The bedrock of normative Judaism has always been strict monotheism—the belief that there is numerically only one God, the God of Israel, whose name is YHWH, usually written as “Yahweh.” This belief in one God is what made a Jew a Jew. It distinguished Jews from their neighbors, who during antiquity were polytheistic.Jews have always believed that their faith is expressed so resolutely in what they call “the Shema.” Recorded in their scriptures, it reads, “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, … [Read more...]