Theo

God promised that from Abraham and his family would come a great nation, and that all families of the earth would be blessed through him.

Hebrews - A tribal people, living in the land of modern-day Israel, who would become the Israelites, and eventually, the Jewish people.

This faith of Abraham developed into monothe-ism, or the belief that only one God exists.

Abraham: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

Amazingly, Abraham's wife, Sarah, did give birth to a son, whom she named Isaac. (Another son of Abraham by a different woman was Ishmael, from whom Muslims believe they are descended.) Isaac married, and his wife, Rebekah, had a son, Jacob, to whom God later gave the name Israel, meaning "one who has contended with divine and human beings."

Hebrews.Later they became known as the Israelites, called this because of the new name God gave to Abraham's grandson Jacob.

Israelites - The descendants of Abraham and his son Isaac, who become God's Chosen People.

patriarchs - The father or leader of a tribe, clan, or tradition. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were the primary patriarchs of the Israelite people.

matriarchs - The mother of a tribe, clan, or tradition. Sar-ah, Rebekah, Rachel, and Leah were the primary matriarchs of the Israelite people.

Jacob had twelve sons altogether, with his favorite being his beloved Joseph.

Joseph, however, was so talented that he gained great authority and status in Egypt.

Years after he had been sold into slavery, Joseph forgave his brothers for what they had done to him, and he invited them and his father to leave the famine-stricken Canaan and join him to live comfortably in Egypt.Under a series of kindly Egyptian pharaohs, or kings, the Israelites (Jacob's descendants) continued to live prosperously in Egypt.

Old Testament - The Christian name for the first main section of the Bible, which contains the writings that record God's Revelation to the Chosen People.

New Testament - The name for the second main section of the Bible, which contains the books whose central themes are the life, teachings, Passion, death, Resur-rection, and Ascension of Jesus Christ and the beginnings of the church.

The Old Testament contains many different types of writings: symbolic stories, religious histories, poetry, the words of the prophets, and collections of wise advice, to name a few.

The New Testament focuses on Jesus Christ. It begins with the four Gospels, which each give an account of the life, death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

This chapter focuses on the part of the story covered in the Hebrew Scriptures or Old Testament.

We cannot understand Christianity without understanding the meaning of Jesus' life and mes-sage. And we cannot do this without understanding his Jewish roots.

Some Christians have promoted stereotypes of Jewish people.

And most horrible of all, approximately six million Jews were killed by citizens of a predominantly Christian country during World War II. Things have improved in the last fifty years. The Catholic Church has asked forgiveness for the sins against Jewish people. Catholic and Jewish leaders are working together to build a future that is marked by mutual respect as brothers and sisters worshipping one God.

Chosen People The Jewish people, with whom God chose to have a special bond.

covenant In general, a solemn agreement between human beings or between God and human beings in which mutual commitments are promised to each other.

To reach all humanity, thousands of years ago God chose to have a special bond with one group of people as a people, acting in their history. Those people were the Jewish race, known also as the Israelites. Through them, God intended that all human beings might eventually come to know and love God.

Like marriage promises (which are even called a marriage covenant), God's covenant with the Jewish people was a pledge of faithfulness forever—a pledge that God would never give up on them and would love them "in good times and in bad."

Siddhartha Gautama founded Buddhism and eventually became known as the Buddha."

"I mean Jesus was a Jew, and he became the founder of Chris-tianity. And Christians and Jews use some of the same religious words like covenant and sin."