History of Judaism

History of Judaism

Introduction:

Judaism is the religious beliefs and practices and the way of life of the Jews. The term itself was first used by Hellenized Jews to describe their religious practice, but it is of predominantly modern usage; it is not used in the Bible or in Rabbinic literature and only rarely in the literature of the medieval period. The word Torah is employed when referring to the divinely revealed teachings of Jewish law and belief. Judaism is used more broadly, including also the totality of human interpretation and practice.

Thus, one may speak of "secular Judaism," referring to an adherence to values expressed by Judaism but removed from any religious context. The most important holy days in Judaism are the weekly Sabbath, the major holidays of Rosh ha-Shanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkoth (see Tabernacles, Feast of), Simhat Torah, Passover, and Shavuot, and the minor holidays of Hanukkah, Purim, and Tisha B'Av.

Judaism History Period:

The Early Period:

The history of Judaism predates the period to which the term itself actually refers, in that Judaism formally applies to the post-Second Temple period, while its antecedents are to be found in the biblical "religion of Israel." The Bible is no longer considered a homogeneous work; the many traditions represented in it demonstrate variance and growth. While the historicity of the patriarchs' existence and of Moses as the giver of all laws is under question, certain dominant themes can be seen developing in this early period that have importance for later Judaism.
Central to these themes is the notion of monotheism, which most scholars believe to have been the outgrowth of a process that began with polytheism, progressed to henotheism (the worship of one god without denying the existence of others), and ended in the belief in a single Lord of the universe, uniquely different from all His creatures. He is compassionate toward His creation, and in turn humans are to love and fear (i.e., stand in awe of) Him. Because God is holy, He demands that His people be holy, righteous, and just, a kingdom of priests to assist in the fulfillment of His designs for humankind and the world.
Israel's choosiness consists of this special designation and the task that accompanies it. God promises the land of Canaan to Israel as their homeland, the place in which the Temple will be built and sacrificial worship of God carried out. The holy days were the Sabbath, Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkoth; and circumcision, dietary laws, and laws pertaining to dress, agriculture, and social justice characterized the structure of the biblical religion. Three types of leaders existed during this period: the priest (kohen), who officiated in the Temple and executed the laws; the prophet (navi), to whom was revealed God's messages to His people; and the sage (hacham), who taught practical wisdom and proper behavior.

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What is Diversity And What Are The Types of Diversity

Diversity

What is Diversity/Definition of Diversity

The Meaning of diversity nd encompasses acceptance and respect. It means understanding that each individual in unique, and reorganizing our individual difference. These can be along the dimensions if races, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, or other ideologies. It is the exploration of these differences in a safe, positive and nurturing environment. It is about understanding each other and moving beyond simple tolerance to embarrassing celebrating the rich dimensions of diversity contained within each individual.

Types of Diversity

There are so many different types of jobs. for people to work and earn money. There are jobs where people can be leaders and manage companies or even countries. Some people work in jobs that teach or provide services for others. There are many jobs in which people help to keep others healthy and safe too. Some people work in jobs that entertain others. Some people work in manufacturing or trade jobs which provide goods and services to others. Also, some people work without getting paid; they volunteer their time and talents.

Education is the factor for people service. People can attend public or private schools. At a public school in the U.S., the government provides a free and appropriate education for children ages 3-18. At a private school in the U.S., people pay tuition for their schooling. If people want to further their education, they may choose to go to college. Some people attend trade school for training as well. Some people live in countries that place a high value on education. Some people live in countries that limit who is allowed to attend school. And in some countries there are few schools because there is so much poverty.

People take pride in their family heritage. There are many different cultures around the world. Each is special in its own way. Many family traditions and customs are passed down from generation to generation. People are proud of their ancestors and have special foods, songs, holidays, and other traditions they celebrate with their families.

Religion is important to many people. There are many different religions around the world. Some religions are Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. Many people base their beliefs and values upon things they have learned about in their religious teachings.

