Crook/Single God, 5. Jewish Theology and Theological Writings

Jewish mythological and theological narratives of their origins reveal the view that God was active in the world, creating it, teaching it, punishing it, choosing a people to be uniquely loyal to him and serve as beacons in the world, and promising to stand by them. These foundation narratives tell us about the Jewish view of God. Jewish theology has a long and rich tradition, but this short chapter can offer just a few of the central components of Jewish theology: monotheism, covenant and election, sin and repentance, messiah, Kabbalah, and afterlife. From there we turn to a survey of the writings that are central of the construction of Jewish religious life: Torah and Talmud.