The Torah is the most important book in Judaism. The word Torah means “instruction” or “teaching” in Hebrew, and it is the foundation of many Jewish beliefs, values, traditions, and practices. The Torah consists of the first five books of the Tanakh, which is also known as the Jewish Bible or, in Christian communities, as the Old Testament.
The five books of the Torah are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Together they tell the story of the Jewish people from the creation of the earth and the foundation of a new people to their enslavement in Egypt and forty years of freedom in the desert, and finally a new covenant, or sacred agreement, between God and the Jewish people.
Related: A Tour of the Torah
The Torah is either printed in a book called the Chumash or written by hand on a parchment scroll known as the Sefer Torah. It's divided up into 54 sections known as parashot, and Jews around the world read the same portion each week in synagogue. Some communities read the entire Torah every year, while other communities spread it out over three years.
The holiday of Simchat Torah (meaning the joy of Torah) comes at the end of Sukkot every fall and celebrates reading the final portion of the Torah. Jews sing and dance with the Torah and then start all over again with the first story in Genesis!
(One final note: sometimes the word Torah is used to mean all of the oral and written teachings and laws in Judaism.)
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Simchat Torah
April 30, 2025