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Colossus of Rhodes

The  Colossus of Rhodes

Colossus of Rhodes

The Colossus of Rhodes (Greek: Κολοσσός της Ρόδου) was a statue of the Greek Titan Helios, erected in the city of Rhodes, on the Greek island of the same name, by Chares of Lindos between 292 and 280 BC. It is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was constructed to celebrate Rhodes' victory over the ruler of Cyprus, Antigonus I Monophthalmus, whose son unsuccessfully besieged Rhodes in 305 BC. Before its destruction in the earthquake of 226 BC, the Colossus of Rhodes stood over 30 meters (98.4 ft) high, making it one of the tallest statues of the ancient world.

Colossus of RhodesConstruction:

Ancient accounts, which differ to some degree, describe the structure as being built with iron tie bars to which brass plates were fixed to form the skin. The interior of the structure, which stood on a 15 meter (50 foot) high white marble pedestal near the Mandraki harbor entrance, was then filled with stone blocks as construction progressed. Other sources place the Colossus on a breakwater in the harbor. The statue itself was over 30 meters (98.4 ft) tall. Much of the iron and bronze was reforged from the various weapons Demetrius's army left behind, and the abandoned second siege tower may have been used for scaffolding around the lower levels during construction. Upper portions were built with the use of a large earthen ramp. During the building, workers would pile mounds of dirt on the sides of the colossus. Upon completion all of the dirt was removed and the colossus was left to stand alone. After twelve years, in 280 BC, the statue was completed. Preserved in Greek anthologies of poetry is what is believed to be the genuine dedication text for the Colossus.
 To you, o Sun, the people of Dorian Rhodes set up this bronze statue reaching to Olympus, when they had pacified the waves of war and crowned their city with the spoils taken from the enemy. Not only over the seas but also on land did they kindle the lovely torch of freedom and independence. For to the descendants of Herakles belongs dominion over sea and land.
Modern engineers have put forward a plausible hypothesis for the statue construction, based on the technology of those days (which was not based on the modern principles of earthquake engineering), and the accounts of Philo and Pliny who both saw and described the remains.
The base pedestal was at least 60 feet (18 m) in diameter and either circular or octagonal. The feet were carved in stone and covered with thin bronze plates riveted together. Eight forged iron bars set in a radiating horizontal position formed the ankles and turned up to follow the lines of the legs while becoming progressively smaller.

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Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus or Tomb of Mausolus (Greek: Μαυσωλείο της Αλικαρνασσού) was a tomb built between 353 and 350 BC at Halicarnassus (present Bodrum, Turkey) for Mausolus, a satrap in the Persian Empire, and Artemisia II of Caria, who was both his wife and his sister. The structure was designed by the Greek architects Satyros and Pythius of Priene.
The Mausoleum stood approximately 45 m (148 ft) in height, and the four sides were adorned with sculptural reliefs, each created by one of four Greek sculptors Leochares, Bryaxis, Scopas of Paros and Timotheus. The finished structure of the mausoleum was considered to be such an aesthetic triumph that Antipater of Sidon identified it as one of his Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. 
The word mausoleum has now come to be used generically for an above-ground tomb.

Mausoleum at Halicarnassus Conquest:

In the 4th Century BC, Halicarnassus was the capital of a small regional kingdom in the coast of Asia Minor. In 377 BC the ruler of the region, Hecatomnus of Milas, died and left the control of the kingdom to his son, Mausolus. Hecatomnus, a local satrap under the Persians, took control of several of the neighboring cities and districts. After Artemisia and Mausolus, he had several other daughters and sons: they had another\Ada(adopted mother of Alexander the Great), Idrieus and Pixodarus. Mausolus extended its territory as far as the southwest coast of Anatolia. Artemisia and Mausolus ruled from Halicarnassus over the surrounding territory for twenty-four years. Mausolus, although descended from local people, spoke Greek and admired the Greek way of life and government. He founded many cities of Greek design along the coast and encouraged Greek democratic traditions.

Construction of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus:

Artemisia spared no expense in building the tomb. She sent messengers to Greece to find the most talented artists of the time. These included Scopas, the man who had supervised the rebuilding of the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus. The famous sculptors were (in the Vitruvius order): Leochares, Bryaxis, Scopas and Timotheus, as well as hundreds of other craftsmen.

