modern sense of the word) and try to follow all the rules of the Talmud. There is, however, a variety of interpretations of both the Scriptures and Talmudic rules, so beliefs and practices are by no means uniform among the Orthodox. The Reformed movement developed under the influence of Enlightenment in 18th century and views the Scripture as a source of wisdom and moral guidance, allowing differing views about its divine origins. The Conservative Judaism, which separated from the Reformed in 19th century, holds the middle ground between the other two.
The European history of the last few centuries has put Judaism into a spotlight in a most unfortunate way - through frequent systematic persecution of Jews. Soon after Christians fully reclaimed Spain from the Moors in 15th century, they expelled all the Jews. Violent persecution of Jews in 19th century Russia, known by the Russian/Yiddish word "pogrom," meaning "massacre," led to a massive wave of emigration to the United States. The worst of all, of course, was the Nazi attempt to exterminate all Jews, which resulted in deaths of the majority of Jews living in German-occupied lands. Even when not subjected to such extreme modes of persecution, Jews in the Christian world were regularly discriminated against and hated as "killers of the Christ." This eventually gave rise to the Zionist movement: convinced that they will never be free and safe in foreign lands, Jews from the late 19th century began returning to Palestine (then part of the Ottoman Empire) with the goal of eventually establishing a Jewish state.
Israel, the modern Jewish state, was established in 1948, but since then, it has been constantly in a state of conflict with Islamic nations that surround it. Ironically, the religious aspect of the conflict is largely rooted in the common origin of the two religions: they both worship the God of Abraham and, consequently, both regard Jerusalem as their Holy City (as do Christians, which was the rationale for the Crusades). Beside the strife between Jews and Arabs, Israel is also experiencing tensions between its secular and religious aspects. It was formed as a secular state by Jews who had grown up in Europe and America, most of whom, regardless of how deeply religious they were, shared an appreciation for separation of religion and government. With time, a sizable and influential minority emerged, intent on using the state to enforce religious laws. Currently, the most fervent religious segments of both Jewish and Arab populations tend to be the most opposed to compromise solutions of the situation in the Middle East.
