What does the Torah teach?
The Torah is the key text in Judaism. Specifically, it refers to the five books which make up the beginning of the Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible. In a more general sense it may sometimes be used simply to indicate the entire body of Jewish law, including the Tanakh, the midrash and the Talmud. The five books of the Torah are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. These books are all ascribed to Moses, as told to him directly by God. The Torah gives the history of the world and the Jewish people, as well as the 613 laws passed down to them. Some of the laws of the Torah are not given directly, but are hinted at sufficiently that later teachers derived the laws and recorded them ultimately in the Talmud. When the Torah was revealed to Moses is a matter of some debate. Some hold that all five books were given to Moses during his communion with God on Mount Sinai in 1280 BCE. Others believe the books were given to Moses by God throughout his life. Still others believe that the maj
