Judaism: Understanding and Connecting with the Jewish Faith
The communities and resources of the Internet are perfect for learning about Judaism, and bringing members of the Jewish faith closer together. This guide will teach you about the oldest of the Abrahamic religions, including sacred Jewish texts, Jewish law, and Jewish holidays. There are also resources for helping Jews practice their religion, and tools for learning about Hebrew, Yiddish and other Jewish languages. It is often difficult to find kosher food and wine, but this guide will make that task easier. With the Internet, Jewish news, Judaica products, Jewish blogs and dating sites are also at your fingertips.
Expand All Guide SectionsThe Jewish Faith
The oldest of the Abrahamic religions, Judaism is, surprisingly, not well understood. The common perception of Judaism is uninformed and made up of stereotypes and superficial facts. This perhaps stems from its non-evangelical nature and the reluctance of some sects of Judaism to teach outsiders about the faith. Fortunately there are many sites that have opened up this ancient faith to the inquisitive mind.
Dulcinea's Insight
- Unlike many other faiths, Judaism is not simply a matter of religious belief but rather encompasses in differing ways the concepts of culture, nationality, history, and, some argue, ethnicity. Being Jewish can mean very different things for different Jews. Use these sites to explore the different perspectives and lifestyles the term includes.
- Many Jewish holidays' exact dates differ slightly depending on whether or not you're in Israel. Make sure which one a Web site is referring to before marking your calendar.
- The sites in this section on Jewish holidays provide overviews and explanations. For practical information on observing these holidays, explore the sites in the "Practicing Judaism" section of this guide.
Dulcinea's Picks
For information about the Jewish religion ...
Judaism 101 is written from an Orthodox perspective but does a good job of educating on all aspects of Judaism. Searchable and organized by topic, all the content headings are tagged for their level of difficulty, so whether you're a beginner, intermediate, or advanced in your knowledge of Judaism, you'll find interesting and appropriate articles on this broad and comprehensive site.
AskMoses.com 's unique "Ask Moses" feature connects you live to an online scholar ready to answer any question you might have about Judaism. The site also has a large number of past questions and answers available for you to browse and search.
Chabad 's clean and slick site is a great resource for anyone interested in Judaism no matter their religion, knowledge base, or involvement in the community. The Hassidic sect's site hosts a wealth of content on almost any aspect of Judaism, and its interaction with the rest of society in particular, such as with the articles in the "Torah and Science" sub-section of the "Ideas and Beliefs" section, accessible through the left navigation bar. You can also connect with the Lubavitch community worldwide using this site.
Project Genesis , housed at Torah.org, brings you all kinds of information about Judaism in a number of ways. Through interesting articles, e-mail based classes, audio, forums, and the "Ask the Rabbi" feature and archives, you can get a truly grand Judaic education here. A bevy of links for online learning, as well as Jewish online greeting cards and other fun tools, complete this rich site.
Religious Tolerance 's site tackles some of the more controversial or sensitive topics related to Judaism, such as its teachings about abortion, homosexuality, and the environment, as well as Christian-Jewish relations. This secular organization's goal is to alleviate tensions between faiths. Its information on the Jewish faith contains nonbiased descriptions of the scriptures, Jewish stories, common Judaic beliefs, historical anti-Semitism, current important Jewish interactions, and even non-theological Jewish groups.
613.org 's site won't win any beauty awards, and its shoddy organization can try your patience, but it nonetheless delivers a large amount of audio and video recordings of Jewish music, speeches, and teachings.
For online Jewish texts ...
Navigating the BIBLE II 's excellent Torah tool displays the original Hebrew with n'kudot (vowel marks) section by section alongside the English translation and transliteration. Clicking on the speaker symbol next to any Hebrew line plays an audio recording of the line being read aloud. This tool is also available with Russian and Spanish translations. Further explore the site for additional tools for Torah study, genealogy, the Jewish calendar, and more.
Mechon Mamre 's somewhat disorganized site has a number of different Torah texts to choose from for English, Hebrew, or Portuguese speakers, with accompanying audio recordings for some. You'll also find other information on Judaism based upon the content of the Judaism 101 site mentioned previously.
The Internet Sacred Text Archive 's Texts of Judaism page has an extensive amount of Jewish texts and commentary available for free online or for sale on DVD-ROM, starting at $20.
For answers on Jewish law ...
On Halacha.net you can pose a question to the resident experts regarding Jewish law, or peruse the archives of past questions, organized by topic. You'll also find Jewish legal forms available to download for free here. The site is also available in Russian.
For information about Jewish holidays ...
Chabad.org gives a listing of the Jewish holidays, some better known than others, with brief summaries and calendar dates. Click a specific holiday to learn the story behind it, how to celebrate it, and recipes for traditional foods specific to the chosen holiday. On the right side of the page there are links specifically to help you find the right dates and times to celebrate for each Gregorian calendar year.
Akhlah.com has an extensive listing of Jewish holidays and is made child-friendly by its illustrated logos, simplistic information, crafts, brief vocabulary lists, fun activities, and more. This site is helpful for parents who want to share the holidays with their children while refreshing their own knowledge on the subject. For the uninitiated, a good place to start is with the "Hebrew Calendar" button at the bottom right of the page, which explains the ways the Hebrew months and years differ from the "civil" (Gregorian) ones.
Practicing Judaism
Practicing Judaism can be tricky, even for the strictest observers. With a lunar calendar, days ... read more »
Learning About Hebrew, Yiddish, and Other Jewish Languages
Hebrew is the holy language of Judaism, the language of the Torah and of prayer. But for hundreds, ... read more »
Finding and Learning About Kosher Food and Wine
The word kosher has crept into the English language retaining most of its original meaning of ... read more »
Being Part of the Jewish Community
The Jewish community is a strong one, but with such a small number of Jews spread over the world, ... read more »
Locating a Synagogue
Finding the right synagogue, or any synagogue at all, can be a challenge. It can seem like an ... read more »
Jewish Dating and Networking Sites
This is the section your mother's been wanting you to read. With the proliferation of Jewish dating ... read more »
Jewish Blogs
Jewish culture is not exactly known for its quiet reserve. Whether kvetching, kvelling, or ... read more »
Finding Jewish News
There is a great tradition of Jewish news, and many Jewish publications have served as a vanguard ... read more »
Judaica Products
Judaism is not lacking in Jewish products. Now location is no impediment to filling your home with ... read more »
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