Torah History Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Torah History - Research Paper Example This paper discusses the probable history of Torah, a holy book of the Jews. In Hebrew, Torah means to demonstrate belief or decree. In general, terms â€Å"Torah† means Judaism written law and oral law. Torah first originated with Moses when God first spoke to him from the mount of Sinai, 50 days after their escape from Egyptian slavery. Jewish tradition believed that the book was dedicated to Moses except the last eight verses of Deuteronomy that talks of Moses death. According to Telushkin (2008), Torah shows how God wants Jews to live, and it contains 613 commandments that guide Jews way of life. Torah is written in Jewish language, which is the oldest Jewish language. It consists of the first five books of the Jewish bible also called the Pentateuch. However, some scholars believe that Torah has multiple authors, and it is a blend of four separate sources. It is believed that it was written in the 450 BCE and its sources include the Jahwist, Elohist, the Deutronomist and the priestly source. There is no deduction for this since many other authors have come up with their hypothesis of the evolution of Torah with no one consensus reached for it (Telushkin, 2008). ... Between fourth and second BC unknown authors came up and wrote about some prophets who had preceded them in many centuries. For instance, the book of Psalms, Jonah and Proverbs could not connect to the prophets they ascribed. Thus, the oldest part of Manual dates back 916 AD. In the second century Ad, some Jewish leaders incorporated all the materials they could find and prepared a Jewish bible. The Jewish oral laws remained unwritten until the third century Ad when Yahudah committed them into writing with a title â€Å"Mishnah.† Jews believed that together with the Torah Moses received from God as written law, he received some unwritten law that Jews needed to move from generation to generation. They called it Torah She bal Pei or Torah from the mouth. In Hebrew language, Pei numerically stands for 80 years, which is the age that Moses was when he led the Jews out of slavery. Torah from the mouth helped Jews to understand the method to observe the written law. According to Rh odes Jewish Museum, the oldest written Torah is about 800 years old. A comparison of the oldest Torah in the world with the current Torah reveals the following differences. First, the 800 year-old Torah has 45 lines per column while the present Torah has 42 lines per column. Secondly, the 800 year-old Torah consists of elongated letters while in the present Torah only certain letters are elongated. Thirdly, the 800 year-old Torah was written using an clear style that was last used about 400 years ago called â€Å"Petuhot.† Current Torahs use closed system between words called â€Å"stumot.† Fourthly, the primordial Torah has the word â€Å"yud† with an extra point or protrusion, which is absent in the current Torah, (Rhodes Jewish Museum, 2012). To establish a Torah, one needed to