Who started Judaism—Abraham, Moses, the Israelites at Sinai, or the rabbis after the Temple’s fall?
From smashing idols to parting seas, accepting a covenant to rebuilding in exile, each shaped a tradition of faith, freedom, purpose, and continuity. Across millennia, each forged part of a living tradition—a story renewed in every generation that chooses to carry it forward.
Essential Questions
- Who truly “started” Judaism, and why might the answer depend on whether we see Judaism as a faith, a people, or a way of life?
- How did Abraham, Moses, Sinai, and the Rabbis each contribute something essential to the Jewish story?
- What does it mean that Judaism “begins again” in every generation, and how might that shape our identity today?
Big Ideas
- Judaism wasn’t created in one moment, it grew layer by layer through belief, peoplehood, law, and tradition.
- Each generation added something new. Abraham brought faith, Moses brought freedom, Sinai gave purpose, and the Rabbis made Judaism survive everywhere.
- Judaism keeps going because we keep choosing it — every generation has to say “yes” again in their own way.
