Changes

==Israel==

==Israel==

While the Kassites were in control of Babylon, the oldest religion that is still active today began: Judaism.  The ancient Hebrews were descendants of Abram (later in his life his name became "Abraham", meaning "father of many"), who lived in Ur around 2000 B.C., and his wife Sarah, through their son Isaac and Isaac's son Jacob.  Later the name of the ancient Hebrews became known as the "Israelites", once the kingdom of the Hebrews was established with the crowning of King David around 1000 B.C.  But Israel did not remain intact as a nation in the ancient world; after the reigns of King David and his son Solomon it split into two kingdoms, and then was captured and taken into captivity.  Beginning with the terminology in the Book of Esther, which was written between 200 and 300 B.C., the people of the former Israel became known as the "Jewish people," or the "Jews".  Judaism did not exist before Abraham, and it is not known where his ancestors lived in the prior millennium; they could have lived throughout the Middle East, including ancient Egypt.

While the Kassites were in control of Babylon, the oldest religion that is still active today began: Judaism.  The ancient Hebrews were descendants of Abram (later in his life his name became "Abraham", meaning "father of many"), who lived in Ur around 2000 B.C., and his wife Sarah, through their son Isaac and Isaac's son Jacob.  Later the name of the ancient Hebrews became known as the "Israelites", once the kingdom of the Hebrews was established with the crowning of King David around 1000 B.C.  But Israel did not remain intact as a nation in the ancient world; after the reigns of King David and his son Solomon, it split into two kingdoms, and then was captured and taken into captivity.  Beginning with the terminology in the Book of Esther, which was written between 200 and 300 B.C., the people of the former Israel became known as the "Jewish people," or the "Jews".  Judaism did not exist before Abraham, and it is not known where his ancestors lived in the prior millennium; they could have lived throughout the Middle East, including ancient Egypt.

The timeline is easy to remember:  Jesus (6 B.C. to about A.D. 30) lived half-way between Abraham (2000 B.C.) and today (A.D. 2009).  King David and the founding of Israel was halfway between Abraham and Jesus.

The timeline is easy to remember:  '''Jesus (6 B.C. to about A.D. 30) lived half-way between Abraham (2000 B.C.) and today (A.D. 2009).  King David and the founding of Israel was halfway between Abraham and Jesus.'''

The conflict between the Hebrew (Jewish) and Arab peoples in the Middle East and throughout the world is described by some as a family feud.  Both sides are descended from the same father, Abraham, as described in Genesis 16.  But Jewish and Arab peoples trace their lineage from different sons of Abraham who were rivals for their father's love.  The Bible states that Jewish people are descendants of Isaac, the child of Abraham and Sarah.  The Koran (the main holy book of Islam) states that Arabs are descended from Ishmael, the son of Abraham (then Abram) and the Egyptian woman Hagar.  The Old Testament teaches that Abraham offered to sacrifice Isaac to the Lord, while Islam teaches that Abraham's sacrifice was of Ishmael.  Islam teaches that Ishmael helped Abraham build a mosque in Mecca (the venerated Kaaba).  Ishmael went a different way from the rest of Abraham's family, and there have been hard feelings by Ishmael's descendants ever since.  Note that the Bible's version came first, preceding the Koran by over a thousand years.

The conflict between the Hebrew (Jewish) and Arab peoples is described by some as a family feud.  Both sides are descended from the same father, Abraham, as recounted in Genesis 16.  But Jewish and Arab peoples trace their lineage from different sons of Abraham who were rivals for their father's love.  The Bible states that Jewish people are descendants of Isaac, the child of Abraham and Sarah.  The Koran (the main holy book of Islam) states that Arabs are descended from Ishmael, the son of Abraham (then Abram) and the Egyptian woman Hagar.  The Old Testament teaches that Abraham offered to sacrifice his son Isaac to the Lord, while Islam teaches that Abraham's sacrifice was of his son Ishmael.  Islam teaches that Ishmael helped Abraham build a mosque in Mecca (the venerated Kaaba).  Ishmael went a different way from the rest of Abraham's family, and there have been hard feelings by Ishmael's descendants ever since.  Note that the Bible's version of this was written first, preceding the Koran by over a thousand years.

