Made up of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, the Torah is a holy text for the Jewish people. Sometimes the word Torah refers to the whole Hebrew Bible, which Christians call the Old Testament. The word Torah can also mean all the teachings of the religion of Judaism.

Five books

The five books of the Torah are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. These books are also called the Pentateuch. The Torah begins with the story of the creation of the world. It goes on to explain and interpret the laws of God. Those laws include the Ten Commandments.

Jews believe that God gave the laws of the five books to Moses on Mount Sinai. Moses was a prophet and teacher of the ancient Hebrew people, who were the ancestors of modern Jews.

All Jewish synagogues, or places of worship, keep a copy of the five books of the Torah. The copy is written by hand on parchment scrolls (long, rolled-up sheets of animal skin). Each synagogue keeps its Torah in a special cabinet called an ark. During most synagogue services a member of the congregation reads from the Torah. Most synagogues read the entire Torah in one year. The cycle for reading the Torah begins and ends on the day after Sukkoth, a harvest festival.

Jewish teachings

In Hebrew the word Torah means “to teach” or “to show the way.” In that sense all Jewish teachings—both written and oral, or unwritten—are part of the Torah.

That broad definition of Torah can include the Hebrew Bible, the Talmud, and other Jewish traditions. The Hebrew Bible contains written Jewish teachings. The Talmud contains teachings that the ancient Hebrews learned by talking to one another. Rabbis, or Jewish teachers, eventually wrote down those oral (spoken) teachings in the Talmud. Other Jewish traditions include ceremonies and customs that may not be written down. Jews believe that those traditions contain important teachings as well. (See also Judaism, “Beliefs.”)