Jewish People
JEWISH PEOPLE. This entry discusses the sociological dimension of Judaism, in particular "Israel" in the historical sense of ʿam Yisraʾel (the "people of Israel," the Israelites). The article seeks to describe the factors shaping the transformation of Jewish peoplehood from the biblical period to modern times.
The Jews constitute a fellowship mandated and sustained by the Jewish religious tradition, a fellowship viewed in modern times as a social entity in its own right. In what sense Jewry is to be considered a nation or ethnic group depends on how these terms are defined. The Hebrew terms for nation, goi, leʿum, and above all ʿam, were applied to the collectivity in the Bible, where Israel is said to be "like all the nations" (1 Sam. 8:5) yet "a people dwelling alone and not reckoning itself among the nations" (Num. 23:9). This conceptual duality reappears in later eras.
Historical circumstances periodically intruded on the parameters of membership in the Jewish people. From time to time, uncertainty and even conflict have occurred as to who is a Jew (and who is not) according to Jewish law and more informal mores, the criteria for inclusion, the theological significance of Jewish survival, and exactly which religious actions or principles of faith were required of a Jew.
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