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Torah, Torah

This is expressed in the Talmud, a collection of Jewish traditions and exegesis dating from the 3rd to the 6th centuries CE, and was presumably based on the several verses in the Torah describing Moses writing "torah" (instruction) from God. According to the Encyclopedia Judaica, "The traditional doctrine of Mosaic authorship of the entire Torah has its source in Deuteronomy 31:912, 24, more than in any other passage...The Torah itself contains no explicit statement ascribing its authorship to Moses, while Mosaic attribution is restricted to legal and ritual prescription and is hardly to be found in connection with the narrative material." However, according to Catholic Encyclopedia, the attribution of the Torah to Moses dates as back to the Bible itself, noting the fact that several books of the Bible, reference the Torah as the Book of Moses, Law of Moses, etc, http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11646c.htm and can also be found in the New Testament.

Statements implying belief in Mosaic authorship of the Torah are contained in Joshua, Joshua 1:7-8 Kings, 1 Kings 2-3 and 2 Kings 23:21 and 25 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles 8:13, 34:14 and 35:12 Ezra Ezra 3:2 and 6:18 and Nehemiah.

In the Babylonian Talmud Gittin 60a it is written "Said R' Yochanan, the Torah was given in a series of small scrolls," implying that the Torah was written gradually and compiled from a variety of documents over time.

Menachem Mendel Kasher points to certain traditions of the Oral Torah that showed Moses quoting Genesis prior to the epiphany at Sinai. Based on a number of Bible verses and rabbinic statements, he suggests that Moses had certain documents authored by the Patriarchs that he made use of when redacting that book. See Torah Shelemah, Mishpatim Part 3 summarised by Gil Student | here According to Moses Maimonides, the 12th Century rabbi and philosopher, Moses was the Torah's author, receiving it from God either as divine inspiration or as direct dictation in the Hebrew year 2449 AM (1313 BCE). Eighth and ninth principles of Maimonidies' 13 Principles, Artscroll Daily Siddur, page 75.

The majority of modern scholars believe that the Torah is the product of many hands, stretching over many centuries, reaching its final form only around the 6th and 5th centuries BCE.

These various texts were brought together as one document (the Five Books of Moses of the Torah) by scribes after the exile.

On the way, they camp at Mount Sinai/Horeb where Moses receives the Torah, including the Ten Commandments, from God, and mediates His laws and Covenant (Exodus 19-24) the people of Israel. Exodus also deals with the violation of the commandment against idolatry when Aaron took part in the construction of the Golden Calf (Exodus 32-34). Exodus concludes with the instructions on building the Tabernacle (Exodus 25-31; 35-40).

The Talmud says that God dictated four books of the Torah, but that Moses wrote Deuteronomy in his own words (Talmud Bavli, Meg. 31b). All classical beliefs, nonetheless, hold that the Torah was entirely or almost entirely Mosaic and of divine origin. For more information on these issues from an Orthodox Jewish perspective, see Modern Scholarship in the Study of Torah: Contributions and Limitations , Ed. Shalom Carmy, and Handbook of Jewish Thought , Volume I, by Aryeh Kaplan.

The division of parashot found in the modern-day Torah scrolls of all Jewish communities (Ashkenazic, Sephardic, and Yemenite) is based upon the systematic list provided by Maimonides in Mishneh Torah, Laws of Tefillin, Mezuzah and Torah Scrolls , chapter 8. Maimonides based his division of the parashot for the Torah on the Aleppo Codex.

As such the Torah is "dressed" often with a sash, various ornaments and a crown (customs vary among synagogues and denominations). Congregants traditionally stand when the Torah is brought to be read.

Jews point to texts of the Torah, where many words and concepts are left undefined and many procedures are mentioned without explanation or instructions; the reader is required to seek out the missing details from the oral sources.

Thus they hold that even as small a mark as a kotzo shel yod ( ), the serif of the Hebrew letter yod (), the smallest letter, or decorative markings, or repeated words, were put there by God to teach scores of lessons. This is regardless of whether that yod appears in the phrase "I am the Lord thy God" ( , Exodus 20:2) or whether it appears in "And God spoke unto Moses saying" ( , -; , . Exodus 6:2). In a similar vein, Rabbi Akiva, who died in 135 CE, is said to have learned a new law from every et () in the Torah (Talmud, tractate Pesachim 22b); the word et is meaningless by itself, and serves only to mark the accusative case. In other words, the Orthodox belief is that even apparently contextual text "And God spoke unto Moses saying..." is no less important than the actual statement.

A number of verses from the Qur'an are claimed to refer to Muhammed as the promised prophet to be found in the Torah. , The Torah in the Qur'an is always mentioned with respect in Islam. The Muslims' belief in the Torah, as well as the Prophethood of Moses, is one of the fundamental tenets of Islam.

Source: Wikipedia > Torah