The ancient Hebrews who were descended from Jacob migrated away from Ur in Mesopotamia to Palestine, where they resided in about 1500 B.C.  But they migrated over to Egypt to escape a bad famine.  There they generally served as slaves for over 400 years, though they undoubtedly contributed greatly to the intellectual progress of the Egyptian culture.  As described in the Book of Exodus, Moses (who had been adopted by a royal family there) ultimately led 600,000 Hebrews out of Egypt around 1250 B.C.<ref>1250 B.C. is known as the "late date" or estimate for the time of the Exodus; the "early date" or estimate for the Exodus is 1447 B.C.</ref>  Egyptian historians refer to slaves and captives called "Hapiru", but and some doubt that these were the Hebrews.  Regardless, the Bible contains many verified references to the Egyptian pharaohs demonstrating that the Jewish ancestors were in Egypt.  The Hebrews' escape from Egypt is called the "Exodus", and is described by that book in the Old Testament.  During the passage, Moses received the Ten Commandments from God on Mount Sinai. (In Manhattan today there is a famous medical school on the upper East Side named "Mount Sinai.")  Moses is also credited as being the scribe for the first five books of the Bible (the "Pentateuch" or, in parchment scroll in the Jewish liturgy, the "Torah").

The ancient Hebrews who were descended from Jacob migrated away from Ur in Mesopotamia to Palestine, where they resided between 2000 and about 1500 B.C.  But they migrated over to Egypt to escape a bad famine.  There they served as slaves for perhaps hundreds of years, though they undoubtedly contributed greatly to the intellectual progress of the Egyptian culture.  As described in the Book of Exodus, Moses (who had been adopted by a royal family there) ultimately led 600,000 Hebrews out of Egypt around 1250 B.C.<ref>1250 B.C. is known as the "late date" or estimate for the time of the Exodus; the "early date" or estimate for the Exodus is 1447 B.C.</ref>  Egyptian historians refer to slaves and captives called "Hapiru", but some doubt that these were the Hebrews.  Regardless, the Bible contains many verified references to the Egyptian pharaohs demonstrating that the Jewish ancestors were in Egypt.  The Hebrews' escape from Egypt is called the "Exodus", and is described by that book in the Old Testament.  During the passage, Moses received the Ten Commandments from God on Mount Sinai. (In Manhattan today there is a famous medical school on the upper East Side named "Mount Sinai.")  Moses is also credited as being the scribe for the first five books of the Bible (the "Pentateuch" or, when part of a parchment scroll in the Jewish liturgy, the "Torah").

The dates given below are imprecise, and the homework encourages you to improve on them:

The dates given below are estimates, and the homework encourages you to improve on them:

{|class="wikitable"

{|class="wikitable"

|1921 B.C.

|1921 B.C.

|-

|-

|Abraham to Israel

|Abraham to Palestine area

|1921 B.C. to 1690 B.C.

|1921 B.C. to 1690 B.C.

|-

|-

|1447 or 1270 B.C.

|1447 or 1270 B.C.

|-

|-

|Enter Promised Land

|Entering the Promised Land

|1400 or 1230 B.C.

|1400 or 1230 B.C.

|-

|-

|}

|}

While most ancient peoples worshiped many pagan (non-existent) gods, the Hebrews worshiped only one God (but even the Hebrews had false gods – note the Second Commandment).  The Hebrews referred to God as "Yahweh" (or "Jehovah"), and to this day some observant Jewish people consider it improper to write the name of God and instead write "G-d".  "Yahweh" simply means "I am who I am," written in the Hebrew language (which lacks vowels) as YHWH.  ("Yah" by itself means simply, "I am.")  It is the name God instructed Moses use at the encounter at the miraculous burning bush that continued to burn without destruction in Exodus 3:14:  "God said to Moses, 'I AM WHO I AM'; and He said, 'Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"

While most ancient peoples worshiped many pagan (non-existent) gods, the Hebrews worshiped only one God (but even misbehaving Hebrews had false gods – note the Second Commandment).  The Hebrews referred to God as "Yahweh" (or "Jehovah"), and to this day some observant Jewish people consider it improper to write the name of God, and instead they write "G-d".  "Yahweh" simply means "I am who I am," written in the Hebrew language (which lacks vowels) as YHWH.  ("Yah" by itself means simply, "I am.")  It is the name God instructed Moses to use at the encounter at the miraculous burning bush that continued to burn without destruction in Exodus 3:14:  "God said to Moses, 'I AM WHO I AM'; and He said, 'Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"

It remains a mystery as to precisely when the books of the Old Testament were written, but here are some estimates for several of the most prominent books:

It remains a mystery as to precisely when the books of the Old Testament were written, but here are some estimates:

{|class="wikitable"

{|class="wikitable"