Outline of Judaism


The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Judaism:

History

Pre-monarchic period

Monarchic period

United monarchy

Further information:
  • Tel Dan Stele - a stele discovered in 1993/94 during excavations at Tel Dan in northern Israel.
  • Mesha Stele - a black basalt stone bearing an inscription by the 9th century BC ruler Mesha of Moab in Jordan.

Divided monarchy

Kings of Judah
Further information:
Kings of Israel
House of Jeroboam
House of Baasha
House of Zimri
House of Omri
House of Jehu
House of Shallum
House of Menahem
House of Pekah
House of Hoshea

Return from captivity

Development of Rabbinic Judaism

Sacred texts

Written Torah

Oral Torah

  • Oral Torah
  • *Talmud
  • **Jerusalem Talmud
  • **Babylonian Talmud
  • ***Mishnah, the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions known as the "Oral Torah".
  • ****Gemara, rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah
  • ****Aggadah, a compendium of rabbinic texts that incorporates folklore, historical anecdotes, moral exhortations, and practical advice in various spheres, from business to medicine.
  • *Tosefta, a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the late 2nd century, the period of the Mishnah
  • *Midrash, the genre of rabbinic literature which contains early interpretations and commentaries on the Written Torah and Oral Torah, as well as non-legalistic rabbinic literature and occasionally the Jewish religious laws, which usually form a running commentary on specific passages in the Hebrew Scripture.
  • *Midrash halakha
  • Kabbalah and other mystical writings
  • Geonim, presidents of the two great Babylonian, Talmudic Academies of Sura and Pumbedita, in the Abbasid Caliphate, and generally accepted spiritual leaders of the Jewish community worldwide in the early medieval era
  • Rishonim, the leading rabbis and poskim who lived approximately during the 11th to 15th centuries, in the era before the writing of the Shulchan Aruch and following the Geonim
  • Acharonim, the leading rabbis and poskim living from roughly the 16th century to the present, and more specifically since the writing of the Shulchan Aruch in 1563 CE.
  • *Hasidut
  • *Musar literature

Rabbinic literature

Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense, can mean the entire spectrum of rabbinic writings throughout Jewish history. But the term often refers specifically to literature from the Talmudic era, as opposed to medieval and modern rabbinic writing, and thus corresponds with the Hebrew term Sifrut Hazal. This more specific sense of "Rabbinic literature"—referring to the Talmudim, Midrash, and related writings, but hardly ever to later texts—is how the term is generally intended when used in contemporary academic writing. On the other hand, the terms meforshim and parshanim almost always refer to later, post-Talmudic writers of Rabbinic glosses on Biblical and Talmudic texts.

Mishnaic literature

The Mishnah and the Tosefta are the earliest extant works of rabbinic literature, expounding and developing Judaism's Oral Law, as well as ethical teachings. Following these came the two Talmuds:

The Midrash

The midrash is the genre of rabbinic literature which contains early interpretations and commentaries on the Written Torah and Oral Torah, as well as non-legalistic rabbinic literature and occasionally the Jewish religious laws, which usually form a running commentary on specific passages in the Tanakh. The term midrash also can refer to a compilation of Midrashic teachings, in the form of legal, exegetical, homiletical, or narrative writing, often configured as a commentary on the Bible or Mishnah.

Later works by category

Major codes of Jewish law

Halakha

Jewish thought, mysticism and ethics

Liturgy

Later rabbinic works by historical period

Works of the Geonim

The Geonim are the rabbis of Sura and Pumbeditha, in Babylon :

Works of the ''Rishonim'' (the "early" rabbinical commentators)

The Rishonim are the rabbis of the early medieval period, such as the following main examples:

Works of the ''Acharonim'' (the "later" rabbinical commentators)

The Acharonim are the rabbis from 1550 to the present day, such as the following main examples:
for Ashkenazim: Mishnah Berurah by Yisrael Meir Kagan and the Aruch ha-Shulchan by Yechiel Michel Epstein

Classic Torah and Talmud commentaries

Classic Torah and/or Talmud commentaries have been written by the following individuals:
Classical Talmudic commentaries were written by Rashi. After Rashi the Tosafot were written, which was an omnibus commentary on the Talmud by the disciples and descendants of Rashi; this commentary was based on discussions done in the rabbinic academies of Germany and France.

Branches and denominations

Behavior and experience

Holy days and observances

Major
Minor
Fast days

Belief and doctrine

Law

Major legal codes and works

Examples of legal principles

Examples of Biblical punishments

Dietary laws and customs

Names of God

Mysticism and the esoteric

Religious articles and prayers

Conversion

Return to Judaism

Irreligion

Apostasy

Interactions with other religions and cultures