Worksheets and No Prep Teaching Resources Reading Comprehension Worksheets World Religion

What Is Judaism? World Religion

---

What Is Judaism?
Print What Is Judaism? Reading Comprehension with Sixth Grade Work

Print What Is Judaism? Reading Comprehension


Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 6 to 8
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	6.55

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		adultery, bimah, globe-shaped, hanukkah, non-Jew, pagoda, passover, repentance, rosh, siddur, sukkot, tallit, yarmulke, rampage, hateful, covenant
	content words:		Being Jewish, Hebrew Bible, Ten Commandments, Their Sabbath, In Budapest, Dohany Synagogue, Kaifeng Synagogue, Rosh Hoshanah, Jewish New Year, Yom Kippur

---

What Is Judaism? By Colleen Messina

---

¹     According to Jewish tradition, in the ancient city of Ur, a boy named Abraham boldly hit clay statues with a hammer. They shattered. Bits of clay flew about the room. His father had made the clay idols, but Abraham didn't like them. He believed in one God. Abraham broke the statues when his father left him in charge of his store. He destroyed all the idols...except one.
 
²     Abraham did something mischievous next. He placed the hammer in the surviving idol's hands! Abraham's father was probably furious when he discovered what his son had done. Abraham blamed the last idol on the rampage, and his father said, "These idols can't do anything on their own, so you must have broken them!" Abraham then had a good argument for his belief in one God since his father had finally admitted that the idols were useless. He survived his father's wrath and became one of the patriarchs, or founders, of Judaism.
 
³     Judaism is an old religion and is based on the belief in one God. It is at the heart of both Christianity and Islam. It began with Abraham about 3,500 years ago. Abraham lived in what is now Iraq. When he grew up, he tended flocks of sheep and wandered around the desert looking for water and pastures. Jews believe that God spoke to Abraham and made a covenant, or bargain, with him. Jews believe that God made them his chosen people.
 
⁴     Abraham's people were called Hebrews, and later, Israelites. Being Jewish can mean different things to different people. For some, it means being born into a Jewish family and growing up with Jewish culture. For others, it also means following a way of life based on the values of the Torah. These laws apply to all parts of life, even food. The food that strict Jews eat is called kosher, which means fit.

Paragraphs 5 to 11:
For the complete story with questions: click here for printable

---

Weekly Reading Books

Create Weekly Reading Books Prepare for an entire week at once!

---

Feedback on What Is Judaism?

Leave your feedback on What Is Judaism?   (use this link if you found an error in the story)

---

World Religion

World Religion

---

Social Studies

Social Studies

United States History and Theme Units         American Government         Ancient America         Ancient China         Ancient Egypt         Ancient Greece         Ancient India         Ancient Mesopotamia         Ancient Rome         Biographies         Canadian Theme Unit         Country Theme Units         Crime and Terrorism         Economics         European History: 1600s-1800s

Explorers         Famous Educators         Geography         Grades 2-3 Social Studies Wendy's World Series         History of Books and Writing         History of Mathematics         How Can I Help?         Inventors and Inventions         Middle Ages         Renaissance         World Religion         World War I         World War II         World Wonders

Copyright © 2025 edHelper