What do Jews believe?

One God

The foundation is the belief that there is one God, eternal and without physical form, who created everything and is involved with His creation. The Ten Commandments open with “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt” (Exodus 20:2): God is known not only as creator but as the one who acted in history and freed a people.

Torah and commandments

Jews believe that God gave the Torah to Moses at Sinai, together with its oral explanation, later written down in the Mishnah and the Talmud. The Torah contains 613 commandments (mitzvot) – some between a person and God, such as Shabbat and prayer, and many between people, such as honesty in business, charity and caring for the stranger. Judaism is therefore very practical: belief is expressed through how one eats, works, speaks and treats others.

Maimonides’ thirteen principles

In the twelfth century Maimonides summarised Jewish belief in thirteen principles, which became part of the prayer book (as the hymn Yigdal and the “Ani ma’amin” lines). They include: God exists, is one, has no body and is eternal; prayer is directed to God alone; the words of the prophets are true and Moses was the greatest of them; the Torah is from heaven and will not be replaced; God knows people’s deeds and rewards and punishes; the Messiah will come; and the dead will be revived.

Life and hope

The Mishnah teaches that “all Israel have a share in the world to come”, and Jewish sources describe this world as a corridor that leads to the next. At the same time, the focus is on this life – on improving oneself and the world while waiting for an age of peace and knowledge of God.