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Statue of Zeus at Olympia

Statue of Zeus at Olympia

The Statue of Zeus at Olympia
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia was a giant seated figure, about 13 m (42 ft) tall,  made by the Greek sculptor Phidias in circa 430-422 BC at the sanctuary of Olympia, Greece and erected in the Temple of Zeus there. A chryselephantine sculpture of plated ivory and gold panels over a wooden framework, it represented the god Zeus sitting on an elaborate cedar wood throne ornamented with ebony, ivory, gold, and precious stones, and was regarded as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World until its eventual loss and destruction during the fifth century AD. No copy of the statue has ever been found, and details of its form are known only from ancient Greek descriptions and representations on coins.

Statue of Zeus at Olympia Loss and destruction:

According to Suetonius, the Roman Emperor Caligula "gave orders that such statues of the gods as were especially famous for their sanctity or for their artistic merit, including that of Zeus at Olympia, should be brought from Greece, in order to remove their heads and put his own in their place."Caligula was assassinated in AD 41. In Rome other interpretations were placed on the phenomenon: according to Suetonius, Caligula's "approaching murder was foretold by many prodigies. The statue of Jupiter at Olympia, which he had ordered to be taken to pieces and moved to Rome, suddenly uttered such a peal of laughter that the scaffolding collapsed and the workmen took to their heels.”

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Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Hanging Gardens of Babylon

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only one whose location has not been definitely established.
Traditionally they were said to have been built in the ancient city of Babylon, near present-day Hillah, Babil province, in Iraq.

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Lighthouse of Alexandria

The Lighthouse of Alexandria

Lighthouse of Alexandria

The Lighthouse of Alexandria, sometimes called the Pharos of Alexandria (in Ancient Greek, ὁ Φάρος τῆς Ἀλεξανδρείας), was a lofty tower built by the Ptolemaic Kingdom between 280 and 247 BC on the coastal island of Pharos at Alexandria, Egypt for the purpose of guiding sailors into the port.
With a height variously estimated at somewhere between 393 and 450 ft (120 and 140 m), it was one of the tallest man-made structures on Earth for many centuries, and was regarded as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Badly damaged by three earthquakes between 956 and 1323, it then became an abandoned ruin. It was the third longest surviving ancient wonder (after the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus and the still extant Great Pyramid of Giza) until in 1480 the last of its remnant stones were used to build the Citadel of Qaitbay on the site.  In 1994, French archeologists discovered some remains of the lighthouse on the floor of Alexandria's Eastern Harbor.

Lighthouse of Alexandria Origin:

Pharos was a small island just off the coast of the Nile Delta's western edge. In 332 BC when Alexander the Great founded the city of Alexandria on an isthmus opposite to Pharos, he caused the island to be united to the coast by a mole[2] nearly a mile long (1260 m) called the Heptastadion ("seven stadia"—a stadium was a Greek unit of length measuring approximately 180 m). The east side of the mole became the Great Harbor, now an open bay; on the west side laid the port of Eunostos, with its inner basin Kibotos, now vastly enlarged to form the modern harbor. Today's city development lying between the present Grand Square and the modern Ras al-Tiin quarter is built on the silt which gradually widened and obliterated this mole, and Ras al-Tiin represents all that is left of the island of Pharos, the site of the actual lighthouse at its eastern point having been weathered away by the sea.

Lighthouse of Alexandria Construction and Destruction:

The lighthouse was constructed in the 3rd century BC. After Alexander the Great died of a fever at age 32, the first Ptolemy (Ptolemy I Soter) announced himself king in 305 BC, and commissioned its construction shortly thereafter. The building was finished during the reign of his son, the second Ptolemy (Ptolemy II Philadelphia). It took 12 years to complete, at a total cost of 800 talents, and served as a prototype for all later lighthouses in the world. The light was produced by a furnace at the top and the tower was said to have been built mostly with solid blocks of limestone. Strabo reported that so stratus had a dedication inscribed in metal letters to the "Savior Gods". Later Pliny the Elder wrote that so stratus was the architect, which is disputed. In the second century AD the satirist Lucian wrote that so stratus inscribed his name under plaster bearing the name of Ptolemy. This was so that when the plaster with Ptolemy's name fell off, So stratus’s name would be visible in the stone.

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