Thank you for visiting. This article is the fifth installment (the final one) in a series explaining the original texts of Judaism.
In the previous articles, I have looked at Judaism’s original texts and faith. In this final installment, I make head-on the comparison of the “three great monotheisms” — Judaism, Christianity, and Islam — which I have touched on here and there, and together explain the branches within Judaism and the mysticism “Kabbalah.”
For an overview map of Judaism’s original texts as a whole, please see this summary article.
A Common Root — All from One God
First, what I want to confirm is the fact that the three religions share astonishingly much. Conflict alone tends to draw attention, but their root is one.
- They believe in one God (they are not polytheistic)
- They revere in common the father of faith, “Abraham”
- They make Moses a great prophet, and share the Bible’s stories such as the creation and Noah’s flood
- Both Christianity and Islam acknowledge Judaism’s scripture (the Tanakh = the Old Testament) as their foundation
That is, the three religions are not entirely separate things, but “siblings” branching from the same great tree of monotheism. Precisely for this reason, their differences also stand out.
The Origins of Religion: Why We Needed a ‘God’View on Amazon →
A Complete History of Philosophy and ReligionView on Amazon →
A Comparison Table of the Three Great Monotheisms
Now let us compare the three religions by major points of view. While holding a common root, where they part can be seen at a glance.
| Point of view | Judaism | Christianity | Islam |
|---|---|---|---|
| Formation | ~13th c. BC | 1st c. | 7th c. |
| Central figure | Moses | Jesus | Muhammad |
| Name of God | Yahweh (God) | God | Allah |
| Main scriptures | Tanakh, Talmud | Old & New Testament | Qur’an, Hadith |
| Position of Jesus | Not acknowledged as Messiah | Son of God, the savior | One of the prophets |
| The savior (Messiah) | Not yet come (awaited) | Already come (= Jesus) | Jesus returns at the end |
| Ground of salvation | Practice of the Law (commandments) | Faith in Jesus | Submission to God and good works |
| Sacred day | Saturday | Sunday | Friday |
| Main holy places | Jerusalem | Jerusalem, Rome | Mecca, Medina |
| Proselytizing | Hardly any | Done actively | Done actively |
Lining them up this way, one can see well how the three religions, while sharing the same elements, vary their “answers” a little at a time.
Three Decisive Dividing Points
Among the many differences, three especially core questions divide the three religions.
The first question is “Who is Jesus?” Judaism does not acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah, Christianity makes him the Son of God and savior, and Islam positions him as one of the prophets. This is the greatest branching point at which Christianity separated from Judaism.
The second question is “By what is a person saved?” Whereas Judaism and Islam value “doing the Law and commandments,” Christianity preached that “one is saved by faith in Jesus.” It is a contrast of Judaism and Islam, which value practice, with Christianity, which values faith.
The third question is “Has God’s revelation now been completed?” Each religion makes its “most important prophet” Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad respectively, and thinks that revelation was completed and concluded with itself.
Judaism’s Journey — Dispersion and Return
Finally, let me briefly look back at Judaism’s “afterward.” The Jews, having lost the Temple in AD 70, left their homeland and scattered around the world. This is called the “Diaspora (dispersion).”
Without land or state, the Jews suffered repeated, severe persecution in various lands. Especially in the 20th century, in the Holocaust by Nazi Germany, about 6 million are held to have had their lives taken. After this history of suffering, in 1948 the state of “Israel” was founded on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean, coming to have their own country for the first time in about 2,000 years. That the problem surrounding the holy city of Jerusalem continues even now is on the extension of this long history.
The Branches of Judaism — How to Face the Law
Modern Judaism is not monolithic. By how they answer the question of “how to reconcile the Law (Halakhah) with society since the modern age,” it is largely divided into three currents.
| Branch | Standpoint |
|---|---|
| Orthodox | Keep the Law strictly. Do not change it, as God-given. Includes the ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) |
| Conservative (Masorti) | While valuing tradition, acknowledge gentle change suited to the present |
| Reform | Value ethics, and leave ritual law to individual judgment. Born in 19th-century Germany |
The most traditional is the Orthodox, who keep the Sabbath and kosher strictly. Among them, the ultra-Orthodox (Haredi), known for their distinctive black dress, and the people of Hasidism, who value piety and joy, keep a strongly traditional life. On the other hand, the Reform, born amid modernization, emphasize harmony with modern society. Even within the same Judaism, the range of its practice is great.
Kabbalah — Judaism’s Mysticism
Apart from the practice of the Law, Judaism has a tradition of mysticism, “Kabbalah,” that tries to approach God’s hidden essence.
The central original text of Kabbalah is the “Zohar (the Book of Splendor),” which appeared in Spain in the 13th century. It is attributed to the teaching of the ancient sage Simeon bar Yochai, but in fact is thought to have been compiled by Moses de León.
Famous in the Kabbalistic worldview is the diagram called the “Sefirot.” This represents, in a diagram like a tree of life, how God’s power flows out into this world through 10 stages (sefirah), from the infinite God beyond human knowledge, “Ein Sof.” Difficult yet mystical, its thought influenced later Western mystical thought and the occult, and even modern pop culture, becoming another deep face of Judaism.
The Holy City of Jerusalem, Where the Three Religions Meet
What most symbolically shows that Judaism, Christianity, and Islam have “the same root” is the holy city Jerusalem. This one city is a holy place of the highest class for each of the three religions.
| Religion | Holy place in Jerusalem |
|---|---|
| Judaism | The Temple Mount and its retaining wall, the “Western Wall.” A remnant of the former Temple, the most sacred place of prayer |
| Christianity | The Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The place where Jesus is held to have been crucified, buried, and resurrected |
| Islam | The Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The holy place where Muhammad is held to have ascended to heaven (the Night Journey) |
What should be noted is that the holy places themselves physically overlap — as in, Islam’s holy place, the “Dome of the Rock,” stands atop Judaism’s holy place, the “Temple Mount.” The reality that, though religions looking up to the same God (the God of Abraham), conflict over their holy places continues even now, tells more eloquently than anything that the three great monotheisms are in a relationship of “being close like siblings, and therefore deep in conflict too.”
How Strong Are the Characters? — the Strongest Ranking
The gods and heroes who appeared in this article are also introduced in order of strength in the “Mythology, Religion, and Legend Strongest Ranking.” Please enjoy both their activity in the original texts and their “strength.”
To Learn More
Here are some related books. Reading them alongside this series lets you savor this world even more deeply.
An Illustrated Introduction to the World’s 5 Great MythologiesView on Amazon →
World Mythology for Beginners (illustrated)View on Amazon →
Conclusion
In this article, I explained in detail the comparison of the three great monotheisms, and Judaism’s branches and Kabbalah. How was it?
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, while being “sibling religions” sharing the same one God and Abraham, came to part over three questions — who is Jesus, by what is one saved, and who is the final prophet. The one standing at their oldest source is Judaism.
And modern Judaism, holding a wide range of practice from Orthodox to Reform, and also holding mystical thought like Kabbalah, forms a deep world.
With this, all six articles of the Judaism original-texts series are complete. I hope you have savored the world of the mother religion of all three great monotheisms.
Besides Judaism, I also explain the original texts of Christianity, Islam, and the mythologies of Greece, India, and more. For the full list, please see the Summary of the World’s Mythology and Religion Original Texts.
For the strength of the gods and heroes, please also refer to this ranking article.
I hope you’ll read the next article too.
📚 Series: The Original Texts of Judaism (6/6)
